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Reviews > Packs > Internal and External Framed Backpacks > Gregory G-Pack 2005 > Coy Starnes > Initial ReportGregory
G™ Pack
Initial Report August 8, 2005  Front view of the Gregory G-Pack
Tester Bio I live outside a small town in northeast Alabama. I enjoy hunting, fishing, canoeing and most other outdoor activities. Backpacking is my favorite pastime. I enjoy hiking with my friends and family or solo. I hike throughout the year and actually hike the least in the hot humid months of summer. My style is slow and steady and my gear is light. However, I will sacrifice weight for comfort and durability. A typical 3-season load for me is around 20 lb (9 kg) not counting food or water. I usually sleep in a hammock and cook with an alcohol stove. My backpacking trips are usually 2, 3 or 4 days in length. Product Information
Product Description The G™ Pack is one of seven packs in the Anti-Gravity Series of packs. As the name implies, Anti-Gravity series packs are Gregory's answer to the growing demand for lighter weight packs. The G™ Pack is not the biggest or smallest pack in the series, but it is the smallest that I would consider a full-fledged multi-day pack. The smaller packs are more like summit or day-packs. Gregory describes the series as: "Slip into something more comfortable. A lightweight pack that shaves weight at the expense of comfort and fit is hardly a technical advancement. Gregory’s Anti-Gravity Series subscribes to a new theory of weight reduction. New fabrics and weight-saving features allow these packs to retain the technical prowess, load carrying comfort, and stability that fastpackers, alpinists, adventure racers, and other ultralight fanatics crave—at an ounce count that’s competitive with the lightest packs available today. Pull a G Pack™ off the rack; its silicone impregnated pack fabric is 75% lighter than other fabrics. Play around with a Z Pack™; its removable suspension system allows you to customize support for different loads. All Anti-Gravity packs prioritize the features you need—and none you don’t. Now that’s forward progress." It goes on the describe the G™ Pack as: "COMPLETELY UPDATED FOR 2005. Think Z Pack™, streamlined. Minimalist to the core, the G™ Pack has been completely updated to include our new Wraptor™ Stabilizer and Exo•Frame™ Technologies. Designed for the weight conscious, the G™ Pack spans a wide activity range." I would add, The G™ Pack will be the smallest and lightest overnight pack I have used to date. It uses small hardware, straps and zippers etc to reduce weight. However, in looking over the pack, it looks sturdily built, and tugging hard on the material and seams gives me confidence that it can handle any abuse I may dish out. My biggest challenge will be to par my multi-day loads down to fit within the capacity and weight limitations this pack is design to handle. The hang-tag is really a small booklet on the pack and is fairly thorough, providing fitting, care and warranty information as well as the features of the G™ Pack. On a single card was information on the G70 fabric, which it says is twice as strong as the G30 fabric used on the older G-Pack this pack replaces. The G™ Pack features 3 separate compartments not counting the hydration sleeve located inside the main compartment or the 2 side mesh pockets on the pack and the 2 small zippered mesh pockets on the waist belt. There are also numerous attachment points for lashing on extra gear. The compression straps (2 on each side) can also be used to attach extra gear onto the pack. The lower ones are located about halfway down on the side mesh pockets. Initial Impression The G™ Pack arrived at my doorstep on August 4th, 2005. A quick inspection revealed that everything seemed in order. The next day I had time to thoroughly inspect the pack and found the pack to be in perfect condition. I marveled at how light the pack felt. I must say, if I were to design a pack, I would want something a lot like the G™ Pack. It has most of the needed features and very few gimmicky (to my way of thinking) stuff. The pack construction seems to be top-notch. The G™ Pack is pretty much what I expected from the description and pictures on the Gregory web site. Now lets look more closely at the pack. Pack Features Top access: Access to the main compartment is through the extension collar that closes with a drawstring and cord-lock arrangement. It is made of the silicone impregnated G 70 fabric with 210d HT nylon fabric reinforcements. This compartment is approximately 24 in (61 cm) tall plus another 5 in (13 cm) for the extension collar. The back is approximately 16 in (41 cm) wide and 7 in (18 cm) front to back. Inside this compartment is the hydration bladder that measures approximately 14 in (36 cm) tall and 10.5 in (27 cm) wide. Top Lid: This compartment sits on top of the G™ Pack. It measures approximately 12 in (30 cm) wide x by 10 (25 cm) long and about 4 in (10 cm) deep. It is big enough to hold a light rain jacket and perhaps some snacks and other small items I might need quick access to. It will come off the pack if I decide to cut a few ounces but it does not have provisions to make it into a waist pack. Front "bucket" pocket: This open pocket is made of mesh and covers most of the front of the G™ Pack. It measures approximately 16 in (41 cm) tall and 10 in (25 cm) wide but will expand outward quite a bit as things are put inside. "Bucket" is a good choice of nomenclature because there really is a lot of room inside this area. However, a full main compartment will reduce the volume this compartment will hold. This area seems like an ideal place to store a wet jacket, rain fly or anything else I would want quick access. The top is open but secured with a center strap and buckle that goes on up and across the top opening of the main compartment. Very small items could escape the mesh but I doubt anything very big would fall out the top opening of this pocket even if the pack were inverted and shaken. There is a daisy chain down the center of the "bucket" pocket. Pack Suspension Sport Harness: The shoulder straps on the G™ Pack are typical of most packs, only thinner and lighter than standard issue. They are shaped like an elongated S and curve across my shoulders and down to just below my arm-pits while laying flat to my body. They are connected to the pack frame at either side of the chimney vented back and there is no adjustment at this point. I will discuss the bottom connection point in the next paragraph as I discuss the Wraptor™ stabilizer. The sternum strap keeps them from wanting to spread out. Each shoulder strap has a daisy chain sewn on it with 6 loops for attaching things like a sip tube and the sternum strap. Wraptor™ stabilizer: The lower connecting strap on each shoulder straps is really 2 straps which connect to the pack at 2 points. It is supposed to stabilize the back panel and reduce pack bounce during high aerobic activity because load weight is transferred evenly over a wider area. Here is a picture that illustrates this better.  Gullwing™ Waistbelt: Like the shoulder straps, the waistbelt is quite thin but adequately padded. A light test load of 15 lb (7 kg) did not cause it to want to roll and it felt like it is supporting most of the pack weight. The belt wraps to just over halfway on my 38 in (97 cm) waist. It connects in front using a plastic buckle and 1.5 in (38 mm) webbing. The separate halves of the waistbelt taper as they comes around the waist from 4.5 in (11 cm) at the rear to 3 in (8 cm) at the front and are home to mesh pockets which fit the shape of the waistbelt. Each pocket is approximately 11 in (28 cm) long with a full-length zipper across the top. I was hoping my camera would find a home here and it fits inside easily but once I put the pack on it was obvious this was not a good place for my camera. It does not bend to fit my waist so I will have to rethink what I carry in them. Here is a picture of one of the mesh pockets.  Chimney ventilated backpanel: The back padding is shaped similar to an hourglass with a recessed strip about an inch wide and half an inch deep going down the center, then spreading out in an inverted Y shape where it meets the waistbelt area of padding. Here is a picture of the ventilated backpanel and it also shows the daisy chain and sternum strap on the shoulder straps.  Exo•Frame™ Technology: I can feel the frame inside the G™ Pack. It is contoured to fit the chimney padding on the back of the pack. It is very flexible but felt firm enough with my test load. It is supposed to give both torsional flexibility, yet still give superb stability and load support. Odds and Ends: The pack features mesh side pockets on either side of the pack but they are rather tall and probably not ideal for keeping a water bottle within reach. They should however, hold my fuel, an extra water bottle and my umbrella along with other odds and ends I may need quick access to. The dual ice axe loops and keepers will be used for my telescoping hiking poles or perhaps a camera tripod. I do not do ICE CLIMBING!!! That about describes the pack. I did not measure every strap or compartment. I tried to make it clear what the pack is like without getting bogged down in a bunch of figures. If you have a specific question about a component of the pack please feel free to contact me through my e-mail addy. Test Plan I will be using the G™ Pack for a few multi-day trips, one starting next week. I will also use it on my short day and overnight hikes in the local woods around home. When traveling to a destination I choose to hike in places within a day’s drive of home, which translates to hikes in the mountains of Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina. It is hot now but fall and winter are not far away. Therefore, I should be able to use the G™ Pack under a variety of weather conditions. I will also document what gear I use for a particular trip. As I use the pack I hope to answer the following questions.
Not only do I hope to answer the above questions, I will basically document what I find as I use the pack in my backpacking endeavors. I will keep up with the weather and trail conditions in relation to how they affect the use of the pack as well as other trip information that seems relevant. Stay tuned. Read more reviews of Gregory gear Read more gear reviews by Coy Ray Starnes Reviews > Packs > Internal and External Framed Backpacks > Gregory G-Pack 2005 > Coy Starnes > Initial Report | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||