Backpack shoulder and hip straps

I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction. I'm looking for pre-sewn shoulder strap, hip strap, and back pad. I'm wanting to use it as a base to build a pack from. Something beefy with good padding and preferably ergonomic in design. Am I getting greedy? I live in Calgary, Canada. Not that the location matters if I have to order from a catalogue or over the net.

This is a good deal, if you don't mind using external frame shoulder straps and hip belts as your starting point. Cheap, too! Hope it helps.

http://outdooroutlet.com/shopping.php?pg=products&cat=16

BF <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

I've had good luck poaching these sorts of things from several sources:

1) MEC online gear swap, or the in-store gear swap if you can figure out when it is
2) Thrift stores and sports replay stores.
3) Campers Village (you have one in Calgary) has lots of hardware/webbing/straps parts and
bits in their sewing/repair area that you can use to adapt or make new things.

You may find that often a small daypack or bookbag with decent suspension can be used
to tear stuff off for a starting point - I did this when I wanted a small compression sack for a bag that would also work as a daypack, and just sewed it together myself. I'd just look for
old packs that have a suspension like what you want and get out the scissors and seam ripper.

I tried for several years to make my own hip belt for my home-made external frame pack. I always ended up with sore hips -- on my JMT trip my home-made belt actually led to open wounds on my hips. I finally broke down and ordered a hip belt from Bruce at Luxury Lite. It was easy to install (it just Velcro's around the bottom rung of my pack), is easy to adjust and transfers weight perfectly.

Is this the one with the J-hook on it? Or is there a different version that is meant for non-LuxuryLite frames? I too am trying to find a better belt for a Jansport frame. Both Jansport and Kelty have different methods of belt attachment, and I think I could make the Kelty work (pins), but just looking at the images on LL, I can't see that it would work on the Jansport since the bottom rung is way down below the butt and the middle ones are at the small of the back, and shoulders..

Does the LL have velcro all over it, on both sides? I was scheming up a way to attach accessory pouches to a pouchless belt, but it involved sewing swatches of velcro to the belt. This could kill 2 birds with one stone. I wish LL had better pictures.

(It looks an awful lot like a weightlifting belt to me. But those are generally designed for the waist, not the hips.)

The one Bruce sent me doesn't use the "J" hook; the strap loops around the bottom of my pack frame and velcro's to itself.

if you plan to make the rest of the pack you have the skills to make those components as well.

-Tim

Welcome, Tim! Listen to this guy...he does great work.

Bigfoot <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

Brigade Quartermaster sells good padded shoulder straps (if you don't mind O.D. green)

Eric