The Crumpler Karachi Outpost - A Short Equipment Review

Scott_Quier · October 16, 2009

OK - you don't get to C&C the photography. It was done quick-and-dirty with a single AB800 boucing off the ceiling, a couple of PocketWizards, and by Canon G9 in full Manual mode (of course); ISO 100, f/6.3, 1/60s, of course. So, be nice!

I've been to two DGrin Shootouts. Each time, in addition to learning a lot of new information/techniques and meeting a lot of seriously nice people, I come away with a shopping list of stuff that I just gotta have. I've been looking for a comfortable backpack type bag that also has a lot of storage/hauling capacity. When I saw Marc Muench's Crumpler Karachi Outpost, I knew I had found the solution.

1: Those who were at Acadia may remember my leathal weapon of a tripod. I placed it next to the bag to provide a sense of scale. Sitting on top of the bag is a small dog toy. Doesn't help in any way with the review or make it easier to get a feel for the bag - it's there simply because it was on the floor and I had to put it somewhere and I was feeling a little goofy at the moment. :wink

2: Every backpack requires you to remove the pack and lay it on the ground (or other surface) to get to the goodies. Most require you to lay the padding side down, getting the padding dirty, which results in you getting your shirt/jacket/coat dirty. Not so good. Not so with the Karachi; you lay it down with the padding side up and unzip the padding from the rest of the pack - your shirt stays nice and clean! Opening it, you see the inner laptop bag.

3: The laptop "bag" is completely removable from the Karachi - it's held in place by a number of Velcro strips and tabs. This laptop is bigger than mine - it's Matt's first gaming laptop. I don't even want to know what size screen it has.

4: The "equipment compartment" is covered by a very sturdy mesh. You can see the zipper tabs near the bottom of the frame (top of the bag). This entire "compartment" can be completely removed from the pack - it's held in place by a (small) number of strategically placed Velcro strips.

5: Opening the mesh, there's all kinds of space. Some of this space is secured by the black elastic straps which are held in place with Velcro hook strips. The space dividers, as is common any more, are held in place by Velcro strips and are easily re-configured to meet changing needs.

6: The gadget bag near the top of the pack in the previous photo pulls out - it's also held in place by a Velcro feature.

7: All the above is all well and good, but how much stuff can it carry? Here you go! Note that there are side pockets on the outside of the bag that can be used to carry nice bit of other stuff (munchies, etc).

8: Since I haven't figured out how to be in two places at the same time (in front of and behind the camera), I appointed Matthew to model the bag for me. As you can see, he's completely thrilled with having been so honored. All that aside, it's easy to see that the main straps are contoured to ride high on the shoulders then spread a bit to get around the torso and back to the bottom of the pack. There are two fast-clip straps on this bag - the chest strap and the waist strap. Both of these are easily removable. According to Marc Muench, that waist strap is a new feature. At least it wasn't on his bag when we were at Acadia.

Also, note the two nicely placed D-Rings on the shoulder straps. I'm sure I can find a use for them, like water bottles, or hanging a camera "Nikolai" style. Maybe even moving the tripod around to the front to off-set some of the weight of the equipment on the back, again "Nikolai" style.

BTW - that knob at his neck ... that's NOT the beginings of a Frankenstein type experiment - it's the RRS BH-55 tenson knob (see next photo).

9: Side view - I'm not quite sure that's what was intended for the two straps on the back of the pack and I'm not sure the tripod can be carried in that configuration for any length of time without damage to the cushions on the legs so I think I'm going to have to figure out a slightly better way to do this.

Summary: I like the bag. I really, really like the bag. I'm impressed by the design, the quality of the stitching, the quality and weight of the materials, and the exterior color is quite nice (not too sure about the interior color though :scratch). I'm really looking forward to my first opportunity to take this thing on a photowalk - but I don't think I'll be loading it up quite that heavy :wink

Qarik · October 16, 2009

that's fairly nice. The makeshift tripod holder is the only part I am unsure about. I do lik eth messh nets and the pull laptop case.

kdog · October 16, 2009

Speaking of carrying your tripod like that, I would advise unscrewing the ballhead and carrying it inside the backpack in it's storage pouch. That way you can take off your backpack and set it down on the rocks or dirt with out worrying about your ballhead getting whacked or dirty. It only takes seconds to screw in back on when you're setting up.

Cheers,
-joel

dlplumer · October 16, 2009

Very cool.

I just purchased the Tamrac Expedition 8 which is great, but when you get to your location, you certainly don't want to carry it due to it's size and weight. I'm, planning on buying a second smaller bag to bring with me on shoots and use the small bag to carry just what I need at each location. Maybe a Tanrac Velocity sling bag

ziggy53 · October 16, 2009

Thanks for this review Scott. It's hard to get a feel for how to pack these systems and how much you can pack. Your images and descriptions make all the difference.

Scott_Quier · October 16, 2009

kdog wrote:

Speaking of carrying your tripod like that, I would advise unscrewing the ballhead and carrying it inside the backpack in it's storage pouch. That way you can take off your backpack and set it down on the rocks or dirt with out worrying about your ballhead getting whacked or dirty. It only takes seconds to screw in back on when you're setting up.

Cheers,
-joel

That's a thought. Another possibility is to take the pack off, remove the tripod, then lay the pack on the ground. Even better is a practice I observed Andy using at Acadia. He carried his tripod with head attached and the RRS pouch over the ballhead.

I still have to find a way to carry the tripod with which I'm comfortable. That should come with time and maybe a bit of DIY work. More later.

dlplumer wrote:

Very cool.

I just purchased the Tamrac Expedition 8 which is great, but when you get to your location, you certainly don't want to carry it due to it's size and weight. I'm, planning on buying a second smaller bag to bring with me on shoots and use the small bag to carry just what I need at each location. Maybe a Tanrac Velocity sling bag

I had a Tamrac slingpac at Acadia. The zipper on the top section turned out to be less the terrific and broke ... no hope of fixing it. And, while I thought it might have been a wonderful bag, it turned out to be more of a pain than anything else to use. It's been consigned to the trash heap. The zippers on the Crumpler are much more robust. I live in hope.

ziggy53 wrote:

Thanks for this review Scott. It's hard to get a feel for how to pack these systems and how much you can pack. Your images and descriptions make all the difference.

That's one reason I do this sort of thing when I get something for which I don't see a good review. To help others.

waygard33 · October 18, 2009

Cool...but how much?
Hi Scott,
Great review! Thanks.

Sorry if I missed it but what is the cost of the bag? I'm interested.

Wayne G

Scott_Quier · October 18, 2009

waygard33 wrote:

Hi Scott,
Great review! Thanks.

Sorry if I missed it but what is the cost of the bag? I'm interested.

Wayne G

$270

bhowdy · October 18, 2009

Thanks for the review Scott ... very helpful.

dlplumer · October 18, 2009

Great review

, but what would be a good small bag to use once your out in the field? Anybody have a recommendation.

kdog · October 19, 2009

Scott_Quier wrote:

Even better is a practice I observed Andy using at Acadia. He carried his tripod with head attached and the RRS pouch over the ballhead.

Better? I guess that depends on your criteria. The ballhead is better protected inside your backpack, rather than on your back. It takes less than 10 seconds to spin the ballhead off or put it back on. If you need super fast access to your tripod, you're better off keeping the camera attached and carrying it on your shoulder. But that's just me.

Cheers,
-joel

Mav · October 23, 2009

Scott_Quier wrote:

Summary: I like the bag. I really, really like the bag. I'm impressed by the design, the quality of the stitching, the quality and weight of the materials, and the exterior color is quite nice (not too sure about the interior color though ). I'm really looking forward to my first opportunity to take this thing on a photowalk - but I don't think I'll be loading it up quite that heavy

Thanks for the review - very useful

As for the internal colour - by keeping it bright, it makes it easier to see what's going on in there, especially if you don't have the bag fully open. I think it's more useful on the messenger bags - I guess they just carried it over.

Scott_Quier · October 23, 2009

Mav wrote:

Thanks for the review - very useful

As for the internal colour - by keeping it bright, it makes it easier to see what's going on in there, especially if you don't have the bag fully open. I think it's more useful on the messenger bags - I guess they just carried it over.

I hadn't thought of that - very good!

The Crumpler Karachi Outpost - A Short Equipment Review

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