Tester Bio
I live outside a small town in northeast Alabama. I have access to a good hiking area right out my front door, a large tract of woods called Pall-Mill Hollow (pronounced holler). It has a creek flowing through it with several good swimming holes. Caves abound in the area. I spent my youth climbing around the bluffs, swimming in the creek and exploring the caves. I also enjoy hunting, fishing, canoeing, and most other outdoor activities.

Backpacking is my favorite pastime. I consider myself a knowledgeable backpacker but I am not an expert. I enjoy hiking with my friends and family or solo. I limit my hiking to areas fairly close to home, usually within a day’s drive of home. 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

Test item,	Gregory Z™ Pack
Manufacture URL,	http://www.gregorypacks.com/
Year of manufacture,	2003
Size Large,	3950 cu in (65 L)
Weight Listed,	3 lb 5 oz (1.5 kg)
Verified Weight,	3 lb 5 oz (1.5 kg)
Load Range,	25 to 35 lb (11 to 16 kg)
Color,	Castor Gray
MSRP,	$169 US

Receiving the Z™ Pack
When the Z™ Pack arrived at my doorstep on 12/11 2003, I did what any normal gear-head would do. I tore into the box to see how the pack looked and quickly made a visual inspection of the pack's construction and features. I must say, if I were to design a pack, I would want something a lot like the Z™ 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 Z™ Pack Is pretty much what I expected from the description and pictures on the Gregory web site.

The hang-tags (booklet and a small Dyneema fabric card) on the pack are fairly thorough and include selection, fitting, care and warranty information as well as the features of the Z™ Pack.

Product Description
The Z™ Pack is one of four 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 Z™ Pack is the next to largest pack in the series. Gregory describes the series as "The new benchmark for light weight weekend to week-long packs." A heavy packer would probably classify it as a weekend pack. However, with a volume of 3590 cu in (65 L), the individual user can put it in whatever class of packs they see fit. The web site mentions the load weight range as 25 to 35 lb (11 to 16 kg).

The Z™ Pack features 4 separate compartments not counting the hydration sleeve located inside the main compartment. 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.

Some of the features listed on the hang-tag and web site are obvious while others required my imagination to figure out. Features of the pack include;

Top and side access: This is access to the main compartment. The top access is through the extension collar which closes with a drawstring and cord-lock arrangement. The one and only side zipper is located at the curved seam between the "bucket" pocket and the pack frame with a black patch of fabric completing the half-moon space back to the frame. I also noted that about the only place for a sip tube to exit the main body would be at the top of the side access zipper by leaving the zipper a little open. The picture below should help show this and also shows the side compression straps.

Front "bucket" pocket: This open pocket has mesh on each side and covers the front of the pack. The center is of solid material making up the back of the secondary front pocket. "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 or fly, etc. Anything else I would want quick access to could go here. The top is open but secured with a center strap and buckle which goes on up and across the top opening of the main compartment. Very small items could escape the mesh but I doubt anything would fall out the top opening of this pocket even if the pack were inverted and shaken.

Secondary front pocket with water resistant zipper: This smaller pocket is stacked onto the "bucket pocket. It measures approximately 9 in (23 cm) wide and 12 in (30 cm) tall with a 12 in (30 cm) water resistant zipper placed vertically and centered on the pocket. This should be an ideal place to store small items of gear which need to remain dry. A camera or GPS come to mind, but to get at them I would need to take my pack off or have someone retrieve them for me.

Top pocket: It is made with the 140d Dyneema® body fabric and uses a water resistant zipper. It is a single compartment roughly 10 x 12 in (25 x 30 cm) around the edges and approximately 5 in (13 cm) deep. The top pocket is big enough to store snacks, first aid kit, or similar small items and maybe a light jacket. 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.

140d Dyneema® body fabric: The Z™ Pack uses 140d Dyneema® body fabric for the main compartment and top lid. The Dyneeme® hang-tag card says that it is the "STRONGEST and LIGHTEST fabric in the world." I have no idea how this was tested but I assume some type of independent laboratory testing may in fact back it up. it looks a lot like other grid-stop nylon fabrics. All I care about is will the pack hold up to my normal treatment and loads while out on the trail.

210d HT nylon fabric reinforcements: The information provided says it is used in strategic places like the bottom of the pack and other high abrasion areas. If this is true I will say that it is hard to tell the 210d HT nylon fabric from the 140d Dyneema® body fabric.

Water resistant top pocket and side access zippers: the zippers appear to seal when closed and make a smooth rubber like strip.

Listed separately are the suspension features. They include;

Sewn-in Sport harness: The shoulder straps are typical of those found on most packs but are thinner than any on my other packs. They are shaped like an 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. The strap and buckle arrangement at the other end of the shoulder straps connect down near the bottom of the pack just outside the hip belt. The sternum strap keeps them from wanting to spread out. Each strap has a daisy chain sewn on it with 6 loops for attaching things like a sip tube.

Gullwing™ Plus waistbelt: Like the shoulder straps, the waistbelt is quite thin but adequately padded. It is not very stiff, but when wrapped around my waist with a 20 lb (9 kg) load it did not want to sag or bend.   The belt wraps to just over halfway on my 38 in waist. It connects in front using a plastic buckle and 1.5 in (38 mm) webbing. The waistbelt is angled wider at the bottom to follow the contours of my waist. Note: On the web site this is listed as "Gullwing™ Plus harness" but the instruction booklet had it correct.

Single, hollow 1/2 in (13 mm) 7075-T6 stay: I can not tell if it is hollow or aluminum. It runs down the middle of the pack inside a nylon webbing like sleeve sealed off at the top. It is gently curved to match the shape of my back. I did not try to bend it to improve fit but I doubt if I could get it to fit much better than it already does.

Remove the stay to save 1.4 ounces: I tried to remove the stay. It appears mine is sewn in at the top and it won't slide out the bottom due to the bottom of the pack being in the way. I have no desire to try to save this minuscule amount of weight anyways.

FOAM-X hourglass framesheet: The framesheet is also sewn in so I could not inspect it very well. It is flexible and follows the same contour as the padding next to my back. It feels like a hard plastic. It is not as wide at the bottom but close enough to an hourglass shape to use this as a descriptive term.

Chimney ventilated backpanel: The back padding is shaped similar to an hourglass with a 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 backpanel which also shows the daisy chain on a shoulder strap.
back panel

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.

Initial Impression
After satisfying myself that the pack was properly constructed, I loaded it with a bunch of winter clothes, a hammock, sleeping bag, headlamp, snacks and some water. I then took it for a short over-night hike. This was after dark so the gray and black pack did not shine very much. However, the pack carried very well. It was much too short of a hike to draw any significant impressions but I will say it was very nice. I did notice the pack fit my rather large frame like a glove. The shape of the framesheet and single stay along with the contoured shoulder straps seemed made for my body. I had no trouble stepping over logs or crossing the creek. Another thing I immediately noticed was the lack of any dedicated side pockets for stuff like a water bottle. I will save the details for my Field Report.

Test Plan
Over the next few months I will be using the Z™ Pack for mostly short trips but I hope to get in a few multi-day trips. Then as spring arrives I will be using the pack for longer trips of 2 to 3 days. I find it hard to get in any longer trips than that. I will be carrying my normal gear but will make it a point to try a few loads of around 35 lb (16 kg) to see if the pack does well at its maximum weight rating. While using the pack I hope to see how easy or not it is to take on and off. How will I miss not having a dedicated water bottle pocket? How water resistant are the water resistant zippers? Can I fit my winter gear in the pack? Is the pack too big for my summer loads and do the compression straps snug a small load securely inside the pack? How easy will it be to retriever something using the side access zipper? I will keep up with the weather and trail conditions in relation to how they effect the use of the pack as well as other trip information that seems relevant.

Read more reviews of Gregory gear
Read more gear reviews by Coy Ray Starnes

Initial Report

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