HMG Unbound review
HMG Unbound review
- Great design
- Water tight
- Lots of pockets
- Frame and comfortable hip belt
- Robust – will last a lifetime
On first look the unbound looks like every other UL pack released in the last couple of years. And in some ways it is a copy of smaller cottage bag forms. A way for HMG to stay relevant in a fast changing market. HMG have always made great, robust, ultralight backpacks. I bought my first HMG pack in 2010 – The Windrider 4400 70L white backpack. The Windrider has been the standard for over a decade and often copied design. Today however, the Windrider feels its age. It’s a great pack, and my first Windrider is still the backpack I use the most. I would also say that the Windrider or similar packs like the Southwest, junction and porter are still the packs I recommend most. Their versatility for different uses, their robustness, comfort and useability just makes them damn good multipurpose backpacks that most people will never regret. With that said, The overall market has clearly been trending towards smaller, lighter “long distance” ultralight packs.
Standard features of the new breed: Bottom pocket, large front pocket, large side pockets, with/without hipbelt and frame, and shoulder strap pockets (which the unbound doesn’t have). In other words, the minimalistic designs of the early UL movement have been getting replaced and outdone by highly technical, complex bags with one specific goal: To make it through a long hike with minimal fuss and maximal comfort. Classic minimal, multifunction packs that would last a lifetime, i e the Windrider, just weren’t the sexy new kid on the block anymore. They look and feel their age. A near 20 year design with minimal updates. I think the current Hyperlite mountain gear Windrider could be summed up as Version 1.5.
Older, OG UL Hikers use and still love the classic multipurpose design of the Windriders. But the new hipster class hikers, the ones giving themselves trail names, (For reference mine is “Just Ken”) using pronouns in their bios, and bringing more electronics than a Best buy, needed something more. they needed sexy! This is where the unbound comes in. Sexy as hell, lots of pockets and do dads, even the new standard bottom pocket. Hyperlite didn’t just copy UL packs from the smaller, sexier, new brands, they made the new segment their own. The unbound is so good, that it looks like all the packs the Unbound is inspired by, are in fact the inspired. The unbound is simply put, one of the best designed UL long distance packs on the market.
Light, at just 879g for white 55L or 975g for black, it’s not the lightest 55 Liter pack, but it certainly compares nicely in the segment. And like all Hyperlite mountain gear backpacks, the extra weight is worth it in the form of robustness and comfort. Unlike most other packs, the unbound sews its webbing on the outside of the pack, which allows for all the extra pockets, features and doodads, while still allowing for the bag to be taped and sealed. (Most backpacks use a flat felled seam) The outside webbing also allows for a simple daisy chain to be sewn into the seam itself. Simple, effective. The large front pocket is divided into two sections, a large main pocket, and a smaller “Kangaroo” pocket. Again, simple and effective. The bottom pocket does what it’s supposed to and for me atleast: it’s the comfort of the Unbound that separates it from the rest of the packs in this genre. This pack feels great, even with heavier loads.
Compared to something like the Zpacks Arc-blast – which to me has always been the standard – pen-ultimate ultralight 55L backpack. I would say the Unbound looks better IMO, and with heavier loads a more comfortable backpack. But I would give overall comfort for lighter loads to the Arc-blast as well as better back ventilation. Though the arc-blast starts to break down with heavier, or awkward loads as the frame doesn’t do much. There are of course a multitude of lightweight backpacks that I can compare the Unbound to, but I will keep this review simple and the comparison to the Arc-blast as the arc-blast is a well known, very light 55 Liter pack that most people will know how they look and feel at this point.
Back to the Unbound, Sweaty back syndrome is still a thing with this pack, but let’s be honest, if you’re calling yourself “elf on the trail” with Zeek, Zerk pronouns, sweaty back is the least of your problems. With that said, sweaty backs is like condensation in a tent. It’s there, no matter what you do, it can’t be avoided but can be mitigated. The Unbound through and through looks and feels like an HMG pack. The quality is sharp, the design near perfect. function and use superb. It’s everything you want in a 55 liter long distance backpack, with nothing you don’t. So it’s not made in a little basement in Maine. It’s Not made in China either. And judging by how massive certain brands have become in the UL market, brands that very specifically make their original or copied designs in Asia. It’s obvious the market could care less where the products are made, for reference, HMG built factories in Mexico, where the unbound is produced.
Biggest complaints about the Unbound? No shoulder strap pockets and I think the hip-belt pockets are a bit on the small side. Granted, a lot of the Unbounds competitors don’t bother with hip-belt pockets, but still, they could be bigger. Also, as it’s a pack designed for a very specific purpose, it’s not a pack that I would personally have as my goto pack. I need a bigger pack that has a bit more flexibility in it’s useage. Hence, why the 70L Windrider is my preferred one pack to rule them all.
Hyperlite mountain gear is a company known for making robust, if not basic lightweight equipment. But premium in its use and functionality. There is nothing basic about the unbound packs. They are high quality, modern ultralight backpacks with a very specific market in mind: The gear nerd who likes to walk long distances with weekly resupplies, live in a tent for six months and call themselves “Trail fart!
You can purchase the Backpack at my shop in the EU at Backpackinglight.dk or in sweden at Backpackinglight.se