BOB for her

M

merzikain

Joined
Mar 14, 2012
Messages
16
So I've been slowly putting a BOB together for a while now but I need to make one for my wife too. No big deal, right?

The problem:
My wife is all of 4' 11" tall and slim. She doesn't want a "super huge" pack like the MOLLE pack I have. And for some reason she seems to think TEOTWAWKI is going to be a fashion contest and wants something "pretty" or that she at least likes the look of.

My thought is, I'll just get whatever and pack it up and if we ever actually need to use it she can be happy she actually has a pack instead of having something worthless.

So I want to get her a MOLLE pack but she is right that the one I have is too massive for her little frame. Unfortunately I'm having trouble finding something online that will be suitable for her. Hard to gauge that without her putting it on and getting her to try one on is hard enough since she refuses to try on a pack like mine anyway.

I'm also having trouble figuring out what the right size pack would be since I keep thinking of all the stuff we need to pack. I'm thinking on that front I'll have to figure out what things we both need and what things we'll only actually need one of.

But first, what would be a good pack for her? I'm hoping someone here has had an issue similar to this, maybe with a daughter or younger son. I'd rather not spend a lot of money which is why I've been looking at military surplus. I can get a good MOLLE pack with frame around here for right around $60. There is a Maxpedition backpack that would probably be okay for her but they tend to be kind of pricy for what they are.

Any ideas on what I can get her that she may be happy with would be great.

Thanks in advance! :D
 
It looks like she is towards the end of the bell curve with regard to adult packs. My better half isn't much taller, and I've thought about having a custom pack made for her. It'd be very expensive, but a) she can have it in her choice of colour, b) if it's specifically tailored to her shape, she's more likely to find it a comfortable pack. With my partner, she tends to suffer from back pain, so I think it'd be worth it to make her as comfortable as possible.
On your other problem, try to obtain the equipment first, then you can look at the cubic requirements of the pack.
I have read that you can have something light, cheap and durable. Pick any two ;)
 
Hey. I'm in a similar situation. I'm 6'4" and my wife is 5'2" and very slim. I bought a Condor II pack for myself and decided to go a different route. I thought I might throw a pack together for her and put it in the trunk of the car, but she doesn't want something that tactical, (MOLLE). I'll be selling it as soon as I have time to take pics and list it.

What I got for myself was an Osprey Metron 35. It's made for bike commuting, has plenty of room and good sized pockets. The MD/LG size fits me well, and she also took it on a business trip packed with about 30 lbs, once you count the ancient laptop, and she was very comfortable and happy with it. She also really likes how good it looks. It has a small amount of reflective piping, so I'm not sure it's what you want, but it's not really enough to notice unless you're being hit directly with headlights on a dark/stormy night. I bought black, but I'll be getting the Metron 25 for her in a SM/MD size and probably in brown. I like that it isn't too tacticool and that we'll be able to blend in a little easier, but also that she won't be embarrassed to take it with her. It's no good if it's in the closet and she's 30 miles away at work for TEOTWAWKI. They are a little spendy, but can be found cheaper on ebay from time to time.

Just a thought and possible direction.

Good luck!
 
Hello Kitty iron-on patches!
pc05-2-kittypink.jpg

You can get one with her initial, too!
tumblr_kqnf5c8caz1qzvk4co1_500.jpg

Or her whole name!
Hello-Kitty-Kathy-Iron-On-Patch.JPG
 
I compromised and let her use her old college Jansport in pink. This way she will at least consnet to using it and has no issue with throwing it in the car. Besides now she goes unnoticed in public as who would suspect a pink backpack is loaded with useful gear
 
My wife and I are avid backpackers and the key is to get a pack made specifically for women. Which means ditching the MOLLE and checking out REI. REI has their own brand that is really well made and come in lots of sizes. The best way I have found to get the better have to carry a bag is to let them chose a "cute" one. The goal is to get them something useable and if it is something that is important it should be comfortable to use. If your lady is 4'11" I am pretty sure she will not be able to handle carrying more than 30lbs for a few miles and those MOLLE bags are heavy to begin with. Get a lightweight backpacking bag and customize it as you see fit.
 
I probably should have described our geographic situation as well.

We live in Southwestern Indiana in a small rural town. We work in a large city just 20 miles (as the crow flies) from our home. I haven't put together a GHB for her yet. I have one in my car so for now the plan is if something happens before we get her a GHB she should stay put and I'll get across town to her and we'll travel home together from there. The plan is a little more in depth than that, taking into account if I'm unable to get to her and all that but you get the gist of it. Since a massive earthquake is the most likely disaster event around here I'll be more likely to reach her than vice versa.

Aaanyway, getting her a bag for the trip home isn't going to be as tough since the point is to blend with urban traffic and not stand out as someone with cool stuff in their pack. heh.

My bigger concern is the main pack that will be waiting at home.

I like a lot of the suggestions so far. The custom pack suggestion is intriguing since I've been trying to find a good sewing machine to sew cordura and nylon webbing. I've been seeing people suggesting an older Singer but haven't seen one of those or any comparable industrial sewing machines for a price I can afford yet.

In any event, if I find one I could make her a pack myself. I'm good with stuff like that (always been a do-it-yourselfer) and it would definitely guarantee that it would be the right size and such.

The only real problem with doing that is:
1.) no machine or material yet
2.) not sure when I'd have the time right now with a lot of our other preps (clearing ground for garden, setting up RWC, etc...)

I'd rather just buy something if the price and fit is right so I'm still looking for some suggestions on wilderness BOBs.

Another concern that has popped up while putting things together to put in the bags is clothing. Trying to find the right type is tricky. I'm not 100% sure if the information I've been working off of is accurate.

This is what I've gathered so far, let me know if any of this is right or way off:
No denim jeans
No cotton
Get wool or fleece

Other than that I haven't heard anything real useful about what is good and not good for extended survival clothing (months or years in the wilderness with no chance of replacing and little chance of repair). From what I've read the no jeans/cotton thing is because they absorb water too easily and take a long time to dry. The problem is that is 99% of both of our wardrobes. Which means no matter what we'll have to buy better stuff. Can't imagine going through a winter outdoors with just jeans and t-shirts. heh.

Back to the pack, if I do make one, if it is going to possibly be light weight, what material should it be made of? I've been lead to believe that 1000d cordura should be the fabric of choice. Is there something comparable but cheaper without being much less durable? Or is there a better, more durable fabric that I haven't learned about yet?

I should probably mention that I've only been doing this for the past several months. I'm a quick learner so picking this up isn't difficult, just gotta make sure I'm picking up the right information.

Thanks again for all the help so far!
 
Can you go to an outdoors store like REI? They often have packs on sale specifically for women and you can find some decent deals on drab colored packs that would fit and give her a little style. Plus, you can find one that is the right size for a "two-day" backpacking trip that would give you plenty of room, but not so much as to overload her. I would really have her try a pack on...without the proper fitting, she would be miserable after just a mile or two.


http://www.rei.com/search?cat=4500001_Backpacks&jxGender=Women%27s&hist=cat%2C4500001_Backpacks%3ABackpacks%5EjxGender%2CWomen%27s


Don’t forget, you can always get a brighter color pack and a drab or even camouflage-covered pack cover if low-profile or concealment was an issue.

I only have a little clothing in my bags; wool socks, fleece watch cap, silk-weight long underwear and maybe a fleece pullover or rain jacket. It really depends on the season. I've just decided to rotate a small gym-sized bag out with the season and leave it attached with a carabineer; I keep appropriate clothes for the season...a full change to include boots/shoes.

As to the clothes, you're wife would probably like some of the outdoors clothes for backpacking (I know mine does). Get her set up for a few day hikes and then sneak back and buy an extra set of hiking pants and shirt and keep them in your bug-out-bag or separate clothes bag. My wife has half a closet full of backpacking clothes; all I did was ask her what I could pack into a bag for bugging out if we needed to head out quickly.

ROCK6
 
Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately the closest REI is 3 hours away.

One thing about clothing that I've never seen is a good list of the type of clothing to look for and good places to get it. Something broken down by season would be great but I haven't seen anything like that. I'm thinking of maybe adding a section to my own website to collect disjointed information like this. I know some things are going to be opinion more than fact but a range of opinions with examples and such would help out a lot of newbies like myself.

Before I go through the trouble of doing something like this, does it already exist? There are a ton of survival blogs and such but I keep finding that they tend to leave details out assuming everyone already knows them.
 
Here's an article about wool vs synthetics I found interesting.http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/comfort_moisture_transport_wool_synthetic_clothing.html
With most things it's a trade off. Wool is better around campfires and IMO breathes better then synthetics but it's heavier and dries slower. If you're just going to hang around camp and do bushcraft stuff or hang by the campfire then surplus military wool is great. If you're hiking and moving a lot then you may want to look into synthetics. That being said and I do believe that cotton is horrid when wet and cold, I still use cotton a lot in the summer. Generally in summer I use polyester liner socks(if I'm wearing socks), cotton pants, exoficio nylon boxers(best undies period), a wide brim cotton hat, either a nylon/cotton blend button shirt or cotton t-shirt and then a fleece on top though I'm looking into a light wool shirt for around campfires. For winter I generally go for the polyester liners w/ mid weight wool socks, merino wool long johns, cotton/poly pants(looking at alternatives but works), nylon/wool button shirt, fleece, and rain coat. Hat is either a wool watch cap or baseball cap. Baseball caps are great with rain jacket hoods. I don't normally wild camp in the winter or camp with snow on the ground so YMMV.
 
Being your wife is such a small frame the 6 hour round trip to REI may be worth it. In the event that something does happen and she actually needs to carry her pack you'll want something thats made specifically for her size.

You can also check REI's website. Im pretty sure they have a tutorial on how to measure your wife then find a pack in her size.
 
That may not be enough. You should have some gear in mind and bring it with you. The store will let you load up the pack and your wife can walk around in store with it to see how it feels. Also TEOTWAWKI aside, tornadoes are not a likely "threat". They're guaranteed. So even now you should have some gear in your car and a few things she can carry in her purse for the time being.
 
I'm working on that. She is very resistant to anything that costs money so it tends to be an uphill struggle.
 
My wife uses a Kelty women's backpack (I forgot the name) around 1800ci in capacity. It was good, for her, from the moment she put it on.

Getting away from the tacticool stuff is important when dealing with women who are built like women should be. The only molle type bags my wife ever liked was her Maxpedition Pygmy Falcon and Falcon, they both have a very narrow "footprint" and work well with narrow shoulders.
 
Depending on what kind of capacity you need, one of the smaller Camelback packs may be a good option.
My wife would never wear a big pack either, but a friend gave me one of the smaller packs and it killed two birds with one stone, small pack for essentials plus water capacity. The little one we have is well padded so comfortable when walking, and is anything but bulky when filled up. I figure if we go out in the woods for an extended amount of time..i'll end up carrying anything else we need anyway, but in a pinch, she'll have what she needs.
 
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