KUIU vs Mystery Ranch Backpacks | ADVISOR INSIGHTS with Isaiah Joner

Hey everyone, Isaiah here from The Huntin' Fool. This is another video on Advisor Insights on gear and today I have the backpacks that I have been running last year and prior years to that. So start out with the Kuyu bag here. This is the Ultra 5000 on the Icon Pro frame. The Icon Pro shoulder straps are a bit beefier, which I like, but the Ultra bags are very lightweight, which I really like. So like I said, I've been running these bags ever since the beginning of Kuyu. They've made a lot of upgrades over the years. This bag is basically, you know, one load right to the top and one down the side. The reason I like the Kuyu bag so much is with all the new bags, it's quick disconnect clips on everything. So basically I can run a 7000 or 5500 bag heading into camp if I'm going on a multi-day trip, along with like a 3000 bag inside with all my day gear in it. Basically what I do when I get to camp, quickly just unsnap the big bag, snap the little bag on in about three minutes, and you can be totally set up again. That is the main thing I love about the Kuyu bags is they're very versatile. You can run any bag on them. They're all interchangeable, so lots of options. Once you do get into heavier loads with this, the back pack is very durable. I have packed over 100 pounds in these things. There's no issue there, it's just it's a little uncomfortable. I would say for me personally, I like to stay around 60-70 pounds max load in this thing, where it still feels really comfortable packing. But overall, again, great design. Best feature about the Kuyu is the interchangeable bag, so it's like an all-in-one system for pretty cheap. Also here I have the Miss Ranch Metcalf backpack. I ran this pretty much all year, last year, off and on between that and the Kuyu bag. Not a lot of fancy features to this. It's pretty much just a backpack, really durable backpack. It does very well handling heavy loads. I like it better than the Kuyu when it comes to a lot of weight in the bag. So pretty comfortable there. The top lid pops off pretty easy, and you can literally just throw it on the inside if you don't want a bulky bag. It compacts pretty easy. So the other feature I do like about the Mr. Ranch bags is they're pretty wide and short, so when you get a big load in there, it's not that tall, rocky motion you get. So good feature on the Mr. Ranch bags. Very comfortable, heavy loads, very durable bag, and you don't get that sway back and forth. And this is a good mid-season bag where, you know, you don't need the really big backpack, but you do need a little more room than like a $25,000, $3,000 bag. Those later season hunts when you have bulkier items. So that's kind of my, you know, go-to bag those later seasons where I can throw a lot of stuff in there and access the load shelf. But that is the one complaint I have about this is getting to the load shelf can be a little difficult. But Mr. Ranch has made some big improvements this year, and I have here the Beartooth 80. I looked at this at SHOT Show and realized they had upgraded a bunch of the features that I really like. So I just got one last week, put about 20 miles on it over the weekend, and really like it. So again, lid's very easy to detach. It has this big horseshoe zip on it so you can get right to the inside. Unlike the Metcalf that just has one zipper, this one literally unzips all the way around, has really good organization pockets in there. So that's a big upgrade along with getting to the load shelf. Now instead of having to slide the pack over, it's literally you just unclip it back here, that unfolds, and you're in. So again, huge improvements over at Mr. Ranch this year. Pretty excited to run this, see how it does overall. So again, these are the packs I use or will be using. Lots of great features. Any of them are good backpacks. So if you have any follow-up questions or comments, leave a comment, shoot me an email. Be happy to help you out. Get ready for your next hunt.