ULA packs

I was in another backpacking forum and came across ULA packs built in Utah. These packs are very light and reasonably priced. Everyone in that forum just raved about them, anyone own or have experience with them?

I have had some experience with other light weight packs and currently have a home made light-weight pack that weighs about 9 oz. They are fine if you are prepared to accept their limitations.

The most important limitation of these packs is the amount of weight you can carry. Most of the light packs are designed for a gear load of 10-15 pounds and a maximum total weight of perhaps 25 pounds. Sure you can use them for heavier loads but they then start to ride like an aluminum beer keg with shoulder straps. Few of these packs have frame sheets or utilize internal stays for load distribution; many use your folded sleeping pad instead. And, most of them are made of extremely light fabric so they do not hold up at all well if you drag them over rocks. I have torn up the bottom of several when down-climbing steep talus.

If you can get your base gear load down to less than 12 pounds, carry a food load of 1.5 lb per day and a liter of water, one of these packs is great for a 6 day trip (or longer if you don't mind being a bit hungry).

Personally, I prefer a heavier pack with a good suspension system to one that sacrifices comfort, durability and capacity to achieve light weight. My current pack is a Mountainsmith Phantom; weighs 3 lb on the nose and rides like a down pillow with up to 30 lb and OK to 35 lb. My gear load including pack and camera is generally 14-16 pounds so I have about 7 days load capacity for food at 2 lb per day. I use it that way all the time.