I've never used the 45L, but it seems hard to go wrong with either one.
Brian

Go for the 40. It's plenty light enough, it's plenty big enough. Enjoy.

I've never filled the 45L even when I have the fat rope and a dozen screws, First Aid kit, belay jacket, Thermos, water btl in its insulated cover. And the back panel DOES hit my (Meteor) helmet,

As I said in the other thread, the 40B is perfect. Usable for a day cragging or an overnight technical route. The amazing compressibility of Cilogear makes larger size packs usable for smaller tasks. That being said, I pretty much only use my 40B now; the last time it actually opted for the 60L was a 5 day backpacking trip where I was carrying the "guide's load" (extra sh|te, first aid kids, etc., etc.). For all my personal trips, half day to three day two night, it's the 40B.

Thanks for the kind words Brian and all the rest of you!

The 45L is the pack that's shown up in those awesome pictures in the last, oh, seven Patagonia catalogs. That said Mr Retro, you want the 40B if your torso is under 20 inches...

The new 40B and 45 are both quite a bit lighter than the old packs. They're both made here in Portland, Oregon. But the 40B does have a shorter back panel length than the 45L / 60L sized packs as Justin suggested quite correctly.

The guys in those catalogs are using the 45 in Patagonia, in the himalayas and all that jazz. They're using 30L's and 40B's at home for days or even weekends. I suspect that you'll have plenty of room in the 40B for all of your stuff.

I've gotten it down to about 150 emails to respond to from the OR shutdown, and I should be caught up by tomorrow. (I hope.)

I'm 6'2'' and never have a problem carrying the 45L on an alpine climb as long as I take out the plastic frame sheet. I don't know why you'd be climbing with it, as the pack is so much lighter and comfortable for climbing without it.

As I said in the other thread, the 40B is perfect. Usable for a day cragging or an overnight technical route. The amazing compressibility of Cilogear makes larger size packs usable for smaller tasks. That being said, I pretty much only use my 40B now; the last time it actually opted for the 60L was a 5 day backpacking trip where I was carrying the "guide's load" (extra sh|te, first aid kids, etc., etc.). For all my personal trips, half day to three day two night, it's the 40B.

The pack climbs very well, but like anything else (especially Cilogear, which is made to be customizable), you have to use it right. How you pack with determine both how well it climbs and how much head mobility you have with a helmet.

I've never used the 45L, but it seems hard to go wrong with either one.

Brian

DANG! that must be a heavy load!

Ha! Yeah. My WFR certification expired so I put a couple of pint-sized med students under the top lid. They're pretty useful in a pinch, but damn lazy when it comes to taking their turn on the sharp end.

Brian

Nice!!!
I think I will stick out the remainder of the season with the CCW and when the new 40's start rolling off the line, I will consider picking up another one! I fiddled with the Chernobyl last night...shifting weight up a bit. move the sternum strap down a bit and it felt better than it has over tha past few seasons. I never really tweaked it much...just shoved the junk in, threw it on and out I went. Cilo taught me how to tweak!!!

Try next week for the new 40B's and 45Ls...I'm waiting for the new extension material to come in and then we'll be shipping them.

Glad you learned *something* from us Grammy!

Please allow me to ask a question that will really expose my ignorance. I am looking to save some money and to therefore buy a multi-purpose pack that I can take to the rock crags to do some multi-pitch trad during the warm seasons. If possible, I would also like this bag to double as an alpine pack for 1-2 day adventures on alpine routes.

I have been looking at the Cilo 30 and 40B packs, but I'm just not sure they would measure up at the rock crags. Is there anyone out there with experience climbing moderate 5.10 trad routes with a 40L bag on their back? I am just wondering how the Cilo bags would hold up on rock, and if anyone has used them for rock and ice/alpine routes?

Also, for a crag bag, is the 40L too big? It would be nice to have a bag that can do it all, but I'm just not sure this is possible. Whoa is me!

I
2) I never use the zipper pocket on my V1 40L, so why not get the weight savings?

Dumb question coming your way!
What did you do with your small stuff, like headlamps, cliff bars, compass, etc....when you used the pack sans the lid?

Grammy

The newer packs have a zip pocket on the framesheet flap (at least my 30 and 45 liter packs do), which is where I put sunglasses, tethers, gu, and map. I usually just shove the rest of the stuff in my belay jacket pocket, or in a small sil-nylon stuff sack.

Yep....gotcha!
SOLD!!!

Awesome. You won't regret it!