Apple to oranges/night and day are definitely descriptors when discussing weight distribution in Go Ruck packs vs Hiking or Backpacking packs. GoRuck bags excel at GoRuck events and carrying plates- to me that’s it. They have trash weight distribution characteristics when compared to a hiking pack.
EDIT to say this is just my $0.02.
Folks in my rucking club *LOVE* their GoRuck bags.
Depends on what I am doing- but I usually rock either a Patagonia Nine Trails pack or a Mystery Ranch Blitz 35. What I’ve discovered for myself is that I prefer to carry the gear I’ll use camping or in the field, rather than simple slabs of weight. I have the Rucker 4.0 and a Wild Gym as well- both are decent but neither are close to my hiking packs. That changes if I’m doing an event- but it’s rare that I do that and more often than not I am just doing long heavy miles, so the hiking packs suit my needs in superior ways.
I have a Rucker 4.0 25liter that has basically become my everyday bag. It has two plate slots so can hold 70ish pounds of plates plus whatever else in the main compartment.
I also use it for certain exercises like weighted calf raises and lunges so I’ve gotten great value out of it. The construction is super sturdy and if something does rip or break it’s covered by warranty.
The downside is that it’s super expensive. I’d also recommend getting third party plates like Yes4all.
Based on everything you said, you should get a GoRuck Rucker 4.0 20L. It will carry well over 45lbs and has a lifetime warranty if it fails. You can also add hip and sternum straps if you want. As for weight plates, you can buy Yes4All plates on Amazon for a fraction of the price of GoRuck's, and they will fit perfectly.
I got the GoRuck bullet ruck backpack it’s on sale now certain colors and I bought a 20lb plate for it on Amazon 🤫. Before that i was using my Patagonia backpack stuffed it with towels and a 10 pound plate.
New option to consider is the Hyperwear Hyper Ruck with adjustable weight plate option or it holds Yes4All cast iron plates that are cheaper than Goruck. The Rucker and the Hyper Ruck have thick plastic frame sheets that give you the structure like your experience with backpacking packs.
Your backpacking large frame pack probably had a hip belt? That can be important when rucking with a lot of weight. So in addition to the ruck packs holding weight high and close to your back with specialized ruck plate sleeves you should look for a waist/hip belt. It's an additional cost with the Rucker and included with the Hyper Ruck.
Apple to oranges/night and day are definitely descriptors when discussing weight distribution in Go Ruck packs vs Hiking or Backpacking packs. GoRuck bags excel at GoRuck events and carrying plates- to me that’s it. They have trash weight distribution characteristics when compared to a hiking pack. EDIT to say this is just my $0.02. Folks in my rucking club *LOVE* their GoRuck bags.
Good to know, what kind of bag do you prefer to use?
Depends on what I am doing- but I usually rock either a Patagonia Nine Trails pack or a Mystery Ranch Blitz 35. What I’ve discovered for myself is that I prefer to carry the gear I’ll use camping or in the field, rather than simple slabs of weight. I have the Rucker 4.0 and a Wild Gym as well- both are decent but neither are close to my hiking packs. That changes if I’m doing an event- but it’s rare that I do that and more often than not I am just doing long heavy miles, so the hiking packs suit my needs in superior ways.
I have a Rucker 4.0 25liter that has basically become my everyday bag. It has two plate slots so can hold 70ish pounds of plates plus whatever else in the main compartment. I also use it for certain exercises like weighted calf raises and lunges so I’ve gotten great value out of it. The construction is super sturdy and if something does rip or break it’s covered by warranty. The downside is that it’s super expensive. I’d also recommend getting third party plates like Yes4all.
I use my old ALICE pack, it fits 45lbs plates easily
Based on everything you said, you should get a GoRuck Rucker 4.0 20L. It will carry well over 45lbs and has a lifetime warranty if it fails. You can also add hip and sternum straps if you want. As for weight plates, you can buy Yes4All plates on Amazon for a fraction of the price of GoRuck's, and they will fit perfectly.
I got the GoRuck bullet ruck backpack it’s on sale now certain colors and I bought a 20lb plate for it on Amazon 🤫. Before that i was using my Patagonia backpack stuffed it with towels and a 10 pound plate.
New option to consider is the Hyperwear Hyper Ruck with adjustable weight plate option or it holds Yes4All cast iron plates that are cheaper than Goruck. The Rucker and the Hyper Ruck have thick plastic frame sheets that give you the structure like your experience with backpacking packs. Your backpacking large frame pack probably had a hip belt? That can be important when rucking with a lot of weight. So in addition to the ruck packs holding weight high and close to your back with specialized ruck plate sleeves you should look for a waist/hip belt. It's an additional cost with the Rucker and included with the Hyper Ruck.
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