I guess I need to 'fess up: the decision on which way to go is one I struggled with. However, the timing of the post was intentionally misleading - I made the decision about a year ago. I simply resurrected it, after reading about base weight, FSO weight, and whether a lighter pack is always better. I wanted to focus on the idea of weight versus other things.

I ended up deciding that, for me, the lighter weight stuff was worth keeping. However, I also kept the older stuff, just in case. Over the year, my confidence level in the lighter stuff grew, and I learned some tricks that made them more convenient to use. To bring the thing full circle, I finally gave away the old stuff 2 weeks ago.

As for the pack, I ended up replacing it, and saving another pound. I'm now down closer to 16 than 18, and quite happy. But it's been interesting to read everyone's perspectives on the question of whether lighter is always righter.