Lightening the MEC Alpinelite backpack

Although this backpack is called Alpinelite, which implies lightness, it weighs not so little - 2200g (with a volume of 85 liters). Both figures turned out to be excessive for me. The backpack is both heavy and too big. Having no alternative at hand, I decided to try to lighten this backpack:)

We remove excess

To begin with, I got rid of the stay system embedded in the back of the backpack. Two intricately curved aluminum stays (long plates) and a piece of thermoformed plastic weighed a total of 260 grams. Already good... but not enough.

In a fit of righteous anger, the ice-axe loops were torn off the backpack. I don't need them in the summer. But the 14 grams won will be useful for more important cargo.

And then I saw a new target. Lid!!! The most important detail of a traditional backpack, familiar and comfortable. How much can be stuffed into the pockets of the lid, how much can fit into a collar stretched to the limit and held on top by a safety lid!
But I'm not going to carry a lot of junk. This means I don’t need all these miraculous properties of the lid. With a steady hand, I unfasten it from my backpack and place it on the scale. 276 grams is a real breakthrough!!!

Well, the last stage is to shorten the straps and webbing. In total, we managed to cut off about 50 grams of webbing without damaging the backpack.

Results of the lightening

As you can see, the weight of the backpack is still far from the ultralight ideal, but the achieved result was very pleasing.

Moreover, the backpack has become more convenient. After all, before the removal of the stay system, it lay poorly on my back - resting too firmly on the lower back and shoulder blades. Now it has become much more ergonomic. And for rigidity, I insert a sleeping pad rolled into a tube inside the backpack.

Instead of the removed lid, the function of the lid is performed by the collar. I tighten it and further compress the backpack with the central compression strap (yellow webbing in the photo).

Field test results