5 Reasons I Dig My Flux Waist Pack

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flux-waist-pack

WJ Flux Waist Pack Review. Photo: Louis Cahill

Most of you already know I’m a big waist pack gear head. All waist packs aren’t created equal though. For a waist pack to cut it with me its got to perform well in many areas of functionality on the water. I recently purchased the William & Joseph Flux waist pack for my guiding and personal fly fishing and I’ve fallen in love with it. Below are five reasons why I dig my Flux waist pack by William & Joseph and why you should take the time to check it out for yourself.

1. ROOMINESS

I’ve had a very hard time over the years finding a waist pack big enough to hold the excessive amounts of gear I carry with me on the water. That was of course until I purchased my Flux waist pack by William & Joseph recently. If we compared the roominess of fly fishing waist packs with the SUV’s that many of us drive, without a doubt, the Flux waist pack would be labeled a Surburban. With it’s 1100 cubic inches of storage I’ve had more than enough room to carry multiple dry fly, nymph and streamer boxes with me, and still have plenty of space left over to stow my other terminal tackle. It’s the first time in a very long time, I’ve not had to stategically pack my fly boxes so I could get the zipper to close on my waist pack easily. If you’re looking for a roomy waist pack that can handle a ton of gear look no further. The Flux’s main storage compartment will handle eight small fly boxes or five large fly boxes with ease. If that’s not enough, you still have a nice size pocket on each side of the packs belt to store additional fly boxes. Dimensions: 12″ x 19″ x 5″

2. WIDE RANGE OF POSITIONING

The Flux waist pack is by far one of the most secure and comfortable waist packs I’ve ever worn. I’m all gut with no butt, and in the past I’ve had problems with heavy waist packs constantly sliding down on me while I’m fishing. The Flux’s Neck strap and its two quick adjustable straps offer anglers the ability to tighten down and secure the pack in a extraordinarily wide range on their body. The straps are so adjustable you can wear the Flux waist pack around your waist, or tighten them all the way down and the pack will actually end up tightly fastened around your chest. That’s a really cool feature if you know you’re going to be wading deep water for the day. This is something I wanted to clearly point out because I’ve never seen another waist pack on the market have such a wide range of positioning. Furthermore, the main waist straps and buckles also have an equally full adjustment range. If your a string bean you’re good to go, and if your a big husky dude, there’s plenty of length on the straps to accommodate your bigger frame.

Flux-stripping-basket

3. STOW-ABLE STRIPPING BASKET

Another fantastic and innovative feature of the Flux waist pack that I’ve never seen before  is its built-in and stowable stripping basket. By unzipping the compartment closest to your body the stow-able stripping basket will unfold into position effortlessly. This is a great feature when you’re fly fishing areas where fly line can be easily snagged on the banks or where you’re wading in a river and having to fight fast water currents pulling on your fly line during casting. I don’t know who came up with this brilliant feature but I love it and use it quite often on the water.

4. SNAG-FREE MATERIALS AND DESIGN

I’m sure many of you hate getting your fly hooks snagged just as much as I do on your fly fishing packs. In the past, many of the waist packs on the market incorporated elastic mess pockets on the front of their waist packs. These were nice if you wanted to keep a spool of tippet handy or have a place to put your strike indicator while you were untangling a knot, but the elastic mess material was notorious for snagging hooks. William Joseph noticed that the elastic pockets created more harm than good and eliminated them all together and took great care in designing the Flux packs surface to be as snag-free as possible. I’ve had no problems with my flies or fly line snagging the pack.

5. EXTREME COMFORT

I stated earlier that the Flux waist pack is by far one of the most comfortable packs I’ve ever worn. This is due to William & Joseph (WJ) designing the Flux pack to shine in three key areas of wearing comfort. The first area of comfort was keeping the Flux waist pack lightweight and under 2 1/4 pounds. WJ accomplished this by using light weight durable materials throughout the entire pack. The second area of comfort was WJ designing the pack with its two stage fastening system (waist belt/buckle and neck strap). The design concept was modeled after hiking backpacks, where the weight of the pack is distributed and carried efficiently across the body (waist and shoulders together). This keeps your pack from moving around on you during heavy movement and it greatly reduces fatigue on the water. The final area of comfort that WJ incorporated into the design was adding their air track suspension frame throughout the pack. This gives you great support and cushion in all the right areas, and its open-air design helps to keep you cool and will dry quickly if you wade a little too deep.

OVERALL RATING: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

At $119.95 MSRP, I feel the William & Joseph Flux Waist Pack is a smart purchase. It’s roomy size, stow-able stripping basket, exceptional comfort and wide range of wearing positions offers quality and functionality most packs on the market can’t match. Add a DIY fly patch in the front magnetic compartment and your ready to rumble. I took a half star away for not incorporating a nipper and hemostat functional storage area on the pack. This could be fixed by attaching aftermarket zingers on the neck strap. I’m sure WJ will add this option on the next version in the future.

Keep it Reel

Kent Klewein
Gink & Gasoline
www.ginkandgasoline.com
hookups@ginkandgasoline.com
 
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8 thoughts on “5 Reasons I Dig My Flux Waist Pack

  1. Kent,

    I have tried to shake the vest habit a few times and use a waist pack. I could not cut the cord to my vest, a security blanket of sorts I suppose. I assume you transitioned from a vest to a pack at some point? How long did it take you to get comfortable and why do you prefer a pack to a vest?

    • Tim,

      I use waist packs for two main reasons. The first reason I moved away from fly fishing vests is because I was notorious for not remembering to zip up my pockets. I had a lot of gear fall out of my vest b/c of this. With a gazillion zippers I couldn’t keep up with them. The second reason is b/c the shear weight my fly fishing vest became after I loaded it with all of my gear. It killed my back wearing it all day. By using a waist pack I could store the majority of my weight around my waist and my back felt ten times better at the end of the day. It does take a while to get used to, but like everything, you’ll get more comfortable with time.

      Kent

  2. Tim,
    I know your question was directed to Kent, but I thought I would add my experience. I transitioned from a vest over a decade ago. The first move was to a WJ chest pack for brookie fishing.It achieved the desired lightness , though I tended to wear it slung over my shoulder like a sling pack.Then in 2004 my Dad and I aquired a raft for floating(an obsession that has led to 2 drift boats ) and I needed something that could be worn whilst both rowing and getting out to wade. The first choice was a Simms water resistant dry bag type waist pack. Fishing from a boat I don’t need the storage Kent desires. That bag lasted until 2011 when I switched to the Fish Pond red tail (?) minimalist waist pack. Since I fish from the boat ( I only get to fish when we anchor up and wade) the FP is perfect- out of the way when rowing and enough streamers and sundrys to fish a run.
    So my advice is to determine just what you need and choose the waist pack that fits, you will never wear a vest again
    bob

  3. Just to add some insight. I first started out with a vest when I began fly fishing. During the first year I figured out I needed a pack. I just didn’t like things haning all over my body, and gear stuffed in 20 different pockets. Just not for me. I’ve been back and forth with chest packs and waist packs for the past decade now. I currently have a Patagonia Stealth waist pack, and while it has the storage and features I desire, it doesn’t fit well. I take that back. It fits well until you get the adjustable straps really wet, then they start to slip and the pack starts falling down your ass. I just switched from a Simms headwaters chest pack just because I found that it kept getting in my way, and I would get line snagged on it while re-tying rigs. The waist pack serves the purpose better, I’m just have fitment issues. I’ve been debating going back to a chest pack, but if I do it will be the Willy J Confluence magnetic pack. I’ll just keep doing my “trial and error” type research until I find that one pack that does it for me.

  4. The only problem with the waist and chest packs are that there is no place for a net. What do you guys do for net placement?

  5. I have the flux pack. It is as great as you say. No, it will never be for sale. The stripping basket doubles as a great fruit picking basket on the farm. The magnet closure front pocket is secure and really fast! I even lash it to a North Face day pack of the same colors to stretch the limit for a personal carry on bag on planes. It’s great for fishing and for my aquatic habitat design work.

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