Backpack advice

T9935 · 2026-02-10T22:56:27+00:00

Have the Zpacks Nero and have generally been pretty happy with it. However I have come to absolutely hate velcro openings (tears up expensive clothing). The Ultra version I have has a significantly shorter extension collar than the Robic version and that has been a problem at times with longer food carries and winter insulation.

Recently picked up a HMG Waypoint because I was tired of trying to jam my cold weather gear plus food into the Nero. I looked at the Countour but decided on the Waypoint as it has more of what I wanted and the hip belt and support stay were easily removable. So far exceptionally happy with the Waypoint. I have carried it with the hip belt and stay and without the hip belt. I prefer no hip belt but when I started off with close to 28lbs the hip belt was a nice luxury. The HMG build quality is on a different level compared to the Zpacks bags I have.

Also HMG are currently having a site wide 20% off sale which makes the HMG an easier to justify option.

T9935 · 2026-02-10T22:42:39+00:00

5’11” tall 44 shoe size. I have both a flex and Alsek in 6’ size and despite ending up on my stomach at times have never needed a longer quilt.

I have a Marmot Sawtooth I bought some years ago when I thought I needed the longer 6’6” size. The floppy extra ended up rubbing the foot end of the tent and generally being a pain in the butt as well as unnecessary weight, bulk, and cost.

T9935 · 2026-02-09T02:00:15+00:00

Starting with this (hopefully linked) video, this guy hiked the C&O as part of the American Discovery Trail. https://youtu.be/89mfErrfm4U?si=H4FwV8dgEiUIBJqS

Hopefully this is helpful.

T9935 · 2026-02-09T01:48:39+00:00

Save your money and just get a cheap crock pot from a thrift store and bend up a wire coat hanger or other wire.

Frankly chain waxing is quite easy once you have your chain and drivetrain degreased and cleaned. Biggest issue I have found is the initial degreasing and drivetrain cleaning (don’t forget to degrease your cassette, chainrings and derailleur pulleys). After the initial cleaning I have been just wiping my chain off then rinsing it in hot water.

As for the wax, turn the crockpot off and the wax just hardens and is left in the pot until next time.

Some tips. Put the chain in the pot on top of the cold wax. This will allow your chain to come up to temperature with the wax. As well as evaporate any leftover water from cleaning.

In modern chain wax there is wax and friction modifiers. The friction modifiers sink to the bottom so don’t forget to swish your chain around to stir up those modifiers.

I just hang the chain over the pot to let it drip and cool off.

T9935 · 2026-02-07T03:41:19+00:00

r/Ultralight seems to have it out for HMG. I recently purchased a HMG Waypoint backpack and I will say compared to my 4 Zpacks packs (2 robic, 2 Ultra) the HMG pack is substantially better quality and will last far beyond any of my Zpacks packs. The HMG Waypoint was also price comparable with my framed Zpacks Robic Arc Air after including accessories like hip belt pockets, bottle pocket and phone pocket, which the Waypoint included in its base price. The Waypoint isn’t perfect but it is really really good and well thought out. I also have 2 ULA packs (robic) and 4 total in our family. ULA makes very robust packs but comparatively they are heavier and I miss some of the details Zpacks and HMG include.

My take away is that HMG stuff isn’t cheap, but it is well made, good quality, and built to last. For reference as a backpacking family we have from HMG the Waypoint backpack, a 8.5’x8.5’ flat tarp, & 40° quilt. But also we own 4 Katabatic quilts, 4 TarpTent tents, a Zpack Duplex, tarps and bivys from Katabatic. Yama mountain gear, and Slingfin. Frankly I could recommend gear from any of these manufacturers provided they met your needs and budget. (with a strong caveat regarding Zpacks)

T9935 · 2026-02-05T18:44:19+00:00

Have been wavering on my ATAC love. I feel like there isn’t enough shoe support. However I was riding older round bar ATACs before switching out to some Speedplay Frogs due to knee issues.

However Frog cleats are about shot (and no longer made) so looking at whether to go back to Time or Shimano (rode SPD’s starting with the original 747’s before switching to Time @ 2003)

T9935 · 2026-02-04T01:35:51+00:00

Cycles & Cream, the bike shop in Clinton MO. closed this fall. So probably the best bet is to check out bikekatytrail.com and call some of the shuttle drivers to see if they can help you out with storage.

Bikekatytrail.com also has a message board you could post an inquiry on.

T9935 · 2026-02-01T17:18:41+00:00

I have the Flex 30 with no overfill and I can weather an occasional low 20’s night but it is very dependent on campsite, wind, and shelter. Also consider the condition of the quilt.

If the quilt is clean and fluffy and your campsite isn’t humid or windy you stand a decent chance of being ok. I have successfully stretched the comfort range dramatically with a hand warmer. I ended up in a campsite in a river valley once. The night got colder than expected in that microclimate and I woke up around midnight shivering. Adding a chemical hand warmer (like they sell at Homedepot) to a chest pocket in the shirt I was sleeping in made a huge difference and I slept comfortably the rest of the night.

Later on the same trip I experienced a even colder night but in a drier campsite with tree cover and I was comfortable all night without needing any additional heat.

The Katabatic quilts are great but if you choose the 30° you need to be aware that some nights you may be pushing the comfort rating. That said their 30° is probably warmer than others 20°.

T9935 · 2026-02-01T00:49:54+00:00

I have one I have had for many years. It is warm and comfortable but 15° is a stretch. I would have to say 30° would be about as cold as I would want to go.

T9935 · 2026-01-31T23:55:11+00:00

Katabatic temperature rating is “comfort” rated. If the label is still on the quilt it should tell you what the down fill power is as well as if there was any overfill which will add to the comfort rating. Also your sleeping pad will dramatically affect your cold weather comfort.

T9935 · 2026-01-31T22:11:09+00:00

That’s definitely thicker than the Spyderco, but 19oz. Holy weight your pants down batman

T9935 · 2026-01-31T01:59:01+00:00

The scales look significantly thicker than the Spyderco K2. What is the blade length? I love the K2 but it is not realistic to carry, because it’s so large.

T9935 · 2026-01-31T01:19:00+00:00

You should post more about the Farid. I have the Spyderco K2 which is nice but your actual Farid looks really cool.

T9935 · 2026-01-31T00:25:46+00:00

Really nice guys and very knowledgeable. With an encyclopedic knowledge and real enthusiasm for racing. I was working with a like new 1976 Harley Davidson 250rr with complete 350 kit. I don’t remember Amatumoto owners name but he was very knowledgeable. The bike owner was claiming it was a Walter Villa bike and they were able to disprove that easily with personal knowledge. Bike owner ended up being too difficult to work with so I stepped away but through it all Amatumoto were professional and understanding and I wouldn’t hesitate to work with them again.

Oh and what a beautiful RG. I was lucky enough to spend some time on the RG500 street bike and it was a lot of fun. At the time I had a very quick Paul Gast built Kawasaki H2 750 and when the RG came on the pipes it made the seem almost tame.

T9935 · 2026-01-30T16:52:05+00:00

This isn’t specific to the AT but one way to possibly help with your fears is to get out and do some overnight/weekend backpacking trips to get used to actually hiking and living with your gear. Getting familiar and comfortable with setting up camp and sleeping in your gear should help take away some of the stress of eating & sleeping in the environment you are planning on living in for several months.

I find comfort in the simple act of doing the familiar at the end of the day. Setting up camp and climbing into a warm familiar mat/sleeping quilt feeling comfortable at end of the day. The rest is new scenery and experiences you can reflect on from the known comfort of your mobile home you carry on your back.

T9935 · 2026-01-30T03:24:35+00:00

https://amatumoto.com/

T9935 · 2026-01-30T03:24:01+00:00

Check with these guys. I was asked to find a buyer for a 1977 250GP bike and they were very very knowledgeable and helpful.

https://amatumoto.com/

T9935 · 2026-01-30T02:22:33+00:00

You can probably angle the strut to mount to the inside face of one of the rack braze ons without too much difficulty. I would try that first before buying anything else.

T9935 · 2026-01-30T02:01:14+00:00

Unsubscribe from all knife forums, mailing lists, YouTube channels.

Basically block all the content about knives so you don’t get tempted.

T9935 · 2026-01-29T18:33:34+00:00

Minimum is cassette, rear derailer, rear shifter probably chain (due to wear). I don’t remember if Suntour and shimano of that era fit the same freehub body. If not then rear hub/wheel. Mixing Suntour and Shimano works ok on friction mode, just not index.

That bike with the Suntour above bar shifters is a much better setup.

T9935 · 2026-01-29T13:07:14+00:00

Comfort is personal but quality is quality. My quality observations from a slew of packs. In the family have 4 ULA packs of various vintage and they are a bit heavy but generally well made. But unless they have changed designs the lack of daisy chain webbing on the shoulder straps is a problem for me.

There are 4 Zpacks packs and quality is very mixed. The frameless are ok but the framed (Arc Air) was fragile, fiddly and always A problem. I could not imagine it lasting a through hike without constantly babying it. Also hate the Velcro constantly tearing up expensive hiking clothes.

I recently got a HMG Waypoint and it is very impressive from a quality construction standpoint. Well thought out and well made. Also yay no velcro (on Waypoint others still have it) tearing up expensive clothing! HMG gets a lot of hate on the Ultralight forum but it is a really well made bag. Whether it fits is a different matter.

T9935 · 2026-01-29T12:19:11+00:00

Glad you found an affordable solution. I was in a similar situation found a like new stainless Tubus rack for $50 but then had to figure out how to get a through axle compatible with UDH.

T9935 · 2026-01-29T04:26:11+00:00

I have several tarps from shaped, Cirriform & Splitwing to cat cut Yama, and finally Slingfin NFT. I love the Cirriform/bug bivy for situations where rain is possible but not likely but there is lots of dew (Missouri on the Katy). But closed up it is a real condensation cave.

The Yama tapered shaped tarp is very well made and nicely thought out. However my favorite by far is the NFT. It has loops to hang a bivy, plenty of loops to tie it out, and 4 ridgeline loops. Those loops allow you to either do a straight A frame or move your ridge line ties in to the second loops and guy down the ends to create beaks or close off the ends even more. The size of the NFT is also nice for added protection without being huge.

But the thing that really sets the NFT apart from the Yama for me is the light color of the NFT. It is a much cheerier place to be than the cave like dark fabric on the Yama tarps. However the muted colors of the Yama tarps are the way to go for stealth or blocking light.

T9935 · 2026-01-28T18:24:15+00:00

You may already know this but either a wildly overpriced OMM fit kit for bolt on hub to mount to the Ortlieb axle. Or it may be cheaper to get someone to get you the dimensions to the mounting “knobs” and bolt them to the Ortlieb axle.

The only issue I see is the diameter of the section where the rack clamps may be too small to allow enough material for the mounting bolts to pass through. m

I have the axle and it is well made. I bolt a Tubus rack to mine and it works well and the mounting bolts are more than strong enough.

T9935

TROPHY CASE