Blacks Creek Remedy 7 Solution Pack Review

Blacks Creek Remedy 7 Solution Pack Review

Editor: Mike

Basic Description of Item:
Hunting Back Pack. 1-4 day pack, good for sustained weights up to 65 LBS

Just the Facts:
FEATURES:
– 4,800 Cubic Inches
– 9 lbs
– 1,000D Cordura
– Military grade hardware
– YKK zippers
– 14 pockets
– External optics pocket
– Sleeping bag compartment
– Detachable lid
– Detachable day pack
– Main compartment access in front and top
– 6 compression straps
– Draw string weather collar top

Story:
I have used Blacks Creeks Packs for many years, the Alaskan, the Canadian, and several others. I was excited to see them come out with a more tradition pack, built on top of a Separate Frame / Suspension system.
I obtained the pack at the International Hunting Expo about 3 weeks ago, and have spent virtually every day using this pack in some way.
My initial hikes with the pack were focused on functionality: Checking out the Optics Pockets, looking at how the Sleeping bag goes in, working on how to expand, or lock down loads, etc.
On my most recent trips I became more focused on load hauling, weight management, and comfort.

Blacks Creek Remedy 7 Solution Functionality:

The Solution is loaded, and I mean LOADED with features. Let me mention a few:

-Bottom compartment with lined sleeping bag stuff sack.
Yes that is correct, the bottom section has a built in stuff and compression sack for your sleeping bag. This is a cool feature, and will allow you to not take your own compression bag. Keep in mind that this is fixed in place. This is a cool option, and worked well for my -20 down bag.

-Exterior detachable small day pack.
This is very small, but would be great for a short, very little weight, side trip.

-Side, external optics pouches.
I have a Swarovski 65 spotting scope, angled, that fit well on one side, and my tripod on the other. Compression straps help to keep these tight against the pack.

-Top and front access to main compartment
You can stuff this packs main compartment, or come in through the front zipper, nice feature and should be widely used.

-LOTS of compression straps, and places to strap on exterior loads
I really liked this, you can easily SECURE, and tighten a load down to your body.
-Many more features, too many to mention.
This can be overwhelming. Several times I have lost things in this pack?

Load Hauling, Weight Management, and Comfort:
I mentioned earlier that the last few trips I have purely focused on HAULING. The guys on facebook, somehow convinced me to take a nasty hike with 80 lbs. WOW, that was hard! ?

Here are my findings and thoughts:

-The pack is capable of hauling enough gear for a 5 day pack in trip.
This is what you would expect out of a 4800 cubic inch pack. You will probably need to strap a few things on the outside. But there is room enough to get this done.

-It handles weight fairly well.
The Solution Back Pack is a decent hauler. I felt comfortable with weights up to 60 lbs, when pushing above that mark, I felt a need to constantly adjust the pack, and change the pressure points.

-It is comfortable.
I found the pack to be in the upper level of comfort related to other packs. Some packs that may be slightly more comfortable with large loads: Kifaru, KUIU.
The pack comes with just decent shoulder pads, better pads, that make a HUGE difference, can be purchased, I highly recommend the better shoulder pads.
I also noticed that the pack was a little lacking in lumbar support. I would suggest to Blacks Creek a larger pad for the lumbar section of the pack.

Summary:
This is a good pack, and certainly a pack that should be considered for a 1-5 day trip. This pack has more features and options than I could possibly list. It is a good choice for the guy that wants a certain spot for each item. It is loaded with pockets, straps, and features.
The Blacks Creek Remedy 7 solution at times can be a little confusing. The compression system is unique, and the pack has a pockets and straps all over the place. Some guys will LOVE this, others will be confused by it.
We think this pack would serve most people well, and certainly should be considered.

What they could do better:
-Larger Lumbar support. We really noticed this with loads over 50 lbs.
-Ship it standard with the better shoulder straps
-This pack is not cheap, see if you can reduce the price by 50-100 bucks.