Lise T said:
Hey Kiwifamily....
Can I ask what range of the Osprey was the one that had the fabric breaking away?
And where abouts in New Zealand did you buy it and did you get help making sure it was a good fit for your back etc. at the shop?
Lise
I bought an Osprey Ariel 55 from Bivouac in Auckland. It's just the fabric at the very top where the drawstring goes through that is cracking and peeling. It does not actually affect the functionality of the pack, but I lodged my complaint because I expect something to last longer than a fortnight. They have been very good about taking it back and returning it to see what Osprey says - at this stage I have not heard back from them, but they were thinking it would not be "fixable" and so would probably need to be replaced.
Before this pack I had a Macpac that lasted 20 years before the fabric started peeling off the harness and so you can see why I expected more than two weeks. (And even after 20 years, Macpac honoured their lifetime guarantee and provided a new harness!!)
I went with Osprey because the fit was so much better (yes, I tried it in the store - but to be honest, I had more of an idea of what I needed to look for than the assistant who was intent on selling me a 30l pack because that's what he had used on his trip :roll: I don't think he heard that I was carrying gear for two people and maybe he failed to also see that I was female whereas he was not)
We have four other Osprey packs - 2xExposure 36 and Exposure 50, which are no longer available, and an old style Stratos 24. They got some hard use on our fifteen month adventure and we took them again this time for our Camino trip. One of the straps holding the lid on tore away one day, but we sewed it up. On our return we took it back to the store and they have sent it off to Osprey to be mended properly, despite being bought in 2007. No complaints about their service at all.
Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll be interested to see what I can find here. I saw some lovely-looking German bags while walking, but we don't seem to stock them in this part of the world.