Reviews > Packs > Pack Accessories > Simblissity Unslack Pack > Thomas Vickers > Field Report

Simblissity UnSlack Pack Field Test Report

July 7, 2006

Tester Background:
I grew up in the piney woods of southeast Texas. Camping was a quick trip into the mosquito-infested woods behind the house. My style has evolved and over the last 4 or 5 years, I have begun to take a lighter weight approach to hiking gear (I still use sleeping bags and tents, just lighter versions). While I have flirted with lightweight hiking, I feel that I am more of a mid-weight hiker now. My philosophy is one of comfort, while carrying the lightest load possible.

Off to work I go:
I had hoped to get outdoors more during the first month of testing, but work and family life conspired to make that nearly impossible.  I decided that the Simblissity UnSlack Pack was not going to sit in the closet till school was out, so I attached it to the shoulder strap on my daypack that I carry to work everyday.  This wasn't the best hiking test of the item, but it allowed me to use it on a daily basis and see just how useful it was.

The shoulder strap on my day pack is 3 in (8 cm) wide and after looking over the cordlock and elastic cord on the UnSlack Pack, I decided that it woudl be easiest for me to unhook the shoulder strap of the pack, pass it through the webbing strap and elastic cord on the UnSlack Pack, and then reattach the shoulder strap to the daypack.  The reason that I went this route was because the opening in the cordlock was very small and I didn't think that rethreading the elastic cord through it would be quick or easy. 

Every morning when I carried my daypack into work, I put my cell phone, car keys, and my wallet in the back pocket of the UnSlack Pack.  I usually already had my USB drives in the front mesh pocket and when I tightened the elastic cord down, the UnSlack Pack stayed put just where I wanted it on my daypack.  When I left work in the afternoon, I knew where everything I needed was stored and often, during the day, I quickly opened the front compartment and retrieved the USB Drive that I needed at the time.  The UnSlack Pack was quick and easy to use and it kept my small items organized so that I wasn't digging for them when I wanted to go home.

One thing I did figure out really fast is that once I loosened the elastic cord to access the rear compartment, the unstuck Pack liked to slide around on the shoulder strap.   I got frustrated several times when I would remove items and then later go back to the daypack and unstuck Pack only to find that the UnSlack Pack had moved down on the shoulder strap and had to be replaced before I could secure it tightly.

On to the woods:
Once school was out I began to spend a lot of time outdoors. At least five mornings a week during June I was either dayhiking or dayhiking and fishing.  This meant that I had to move the UnSlack Pack between my lumbar pack and daypack in order to use it.  Once again I found myself unhooking the daypack's shoulder strap (and the single shoulder strap of the lumbar pack) in order to attach and detach the UnSlack Pack.  It wasn't an issue and I found doing it this was easy and quick to do once I was proficient at doing it. 

When I used my lumbar pack, I wear it over one shoulder with its optional shoulder strap. This strap is 1.5 in (4 cm) wide and the UnSlack Pack attached easily to it.  The normal load that I carried when I used the lumbar pack was my cell phone in the front, mesh compartment and my digital camera and keys in the rear compartment.  For once I wasn't digging in the cramped confines of my lumbar pack when I wanted to use my digital camera. It was easy to open the rear compartment and pull it out, shoot some pictures, and then put it back, all without taking my lumbar pack off or digging around in the main pack.

An extra added bonus that I discovered thanks to the rainy summer Texas has enjoyed so far, is that the Silnylon really keeps my camera dry. So not only does the UnSlack Pack keep my camera where I can get to it, it also keeps it dry when there a lot of rain.  

I have also used the UnSlack Pack and my lumbar pack when I go geocaching.  It was nice to be able to stick my keys and cell phone in the rear compartment and then put my pen and GPS in the front compartment when not needed.  It was nice and handy to have a place to stick my GPS when opening a cache or when walking away from one.  All too often I have placed my GPS on the ground while I handled a cache and then had to backtrack to find it when I accidentally walked off and left it. 

One thing I did notice while using the UnSlack Pack with my lumbar pack that had come up before was the tendency of the UnSlack Pack to slide around on the shoulder strap when the items from the rear compartment were removed and the elastic cord was loosened in order to do this.   While not a huge problem, it was something that I had to watch out for. I learned that if I had to loosen the elastic cord to take something out of the rear compartment, it was best to quickly cinch the elastic cord down tightly to ensure that the UnSlack Pack stayed in the spot that I wanted it.  

If I was dayhiking I attached the UnSlack Pack to yet another daypack.  This one has shoulder straps that are 3 in (8 cm) wide.   When using this pack, I usually had a digital camera in the rear compartment with my cell phone and my GPS in the front compartment.   What I really liked about the UnSlack Pack was that if I positioned it just right, it gave me a spot to clip the drinking tube of my hydration system that wasn' flush against the shoulder straps and my chest.  That way I could lean my head down and not have to have it flat against my chest to access my hydration system.  Just one more little thing that makes the UnSlack Pack even more useful for me.

Closing thoughts:
I have used the UnSlack Pack with a variety of packs and with a variety of loads. During the field testing phase I have discovered several things about the UnSlack Pack that I like and don't like.  The first thing that I am not happy about is how the UnSlack Pack will slide down and out of location on a pack's shoulder strap if the elastic cord is loosened and items removed from the rear compartment.  The same is true if items are removed from the front compartment, but I tended to carry my larger items in the rear area and removing them had a larger impact on the elastic cord. I found an easy answer to this issue when I finally learned to loosen the elastic cord, remove my item, then immediately cinch the cord down tightly.  One thing that I really like, is that once I get the UnSlack Pack loaded and cinch down the elastic cord, it doesn't move. It stays put no matter how fast or hard I jostle my pack. I had a sneaky idea that the UnSlack Pack would bounce loose over time on the trail, but I was a very pleasanty surprised when it didn't.  

I have also found that the hook and loop and snap closure systems on the UnSlack Pack not only work well, but they have proven very durable. I feel like I have opened and closed this pocket a ton of times, but both of the closure systems are holding as strong as ever.   There is just no give in the hook and loop or snap that I can notice at this point.   Since these areas are serious "moving parts" on the UnSlack Pack, it is very nice to see that they are holding up to normal wear and tear excellently.

As I have previously stated, I am also very happy that the rear compartment keeps its contents dry. I have used the UnSlack Pack in a full downpour and my digital camera has stayed dry.  I was not sure if this was going to be the case, but once I gave in and tested it, I was surprised and delighted to see how well it worked.  I do not worry anymore about were to put my digital camera.  The UnSlack Pack keeps it handy and it keeps it safe from the elements.

The size of the UnSlack Pack was something that I thought I was going to have an issue with.  It just didn't seem big enough to warrant me using it, but that is something that I have easily proven wrong.  If I need an item to be handy during a hike, it goes into the UnSlack Pack. It is just that simple. If it is too big to go in the UnSlack Pack, then I don't need it handy, or so things have proven so far.  The size is also good for another problem that I have and that is over packing.  I tend to use other brands of aftermarket pack pockets and when I do, the problem that I often have to come to grips with is the fact that I will pack a pocket full, even if I don't need to.  In other words, give me room and I will fill it, easily.  The UnSlack Pack just isn't big enough for me to take that approach and I enjoy that.  If I need it and I need it to be handy, it goes into the UnSlack Pack. I have yet to find myself searching for something extra to stuff in it and fill up the extra space.  If the UnSlack Pack doesn't seem full, I just cinch it down and move on. 

I will continue to use the UnSlack Pack during the remainder of the test and report back on how well it holds up. So far it has exceeded my expectations on its functionality and durability and I will see if it continues to do so.

Reviews > Packs > Pack Accessories > Simblissity Unslack Pack > Thomas Vickers > Field Report