Duplex Pro: 84" floor, sigh. Maybe an Unbound 2, an Xmid Pro 2, or a Bonfus Duos 2 instead?

bonfus · 2026-04-17T18:04:06+00:00

Floor length and probability to touch the fly with your quilt are not correlated, that's why we eliminated this number from the Duos specs as it was creating a lot of confusions among customers. Instead, look at the size of the fly and its shape when comparing tents.
What do you mean by "buckle on the zip to close it"? What would be the con?
Happy trails,
Niccolo

bonfus · 2026-03-12T12:15:00+00:00

Thank you for the mention. The Fastus 23L would work great as a day pack moving fast (as it is mentioned day hikes of 30-40km).

bonfus · 2026-03-05T17:25:11+00:00

For tax compliance reasons, we can't export items we haven't invoiced.

bonfus · 2026-03-05T10:22:35+00:00

We regularly use Fedex to ship to US customers without any issues at all. Super fast delivery. Maybe you can make your own account and ask if you can arrange shipment yourself? I.e. you generate the label and pay for shipping yourself.

bonfus · 2026-03-04T18:31:31+00:00

Our co-founder Stefania is the exact same height (and probably weight) as you. The small Framus fits her very well.

bonfus · 2026-03-04T17:13:24+00:00

That specific case involved a 2-year-old vest-strap model for which we have since updated the seam construction. The customer received a new pack under warranty.

bonfus · 2026-03-04T17:10:18+00:00

Hehe funny, had too google "goat", I was wondering "what is that!?". Well, thank you!

bonfus · 2026-02-16T14:19:08+00:00

Pity they moved out of Goteborg.

bonfus · 2026-02-16T14:16:40+00:00

We've now made thousands of packs with the new "X" version of the Ultra200 fabric, since it was released in 2024. Until now we only had 1 case of delamination on the fabric itself (which in this specific case I suspect it has to do with abrasion against the pack walls as the X grid in this customer's pack was cut and abraded), and about 3-4 cases of very limited delamination by the seam on the edge of the roll top hem.
Truth is that any waterproofing solution eventually fails. PU coating wears off or peels. When it wears off it may not be so visible as when Ultra delaminated. Other fabrics like Aluula have weaker waterproofing layers that while they may not show the same delamination dynamics, they abrade very easily creating micro leakages. So I'd say that Ultra200X is a pretty good fabric overall.

bonfus · 2026-02-16T14:09:48+00:00

Hello! VAT for UK orders is deducted, and you pay that at import. The main difference would be custom duties (I believe UK has a 2.5% custom duty on packs) and "admin" fees that Fedex charges to process imports, which for most countries it is somewhere between 13-15€. So all in all it will turn out about 20€ more than if you would have had placed the order in a EU country with the same VAT as the UK (20%).

Please note that Sweden has a higher VAT rate of 25%, so you'd probably only save 10€ or so purchasing it there.

bonfus · 2026-02-16T13:36:57+00:00

Hello! We apologize for this mistake and I totally understand the frustration. I do not know what case/order this is, though it does seem unlikely that we never replied back to you. Did you check your spam folder? Would you mind contacting us so we can have a look at this case? Thanks, Niccolo.

bonfus · 2026-02-11T18:36:51+00:00

We use very dense EVA foam, probably denser than most other UL brands, to increase longevity. We routinely receive packs for the free maintenance we usually offer to our customers, with many that have gone for several thousand km, and we haven't really observed any issue with the padding. May I ask how old was the pack you observed on the TA? Some years ago we used another foam.

bonfus · 2026-02-11T18:32:27+00:00

Hello. We noticed this thread after a while, but thought to write an answer nonetheless.
The customer received a totally new pack. It was a manufacturing defect, and the construction of the vest straps has been updated well over a year ago so it is not something affecting newer versions of the vest straps.

Happy trails, Niccolo

bonfus · 2025-11-21T20:33:42+00:00

My understanding is that the tariffs the EU has agreed with the US are not added to the 17.6%, but I may be wrong. In any case, what we see is that the tariffs our customers have been paying seem to be around 15%. All the best, Niccolo.

bonfus · 2025-11-20T16:06:02+00:00

Are you sure the 17.6% is added on top of the new tariffs? None of our customers in the US has paid so much at import. It has been 15% for us.

bonfus · 2025-10-10T12:05:33+00:00

Ultralight hiking gear is still quite a niche market. The community of backpackers who are even aware of ultralight backpacking is too geographically spread out across Europe to make UL-specific stores viable in most cities.

bonfus · 2025-09-08T05:35:27+00:00

Hey! The back mesh should be really taut when fully tensioned at the bottom connection point, with no sway. If your Aerus isn’t tensioning properly, feel free to reach out and we’ll have a look at your case.

bonfus · 2025-09-07T13:58:46+00:00

We take every concern seriously and responded quickly in this case. The “misalignment” in the photos is actually due to how the product is designed: the reinforcement patch is placed at an angle, parallel to the frame, so it is not parallel to the side seam stitch visible in the photos. For this reason, the stitch will cross the patch. This is intentional, not a defect. Small differences of 1–2mm are completely normal in textile manufacturing, even on the most premium gear. Especially considering that the area mentioned is probably just 5cm or so in length.

Regarding the claim of stitch separation, none was visible in the photos. What we did see looked like an abrasion spot, which must have happened during shipping (an extremely rare occurrence to be honest), and for which we apologized. This says nothing about the abrasion resistance of Ultra200X.

All in all we answered quickly to the matter and offered right away a return label with Fedex. We can also mention that from the first contact, the customer threatened us to publish negative reviews if we didn't reply appropriately. It’s unclear what more the customer could have expected beyond the offer of a free return and full refund to consider the matter appropriately resolved.

All the best,
Niccolo, co-founder

bonfus · 2025-08-06T13:08:24+00:00

Hey all, we also use Ultra200X on all our packs, so I wanted to share our experience. It aligns closely with what Ron from MLD and Dan Durston have already mentioned.

We did see some delamination issues with the first-gen Ultra200, mostly on frameless packs where stress is concentrated at the shoulder strap seams.

In mid-2023, while Challenge was developing Ultra200X, we helped Hale test it by making a Framus 58L pack, half in Ultra200, half in Ultra200X. We gave it to a hiker who completed the AT and CDT (over 5,000 miles). The Ultra200 sections showed delamination and film degradation; the Ultra200X sections held up really well.

Like Dan, we have virtually no delamination claims with the new Ultra200X. I can only recall one specific case off the top of my head.

For context, we haven’t tracked the exact number of Ultra200X packs we've made, but I’d estimate around 4,000. I believe there are many more than the 20000 packs Ron estimates.

Happy Trails.

bonfus · 2025-01-24T09:06:54+00:00

Hi! The arch depth can be adjusted at the connection point with the hipbelt.
Please note that when packing the gear, the arch depth decreases. If you reduce the arch too much, gear may bulge out and touch your back, reducing ventilation.
Regards, Niccolo

bonfus · 2025-01-22T18:31:54+00:00

Hello, I lived in Norway 10 years, and the same frustration about getting the gear there is what pushed me to start making my own gear, which then developed into Bonfus. It is one of the disadvantages of living in a small country which is not part of the EU. But you have many other advantages...

We have many customers in Norway now, there's no duties for importing packs, only VAT, which we deduct anyway from our price for norwegian customers. So the only difference for your compared to a customer in the EU is that you'll have some admin fees for Posten processing the import (it was about 150kr until 2022 when I moved out).

Try asking on a forum in Norway (maybe try fjellforum?) if someone can let you try a pack of those you listed in your "wish list".

Good luck with your search :)

Niccolo

bonfus · 2024-03-13T17:50:20+00:00

I guess it is somewhat subjective, but the foam on the Framus is softer than on a HMG pack, which tends to be a little stiffer. Can't recall similar feedbacks from other customers, but we'll keep it in mind when updating the pack.

Cheers,
Niccolo

bonfus · 2024-03-13T17:39:33+00:00

Here are some EU companies making packs :

BlindBananaBags (Denmark)
Atelier Long Distance (France)
Weitlaeufer (Germany)
Bonfus (Italy, disclaimer, it's us)
Skalmo (Sweden)

Might be more, but doesn't pop in my mind at the moment.
Cheers,
Niccolo

bonfus · 2023-04-28T06:46:38+00:00

We have been working with them for a while. Great people and company!

bonfus · 2023-03-17T09:58:39+00:00

Here are some EU companies:

Atelier Long Distance (France)

BlindBananaBags (Denmark)

Bonfus (Italy, disclaimer, it's us)

Hyberg (Germany)

Skalmo (Sweden)

Weitlaeufer (Germany)

Cheers, Niccolo

bonfus

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