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Granite Gear Air Compressor
| Field Report |
June 13, 2004 |
Personal Biographical Information
Name:
Michael Herman
Age: 20
Gender:
Male
Height:
5' 11'' (1.8 m)
Weight:
195 lb (89 kg)
Email: Backpackman (at) mailbolt (dot) com
Location:
Northwest, Indiana
Backpacking
Background
I am an semi ultra-light backpacker, but I do not go to the extremes. I
always attempt bring the necessities but cut down on weight in other ways. I
also feel strongly that backpackers should always have good food. I have camped
all my life and backpacked regularly for 3 years. I backpack year round but not
so often in the winter months with snow. I also participate in other activities
such as adventure racing, kayaking, and caving.
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Product Information
Product: Air Compressor
Manufacture: Granite Gear
Year of
Manufacturer: 2004
URL: http://www.granitegear.com
Size: Large (9x20 in 23x51 cm)
Listed Weight: 4.0 oz (113 g)
Measured Weight: 4.1 oz (116 g)
Description: A light stuff sack with 4 compression straps on the side and
a draw string opening.
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Field Report
I have used this compression
sack on 4 trips with a total 10 nights in the past 2 months. This included a 4
night trip. On these trips I was able to use the stuff sack to compress my
tent (not the poles) and sleeping bag, clothes, and my food. I used the sack to
compress my sleeping bag and tent during the 4 night hike. I compressed both my
tent and sleeping bag together because I have the large compression sack which
is rather big and just putting my sleeping bag in the stuff sack the sack would
compress as much as it can (the straps on the sides were pulled all the way) and
the sleeping bag was still not as compressed as it could have been, so I
added my tent in there also so I could compress more. I could have added even
more stuff such as my clothes because the large has that much room. I did wish
that the bag was smaller so I didn't need to add so much to the bag to make it
so it would compress contents more; however, this is not the a problem with the
sack, I should have asked for a medium. The compression
sack compressed my sleeping bag and tent together so that the sack was about 5in
(13 cm) high with a diameter of 9.5 in (24cm). What I didn't like is that it got
the sack flat it was still big across the diameter. This made it fairly awkward
to pack at the bottom of my backpack. Again this might be a problem with just
the large and the smaller sizes having smaller diameters making them more
efficient to pack. However, if I was to change the dimensions of the large to
keep the same volume I would make it taller with a shorter diameter.
I also carried my clothes in this stuff sack on a couple of my trips, one being
a 3 night 4 day trip. There was chance of rain and cold nights on this trip so I
packed rain gear and long underwear along with the rest of my clothes. I folded
the clothes and stacked them in the stuff sack. This was again very little for
the stuff sack to hold and compress fully. If the diameter was smaller and was
taller instead I think that the clothes could have been able to be compress the
clothes better. I also used this stuff sack as a pillow on these trips. It
worked quite well and I am sure I will always use it as a pillow. This is when
the larger diameter was better as it made the pillow flatter but bigger.
I also used this stuff sack to store my food in while backpacking in bear
country. Food doesn't compress much at all so this compression sack was just
being used as a sack on this trip; however, I did tighten the straps down so that
there was no spare room in the bag for the food to move around in. This was
helpful so that I could put dinner on the top in the morning and it was still on
top in the evening when I wanted to get to it. However, the last day when there
wasn't much food in it the bag couldn't get small enough to hold the food
together tightly, but this wasn't a problem for me since it was the last day.
The bag also was easily bear hanged using the strap on the bottom of the sack to
tie the rope (parachute cord) to.
My stuff sack has yet to see the rain yet; however, it has seen my shower. When
this stuff sack has enough stuff in it so it can be compressed tightly it is very
waterproof. It didn't leak through the top nor at the seams something. This is
something I liked
very much.
Operating this bag takes some getting used to. The straps (being attached to the
lid) can easily get tangled. In daylight it only takes a minute to untangle them;
however, I found it nearly impossible to do it without a night light when it was
really dark (I could barely see the bag, it was all by feel). With a light
they it can be untangled quickly. If the bags straps are not tangled then it
can easily be opened and closed in the dark
I also used the bag while traveling to compress a week's worth of underwear and
socks. This was very helpful in packing and I will use the stuff sack again like
this.
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Likes and Dislikes
Likes
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The sack is very waterproof as long
as there is enough stuff in it to be compressed tightly.
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Very easy to compress things and requires
little strength.
-
Is a good pillow.
-
Can be used for many different items.
Dislikes
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Read more reviews of Granite Gear gear
Read more gear reviews by Michael Herman
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