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Ultralight Backpacking!

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Just took out the Durston Kakwa 55 for the first time (beehaw.org)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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I hiked up to emerald lake in the Trinity Alps, CA over 4 days. Great views and saw some really awesome wildlife. The Kakwa is my first real 'Ultralight' pack and it weighed in at ~20lbs fully packed with food and water. I felt like it carried great, and was super comfortable for the whole trip. I have a few gripes with the pack though: the front pocket could be longer, and stretchier IMO, the right water bottle pocket didn't securely hold my nalgene, and the pack isn't seam sealed at all. It seems like a bummer to have a pack made out of waterproof material and have no seam sealing at all. I used a pack liner and all my down gear stayed dry through the rain but water definitely came through the seams. I'm thinking of trying to seam seal the pack myself but I'm not sure how to go about it. Does anyone have tips on products and application?

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Check out this post https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/seam-sealing-a-backpack/ before you decide that you want to actually give it a try.

If you want to seal the seams check out https://www.trailspace.com/gear/seam-sealers/ or https://ripstopbytheroll.com/pages/search-results-page?q=ultra

Can’t remember what fabric the Kakwa uses so make sure you double check that whatever you use is compatible.

I use a trash compactor bag to keep dry items in. It’s simpler.

Try using smart water bottles or similar instead of Nalgene as they should fit better and weigh less.

Either way have fun out there.

[–] Tetonicus 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

BPL discussed it a little bit here. Your mileage may vary, I didn’t see any long term reports and Ultra is a very weird fabric when it comes to adhesives.

It’s not really critical though. You should still use a pack liner with fully sealed packs. High stress seams, such as shoulder straps, will still allow water in. Pack liners allow you to access the interior of the pack during active precipitation. Eventual Ultra delamination will kill the waterproofness regardless.

Signed an MYOG enthusiast!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Thanks for the link! After reading there a bit I'm thinking of going with aquaseal around the outside seams. I'm not really trying to 100% waterproof it, just make it more water resistant. Not like I'm taking it pack rafting or anything!

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Wow that is gorgeous!!!

Try silicone tent sealant on the seams? Brush it on in a thin layer maybe?

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yeah I was thinking of using seamgrip or something, but I dont know if I should try to remove the frame and turn the pack inside out to apply to the seams from the inside or just wing it and go for the outside seams...

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Couple thoughts.

contact the company to ask for advice. This will both possibly get you advice and inform them their customers care about this issue.
if they don't get back to you, what's the thing you can do that will not damage the pack? Ripping fabric or cutting threads will mess with the structural integrity. Sealing seams inside looks nicer than outside, but you don't want to damage anything in the process.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Our of curiosity what other packs have you used in the past? Hopefully Dan joins lemmy.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Like I said, this is my first real ultralight pack. I've used an ancient 80's Gregory that must have been like 70L, and an Osprey Aether 65 more recently. My partner recently ordered the GG Mariposa and the zpacks Arc Haul but returned both, so I only have cursory experience with those.