• The SH Membership has gone live. Only SH Members have access to post in the classifieds. All members can view the classifieds. Starting in 2020 only SH Members will be admitted to the annual hunting contest. Current members will need to follow these steps to upgrade: 1. Click on your username 2. Click on Account upgrades 3. Choose SH Member and purchase.
  • We've been working hard the past few weeks to come up with some big changes to our vendor policies to meet the changing needs of our community. Please see the new vendor rules here: Vendor Access Area Rules

Quietest hunting backpack

CooterBrown

Well-Known Member
SH Member
Joined
Sep 1, 2020
Messages
1,964
So tired of zipper noise and loud material. Any suggestions?
 
The Sitka Fanatic pack is by far the quietest pack I've ever had in the woods. Definitely has some CONS such as no frame, not the best for packing sticks plus a platform but does the job, and somewhat small. However, nothing on that pack itself makes noise.

Sent from my SM-G998U using Tapatalk
 
Fanatic pack is the quietest. But no structure at all. You feel everything in the pack poking you in the back. The straps are also strange. No buckles no zippers some little webbing flap thing.

The scentlok grinder pack is very quiet. The new one with the compression straps I do like. There is a side access to the main compartment I find super nice and well thought out.

The new treehouses I was disappointed in. The furry outer makes you think quiet but that is sewn on top of the noisiest 200d nylon in the world.

The Staggs pack has a quiet outer it is a cowboy suede material. But the inside is pretty noisy. To fumble around in. It’s also a very shallow pack and not real useful if you need to strap multiple sticks to.

If you are looking for quiet. Cordura is probably out of the question.
 
Last edited:
first thought was sew up a fleece knapsack, it will have all the drawbacks of the fanatic pack though and probably some additional ones as well. Google led me to this which looks to address a couple of your concerns and appears more structured than the fanatic pack also
 
first thought was sew up a fleece knapsack, it will have all the drawbacks of the fanatic pack though and probably some additional ones as well. Google led me to this which looks to address a couple of your concerns and appears more structured than the fanatic pack also
Magnets can be noisy. Anybody use this pack?
 
They make zipper wax which helps. Also, pull the zippers slowly and carefully.

Deer hearing is better than humans but is not nearly as good as their nose. Their nose is super human their ears are just "really good". Also, sound intensity drops off with the square of the distance (exponential decay) and so unless you are on top of them (inside of 40 or 50 yards), then I'd say the chance of then hearing your zipper is close to zero.

Anecdotally, sheep farmers in New Zealand find that if they unzip their trousers 10 or more feet from a sheep that the sheep isn't alerted. We'd have to look up sheep vs whitetail hearing, however.
 
I had that pack last year. It rides high that waist strap is more like a belly band. The zippers are really crappy and it has a weird squeak to it. I was not a fan.
just for context, how long is your torso? I wear tall shirts so I expect that means it will be short on me, adjustable yoke packs are my go to usually
 
just for context, how long is your torso? I wear tall shirts so I expect that means it will be short on me, adjustable yoke packs are my go to usually

I am 6-4 and wear XL in most things and need XLT in others. Torso measurement is 22-22.5”
 
Last edited:
Fanatic pack is the quietest. But no structure at all. You feel everything in the pack poking you in the back. The straps are also strange. No buckles no zippers some little webbing flap thing.

The scentlok grinder pack is very quiet. The new one with the compression straps I do like. There is a side access to the main compartment I find super nice and well thought out.

The new treehouses I was disappointed in. The furry outer makes you think quiet but that is sewn on top of the noisiest 200d nylon in the world.

The Staggs pack has a quiet outer it is a cowboy suede material. But the inside is pretty noisy. To fumble around in. It’s also a very shallow pack and not real useful if you need to strap multiple sticks to.

If you are looking for quiet. Cordura is probably out of the question.
Thanks for the heads up I've been about to buy the Treehouse. How do companies make bowhunting intended gear and not realize how loud their crap is?
 
Thanks for the heads up I've been about to buy the Treehouse. How do companies make bowhunting intended gear and not realize how loud their crap is?
The new treehouse doesn’t have external zippers(that I remember?). I’ve only used it on a handful of hunts so I could be forgetting. But you can definitely go through a hunt without touching a zipper. My issue with it is it’s square structure, it seems odd for carrying my bow what feels like 12 inches from my body and only have a few things in the pack.
 
I avoid packs with zippers for this reason. I also don't like to spend a lot of money on gear. I've bene happy with ALICE medium, Fieldline, and Kondos packs with drawstring or roll-top closures under a top flap. I saw a Timber Hawk pack with a drawstring closure as well. The side pockets are zippered, of course, but with careful planning you might not need to unzip them during a hunt.
 
I avoid packs with zippers for this reason. I also don't like to spend a lot of money on gear. I've bene happy with ALICE medium, Fieldline, and Kondos packs with drawstring or roll-top closures under a top flap. I saw a Timber Hawk pack with a drawstring closure as well. The side pockets are zippered, of course, but with careful planning you might not need to unzip them during a hunt.

If one of the big pack makers came out with a fleece pack with all drawstring and button-style closures (doesn't have to be a button, could be elastic loop that goes over a ball) with even a button flap over drawstring pockets....they'd be printing money. I'd make no frame small pack, internal frame medium pack (what I would buy), and an external frame. I'd want it to be Mystery Ranch because they'd have an adjustable yoke on the internal frame version.
 
If one of the big pack makers came out with a fleece pack with all drawstring and button-style closures (doesn't have to be a button, could be elastic loop that goes over a ball) with even a button flap over drawstring pockets....they'd be printing money. I'd make no frame small pack, internal frame medium pack (what I would buy), and an external frame. I'd want it to be Mystery Ranch because they'd have an adjustable yoke on the internal frame version.
I mean... it seems the EWO Staggs pack seems to hit most of those buttons. Maybe not fleece, but I remember watching some of the review videos and being intrigued. I hunt late season rifle and ML in Northern MN so I want a lot of room for extra layers... but I wouldn't mind trying out that Staggs pack. Maybe I can lash extra layers to the outside....
 


C1BACDD8-738C-48A6-8C03-0A8067E9D76C.jpeg
 
Has anybody tried the Code of Silence packs? They have two models one for $150 and the other, a larger with a more substantial belt and both have both vertical and horizontal compression straps and their quiet Berber wool. I’ve heard decent things about the Alps Pursuit pack as well in terms of silent operation. https://codeofsilence.com/collections/accessories/products/doublebak-backpack

 
I'm beyond perplexed on the fascination with quiet packs. Do you intend to aggressively rummage around in it when a buck is right in front of you? I've used quite a few packs in my life made of different materials and I cannot EVER recall spooking game over a noisy pack.
 
Last edited:
I'm beyond perplexed on the fascination with quiet packs. Do you intend to audition rummage around in it when a buck is right in front of you? I've used quite a few packs in my life made of different materials and I cannot EVER recall spooking game over a noisy pack.

What pack do you use?
 
Back
Top