black dimond back packs

I am now looking at a pack by BD and know nothing about the brand. Are they any good and do there packs last?

I have only small packs by BD. I own and heavily use an old model Bullet and a more recent Magnum. I carry them as multi-pitch climbing packs, which means they get rubbed on rocks quite a bit, and also as hiking daypacks and around-town daypacks.

Both are well constructed, tough and comfortable. The fabric on the Bullet is much burlier, but the Magnum is more tricked up, so it actually weighs a bit more. However, since both packs are tiny, this is pretty much a non-issue. The Magnum so far has stood up to use very well, despite its lighter construction, but if I had the choice and anticipated a lot of hauling or other heavy use (chimney intensive routes, for example), I might opt for the Bullet.

My Bullet is from the pre-hydration bladder pocket generation. I bought the Magnum because I wanted a climbing pack with a bladder pocket in a hurry and the Bullet wasn't available in stores over here. The current model Bullet has a bladder pocket, however, which eliminates that issue - assuming it's available where you live. On the other hand the Magnum has some other nice bells and whistles (extra pockets, etc.), if you don't mind the lighter build.

Friends who have larger BD packs speak well of them, but I have no direct experience.

Thank you bill, the bag i am looking at is the predator 50L pack. I was looking at a north face terra 60 and found this. I just don't want to spend $200 for a gregory or osprey.