Review: OSPREY VARIANT 37 A masterpiece of the unknown "Jobs of the Pack World"

He is kind to beginners and even experts are satisfied. As rumored, he's amazing.

A backpack or backpack is a sturdy item that won't break for a year or so, so you may have to pay a great price with just one choice. The backpack I bought last time was from a safe manufacturer, but it was a sale item. The bet was absurd and failed. Even so, I started to feel attached to others, and after three years of dating, I was almost at a loss as I was about to get to see my soul, so I finally got to the mountains and tools shop. When you carry dozens of backpacks on your back, you will intuitively begin to understand what "it's not this." However, I still don't have confidence in Zack's feeling of "this is it." However, I fell in love with this OSPREY VARIANT 37 at first sight, with no doubt so much that there was nothing more decided without any hesitation. So this time, I'll be reviewing some amazing things that are just as rumored to be true, with fit, specs, detailed features, and price.

Introduction: Steve Jobs, aka Mike Pfotenhauer, of the pack world

OSPREY is a pack manufacturer born in California in 1974. "I didn't want to work for anyone," founder Mike Pfortenhauer began making custom-made backpacks based on his sense of art school and sewing skills he learned from his mother at a young age. Its reputation quickly became popular, and it has grown to around 40 years since then to become popular all over the world.

Mike, a young man, begins full-scale pack production in Dolores, Colorado.

Image source: Eastern Mountain Sports

Thorough commitment to "products"

The more you learn about this manufacturer, the more you understand it, the more you can see the "passion for manufacturing" of Mike, the current founder, who is still active today, and can be called an extraordinary, intense craftsmanship. For example, when he expanded his business and moved the company to Colorado to start producing and selling ready-made products from custom-made products, the 100 creators he hired were Navajo people, who were well-known for their dexterity craft production. Mike said he tried and error together to make it possible to produce large quantities of high-quality packs. Furthermore, when he switched to production in Vietnamese factory amid global competition, he moved to Ho Chi Minh with his family, and did not care if he was a Vietnamese person who didn't know what camping was, and joined local engineers and did not give up on making uncompromising things. He is truly Steve Jobs of the Pack world, and I can't help but feel something like Honda Soichiro. Manufacturing is not a speciality unique to Japan. In an interview with a web magazine, he hesitated to share his philosophy with him:

Be involved in the making of the product.

My philosophy is that I am involved in making things (not just thinking about ideas or ideals).

Source: Core77.com

From product prototypes to manufacturing processes, his professional spirit continues to focus on how to turn ideas into shape, and even today, he may not have changed since he was custom-made and handed over packs to each individual 40 years ago. In any case, it is clear that this relentless attitude towards output is the driving force behind Osprey, which leads the industry through its unique evolution. There were still many interesting things to be had when I dig into this, but that's another story.

Mike at a factory in Ho Chi Minh City (center foreground)

Image source: Eastern Mountain Sports

Detailed review

Item name (price)

OSPREY VARIANT 37 (Reference price: 19,440 yen)

Main Specifications and ratings

This is amazing!

The variant is basically designed for climbers who want to use it all year round, but it can be used not only for normal mountain climbing, but also for stream climbing, and is also suitable for backcountry and alpine climbing. The Variant is an exquisitely balanced and convenient backpack that gives you a high performance in any situation , which is the first impression of this backpack. Even if it doesn't meet the backpack, which specializes in each category, it is the reason why it continues to be loved by many climbers and mountain guides because its basic high quality

the comfort of carrying , which is superior to other backpacks . I compared it with the rivals that I chose in consultation with the shop staff, THE NORTH FACE Profit 40 and GREGORY Alpinist 35, and although it wasn't as thick as traverses, this backpack was the only shoulder hip belt that was so luxuriously cushioned that it was for climbing purposes (this is the main reason why I didn't use the OSPREY Mutant The MAMMUT Trion Pro 35+7L was also very comfortable to carry, but this one is relatively expensive, so I think about it a lot.

Next, I would like to mention the balance between simplicity and multifunctionality, and ease of use . A climbing backpack is basically all you need to do is tolerate the ease of use, as it strips its functionality to the extreme and you can't put on gear on the outside, but with variants, it has a balanced variety of features that will satisfy you. The following are the detailed features I like, including the good balance:

A highly storable ice tool holster and a durable front panel pocket that makes it easy to store crampons, shovels, etc.

Side belts and pockets designed not only for tent poles and stock, but also for skiing and snowshoes.

Although it is not the lightest, it is so light (1.5kg) that it is impossible for traversing. You can easily adjust it to an Ultra Light model by removing the detachable top pocket, hip belt and back panel.

It has a large capacity and easy-to-use head (top pocket), and is so highly storage that it is officially 37L, but it definitely has a 50L storage capacity.

A 3-point loop that is convenient for lifting your backpack (focusing on climbing the river with all your might)

There are many other features that are detailed and detailed, but please refer to the product page

This is not good

Although there are things that can't be helped, I'll list some of the downsides.

• The use of thin and lightweight fabrics makes it difficult to maintain durability.

This has not been concluded, but it may not be uncertain whether it will be perfect for activities that require a lot of friction with rocks when climbing or climbing a stream.

• Some people may say it's a bit of a half-hearted thing

It depends largely on the differences in the purpose of each individual's use, but as a result of the almighty items, it can't be said that they have too many unnecessary functions for pure climbers, and if you are a complete beginner and only use them for traversing, it can be said that they are not enough for long-term traversing such as cushioning and support.

• The only way to put and take out the contents can be done from the top

I'm not sure if I could make it this well-balanced, but as long as I could put the contents in and out with a zipper on the side, I had nothing to say. I held back from gaining that much weight...!

Summary: What kind of activities do you recommend?

The best users who use this backpack are outdoor enthusiasts like me who have a wide range of intuition and unstable attitudes, that is, those who want to use it in traverses, streams, backcountry, and even a little more and more as they can be used in variation routes. As for the size, it has a high storage capacity, so if you stay in a mountain hut, 37L is enough, and you can just stay in a tent, but considering winter, 52L is a good option. On the other hand, this may not be suitable for those who only need it for alpine climbing, those who don't need it at all in winter, or those who are completely new to them and want to place the most importance on ease of use, including ease of packing, rather than simplicity. However, there is no doubt that this backpack is a very unconventional backpack that is not suitable for people with very little habits, so why not try out the carefully selected craftsmen of Meriken's stubborn craftsmen?

Variant 37

OSPREY

21,600 yen

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