Black Diamond RPM 26 - Review

I've been using my Black Diamond RPM for most things over the last 6 weeks in Chamonix, from long rock routes to big norths faces, and its taken it all in its stride, and I'm super pleased with it. Here's BD's spiel on the pack:

'Designed for constant movement on big days, the lightweight RPM features a highly compressible, ergonomic design so it moves with you during climbs and scrambles.'

I've been thinking of buying a small lightweight pack for a while now, I toyed with purhasing with the Arcteryx Cierzo 18 or 35 for quite a time while climbing in the Rockies but was never convinced as the 18 seemed to small and featureless but the 37 was a bit too big. I saw the RPM in Snells and it looked liked it fitted somewhere in the middle, so went for it.

The RPM is essentially frameless, so don't expect to be carrying any loads in it. Its got a small waist strap effort which is effectively just their to keep it stable rather than transfer any load, this comes off really easily when you start climbing though. The back does have a thin layer of foam which gives some comfort and structure when packing. Enough of talk of carrying loads though, if your carrying big loads you don't want this rucksack! What this pack excels at is big days going fast and light in the mountains.

For lift accessed climbing, and staying in hut in the Alps this is perfect. I can quite happily fit water, food, a few layers and first aid kit plus whatever gear I need for the route. It compresses wonderfully as well, so you end up climbing with a snug small rucksack rather than something half empty and flapping around. The zip design is a little unusual, and a departure from my normal rucksack purchaing trend, I've always been of the school of thinking that zips can break and I'd always prefer a solid drawcord and buckles/lid. Zips are light though, this back weighs in at 600g, sure there probably not as durable as a standard system but I think I'm willing to sacrifice a shorter lifespan in this case. For such a small sack two ice axe loops on the front are also great.

Using the RPM alpine climbing in Chamonix.

The fabric seems to be relatively hard wearing, after 5 weeks of use in the alps theres only a few scuff marks and one small hole which was caused by hauling it up coarse Chamonix granite on the Rebuffet route. Its never going to last as long a old school alpine sack like my POD Black Ice or similar, but its a fraction of the price and the weight.

The downside is that I doubt I'll be pulling this pack out for much use in the UK, I could imagine the zip letting water through into the main body of the pack really easily and it probably the wrong kind of size for most mountaineering days, plus mines is white, which is certainly not the colour of choice for most moist, mossy or muddy british scrags. But if your looking to go lightweight in the Alpine regions this would be great, I could imagine this being a really good sack for long ice routes as well.

Theres a few other reviews floating around the web, one at Sierra Descents and one at the Colorado Mountain School.