What’s the deal with compression straps over side pockets?
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Home › Forums › Gear Forums › Gear (General) › What’s the deal with compression straps over side pockets?
- This topic has 10 replies, 7 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 11 months ago by Alex Wallace .
Viewing 11 posts – 1 through 11 (of 11 total)
Aug 13, 2016 at 4:15 pm #3420041
BPL Member
@shawnb Locale: SE Idaho
I use my side pockets for things I want to access while walking, like water bottles, snacks, etc. What’s with packs like HMG and Katabatic putting the lower compression strap OVER the pocket? That’s an instant deal breaker for me because I can’t compress my pack and keep the pocket accessible. So, for all those who love your HMG 2400 and 3400, how do you use your side pockets?
Aug 13, 2016 at 4:50 pm #3420045
BPL Member
@tomw Locale: Philadelphia
Have you seen a Katabatic Gear pack in person? I have a Katabatic Gear Helios and the compression straps can go over the pockets or under. You can see examples on their website as well. No problems compressing the lower part of the sack.
Aug 13, 2016 at 5:09 pm #3420050
BPL Member
Under or over….same with other packs I have seen. My newer model Exos can be threaded inside or out as well. I owned a pack that didn’t though and considered it a PITA.
Aug 13, 2016 at 5:32 pm #3420056
BPL Member
@shawnb Locale: SE Idaho
Good to know about Katabatic. Is that true of HMG as well?
Aug 13, 2016 at 6:24 pm #3420060
BPL Member
@stumpjumper Locale: Santa Barbara, CA
“Good to know about Katabatic. Is that true of HMG as well?” No they do not. In fact, the HMG design is terrible in my opinion. Here’s a video I did on the HMG 2400. You can forward to about 7:45 for the compression/side pocket detail.
Aug 15, 2016 at 7:34 am #3420274
BPL Member
@shawnb Locale: SE Idaho
I asked HMG about the straps, whether they would put them inside/under that pocket (they won’t), and to explain the logic. Here is the response: “Shawn, Thanks for taking the time to reach out to us. The compression strap is going to be placed on the outside of the pocket to compress the full sidewall fabrication, whether it is in use or not. The strapping will also assist with keeping bottles or equipment in place with the external compression, while the pack is in use. I hope this will clear things up, but please get back to me if you have any other questions.
Aug 15, 2016 at 8:51 am #3420283
@matthewkphx
That is so frustrating and it’s such an easy fix to allow the user to run compression either over or under the pocket. I won’t ever buy a pack that runs compression over the pocket. It’s a dealbreaker.
Aug 15, 2016 at 12:15 pm #3420343
BPL Member
@ngatel Locale: Southern California
I have never seen a HMG pack in person. Sewn on side pockets are a deal killer for me. I hate them. Too much bulk protruding from the pack to catch on something, usually elastic at the top that degrades over time, and too much potential to put stuff in them and move the center of gravity away from your body. I do like removable side water pockets. If I were in the market for a HMG, I would be looking at the plain 2400 or 3400… but there appears to be very little taper from the top to the bottom, which is another deal breaker for me. My McHale LBP has 3 side compression straps and all are easily removable. The bottom strap can go behind or over the removable water pockets, which are large — they can carry a 64 oz Gatorade bottle. When I hike without the water bottle pockets I remove the bottom compression straps because there is less pack material to compress compared to the middle strap and even more material to compress at the top of the pack. The McHale has a tapered design; larger volume at the top and middle compared to the bottom. I never have had a need to compress the bottom of the pack. These are my preferences, many will disagree.
Aug 15, 2016 at 1:00 pm #3420360
BPL Member
@feetfirst Locale: Sierra Nevada North
HMG 3400 Porter w/ Zimmerbuilt removable pockets. Lower compression straps can be routed over or behind the pockets. Works great. 
Aug 15, 2016 at 3:01 pm #3420394
BPL Member
@shawnb Locale: SE Idaho
Nice solution, Alex. I did not know about the Zimmerbuilt pockets for exactly that purpose (http://www.zimmerbuilt.com/store/p43/HMG_Porter_Water_Bottle_Pockets.html). It’s amazing that it takes a second company to fix what I consider a flaw of another company’s product. I’ll have to think about this solution as I can appreciate the flexibility this allows but have never been a fan of what I would call a Frankenstein pack (e.g., I don’t like the clip on everything in the MLD line-up). Still, it’s intriguing. Do you still use a liner in your Porter for possible seam leak or is the water repellency sufficient with the HMG pack for you?
Aug 15, 2016 at 4:19 pm #3420411
BPL Member
@feetfirst Locale: Sierra Nevada North
Yes, I use a liner (trash compactor bag) with the Porter. The pack by itself would probably handle light to moderate rain or a quick dunk fine, but I like the added protection of the liner. I only pack my sleeping bag and warm clothes in the liner. When it’s raining and I have to dig through the contents to grab something it’s reassuring to know that those items will remain bone dry. It’s also somewhat of a multi-purpose safety item (e.g. poncho, ground cloth). Note that HMG makes removable water bottle holders, not pockets, that can be attached to the sides of the Porter.
What Are The Straps On The Outside of a Backpack For?
Many backpackers attach gear to the outside of their backpack because it’s too bulky, they need to carry extra supplies, they want to keep their gear easily accessible, or because it’s wet and they need to keep it separate from their dry clothing. While some techniques for attaching gear to the outside of a backpack are nearly universal, like sandwiching it under compression straps, many are more specialized and rely on features that depend on the specific backpack you own.
Learning how to attach gear to the outside of your pack, like many backpacking skills, is best learned by observing what other people do and adapting it to your needs. That said, it helps to think about the kinds of external attachment capabilities that are possible on different backpacks and figure out which ones you’ll need before or after you buy a new backpack.
To help you with this process, I’ve compiled the following collection of examples that illustrate the most common techniques for attaching gear to backpacks and the different external attachment systems.
Side Compression Straps
While side compression straps are not universally available on all overnight backpacks, most backpacking and climbing packs designed for weekend or expedition trips have them. They can be used to compress the volume of a backpack to bring the load closer to your core muscles, though most people use them to attach bulky gear like sleeping pads, snowshoes, or cylindrical tent bags to the outside of their packs.
When attaching gear under compression straps, it’s best to balance the load so that you carry an equivalent weight on the left and right sides. You’ll want a least two tiers of compression straps, although some larger packs may three.
Some backpacks come with reversible side compression straps that can be used to attach gear to the front of your pack. This requires that the ends of the compression straps have clips, instead of being sewn onto the pack, and that there’s a male clip and a female clip on opposite sides so they can mate together. Most of Granite Gear’s overnight backpacks including the Crown 2 60 and the Blaze 60 have this feature. Their smaller volume Crown 2 38L also has it and makes an exceptional backpack for winter day hiking and snowshoeing. The other nice thing about this kind of compression system is that you can use it without losing the ability to fill side pockets with water bottles.
One of the problems with compression strap systems is that they’re clumsy when using a side pocket to hold water bottles because the compression strap has to run outside of the pocket and around the bottle. Granite Gear backpacks also have a great pocket design that alleviates this issue. Instead of running the bottom compression strap outside the pocket, they cut small holes in the pocket that let you run the webbing strap underneath the bottle, so you can use the pockets and the compression at the same time. Many other backpack makers have adopted this pocket format including Osprey.
Some backpacks also have a Z-style compression strap, which gear manufacturers use to trim the weight of their packs. While it’s reasonably effective for shrinking the volume of your pack, these Z-style straps are awkward to use if you want to strap bulky gear, like snowshoes, to the outside of your backpack. Horizontal compression straps are much easier to use.
Shoulder Straps Loops
Many people like to festoon their shoulder straps with extra pockets for storing a camera, a GPS, Satellite Messenger, water or snack bottles, or even a map case. But many backpacks lack good attachment points on the shoulder harness to do so.
When choosing a backpack, look for packs that have horizontal keeper-style straps or small daisy chains that you can hang external pockets from. Hyperlite Mountain Gear Packs are particularly good for this purpose. It’s also helpful to have some kind of plastic or metal ring that you can clip heavier gear onto like a GPS on a retractable cord. If you have a pack that doesn’t have these features, Sea-to-Summit and Gear-Aid sell a wide variety of plastic hardware and buckles that you can often use to rig something that suits your needs.
Floating Lids
A floating lid is a top pocket attached to the pack using 4 webbing straps instead of being sewn to the back panel like a hinge. They’re often used in winter to compress bulky objects like sleeping pads, tent bodies, or rope between the top pocket and the top of your pack bag.
When carrying very heavy gear, floating lids help you keep it closely aligned with your spine and your strongest core muscles rather than along the sides or back of your pack where it can throw you off-balance. They also provide much-needed vertical compression to keep your load compact and balanced. Most backpacks let you remove the floating lid pocket when it’s not needed and leave it at home. Some manufacturers also make roll-top backpacks packs that come with an optional floating top lid so you get the best of both worlds. The Granite Gear Crown 2 60 is a good example of this.
Shovel Pockets
Shovel pockets (sometimes called shove-it pockets) are open pockets sewn onto the back of a pack that you can stuff gear, like snowshoes, crampons, or layers into for easy access. They’re quite similar to backpacks that have stretchy mesh pockets actually, but more rugged when it comes to storing gear that has sharp pointy teeth.
Ice Climbing Tool Holders
Most climbing packs have extra tool holders for attaching climbing or walking ice axes to a backpack. These include shaft holders to hold ice axes in place and ice ax loops for securing the pointed end of an ax to the pack in a way that prevents it from spearing you in the thigh if you fall.
The shaft holders are made with webbing and buckles or elastic keeper cords. Some packs also have pick protectors that let you secure the tip of the pick, protecting it, you, and your gear!
Hip Belt Gear Loops
Backpacking hip belts have pockets, webbing straps, or gear loops on the exterior side. The latter two are often far more useful as gear attachment points because you can secure anything you want to them.
It’s not uncommon to find gear loops on climbing and winter packs because you can rack climbing gear like carabiners and quickdraws to them when you’re not wearing a sit harness. They’re also used to attach insulated water bottle holders to a pack for easy access.
Daisy Chains
Daisy chains are webbing loops sewn to the sides or back of a backpack that let you clip extra gear to your pack using carabiners or webbing straps.
Tie Out Loops
A lot of lightweight gear manufacturers sew small gear loops along on their packs so that backpackers can rig up custom attachment points. While these are functionally equivalent to daisy chains in some ways, they weigh less and it’s easier for manufacturers to add a lot more of them to a backpack: around the perimeter of the back, the sides of the pack, and even on top of the lid.
You can hang almost anything from a backpack using a system like this from solar power chargers to a wet tarp. All you really need is some cord and a few small cord locks, which companies like Gossamer Gear include with their packs for this purpose.
When attaching clothing and softer items to a pack, it helps to use an elastic style cord to create a rigging system. Static non-elastic, cord is better for hanging heavier gear, like snowshoes on the outside of a pack, because it’s more durable and there’s less chance that it will break.
Rear Sleeping Pad Straps
Many larger backpacks have rear loops that hang below the bottom of the pack bag for securing sleeping pads, sleeping bags, or tent bodies.
While gear hanging from them can be a nuisance since it can swing into your legs while you walk, they provide a convenient place to attach very lightweight items like pads or wet tents.
Conclusion
There are many ways to extend the volume of a backpack so that you can carry a lot more gear when required. Often these techniques depend on the specific features of your backpack, however, there is usually a way to MacGyver a custom rigging system provided you’ve seen enough examples of the external attachment systems that other people have rigged up.
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