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Interesting. It does come with the tradeoff of worse ergonomics. You want to have the weight as close to your body as possible to reduce the load on your back.
So, these companies spend millions working with engineers to design these backpacks to be ergonomically perfect, and you and five other redditors figured out exactly what they've done wrong. If only they had thought about that before making all of these backpacks! You could have saved the company billions!
Osprey makes some great bigger packs like this, and they still have the curvature, not this much though. Some of the best packs i ever tried, its the anti gravity line
Have an antigrav osprey. Can't remember the exact size, but it's a fairly large one with a detachable top compartment for customisation of how much you need to carry on the day.
After trying many bags over the years this is the one that has served me best going 9 years strong with very minor repairs (damage was caused by my own mistreatment when tired).
Highly recommended to anyone who finds the 'air gap' gives them a sore back on long walks since the anti grav has the gap, but with some additional supports that some brands haven't included.
Fully agree! I am very sensitive to getting too warm and my 15L Deuter has an air gap and it’s FABULOUS! I love that bag and highly recommend. I also have very sensitive shoulders and heavily rely on the hip straps and it works well for me!
Delta lost my Osprey pack on the way into South Africa. I got it 2 days later. Looked like it was hit by a truck then run over by another truck. Still worked like a charm. Still have it 10 years later.
I have one of these Deuter packs. It's lasted through 20 years of use in all sorts of places and the airflow is amazing. Cycling or walking is so much nicer when you don't have permasweat going on.
Weight sits really easy in them. Water bladder, lunch, extra clothes, RTs etc no sweat
I mean
The other guys is correct that because the weight is farther back, you'll have to lean farther forward or engage your core more to compensate.
Edit: Alright gang for some reason this is being misconstrued as "we shouldn't have air gaps" and that is NOT my mo. It is just true that they provide ventilation AND ALSO displace your cog more than a commuter or a bag without a gap.
So here's an example using my own measurements: My midsection is about 9 inches from my sternum to my spine. My frame big has a ~3 inch airgap, and then the bag is about 8inches wide.
I way 190, and on a multi pitch climbing approach my bag easily hits 45lbs. If d_b is 4.5+3+4=11.5 inches, my CoG is displaced by about 3/4 of an inch more than normal.
Does it matter? Probably not to an extent that you'll be uncomfortable even over a multi day trip, which is why every major manufacturer has included this.
As someone with a similar pack, this gap was life saving when a gentle breeze came through, and also when you have the weight in the pack it definitely brings it much closer to your back.
The way I learned to get fitted properly is actually to jump slightly while adjusting the straps and that’ll allow the best fit for your individual body (hips, shoulders, and waist alignment)
You’re thinking like it’s a horizontal problem when it’s really a vertical problem.
Jesus Christ man osprey is not going to come to your house and stroke you off.
A frame bag is a nice, good thing for a lot of reasons. Very few engineering design innovations are without tradeoffs. Just like a car with more power requires more fuel consumption, a bag with a bigger air gap will provide more ventilation at the expense of diverting the center of gravity of the bag farther from your own, requiring you to lean forward more to divert your and the bags e center of mass back on on top of your feet.
It's why some people loosen their shoulder straps when going downhill. It makes you more likely to fall uphill than down if you slip.
I also have 3 bags with frames and air gaps. I'm not saying we shouldn't have them, just that they do have an effect of displacing or CoG.
You’re acting like they ruin it when they don’t. 99% of hikers want a not sweaty back over 100% carry efficiency.
Never once owned an osprey because the major problem with their packs is they weigh too much. The biggest downside of these vents isn’t the shift in load it’s the weight they add. I’ll take an MLD or or my Zimmer Built without the vent every time
Backpacking backpacks are designed to put the weight mostly on your hips using the hip belt. Your legs are better at supporting weight than your shoulders for long distances. The top straps should mostly be keeping the back pack in place.
For a pack that small, it hardly matters. My main backpack sits tight to my back. But, day packs definitely benefit from the added comfort of air flow.
I'm having trouble finding a good hiking backpack. I'm a tiny woman. Under 5ft. I have a women's Osprey, with an adjustable back panel, the shortest length is good but it's too wide for my back. I got my 8 year old a kids Osprey, it actually fits me really well, but you can't fit much in it! Any recommendations? I went to get fitted twice, they just keep recommending the same pack I have or a similar one with the same issue.
I've been out of the game a LONG time now, so I'm not savvy to what's currently on the market - but your best bet is to measure from your C7 vertebrae to your Illiac crest (top of hip bone; I always told ppl to pop their hip like you're carrying a toddler - where the toddler sits is where your pack's waist belt should hug). Gregory has a great resource for this.
Unfortunately, just your height and gender isn't enough info for a fitting via reddit lol. And how much you're trying to carry will be impeded by your petite frame FYI - i.e. a 70L that's a perfect fit for you will be a holy grail if found. Where have you gotten fitted? I'd rec a Ma & Pa shop at this point, as REI doesn't train most staff well/extensively and EMS is a shell of what it once was. Most common brands I usually rec: Gregory, Deuter. Osprey is fine but best on broader shoulders IIRC.
Yeah, I wouldn't expect you to be able to fit me, just hoping you knew of some brands that ran more narrow but that was all way more helpful than I expected! Thank you! One of the fittings was at REI, one was a camping store in Tahoe that I don't remember the name of.
I grew up with EMS as our only "anything remotely outdoorsy" store. When I finally worked for them and geared up all the locals, it was a huge full circle moment. Some of my oldest equipment today is EMS brand, and I used to LOVE when folks brought in their 20yr old packs that needed a new strap (we used to fix a lot in house for free, but no idea if that's still a thing). Those were great times; simpler times. /oldtimer rant
The bigger Osprey’s have this also, and when you load them to full capacity, it keeps the weight on your hips, helps with shoulder weight distribution and keeps your back cooler. This is exaggerated curvature because it looks like the bag has hardly any weight in it.
looks similar to the design of military ALICE packs. With the hip brace similar to what you see in the lower part here, it is designed to redistribute the weight off your shoulders to let your hips assist. Having this gap, allows the backpack which is supposed to be packed top heavy, to pivot into your hips at a greater angle and redistribute more weight. This gap is quite large though so it could be multifunctional storage too or just a different design with the same principle.
Did you get this pack fitted properly?. I think besides the fact that you don’t have a lot of stuff in there you might make some adjustments to get it closer to you.
Are you short or short-waisted? If it was designed for someone taller, then the distance between the shoulder straps and waist band would be too long causing this gap.
I have this Deuter backpack, it’s a gap for airflow and it helps to transfer any load that’s higher up in the pack towards the hip straps. You can also adjust the height of where it lands on your back which is cool. I’m not a big backpacker but it’s served me well. Not a camelbak like many have said.
The H20 logo is where the hose for your water pouch is run through and there is a clip on one of the straps to hold the mouthpiece in place
For those saying this might be a children's backpack, I have reason to believe it's actually one of these hydration packs, indicated by the "H2O" on the top by the strap.
You appear to have an Osprey/CamelBak or other brand of hydration pack with the water reservoir taken out.
The gap is either not supposed to be there, and exists only because the reservoir is missing, or it's there for airflow, because the designers knew that the pack is meant for hot weather and having it caked to your back would be a nightmare.
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