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Hey guys. Reid from the Bechtel Summit Team here again at Outdoor Retailer
checking out gear that you guys want to know more about.
If you wanted to learn about it, couldn't pick a better guy and a better place.
This is Drew Simmons, WickedOutdoorsy.com.
He's been around gear for quite a long time and I've got a question for you Drew.
How do I decide between an external frame backpack and an internal frame backpack?
As with everything, every time you're choosing a piece of gear you have to
think about what your end use for that product is.
Where you're going, how you're going to use that product.
When it comes to backpacks, its not just about the size of the pack,
it's about how much weight you're carrying and what your balance is.
In terms of balance, I mean, are you going to be walking across a long, flat landscape?
Or are you going to be in the mountains crossing rivers,
needing a little bit more dexterity on the trail?
I think the logical choice for a frame backpack
is when you want to carry a ton of weight and there's not
a huge amount of landscape variability.
We're talking about Arizona, New Mexico and some desert areas.
External frame backpacks are a great choice. As you can see on an external frame backpack,
the weight is carried much higher up on your back,
which is a much better place to carry that weight.
You can also stack it up with additional things.
A bedroll, tents, water bottles. Hang them off the pack.
It's not a big deal. You don't feel the weight as much as
when it's further down on your back.
Another nice benefit of a frame backpack is
that it holds the weight away from your back.
There's a lot of great ventilation.
So once again, if you're in those desert kind of environments,
this can be a great way to go.
Another great choice is if you're doing an Alaska trip,
if you're lucky enough to get up there.
And it's very wet so you want to have that breathability,
so you don't get that moisture buildup back there.
Frame backpacks can be a great way to go.
A frame backpack is actually what I took to Philmont
in New Mexico, Scout Ranch and for those same purposes you were talking about.
And I kind of wish that I took the same backpack, actually,
on a trip to Europe, which I quickly found out was there was some limitations
and I saw a lot of people with packs like this
and I think you know where I'm going as to why these can be a little bit better.
This is what you call an internal frame backpack and
the same way you see the skeleton of aluminum on the outside here,
that's the external frame, all the suspension here is internal.
Yes, it has a bar here for stability and things like that, but
it's almost invisible how the skeleton is supporting all your weight.
What's nice about an internal frame backpack,
as we were talking about the balance in the scheme of things, is it holds your
load much closer to your body. So if you are up high in the mountains,
or some tricky areas, it's not weight that's going to tip you one way or another.
Especially if you have a very heavy-loaded pack.
Another nice thing about the internal frame backpacks,
is a variety of compartments. If you're traveling, it's a great example,
that you want to have a spot here for your overnight supplies,
another spot here for your water bottle;
everything has it's own place to live. Where typically, in an external frame backpack,
it's one large compartment and you have to be a little more technical with how you pack.
Right, right. Cool, well I guess in the end it's just about thinking about what
you're going to use it for, and what your needs are and
that will help you pick out the right gear.
That's exactly right. Thank you. My pleasure.