Seek Outside Flight Pack [was Upcoming light packs from SO]

Now posted:

https://seekoutside.com/flight-one/

$300, 36 oz.

Pretty close to the weight of the Gila.  No?

Gila weights closer to 3 lbs.  Gila also looks to be slightly less volume.

“Gila weights closer to 3 lbs.  Gila also looks to be slightly less volume.”

Gila looks to be 5 oz more with slightly MORE volume.

For comparative weight with similar features a Gila is closer to 3 lbs (Cross stay, 2 hip belt pockets) .

Volume, pretty close …

Flight is more nimble in difficult terrain …

Also Flight can be used sans belt, or sans frame if desired

Kevin- At the bottom of the front pocket I see a sort of grab loop. What’s that meant for? It’s bracketed by a pair of gatekeeper loops. Do they have corresponding partners at the lower hip belt attachment location so that you could strap something like, oh I don’t know… maybe a pack raft… down there at the bottom of the pack?

Looks good overall. I’ll be curious to hear more feedback once more are out in the wild. I like the lack of a sweat-absorbing back pad, but is there any frame sheet at all, or just the frame? Will I have to pack carefully to keep my stove from poking me in the kidney?

Yes it has matching straps .. so yes a packraft will fit there.

It has a cross stay to prevent poke in the back. So far, in our testing, no one has complained about that. I suspect it has between the testers  over a couple hundred days of use in a variety of conditions (backpacking, photography, day ski tours etc).  The cross stay can also be removed if you would rather futz with packing. The frame, feels a lot like our big packs it’s just downsized and a bit more flexible , but it is still fairly stiff.

Awesome looking pack! Would love to see a picture of just the frame. In terms of the 22″ frame (load of 35 lbs), do you think this is a more accurate 35 than just using frame stays? Or would the comfort be about the same at that weight?

confusing pictures – are there 3 different configurations?

1) xpac and solid spectra (no checkered fabric) – most of the pictures

2) xpac and spectra grid water bottle pockets/hip belt/hip belt pockets (checkered fabric). In this configuration is the front pocket as checkered fabric?

3) solid spectra pack – body and pockets – no checkered fabric anywhere?

Or maybe the picture resolution is not great….

I believe all of the Spectra fabric is a nylon with Spectra grid.  The prototype I used had the Spectra Grid on the front pocket and water bottle pockets and was uncoated.  I know they had a coated version and it looks like that’s what they are using in the production version.

They have two versions – an X-Pac version with Spectra grid bottom, water bottle pockets, and front pocket, and an all Spectra grid version (with no X-Pac)

All of the Spectra fabric is checkered, it’s just so small (maybe 1/8″ spacing?) that it doesn’t show up well in pictures.

Looks great. It really checks all the boxes, for me. Well done.

<p style=”text-align: left;”>Brad did you try it without the belt or the frame? How did the shoulder straps do on their own?</p>

Congrats Kevin and Seek Outside team. It looks like a beautifully designed and executed lightweight framed pack.

It solves one of the issues I had with the original Osprey Exos (I haven’t tried another since the first model) – I didn’t like the weight kept farther away from my center of gravity – and may solve a second issue – both the Ms. and me would feel the side bottom edges of the Exos frame digging into us at lightweight base weight + consumables or when making certain movements.

Michael – I did not try it without the frame or hipbelt.  I used frameless packs back when I used to use CC Foam pads, but couldn’t go without a hipbelt even then.  I’m a sissy about weight on my shoulders.

I’ll say this about the Flight:  I often get a pain around my right shoulder blade in my upper back when wearing a pack all day (for whatever reason).  I had no such issue with the Flight.

It also has the best hipbelt pockets I’ve ever used, they were perfect.  Seek Outside should sell their Divide/Unaweep packs with the built in hipbelt option.

So the hip belt. Is there any extension of the padded section, or is it just the length of the belt straps?

What really bugs me about the SO website is all the pack photos involve the back-bag… what really matters is the suspension, and little space is given to that on any one individual page. Most don’t even show the suspension.

Give me a “Bloody Great-Sack” and I could care less about the rest… the suspension/frame is what matters.

There are clear suspension photos if you scroll through them. Not sure why you would want a frame photo as it’s an internalized frame but similar to our big packs and has been discussed at length in this thread.

All your packs, not just this one. And you’re not sure why I’d want to see the frame? Seriously?

I’d be curious to see them too.

Is the distance between the shoulder straps and the hip belt the same for the 22″ and 24″ frames? I didn’t see that on the website. That is what determines how well a pack fits for me.

“All your packs, not just this one”

“I’d be curious to see them too”

The backpacks are built on an external frame. I’m not sure what you are expecting to see that isn’t already visible. There are a ton of images and videos on google showing the suspension already.

Sure the flight series frame isn’t available online, but thats because it’s on an internal frame. It’s not like other companies are supplying us with images of their internally based frames either. He said it is very similar to his other backpacks. Seriously though, Seek Outside is known for their robust suspensions.

I would like to see an image too, but it’s not like Seek Outside is lowering the bar here.

it’s not like Seek Outside is lowering the bar here.

I hope my comment wasn’t perceived as a slight to Seek Outside. I’m just curious to know more about the product.

Also, I do think many brands show their frames off, either by photographs of the frame removed (SD Flex Capacitor’s Y shaped frame) or photos down into the pack showing stay placement (HMG does that, iirc).

Our standard frame should be easy to see in many photos and has been discussed in detail in many places, the Flight frame is similar but smaller, internalized, with a top bar, and different material. It’s pretty easy to imagine it looking at the back panel side of the bag in photos on our site.

The optimum torso on the 22 is 16-18 , on the 24 is 19-21

There is a chart at the bottom has expected load carriage for each frame and torso height. I actually will use both but mostly the shorter one is for day stuff and everyday use however I can still carry 35 pretty well with it.

Kevin

@mocs123 – Just curious what your torso size is, and where the shoulder straps sit in relation to your shoulders on whichever size you chose. I would technically fit the 24″ pack, and I’m on the low end of that size, so I worry about the straps attaching right near the top of my shoulders like an HMG at that size.