A note about the intent of this system:

Eberlestock obviously don't advocate trying to sneak up on game with your gun or your bow in the pack.  The idea here is the same as it would be if you were using a shoulder sling:  Just use the pack to carry your gun or your bow, and then slip it into your hands when you think you're nearing game.

But if you ever are caught by surprise and want to get your gun or bow into your hands, you'll find that it happens very quickly, and in a very organized way.  Our packs are designed to bring your gun or bow into a shooting position very quickly, easily, and predictably.

You don't have to be a double-jointed gymnast to get your gun out of the Backscabbard™.  The key to success is drawing the top shoulder pull-straps tight, so that the top of the pack is brought as closely to your shoulders as possible.  Reach back with your left hand and find the gun, then begin to withdraw it.  Once the left arm is extended, reach up and grasp the gun with your right hand and continue to withdraw it.  These two hand-holds usually free the gun from the scabbard, and take as little time as un-slinging a gun from your shoulder.

If you have limited shoulder articulation, reach into the small of your back with your right hand as you reach for the gun with your left; push the bottom of the pack or the scabbard away from your body with your right hand.  This will cause the butt of the gun to move forward, and make it easier to reach with your left.  Or you can simply tug on the shoulder harness to bring the pack closer on the side that you need to reach.

It is important to note that Eberlestock does not recommend keeping a gun with a chambered round, or a loaded weapon, in the Backscabbard.  Also, keep in mind that you will need to be aware of the direction that the gun's muzzle is pointed as you withdraw it.  Basic gun safety rules apply.

Eberlestock does not recommend trying to insert a firearm into the Backscabbard™ while wearing the pack.  It is best to remove the pack, place it on a stable surface, and then insert the firearm.

Carrying a spotting scope and tripod in a Just One

You can, of course, carry a scope and tripod internally, in the long front pockets or the outer tuck-pockets.  But if you want to save internal space, and have quickest access to the scope, put the assembled scope and tripod onto the pack as shown at left, and wrap the pack around it with the compression straps.  It'll be fully protected, and when it comes time to start glassing all that you have to do is undo two of the large compression buckles, drop legs, and get started! (Nikon Fieldscope with Manfrotto tripod shown, courtesy Nikon).

Carrying a Scope and Tripod in a Gunslinger

There are four or five options for carrying a scope and tripod on a Gunslinger pack.  If you're not using the scabbard for a gun, you can pop 'em in there.  Or, you can use one of the internal hydration sleeves for your scope and attach the tripod to the outside of the pack in one of the tuck pockets, using the compression straps.  But our personal favorite is to go with them assembled, much the same as we do with the Just One.  Put the tripod legs in the deep front tuck pocket, and wrap the compression straps and top cover around the scope, and it'll be locked in there until it's time to start glassing.

Using the Spike Camp Duffel with a Just One

The Spike Camp Duffel is designed to be carried either internally or externally in the Just One series packs.  The lightweight duffel is great for gear, which you can then download and leave in camp when you go out hunting with the Just One in the compact mode.

To carry gear externally with our duffels, you can attach them in one of two ways:  for a quick setup, just place it on the front of the pack and clip the triple compression strap system around it.  Or, to firmly attach the duffel to the pack, zip it into the expansion zippers, as shown at right.  Note:  The J2SD does not have a weather-protected zipper, and is designed to zip to the main pack facing inward.  The J3SD, with its weather flap over the zipper, faces outward.

Once in awhile you get a load that doesn't fit inside of the Just One.  The good news is that it's a breeze to strap stuff onto the outside of the pack.  Click on the photo link at right to see the pack in action as a traditional freighter.

Q Going flying to get to your hunt?  The Just One, the Gunslinger, the Slingshot, and the X1 make great carry-ons.  The waist belts are removable (and on scabbard packs they can be tucked up into the pack in the same pocket that the scabbard tucks into).  This way, your essential gear can be carried on to the plane, and you'll be sure to have it when you get there.

Own one of our scabbard packs, and you'll soon discover all sorts of things to use the open-topped pocket for.  You may find that the scabbard is a perfect place to stow a laptop, tent poles, fishing rods, or your flip-flops.  Although Eberlestock designed it as the ultimate place to carry a gun, the main thing that wEberlestock cares about is that you enjoy your pack for everything you'll do with it... and Eberlestock know from personal experience that you'll come to appreciate this convenient compartment for all sorts of things.

Eberlestock Packs come in all shapes and sizes, so it's pretty tough to design a pack that's comfortable for everybody.  But it's a rare customer indeed that doesn't find that the Just One is a super-comfortable pack that puts a heavy load in just the right place -- off the shoulders and onto the pelvis.

To fit the pack to your body, start by loosening the shoulder straps enough so that the pack settles right down onto the top of your hips, and the bottom of the lumbar pad rests on your upper pelvis.  Then crank the waist belt tight.  Next, adjust the shoulder straps to bring the pack snugly around your shoulders.  (On the J105 or Skycrane, this is a good place to check the vertical placement of the shoulder straps.  Adjust for torso length by moving the attachment point for comfort, and so that there is no bunching of the shoulder strap padding).  Next, buckle and adjust the chest strap for comfort, and to control the lateral placement of the shoulder straps.  Slide the sternum strap vertically up or down (its attachment clips slide on the pack strap webbing) as necessary.  Finally, crank the top-pull adjustment straps snug to bring the top of the pack closer to your body.

Our J-type packs are a different kind of product than other hunting packs on the market.  There are a few commonly asked questions.  Here are some tips:

1.  Always use the main compression straps (2 horizontal and 1 or 2 vertical) to full effect:  Really cranking them tight around the load will turn the pack into a tight bundle that doesn't wash from side to side.

2.  If you pack the pack so that heavy items are in the very bottom, then it will give a sensation of pulling aft and backwards.  Two tricks to fix this:  1) put something less dense but bulky into the very bottom of the pack, and put heavier items up a little higher in the pack, and as close to your body as possible.  2)  if your load is meat, you can elevate the bulk of the load of meat by pre-tightening the lower compression strap before you load the pack.  This will cause the pack to neck down at the bottom, so that the load can't slump into the very bottom of the utility compartment.

3.  For best fit, this pack relies upon having the waist belt cranked tightly around the top of your hip bones.  Half of the hipbelt pad should overlap the top of your hipbones, and half of the pad should be above the top of your hipbone.  In other words, the middle of the hipbelt pad should be directly outboard of the top of the arc of your hipbone.

4.  Once you have the hipbelt in the right place, the contour of the pack should match the contour of your body.  With the pack on, look sideways into a mirror to see if the general contour of the pack matches the contour of your back.  If not, pull out the metal stays and bend them a little bit in the places where you can see they need to bend to match your back.  The most common adjustment is to bend the stays slightly right above the lower part of the factory curve, so that you have a fuller lumbar curve.  (Be sure to look closely at how the stays are inserted as you take them out.  Putting them in backwards completely alters the pack's fit and is self-critiquing, but also note that the larger curve in the stay goes into the bottom of the pack so that it causes the shape to protrude into your lumbar).

5.  Note that on the J104 pack, the shoulder pads will often crinkle at the top of the pack as you put increased tension on the upper-most load adjuster straps.  This is normal on this product.  There are two points that you should know about the load adjusters:  first, be sure to use them; if they are slack, then the load will pull away from your back.  Second, don't over-tighten them, because at some point all that you're doing is putting increased stress on your shoulders.

6.  Newer models have webbing loops on the forward edge of the scabbard.  These can be used to compress the scabbard layer of the pack, and to stabilize and condense the pack structure.  But compressing this layer may restrict access to rifles in the scabbard, so you may want to un-lace the compression straps from the webbing loops and bypass them.  Bypassing them also allows you to get the greatest reach possible around things being carried externally on the pack, such as Super Spike Duffel bags.

The stays in this J107 pack have been pulled in the field and adjusted to better fit the wearer's back.  The stay on the right has been bent above and a little more below the lower factory bend (as shown at left, with pink highlights where the modified stay was bent).

Fitting Your Stays in Eberlestock Internal Frame Packs

Eberlestock use aluminum backstays in our packs for two reasons:  you can't break 'em, and you can modify their contour to individually fit your back, so the pack will fit you like a glove.

Eberlestock don't often talk about our competitors, but unfortunately some of them will talk about their own molded plastic system, or what have you, as being superior to Eberlestock.  Of course, Eberlestock could use what they use, but Eberlestock believes pretty strongly in the simplicity and benefit of a customizable aluminum stay.

For example, if you need more lumbar support, slip the stays out of the pack and increase the curvature, as shown in the photo at left.  Eberlestock finds it works best to bend the stays just a little above the main arc of the factory bend, so you get a longer, fuller curve.  Then slide the stays back in, put some weight in it, and try it out.  You can keep tweaking it until you get it just the way you like it.  Basically, the goal is to get a constant, smooth contour along your back, with no gapping. To evaluate your pack's fit, put a moderate load in it of about 30 pounds; this will compress the foam padding of the back panel, and at this point you should have good contact all along the contour of your spine.

Eberlestock offer a large sized waistbelt for our packs (bottom).  It'll fit all of the new packs with removable belts, and is good for customers with waists from 42" to 56".

Choose one as an option with your new pack, or get one from our Accessories page...

Link to Accessories page, to purchase our Hydration System:

Hydration Systems

Eberlestock occasionally get questions about the installation of hydration systems in our packs. 

In the J104 and J107 Just One type packs, the upper pocket opposite the Backscabbard can be used for water storage; it's sized for our WXP3L bladder, and will also work well with the smaller WB2L.  To insert the bladder,  run the tube into the pocket, and out through the portal (yellow arrow).  Then push the top end of your filled bladder up into the top of the pocket, and then swing the bottom in. 

Eberlestock no longer put tube hooks on our harness because they break too easily.  On packs with our conventional harness, as shown at left, Eberlestock recommend just slipping the tube under the 1" webbing strip that runs along the outside of the shoulder pads.  On packs with our Shooter's Harness, you have lateral webbing strips to slip the tube under.

The X1 has a similar bladder storage location to the Just One, opposite the scabbard, and is designed to take our WB2L system.

The Skycrane's hydration storage is inside of each of the long main compartments (each side will hold up to a 3L bladder), and the tubes port out the sides similar to the photo at left.

In the GS05 Gunslinger and in the G287 Slingshot, as shown at left, there are two large interior slip pockets in the main compartment, and each will hold a WXP3L (yes, these packs are designed to hold 6 liters of water)!  The GS05 tube portals come are on each side outboard of the bladder sleeves.  The Slingshot's tube ports out the eyelet at the top-center of the pack, where the shoulder harness also goes in and out of the pack.  

A note about the packs with back-wall sleeves:  Eberlestock made the packs the size that they are for a number of reasons.  Eberlestock have had people asking why the hydration sleeves are narrower than the flat hydration bladder.  The answer simply is, so that Eberlestock could fit two bladders into the packs.  Eberlestock made the sleeves to fit full bladders...  and Eberlestock has felt that holding full bladders is what this is all about, so Eberlestock haven't worried about a little wrinkling when they're empty.  If you have any doubts about whether your bladder will fit, just fill it with water and give it a try, and you'll see that it works fine.

Eberlestock packs are fitted with a system that allows you to attach a multitude of accessory items to your pack.  Our unique patent pending solution is a step beyond the system developed for the US military, and is much more flexible.

Click here to see more about the way that the Padlock system works to attach a pouch to a pack's panels, or to belts and webbing.

Gunslinger's Backscabbard      Control Clips

The Gunslinger is an entirely different design than the Just One.  Although it's a smaller pack, it actually has a broader scabbard.  The opening is wide enough to accept an AR-15 with a clip, any scoped or un-scoped long gun, or a combination of guns and fishing rods, etc. 

Eberlestock installed "Control Clips" on the Backscabbard in the Gunslinger in order to help you keep your stuff where you want it.  You can use them to segregate the scabbard, as shown at left, and also to securely hold a gun; as you can see, the gun in the photo at left isn't coming out of the scabbard until you undo the clips.  If you want to have quickest access to your gun (say you're in bear country), you can leave the clip on one side of the pack undone, and this will allow you to Quickdraw the gun.  If you have the clips done up, and want to get your gun out, it's an easy reach up to the clip while wearing the pack; if you can scratch the back of your neck, you can reach up and undo a clip on the pack... and then your gun will be ready to slip out of the scabbard.

The clips are also used to hold the top-cover onto the scabbard, and lock your gun into the pack.