Having a hard time deciding between these two. Very similar features and size. Price and weight are very close when you add a stay and belt to the Swift.

Has anyone tried both? What was your preference and why?

Or have you tried one and absolutely hated/loved it? why?

I switched from the GG Mariposa Plus to the MLD Exodus for mainly 2 reasons.

1. More durable pack material. I feel much better bushwhacking with the Exodus.
2. The wide straps of Mariposa Plus dug into my neck.

Never used the swift, but I'm very fond of my Mariposa. You can order them with thinner shoulder straps now, FYI.

I really enjoy my mariposa plus as well. I have the thinner straps and they work great. I've never had a problem with the material ripping, but I'm not bushwhacking. I find the pack very comfortable. I also have a custom made gorilla clone made by Chris Zimmer using xpac material. I'm sure he could copy the mariposa plus as well. Never used the swift, so I can't comment there.

I have a 2010 Swift with the fixed wide belt. It carries great, is very comfortable with the breathable back panel and the ridgerest pad I use in the pad pocket. Very durable. I do not have the new stay and have carried 30 pounds with no problem.

For a total pack weight around 15-18 pounds, does the Swift need the stay?

"For a total pack weight around 15-18 pounds, does the Swift need the stay?"

Not for a load that light unless you are using an inflatable pad or something less rigid than an CCF pad.

I have the swift and I love it. The material is tough and I never have felt that I would rip it. I use my short Z-lite as a frame and have a base weight of about 10lbs. I've loaded it with about 20lbs of stuff and find it carries really well, for me at least. I was in between these two packs too but decided to go with the swift because of the material, weight, volume (it holds a ton!) and the optional hip belt and hoop frame.

I find it too big for a day pack but I bought it with the intention of doing some long hikes in the future.

Interesting. I had been debating the Mariposa Plus vs. Exodus, but after seeing this thread and reading up a little bit more I'm really liking the Swift.

FWIW, on the SMD website there's a Swift Whitepaper with comparisons to a few other packs.
http://www.sixmoondesigns.com/blog/71-swiftwhitepaper.html

That Swift looks great for 2011.

Does anyone know the weight of the padded belt and the optional hoop? Would that make about a 21oz pack?

The site lists the stay at 4oz and the medium belt at 4.5oz. That would put the total at 23.5oz.

Completely missed that. Thanks,

"Does anyone know the weight of the padded belt "

David, the hip belt is not padded, which at first had me wondering but it is so wide it wraps and transfers the load so well that I don't notice that it has no padding.

Thanks - I should have been more clear that I was referring to the wider belt vs the narrower one. Thanks for the clarification.

Gabe,
I know Brad Rogers has both. He could give you a good assessment on the two

My brother in law carried a Mariposa Plus last year for a week on the JMT and he loved it.

I have a GG Gorilla, MLD Burn and MLD Prophet. They are all great packs and I think at the end of day these and the Swift are high quality packs.

Brad

I have a 2008 Mariposia Plus with the old carbon fiber stays and a 2010 Swift with the attached hipbelt and no stay option.

My Mariposia Plus is 21.1oz with stays and hipbelt (L torso M belt)

My Swift is 16.7oz with a little trimming of staps (nothing major)

I am comparing a frameless pack with a framed pack where both are avalible with a frame today.

Here are my opinions

I like the Dyneema grid on the Swift better than the 70D Nylon on the Mariposia Plus. It isn’t a big deal since I think they are both durable enough, but the Dyneema is definitely bomber.

Though the pocket configuration is very similar, the Mariposia Plus has the best pockets. The water bottle pocket is three dimensional (has a true flat bottom) which makes it very easy to use. You can fit two Gatoraide bottles in it easily. The Mariposia Plus also has a pocket above the water bottle pocket called a sundries pocket, which is great for things like aquimira, snack, headlamp or other items that might get lost in the pack.

The water bottle pocket on the Swift is smaller, good for one Gatoraide bottle (which is all I use anyways) and is low so it is easy to get in and out even without the flat bottom of the Mariposia Plus.

The Swift has a zippered security pocket inside for keys and whatnot. I find that a nice touch. The Mariposia Plus has no interior pockets.

The Mariposia Plus has a standard cord lock top, while the Swift has a dry bag type top. I am not sure which I like better, I guess that of the Swift by a small margin.

The shoulder straps of the Mariposia Plus are wide, much wider than any other pack I have seen. They are well padded and distribute weight very well, but they tend to rub some peoples neck. They don’t bother me, but if they did that would make it an easy decision. The shoulder straps on the Swift are thinner, narrower and more of an S shape. They don’t carry weight quite as well due to the thinner padding, but still do a fine job. They fit me well enough where I find a sternum strap is unnecessary so I took mine off.

The hipbelts are very different. The Swift ’10 has an unpadded very wide hipbelt, that I was skeptical of at first, but it is very comfortable and carries great with lighter loads. One thing to note is that I have a relatively slim 32” waist, but I couldn’t get any smaller and still be able to snug up the one size fits all hipbelt. The Swift also has great hipbelt pockets that have become such a handy thing to have. They are easy to work with one hand, though I wonder about the long term durability of the zippers. The Mariposia plus has a nicely padded hipbelt. It probably does better at heavy loads and is available in several sizes, which can be a blessing and a curse as I prefer a fixed simple sewn own hipbelt. There are no hipbelt pockets on the Mariposia Plus and the aftermarket ones leave a little to be desired in my opinion. They are well built and feel very sturdy, but require two hands in many cases to open.

Size: The Swift is bigger despite their similar size listings.

I have gone to the Swift for most of my hikes as I like to roll my Ridgerest up and use it as a frame and the Swift weighs less. For heavier, more difficult loads like a bear canister and five days worth of food like I will have on a JMT section hike this summer, I will go to the Mariposia Plus however.