arizonaelitefreak Report post Posted April 8, 2011 i have the x1 and the x2 love both of them! X2 is a great day pack for shorter trips, x1 is a great pack for a short pack in trip or longer day trips or if you just wanna carry more gear, water or whatever! killed my coues buck this year and packed the whole thing out in it (including head and cape) the 2 miles back to vehicle and was awesome on the shoulders and waist! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Redman Report post Posted April 9, 2011 You should check out the Pack Matrix Ron G put together. It compares all the Eberlestock packs and some others. http://teamkendrickoutdoors.blogspot.com/2011/03/confessions-of-pack-junky-pack-review.html You can also see some more in detail reviews of each packs individually if you go to the main blog. AWESOME! Thank you so much! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
outdoor rush Report post Posted April 9, 2011 X1 gets my vote i love that pack! packed out an elk and a whitetail last season with no issues. jake Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Basser15 Report post Posted April 9, 2011 You should check out the Pack Matrix Ron G put together. It compares all the Eberlestock packs and some others. http://teamkendrickoutdoors.blogspot.com/2011/03/confessions-of-pack-junky-pack-review.html You can also see some more in detail reviews of each packs individually if you go to the main blog. AWESOME! Thank you so much! No problem. If you can't tell, Ron is particular with his packs and has gotten some good use out of them. The matrix he put together was a way to help figure out which packs are best for each situation and help others with their purchases. Hopefully you got a chance to check out some of the individual reviews he did for some of the main packs where he went into more detail about them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TAM Report post Posted April 9, 2011 I bought a J34 and was very unhappy with the fact that the zippers on the side pockets are not long enough to allow a full size spotting scope or full size tripod to fit in the side pockets. The pockets are plenty long enough but because of the short zipper length I couldn't get either to go inside the pocket. I never cut the tags off the pack and sold it and purchased an Outdoorsman pack that works perfectly for my needs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Basser15 Report post Posted April 10, 2011 Redman, here are the links to the extended reviews of the Eberlestock packs if you haven't seen them already. Included are pics of the packs in action so you can see how the fit and are used too. http://teamkendrickoutdoors.blogspot.com/2011/03/eberlestock-j104-pack-review.html http://teamkendrickoutdoors.blogspot.com/2011/03/eberlestock-x1a1-pack-review.html http://teamkendrickoutdoors.blogspot.com/2011/03/eberlestock-x2-pack-review.html Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
IHunt2live Report post Posted April 10, 2011 I use the J34 and like it. One reason I went with that one was the $. I would now consider the gunslinger now that I have an AR but the AR still fits in my J34 but not realy well. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JMP Report post Posted April 21, 2011 I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Eberlestock packs are the most OVER-RATED packs on the market. They're fine for day trips and can pack a mule without breaking, but they are incredibly poor at distributing the load to your hips, expand horizontally instead of vertically (which messes with your center of gravity), and are extremely heavy. For some reason, hunters think they need their backpack to be camoflauged, which is the only thing Eberlestock packs offer much better built packs from Mystery Ranch, Arc Teryx, Gregory, REI, shoot, even Kelty. I spent $500 on a J107 and accessories that I ended up giving away. I then spent the $600 for a MR Grizzly, which has been wonderful in comparison, even though it's still a bit heavy for my liking. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Santana Outdoors Report post Posted April 21, 2011 JMP, Sorry to hear you had a bad experience with these packs. I have found them to be the best hunting packs. Not just because I sell them but use them! We have sold hundreds of these packs all over the world and 99% have told me they are better than any pack they have ever owned including the packs you mentioned above. I do understand they are not for everyone. We have also found that most people do not load a pack properly or adjust the packs properly. Eberlestock packs are released from the factory to fit most average men but for some require a custom fit and the packs are also designed to do that. We are posting a video on our website shortly to explain this process. You said "For some reason, hunters think they need their backpack to be camouflaged, which is the only thing Eberlestock packs offer" Eberlestock has a large selection of packs. Their packs not only designed and made with hunters in mind but also for military and tactical purposes which are not camo. They also just added the new Battleship and Destroyer packs which in my opinion is going to give packers more options. The J107 in my opinion is designed for either large men or people that have a desire to carry more then most and is not my first recommendation to most. I agree you do not have to have a camo pack and mine isn't. Its all personal, because if you are moving your busted! Redman, there is a lot of choices out there and I'd be glad to go over what each pack has to offer with you, shoot me an email or give me a buzz. Here is a link to all the Eberlestock packs http://www.santanaoutdoors.com/servlet/the-Backpacks-cln-Eberlestock-Packs/Categories Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HUNTAZ Report post Posted June 6, 2012 I have the x2, love it!! packs everything i need!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Flash Report post Posted June 6, 2012 I have had the gunslinger for several years and is the best pack I have ever used. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter4life Report post Posted June 7, 2012 I will second TAM's complaint on the J34. They should make the zippers go all the way to the top so you can fit longer items in the pockets such as a full size spotter or tripod. I can just barely fit my Swarovski ATS 65 in the pockets. Otherwise well built and good to carry light-moderate weight loads. Great design for day hunting where you might kill a coues a few miles from camp and want to carry the deer and all your gear back in one load without having to make a second trip. What JMP said has some definite merits. These packs tend to put weight out farther from your back and it ends up centered fairly low causing the weight to fulcrum on the hips and try to pull you over backwards. This makes you have to lean forward and puts a lot of the weight onto your shoulders. I have tried putting light items in the bottom and cinching down the bottom strap to keep the dense heavy weight items (meat) up higher and close to my back but the pack still tends to distribute a lot of the weight on the shoulders and tends to pull you backwards. For big loads (elk hindquarters) or multi day backpacking trips I still go with an external frame pack and have yet to find any internal frame pack that can even come close to handling those kind of weights with the relative comfort that the external frame affords. Do not overlook packs made by backpacking equipment manufacturers like JMP mentioned. They often can be found for cheaper and can accomplish the job as well or better than "hunting" specific packs as long as you don't mind them not being camo colored. Overall, gear from hunting manufacturers is far inferior for backpack hunting than gear from mountaineering/backpacking manufacturers. Hunting specific gear tends to be bulky, and heavy. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kwp Report post Posted June 7, 2012 Like I posted earlier, I have the J105. At first I thought it rode a little too far back, like what jmp is talking about, but getting it adjusted right made it fit snugly to my body. Eberlestock has some info on their website about how to adjust the pack to fit best. http://eberlestock.c...k Tech Tips.htm Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dave_D Report post Posted June 7, 2012 I have the dragonfly and the x1. if either are of interest and if you are in the phx valley you are welcome to check them out side by side, try them on, and see if your gear fits. Ive been in your position before and have had buyers remorse on multiple packs. Talk to Santana and he will help you a ton, and he has the best prices. Thats where I bought mine. I love them both, for different reasons. I think the build quality is one of the best available, with the best planned accessories system. The only downside is that they aren't lightweight. I will worry about that later on when I get a bit older I imagine. Good luck, lots of great advice in this thread and let me know if you want to put your hands on either of the two I have before deciding. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nmhunter Report post Posted February 11, 2014 Gunslinger II Nmhunter Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
