3F UL Gear Qidian Pro Review

The backside support on the Qidian Pro holds a closed-cell foam pad for convenience and to add padding to the pack itself. Carrying comfort is really affected by a set of somewhat impotent load lifters and a hip belt that's padded only at the ends, not around the lumbar region. While this is an inexpensive pack, it will likely appeal only to folks willing to sacrifice comfort for savings, or to DIYers willing to do a bit of customization to meet their needs.

Likes

At only 31 ounces, the Qidian Pro is reasonably lightweight. Even though the internal volume of 53 liters is slightly less than the advertised volume, this pack fares reasonably well when you consider the base weight per volume.

If we look at measured weight to advertised volume, the Qidian Pro stands at 0.55 oz/L, which is certainly in line with some of the better packs we tested.

The pack body of the Qidian Pro is made of a somewhat heavy-duty, UHMWPE-nylon blend. It's interesting to note that the specific fabric weight isn't advertised. After inspecting the fabric, we can only conclude that this material is as tough as or tougher than other packs made from economical UHMWPE nylon, making it a solid choice among budget packs.

The center exterior mesh pocket is notably large. This makes it easy to find your gear, or we liked using it to dry out wet gear. The hip belt pockets are also immense, able to hold ten of our Clif Bars each at once.

The massive hip belt pockets can fit 10 Clif bars' worth of snacks!   Credit: Justin Simoni

We were able to fit four Smartwater bottles into the tough mesh center pocket.   Credit: Justin Simoni

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Dislikes

The comfort of the Qidian Pro was pretty lackluster. This pack doesn't have any back padding, back stays, or a frame, but it does come with an attachment system to add your own closed-cell foam sit or sleeping pad for a little cushion.

This attachment system is somewhat convoluted, however, with some straps lying uncomfortably against your back. In general, the Qidian Pro has more straps than most other packs we've tested – straps were regularly in the way, fluttering in the wind, or gently whacking us while we're hiking.

We were able to fit a full-sized closed cell foam pad, but a pad with this many panels does push out the pack a bit far away from your body.   Credit: Justin Simoni

A second strap with a buckle in the middle wraps around the center pocket, which we thought may be a little superfluous.   Credit: Justin Simoni

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The meaty hip belts gave us hope that they would be supportive. But they don't fully wrap around to provide lumbar support, which limits how much weight can be distributed down onto your hips. So even though they may look substantial, they're mostly ineffective.

The two ends of the hip belt practically come together at the center and touch, meaning that this pack will most certainly be too big for hikers with a waist size smaller than 32", unless they're carrying a particularly thick foam pad for backing.

The Qidian Pro is designed with load lifters, but without a stiff frame or a supportive hip belt, they don't actually function very effectively. This pack only comes in one size, and despite all the straps, it's somewhat of a pain to adjust to get the load feeling just right.

Should you Buy the 3F UL Gear Qidian Pro?

Despite the alluring price, the 3F UL Gear Qidian Pro just isn't comfortable or adjustable enough for us to recommend. If the cost of other packs is well out of reach, it might be worth buying this inexpensive pack as an entry point into ultralight backpacking. However, we can't expect you to want to use it for very long.

What Other Ultralight Backpacks Should You Consider?