I know this will vary a lot, but I was curious on what the average BOB should weigh. Is 20lbs reasonable, is 30 too much?

Thanks

I wouldn't go more than 45lbs.
25lbs is pretty easy to carry on the avg. males back.

I think mine is around 25-30lbs but probably add 5 more when it has extra clothes in it and a tarp.

-Todd

Mine is 9.6kg, about 22lbs (I weighed it). Based on the recent thread where I described its contents I think I will add 1l of water, which (in the wonderful metric system) weighs another 1kg (2.2lbs)

I have not tried walking with it, but I will (sometime soon) walk to a friend's house on the other side of town about 5.5km (about 3.5 miles) just to see what it's like.

I suppose the weight issue comes down to your fitness/ability to carry a certain amount, and how far you anticipate carrying it:

Is it from the house to the car?
Is it from the house to a rescue helicopter?
Is it from the house to a log cabin 600m up a mountain 25km away?

A

The answer is, of course, it depends.
What is your level of fitness?
Is it just for you or do you have family?
Are you going to live in the woods or to travel to a specific location? Urban or wilderness?
What is the climate like?
Is water generally available along your route?

Etc.

So weight, like contents, depends on you, your situation and your plan.

TRO

Also keep in mind the design of the pack will influence how much you can carry confortably. A pack with a good frame system that puts the weight on your hips with a good hip belt design will do much better than one without some or all of these features, or one with an inferior implementation of these features, or one that doesn't fit you well.

-john

My BOB weighs in at 20 LBS and is still short a few items.

I'd say 20 lbs is pretty reasonable if you've tested it, and you can carry it a good distance.

My tent and sleeping bag alone account for 21 lbs 3 oz of my BOB. I'm guessing the entire BOB is about 50 lbs easy. I can carry it with confidence even after recovering from a back injury. However, I'll tell you that strapping in can sometimes be a trial if I don't get the swing-up correct and the shoulder straps get twisted or there's nothing to rest it on while I squat thrust the sucker. LOL

The tent and sleeping bag load could be lightened pretty easily if I scaled back a bit. What I have now is cold weather gear and truthfully is overkill in this climate unless I was high in the Appalachians in the dead of winter.

That's not to bad for cold weather gear. I live in northern Ohio and over the past week has been snow and about 10 degrees F. (-02 wind chill) cold gear a must.

True, 21 pounds isn't too bad for cold weather gear, but I live in Virginia.

And I guess stating that it's "Cold weather gear" is misrepresenting a bit because it's not cold weather gear alone. The tent is a 4-Season Expedition (Eureka K2-XT), and the sleeping bag is a Tennier MSS (couldn't afford the Slumberjack) so I can choose how much or how little I cocoon myself against the cold.

Truthfully though, I don't forsee the temperature getting down to -30? in these parts anytime soon, so I doubt I'll be using the MSS in its full configuration with my wool 1st layer on. LOL

I've done a couple of nights in the low twenties/high teens with tent and bag and have been toasty warm though.

Anyway... I took us off-track there a bit. Back to BOB weight issues! Sorry. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Well, when everything is loaded and filled, I'm humping 12 pounds of water and I'm not in the desert, so my idea of normal might be a little different....

I would normally say 1/6th your body mass if you aren't in used to it but have a good back and are in good shape. But remember, it is your back, your bug out plan and your BOB, so the biggest question is, can you carry it reasonably comfortably for 10-16 hours a day, for as long as it takes to get where you planning on being if your car doesn't make it.

The absolute maximum should be 25 percent of your body weight.

12 pounds ain't nothing <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

You BOB should be a balance between fuction and ability to safely travel over moderately rough terrain. Some may be able to carry 80lbs or more of gear safely while other's may be limited to much less. Practice with you loadout, a pack that you thought fit and rode well in the store you may be willing to throw off a clift after 10 miles of hiking.

Your goal should be the lightest fuctional kit possible... save weight on gear you have more room for food and water. Remember the truism, you can buy cheap and light equipment, cheap and durable equipment, but you can't buy cheap durable equipment... it just doesn't exsist!

In AZ, you're right, 6 quarts isn't much. But in VT, when you have a hard time walking five miles and not finding at least a stream, people look at you funny. :P

Yes, this I know <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />... Growing up in VT I can remember carrying only 2 1L Nalgene bottles and an empty 2L dromedary bag the nights when hking the long trail... Today in AZ, I wouldn't dare do a similar trip without 2 x 3L hydration bladders and a Nalgene bottle <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> It was quite a paradigm shif for this Vermont Boy!

That's right, I'd forgotten you grew up around the lake. And I think a 72oz bladder and four nalgenes is going light- my dream is Rt 2 from Burlington to St. Jay on foot without having to stop for anything other than sleep and needing only light and oxygen from outside of my pack. But that's just dreaming, and I know it. Heck, I'm just happy I can make room for two days of water (optimistic estimate, probably a day and half) in BOB.

75% body wieght, for me that equates to nearly 95 pounds. and i can carry it. but then again i train every day with a 20 pound backpack(my EDC) and combat boots. also i live in a pretty flat area, so the main problem for me is clearing out to a suitable flood proof ground in a county with the lowest high point and lowest low point, takes some moving.
the things to take into acount are, 1 ground type, lighter loads for rougher ground, 2 weather, less kit needed in hotter climates, 3 how much can you carry, and not just round the garden, 4 BOV ie are you going out in a rover 25 or an army 7.5 ton truck? and also the ground its going out in(ie trucks and mountains don't mix) 7.5 ton trucks can take a lot of stuff, a rover 25 has a smaller boot than my bergen.