Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I recently bought this bag and wanted to come on here to answer some of the questions i had and could not find the answers to before the purchase so here they are. The hip straps ARE removable. There are NO holes in the metal zipper to lock them aside from using the strings attached. The metal spine IS removable. There is also a hard plastic backing to this that IS also removable, however if you take the metal spine out as i did this is very handy to still have in as it keeps the packs structure. CONTRARY to what Kelty say, The Regular rain cover will fit a fully loaded Med/Large pack completely, almost perfectly. (however if you intend to attach more things to the outside of the pack it will not fit. You can finesse the straps so that they don't stick out and dangle so much as well if you plan to be throwing this on a lot of trains and planes. All that said, i purchased this pack for a backpacking trip through some countries and had read that it was only a 2-3 day pack. Well, i don't know what people are putting into their packs for 3 days but i fit a solid weeks worth of clothing in here with extra socks, tanks, and undies taboot! not to mention all the other amenities you would take ( thin raincoat, pack raincover, camera, power converters, cologne, locks, toothpaste.etc.) and i still had some room to spare for a souvenir or shirt to bring back. I wrote this 'book' in hopes of alleviating the concerns of anyone else who is thinking of buying this pack but like me wanted more info before spending the money!! Its a great - and roomy- pack!