William Joseph Coastal Pack/Vest

[hook]

Anyone using one? Comments --

[deltaflyer]

Kevin,
I have one, wear it and will never go back to a vest. For me it is much more comfortable. It does not pull on the back of my neck like my vest (an Orvis Guides Choice or something like that...) and it is much more stable. It will not hold as much as my vest but I haven't found that to be an issue as I have three boxes that I fish with; a large nymph and streamer box, a dry box and a midge/dropper box. The pack holds the large box and one of the small boxes on one side and the other small box on the opposite side. I keep my weights and strike indicators on the side with the small box and use the fly patch on that side. I keep my tippet in the built in tippet holder and my floatant in the pocket on the front. It'll easily hold my wading jacket in the back of the pack as well as a hydration bladder if you wanted to carry the weight. It has two built in zingers as well as lots of external pockets for hemostat, nippers, release tool, pliers, headlamp and just about anything you want to carry... I highly recommend the WJ coastal pack... it fits alot like your SV-2... in fact that's what it feels like... it rides kinda high on your chest if that makes sense.

Here's a picture of the pack loaded down:

http://www.myfishingpictures.com/img/041635.jpg (http://www.myfishingpictures.com/?p=41635&c=500&z=1)

[SpeedBird]

I have been using W-J stuff for the last 2 years and I love it.
I bought the latest style Coastal Pack earlier this year and I will never wear
another vest. You may have to reduce the amount of things you would carry in a standard vest, depending on if you usually carry a kitchen sink fishing with you ;)

What I have starting doing is customizing the gear I carry to the destination and time of year. IE-I don't pack hand warming packs in summer etc...

I always have room in the back for water/wading jacket etc..

It has been to TN/NC/PA/ID/WY/NM/MT so far and I have zero complaints.
Buy one, you won't be disappointed!!

[FlygURL]

I have two friends who use them and love them. Consider it on my Christmas wishlist!

[skibum]

One of the newer models, and one from last years model. I love it and never have found i needed more room, even when i have all 3 fly boxes and a bottle of water with me.. I thought about the coastal at first, but never thought i would really need that much room. WJ has some awesome stuff and made to last, or they replace :)

[DAWGFISH]

Ditto what everybody else said, these are well built, super-comfortable packs. I have last years model and love it for the most part but I do have a few complaints:

1. Storage capacity. They just don't have the storage capacity of a vest. I cannot fit all of my fly boxes in the Coastal Pack at once. As the others mentioned, you have to plan for each individual trip and bring what you think you should be using. I am one of those types who likes to be prepared for anything, and sometimes feel nervous leaving patterns behind.

2. On the old models you had to by one of those tippet lanyards to bring along enough tippet. Again, I'm one of those persons who likes to have some extra tippet along just in case. The new models have been redesigned with built in tippet dispensers, so if you get the new model, this is a mute point.

3. The front and side adjustments straps tag ends often hand down and get in the way of my stripping hand, and line. A friend of mine fixed this problem buy safety pinning the tag ends down. I have to adjust my straps often due to changing clothing to fit hot/cold conditions and just plain old weight fluctuatuions (what can I say, I'm a big 'ol boy who likes his beer, bbq, biscuits and gravy,........), so I adjust the straps a lot. I try to ty the tag ends off, but they always come undone and are often catching my line when I'm stripping, or my leaders when I'm changing a fly, or sometimes they catch my net when I'm trying to get it loose to land a nice fish which brings me to # 4......

4. Net access can be difficult. When I have my Coastal Pack adjusted confortably, the rear section hangs kind of low on my back, this can make it difficult to reach behind and get the net lose if using a french-clip net attachment device. If you are fighting a really good fish it becomes even harder (naturally). I fixed this problem buy using one of those magnetic net releases and attaching one of the magnet fixtures to the upper bow of the net, instead of on the bottom of the handle, this way I easily can reach around to the small of my back and voila, there's the net handle. If you are currently using a net with a french clip on the net, you will have a hard time accessing your net. If you have a magnetic net release you will be ok.

Overall I am very pleased with the Coastal Pack, but you may want to ask yourself a few questions before purchasing it. How much gear do you cary? If you need or feel like you need to cary a lot of flies and gear than you probably need to look at a traditional vest. Do you plan on using this exclusively? I like to use my Coastal Pack in conjunction with a traditional vest. I use the Coastal Pack 90% of the time. I really like the way the Coastal Pack has made me think about what I really need on the stream in the majority of situations. I don't carry a lot of the stuff I used to, and it makes for a more enjoyable fishing experience. The Coastal Pack is outstanding for long hike in trips. Despite this however, there are times where I feel like I need a large selection of flies (particularily out west), and the Coastal Pack can be limited in this regard. In these situations I still where a traditional vest. If you already have a good vest, hang on to it for thest situations and you will have everything covered. Hope this helps and tight lines!

Steve

[deltaflyer]

the problem with the tag ends (which I have experienced on my old model creel) has been corrected on the new Coastal Packs. It has these little velcro tabs that hold the excess strap material in a nice tight curl.

[hook]

Thanks for all the info guys and FlygURL.

I think it goes on my Christmas list. I hope that I'm on the nice list this year.

The storage capacity should be fine. I worked my way down to the bibb pocket of my waders, a lanyard, and a couple of d-rings on my wader's shoulder straps. But then it rained and I got wet because there was no room for a jacket. I like the storage capacity in the back - missed my lunch and water. The Coastal looked like it had the most storage for the size.

[knot trying]

Tom:

If I didn't know better, I could swear that you are wearing one of those " over the shoulder boulder holders" in that picture!

[skibum]

One thing i did was remove the flypatch from inside the front pocket, and add velcro to the back of 2 of my smallest flyboxes (or one large one) and they stay put very well. Never had one fall off yet. Also with the creel, you can swing the back to the front to access the rear pack without taking it off..

[hook]

Skibum -

I agree that the flypatches inside the pockets wouldn't work well. They looked like a set-up to lose or crush flies. Anyone else using them?

[skibum]

I cut out a section of the patch, and use the velcro strip in the shoulder area and attach the patch to it. Only for a quick place to stick used flies.. But now i just put them straight back into the box while i'm getting the next fly...

[Chuckwalla]

I have a Mini Chest Pack II and I love it. The problem I have is that most vest have so many pockets and I tend to take everything and then pay the whole trip for it. The MCP II is just the right size and the pockets are well thought-out.

John

[Rockyraccoon]

Bottom line is William Joseph packs are tough to beat. Designed for a functional and ergonomic feel for the fly fishing angler. And in all honesty....while they won't hold your entire stash of goodies and gadgets....they will carry everything one needs while out on the rivers. Great products from a great company!