An OHM meets all my needs.

I also have a first generation ULA Circuit I loan to friends and an old Mountainsmith Gray Ghost that hangs in my basement to remind me of epic trips in the misty past.

ULA CDT
Osprey Exos 46
1993 North Face Indri (9 bazillion c.i.) family gear hauler
Mountainsmith bladder pack
Millet prolite 24
Some military Cordura thing
Military issue camelback
2 external frame packs at my folks house. Saving them for the pack museum.

The point is that each pack has a specific use. No, I don't have a problem.

MLD Burn - 1-3 nights.

Golite Jam - 4 or more nights. Or bearcan. Or winter.

Golite Ion - the Burn replaced this, but it was only $25, so I'm keeping it for now.

Osprey Stratos 24 - daypack. The ventilation is great - making me think about getting an Exos.

3 not including rope bags

1. osprey mutant with some duct tape n seam grip ....

2. marmot alpha that is holding up surprisingly well ... just a few minor holes ... too bad it weights 900g or so ...

3. a MEC 16L 1000D bullet back that i have not been able to damage substantially at all despite hauling it ... costs like $20

now i did have a dead bird cierzo nice UL pack ... but that got a big hole quickly in less than 2 months despite not doing anything more crazy than running up easy multipitch with it ... back to mec it went

'the question to ask is how many packs do you own that you dont or rarely use, and dont really need, and are still shiny an new enough to put "as new" in gear swap =P

My wife and I own seven backpacks.

Everest travel backpack - My SUL and dayhike pack, just got this a few weeks ago and am very happy with it after going on a few dayhikes. On my scale it is only 350g.

Generic cloth backpack - Wife's dayhike pack and my old SUL pack. Have no idea the brand, just a simple pack with straps, a main pocket, and one small pocket.

Golite Jam - Go to 3 season pack.

MYOG pack - If I am not going through thick woods and just sticking to trails I will swap this in for my Jam, as it is a bit fragile, but only 450g with about the same volume (maybe slightly less) than the Jam.

Osprey Kestrel 48 - For winter or if I am going with a group and we are doing fancy meals, i.e. fresh veggies/fruit, bottles of wine/whiskey, etc.

Two generic backpacks - Again, don't know the brand, both were bought on sale for cheap, and both are very tough. I am guessing they are both about 30l and around 1kg each (never weighed them), lots of padding and thick hip and sternum straps and very comfortable. These are our urban and roadtrip packs mostly, and I also use mine all the time for school. My wife uses hers for backpacking (I used to use mine before the Jam replaced it), as I am the one that hauls our shelter, cook kit, FAK, and lots of other gear we share, so she does not need a high volume pack and does not give a hoot about going UL (mostly because I am the one hauling the lion's share of gear, I think).


I am proud to say that while we may own "a lot" of packs, they all have their place and all get used.


I would think about buying a GG G4 or a ULA CDT if I had the cash to throw around (always nice to have more options), but right now I am very happy with my set up.

Camelbak PeakBagger 1-2 Nights

Osprey Exos 46 2-5 Nights

1) For weekend to 10 day trips BD Shadow 55L for mountain climbing. Bro and I switch between that and ULA P2 as both are different, but the shadow is superior for rock climbing and attaching tat/pro/harness/crampons/iceaxes/ice screws/pickets

2) Overnight backpack have my ancient school bag that somehow hasn't been destroyed yet. Don't ask me how I have managed that one.

3) Superlong trip McHale Alpiner for 3-4 week + mountaineering trips.

4) Dana Designs Astraplane? Someone want to buy it? Going cheap... I stupidly bought it at a super deal because I couldn't find a used McHale Alpiner. Its garbage in comparison. Same with Gregory Denali Pro which I sold off thankfully.

5) Frame Backpack use for hauling firewood out of our ravine and muscle training. My dads ancient 1960's frame backpack I ruined doing this.

6) Travel airline bag, that has shoulder straps on it that converts to a backpack. No danged handles and wheels and I don't have to bring a backpack when I want to go hiking when I fly to Denver! No external straps to get stuck on conveyor belts like normal backpacks. Its also tough as nails and can be tossed around, laid on, sat on with impunity. A must for a travel bag.

Edited by footeab on 09/13/2011 01:51:48 MDT.

Lost count after a couple of dozen, including old external frame packs and lots of daypacks (some near worn out).

I outfitted a family of five, including three kids from birth to graduating college, and through two revolutions in backpacking gear (from traditional external frame packs to internal frame packs, then to lightweight/UL).

My old Gregory Snow Creek is a work of art, but I doubt I'll every use it again at 5 1/2 pounds. But I do lend it out on occasion. Maybe I'll use it to climb Everest one day...

I'm down to two, one for day hikes and another for multi-day.

I do have a small collection of small rucksacks we use for commuting and travel-- thrift store and garage sale stuff I bought for $1-$5. I go through and clean them out once a year or so and have my own garage sale or donate them, along with other household stuff. I have developed more discretion over the years with my thrift-store and garage sale leanings. My First Rule of Acquisition is: Don't create another garage sale.

^ what two packs are they Dale? :)

Mike asked, "^ what two packs are they Dale? :)"

????

I sold the Talon 22 if that is what you meant.

The packs du jour are an Osprey Exos 46 and an old-style Stratos 24. I've given up on the truly UL unframed packs in favor of ventilation and weight transfer. I do wish I could sit down with the Osprey design team for an hour and talk to them about straps and gee-gaws! That Exos looks like the hardware rack at Seattle Fabrics ;)

4 packs.
A cheap jansport pack (that has held up for 15+ years), a golite peak, a gregory tarne 36, and a 70-80's era german military canvas pack.

was just curious what two packs you are using

I really liked my Exos, wanted even lighter and went w/ the Hornet- another great pack but just too darn small for a M/L- I (and others) wrote Osprey about the short torso length, but don't think they changed it :(

Yeah, I was all hot and bothered about the Hornet until I ran into the torso length issue. [Dale snaps the Osprey design lead in the head]

Mike,
Actually we did make changes to the torso length on Hornet. The Hornet 24 and 32 received some in-line changes to make them better fit longer torsos. The Hornet 46 will be available in S, M, and L sizes in Spring 2012 instead of the current S/M and M/L torso sizing. This will cover a broader range of torso sizes and allow the taller users to have a better fit.

Jeff Fox
Osprey

Jeff said "Mike,
Actually we did make changes to the torso length on Hornet. The Hornet 24 and 32 received some in-line changes to make them better fit longer torsos. The Hornet 46 will be available in S, M, and L sizes in Spring 2012 instead of the current S/M and M/L torso sizing. This will cover a broader range of torso sizes and allow the taller users to have a better fit.

Jeff Fox
Osprey"

Jeff- great news! I really like the Hornet in every respect (except of course that it didn't fit :))

thanks

Mike

Not counting hydration and day packs 4 :

08 Jam2 (3 season and big winter days)
09 Pinnacle (winter)
95 Osprey Highlander (may come out again now that there is a baby)
96 Osprey Finesse (most miles and nostalgia)