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Drop 40L Backpack Designed by Dan Durston

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Drop 40L Backpack Designed by Dan Durston

Name: Drop 40L Backpack Designed by Dan Durston
Brand: Drop
SKU: drop-40l-backpack-designed-by-dan-durston
Price: 150 USD
Availability: OutOfStock
Rating: 4.621622 (111 reviews)

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Product Description

Made to meet the needs of the Ultralight Community, this backpack delivers a weight of 32 ounces using a blend of fabrics to withstand decades of use. It’s been designed by thru-hiker Dan Durston for efficiency, simplicity, longevity, and comfort.

Customer Reviews

4.6

(111 reviews)

(80)

(25)

(3)

(1)

(2)

96% would recommend to a friend

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Jinchul

Mar 26, 2024

Verified Buyer

I love this

This backpack is having a great time traveling with me. It will continue to be my main backpack.

Recommends this product? No

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costl

Oct 26, 2022

Verified Buyer

solid, value

I've been using this pack for about 18 months now. No longer in production in this form, but maybe it's worth registering this. I love this pack. For the price I paid, I think it's a steal. 4 stars overall rating, price no object; 5 stars at its price point. Rock solid, light, super stable with the frame. I've had it loaded up to about 40 lbs with food and water, collar extended all the way, and it is as comfortable in that arrangement as I can imagine any pack of this size and weight being. Fabric and build is like a nimble tank. I really like both the hip zip pockets (others think too small, I think just right) and shoulder zip pouch (fits my iPhone SE perfectly and securely). The side pockets are awesome and spacious for a couple liter bottles each or beautiful for a 2L platy. I stash keys and cards securely in the hidden zip behind the side pocket. I never did find a good use for the front pocket, and much prefer a shock cord setup there. I think I'm in the minority in preferring shock cord to huge mesh bucket on the front panel, but find it way better for stashing layers, foam pads, tent, tarp, etc etc. Also change out the size cord for elastic, I say, and things get more versatile overall. Very comfortable carry for me. Works great carrying more load with the family, a long trip, or winter; and when a tougher pack is needed in rough settings. Love this pack for the price point. In my opinion, Dan Durston is just nailing it in my segment of the outdoor gear market. I hope his streak continues!

Recommends this product? Yes

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cj774

Jul 6, 2022

Verified Buyer

Nice, lightweight pack

I bought this in July 2020, so I've had it about 2 years now. I'm a 5'5" woman and the S/M fits me well enough. I enjoy all the pockets and practical storage that this bag has, and I love how lightweight it is. I think the other reviews cover the positive aspects well, but I wanted to add a few issues I've had. First one is that it is difficult to get water out of the side pockets while wearing the bag. While I love the deep pockets, it's impossible for me to get a water bottle out of the deeper pocket while wearing it and it's a struggle to get a bottle out of the shorter side pocket. The second issue is that the strap which goes over the top of the bag is too short in my opinion. If you "over fill" the bag (putting in a few extra items but not so many that you can't still roll down and snap shut the top), then the strap isn't long enough for a Nemo Switchback sleep pad. If the strap were just a little longer, I could easily carry this sleep pad even if my bag is full. Not sure if they've made any design changes over the past 2 years so that's just my experience! I'd still give this bag 5 stars because of the high quality and reasonable price.

Recommends this product? Yes

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TheReverb

Keyboard Club Member

Dec 19, 2021

Verified Buyer

An excellent first iteration for a great price

Although this isn't the PERFECT ultralight pack, it will be excellent for most people. X-PAC is a quality material, and the price is unbeatable.

Recommends this product? Yes

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Matous

Dec 6, 2021

Verified Buyer

Great backpack, great price

I think others pretty much summarised everything. I will add just two things: 1) I saw people asking how to attach ice axe for mountaineering - see pictures on how I do it - super simple, no further attachments on the backpack necessary and the ice axe fits even when the pack is fully loaded. 2) When fitting stuff in the shoulder strap pockets be careful - Dan suggested you can fit even larger phone by stretching the pockets - I do not recommend that - I was fitting (pretty flat when folded) sunglasses in a suede pouch and a hole started to develop in the mesh. I would believe phone would do the same. Now I just stuff it with smaller stuff like lip balm, sun cream or energy gels/bars.

Recommends this product? Yes

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Shelle

Aug 30, 2021

Verified Buyer

Excellent pack especially for the price!

I got this pack originally for me as I was trying to go lighter and move away from my Gregory Jade 53 which is an extremely comfortable pack but has some unnecessary functions and I liked what the Durston pack had to offer and at the weight which was a bit lighter. However, once on the trail with it and moving, this pack did not sit well for me. I found the shoulder straps not comfy on me and I could not access the side pockets without help. I ended up switching with my son and took my old pack back and found I was much more comfortable. Now, this pack worked great for my son and he loved it. Functional and easy and had everything he needed. Not to mention the colors went with him perfectly! We put the bladder behind the little zipper compartment/cords which worked great and the dog water bottles on the side pocket.

Perhaps Dan can develop a pack more developed for the woman's body!? The depth of the pockets were great but the angle could be a bit different as well as the shoulder straps. I loved the stretchy mesh pockets on the front, the deep pockets on the side, the zipper pouch and the easy roll closure. It really is a nice pack. Change the style a tad and perhaps the color and you can develop a line for the girls!! I am happy I purchased the bag and it is well constructed and has everything you really need, including a bit of structure with the inner frame which is removable. Just waiting now for the women's line. :)

Recommends this product? Yes

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TGerry

Aug 14, 2021

Verified Buyer

An ultralight pack for less than the price of a conventional pack!

I've had this pack for a little while now, and while I haven't used it as much as I anticipated (stupid wildfires), it's been great for the ~10 nights I've used it. It's my first ultralight pack, and I'm coming from using Osprey packs almost exclusively. I originally started out with the Atmos 65L, then downsized to the Exos 48L, and then downsized again to the Talon 33L. I really liked how compact and light the Talon was, but 33L was a little tight for me when it came to trips longer than 3 nights. This pack fit the bill for exactly what I was looking for - a little bit bigger than my Talon 33L, and lighter too. It definitely helped that it's way cheaper than any other UL pack I've seen as well. I'm 5'10" with an 18" torso, and went with the larger size. To be honest, I feel I probably could have sized down - I have the shoulder straps and waist strap fairly short. Pros:

X Pac material. Supposedly this is a really big deal, but I'm not super well versed in 'boutique' pack fabrics like DCF and what not. But I have heard people say it's almost impossible to have X Pac at this price point, so I guess that's a good thing? Anyway, it's a pretty durable feeling material, and the fabric itself is waterproof (I think, but more on that later).
Removable frame and back pad. Technically, my kit is not ultralight. My base weight is usually between 12-15lbs, and I don't do insane things like cut my toothbrush in half, so I probably will never remove the frame or foam pad. But the option is there if you're into that kind of thing.
The back panel dries insanely fast. Admittedly, my back gets super sweaty wearing this pack, but the back panel dries within a minute or two - literally. There's no open cell foam on the back panel (like many other packs have), so there isn't really anything that can absorb much sweat.
Tons of pockets. In total, there are 6 zippered pockets. One problem I anticipated with making the jump to an UL pack was that there wouldn't be as much organization, and I'd just be dumping stuff in the main compartment. Not so on this pack! The envelope pocket and quick pocket (on one of the side pouches) also have waterproof zippers. Some people complain about the shoulder pockets being unusable, but I use one to store my buff, and one to store my Garmin InReach mini - two items that I am constantly taking out and putting back while on the move.
The slanted side pouch is such a genius touch. I'm a pretty inflexible person, and even I can reach my water bottle when it's in the slanted side pouch. So awesome that I don't have to take my pack off for a drink.
Daisy chain lash points. I only ever hang my little packtowl off my pack, but if you like lashing stuff or hanging stuff from your pack, there are tons of lash points.
No mesh front pocket. This one is a bit controversial, but I like it. The front pocket is held on by elastic cord, and not mesh. Mesh is easy to rip and hard to repair, but elastic cord is easy to replace, or remove entirely. The cord that comes with the pack is a little short in my opinion, so the front stash pocket is a little too tight when the pack is full.
Super easy to clean. Mine got really muddy the first time I ever used it, and I just gave it a rinse in the shower with some warm water and it rinsed clean. It didn't even stain!
I haven't actually measured the capacity, but I think 40L is with the top rolled down as far as it can go. If you just roll the top 2 or 3 times, you can get quite a bit more volume.

Cons:

I had this pack in a few hours of rain, and some water got inside. Not sure how, but a few things inside my pack were a little wet. I'm assuming it got in through the seams because water beads up on the X Pac material, but I don't know for sure. To be fair though, not much got in. Or at least not enough that I was concerned.
The attachment point for the load lifter straps on the shoulder straps is very poorly reinforced. It's attached with a thin piece of webbing sewn to the edges of the strap. The load lifter straps pull on this strip of webbing and stretch it out. I fear that it may fail entirely one day, so I may try to sew down the entire strip of webbing, instead of just the edges. It's sort of hard to explain, but if you look at photos of the pack you'll see what I mean.
The buckle that goes over the top seems like it may fail eventually as well. The female buckle on the front of the pack looks like it's pulling a bit when pulled tight. I'm not too worried about this, as this buckle doesn't serve a ton of purpose aside from compressing the roll top down a bit.
The inside edges of the straps rub my clavicles in a weird way sometimes. The inside edge of the straps where the sternum strap attaches is a bit stiff, and I think this causes the issue. Loosening the sternum strap seems to help though, and it's never been severe, just a nuisance.

Dan is killing it with his designs. I have the X Mid 2, and it's probably my favorite piece of backpacking gear right now. I hope he comes out with more designs/products!

Recommends this product? Yes

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Humneso

Jul 29, 2021

Verified Buyer

Excellent value for a high quality, versatile pack

This pack is an excellent way to dip your toe into ultralight backpacks, as well as being a high quality pack that will work well for even a highly technical backpacker. So far, I've carried the pack with loads up to 30 lbs for a total of about 100 miles. My typical loadout with food and water for a 3-4 day trip is about 22lbs, and I will carry up to 30 for training day-hikes. The pack carries extremely well at any of those weights. I love the versatility of the design. I would prefer a water bottle pouch on the right shoulder, but I've worked through that by adding a bottle holder with a loop of shock cord to hold the bottom of the bottle. I'd like the left shoulder pocket to be able to hold my phone, but it's not a deal breaker, and it will hold my Osmo Action camera with UltraPod attached (the UltraPod does stick out the top of the zipper, but it doesn't bother me). I would like the hip belt pockets to be a little bigger, but once again, not a deal breaker. Some would prefer a mesh pocket on the front of the pack, but I really like the pocket and shock cord system - it works well for the way I carry my gear. The side pockets are quite excellent. I've already purchased a second one for my teenage daughter. This is now my go-to pack!

Recommends this product? Yes

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apolk413

May 5, 2021

Verified Buyer

Overall a great backpack.

I took this backpack out on a few short hikes as well as a hinting trip all within the last month. My friends that I was with on my hunting trip all commented on how cool my backpack was. It held my gear well and did great. As far as my hikes have gone, I noticed the shoulder straps tend to pull outwards a little bit. I am 6'1" with about a 19.5" torso. It is nothing major, but just a little annoying at first. If I could give this 4.5 stars, I would. Overall a great backpack so far, and I plan on taking it on my adventures this summer, one being a thru hike. Hopefully it treats me well!

Recommends this product? Yes

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retep49411

Mar 30, 2021

Verified Buyer

New Favorite Pack

I finally got this pack out on a section hike. We had great weather at the beginning and end of the trip. During the middle of the trip it absolutely poured on us for 48 hours straight. I didn't use a cover, but had a nyloflume liner. All of my gear stayed completely dry in the liner and there was almost no moisture that got into the main body of the pack. I was considering sealing the seems, but after this trip I don't think it is necessary. The only mod that I made was to restring the front pocket so that my hammock tarp would fit better. This took about 5 minutes. The fit was comfortable and it rode really well. This is my new favorite pack by far.

Recommends this product? Yes

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