Osprey Eclipse 32 First UK Test

Osprey Eclipse 32

Price: £90.00

Weight: 1810 grammes (medium w harness and hipbelt)

Features: 32 litre claimed capacity, interchangeable Profile harness and hipbelt system, internal hydration pocket, ski and axe loops, zippered front pocket with key clip, front panel access, avalanche shovel holder, StraightJacket compression system, 3D Space Mesh back panels, mesh stuff pockets.

Great adjustability, stability, build quality. A tad weighty and not cheap either.

Osp-who? Osprey are new to the UK and are specialist pack manufacturers based in Colorado at the heart of the US outdoor scene. They're being brought in by the UK importers of Mountain Hardwear and the first ones should be in the shops about now - January onwards.

The orange wings fold over to compress the contents in a vicelike grip

Okay, real world observation - 90 quid for a 32-litre day sac isn't cheap, you can buy a perfectly respectable pack for half the price, so you'd be right to expect something out of the ordinary for your dinero. So what do you get?

First impressions are of impeccable build quality with quality, tough-feeling materials. It also looks like nothing else on the UK market - bar perhaps some of Karrimor's Hydro packs - with a strange foldover compression system using foam stiffened 'wings', more of which later. Access to the main body of the pack is via a zip-open central panel and there's a separate , roomy hydration pocket with its own top zip access. The Osprey logo's nice too, but hey, we're shallow...

There are so many distinctive features that it's difficult to know where to start, but in use, what really marks out the Eclipse is its back system. Most 30-litre day packs come in one length, and if it doen't fit, that's tough. The Eclipse, by contrast, is available in three different back length, but that's just the beginning of it.

And in Langdale action opposite Pavey Ark Ideal size for a winter day sac - it feels like a big 32 litres

Harness

The Profile Harness and hip-belt Velcro in place with whopping great pads and can be moved up and down for a perfect fit. The shoulder straps are ergonomically S-shaped and use thin, but comfortable foam, while the hip-belt uses our fave construction with dual-density foam allied to a tapered cut which snugs over your hips and is adjustable with two tensioning straps for a customised fit.

That might sound a bit OTT for a day sack on paper, but allied to a thick pad of breathable '3D Space Mesh' foam, it makes for one of the most comfortable carries of any pack we've used, of any size. Once adjusted right, you simply aren't aware of the back system, which is how it should be. If you're going to be carrying heavy loads - winter climbing hardware for example - in a smallish pack, that's a big plus.

The best back system in its class? Can be moved up and down to suit note contoured staps and hjpbelt

The Front

Turn the pack round for more unusual features. The contoured, scarab-like shape is distinctive and the unusual 'Straightjacket' compression system also stands out. Twin foam-stiffened wings fold over towards each other to compress the entire pack, not just the areas covered directly by conventional compression straps.

MHW UK's marketing man Rob Wylie uses the example of trying to compress a sack load of ball bearings - a conventional system will just result in a series of bulges. The Osprey's wings however compress the entire carrying space. We reckon Rob should get out more, no-one carries ball bearings these days... In the real world though, the system works and holds contents firmly and neatly in place and close to your back where they should be - neat. It also works well to hold ice tools firmly and with no buckle icing problems.

The other features are a zip-down central back panel, which gives good access, at the expense of having to unclip the compression system every time, a largeish central pocket and a smaller lower one complete with water-resistant zip. All work well and there are also side mesh stuff pockets for quick stowage, though, as usual, we found them awkward to access without removing the pack.

The Weight

You rarely get something for nothing and in this case, the price you pay is a hefty 1810 grammes of weight. There are lightweight expedition sacks that don't weigh much more than that... However the pay off is the high level of comfort and stability and apparently durable construction. Arguably it's a price worth paying if that's what you're after.

Verdict: The Americans have a reputation for building some of the best packs in the world and the Eclipse Osprey shows why. If what you're after is a heavy duty day sack with massive adjustability, fantastic all day comfort and a great compression system then you can stop looking here. The harness, hipbelt and back system are particularly impressive and carefully thought out. The only downsides are the above average weight and the price tag, though you have to balance that against its undoubted build quality. Lose 500 grammes of weight and it would be damn near perfect.

Performance
Value

Osprey Packs web site

Pushed for time: Whizzo Colorado-made pack just appearing in UK shops. The back system is very, very comforrtable and multi-adjustable, which is unusual with a sac of this capacity. An innovative compression system using fold-over foam-padded wings holds the contents in a vice-like grip and build quality and looks both impress. Only downsides are the 1800 gramme dry weight and the 90-quid price tag. Very, very nice.

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