SWD SL40

[Jason McGrath]

Thanks for the report! I’ve received the new pack and taken it on a short trip. Frame is so easy to remove and replace! Even easier than my movement. I do this all the time for peak bagging.

[Nicholas P]

Tom and Jason, I’m curious how you are liking the sewn in hip belt?  I almost pulled the trigger on the Sl40 but now that the movement comes with 2 tubular frame stays,  I’m wondering if the freedom of movement of the hanging hip belt might be worth the extra weight. Also the cut of the belts are quite different , the SL40 being more narrow at the ends and only coming in one size being  28 inches of padding ( which happens to be about right for me ). Anyway any insights or comparisons between the fit ,  comfort and functionality of the two different styles if you happen to have experience with both would be great to hear.

thanks

[Jason McGrath]

I don’t have experience with any of SWD’s dual frame packs with the “floating” hip belt. I will say that the floating hip belt has a really snug and comfortable fit; I’d give it the edge. The Movement has more freedom of movement (haha) but I attributed that to the single stay. The 28in belt is perfect for me but I had knee-length strap left over strap so I cut a lot off. Dual stays are better for side to side stability. My movements frame (terminating underneath the belt) is slightly more challenging to remove than the SL40. This might have changed with the dual stay design though.

Edit for clarity: I think the main difference between the belts is how well the Movement’s belt makes strong contact with your body all the way around your torso, kind of like a custom fitted belt. With the sewn-in, I can get more of the sensation that the belt is sliding down with weight vs the more secure sensation I get with the wrap around belt. I do think I only notice this by comparison and forget about it a few minutes into the hike.

[Tom M]

Me personally I prefer the sewn in belt on the sl40. I’ve used the pack for some long and technical Nordic ski trips where flexibility is paramount and never felt any discomfort. I think the larger more flexible belt like I have on my big wild works great on that pack because it’s primarily used for winter, packraft, and hunting trips when I’m carrying 50+ lbs of gear.

On a side note I just ordered the new SL50 and will be testing it on a thru hike of the GDT  in August/September

[Nicholas P]

 

Jason and Tom , thanks guys for your thoughtful responses!Good data to have.

I think I am reluctantly leaning toward the floating belt of the movement despite being more attracted to the minimalism and reduced weight of the ls40. Ideally what I would really want I guess is a hybrid of the two packs.

My dilemma with the movement is I’m kind of between the  hip belt sizes 26 and 30. I have a small 26 inch (of padding) replacement ULA hip belt on my SO Flight 2 pack that remedied the slipping and poor load transfer that I experienced with the Flight 2 belt and it has worked well but I think just maybe another  inch to inch and a half of padding could have added some comfort, while the medium I think would have been to big. I always find with hip belts that I need to size down from the recommended sizing of what my measurements would suggest to prevent hip belt slippage with a weighted pack. I think this is because the measurements through my waist and hips are about the same not leaving much for it to grab, plus this is also where I store just a bit of extra fat which I think helps enable some slipping.
I guess maybe I should reach out to Brandon and see what he suggests, I wonder if he would do a custom sized hip belt that would fall between small and medium.

 

[Nicholas P]

Update: I reached out to Brandon and Ashley at SWD about getting a custom  hip belt . They said they could do a custom length sewn in hip belt on  the SL ,or for a 10 dollar charge and about a 2 to three ounce weight penalty they could customize the SL with a full wrap floating  belt,  but I would have to  go with one of their standard sizes. They would not do a custom length in the full wrap belt (which is understandable because I assume they pre-make these in large batches).They also informed me that with the full wrap option it would   have the torso adjustability of the long haul packs.

After a bit of hemming and hawing I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the full wrap option  in 100x. I got a bottom pocket  and a venom mesh upper side pocket,   venom for the front pocket – oh yeah and a zipper hip belt pocket  (had the zipperless one in the cart but in the end I wasn’t brave enough to to go through with it ).

Anyway it does feel good to have finally made a decision on this pack. Now I just need to hurry up and wait 18 weeks ,what will I  possibly do in the mean time? IDK , “F*€k it Dude, I guess let’s go backpacking! ”

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