Lightweight and packable trad harness?

My current harness is nearing the end of its life and I am looking to get a new harness that has big enough gear loops to hold a full trad rack and maybe even a double rack, while also being light and packable. I’m looking to do some trad routes this summer with long and strenuous approaches and so I don’t want to be carrying something like a mm Cadillac up to the crag. I really like the Arc’teryx skaha but I can’t find anything about how much gear it can carry. I am also intrigued by the petzl Sitta but I have the same concern. Does anyone have any experience with either of these harnesses or have other recommendations? 

You can get a double rack on pretty much any harness. If you only need a double rack, just get a light sport harness.

I love the Sitta. Very easy to fit a double rack and I've even used it for some Valley walls-in-a-day. Not the most comfortable to hang in, but if you're worried about weight & rackability, it's great

Arc'teryx 395a

I use the sitta for summer alpine climbing and anything with an approach longer than ~1 hr (like big red rocks routes).  It can easily hold a double rack and packs down to be smaller than a chalk bag.  Like person above said, not the best for hanging belays, but I generally try to avoid those anyway.  

I've tried the sitta, but the whole divider/support on the gear loop was kinda frustrating at times. And agreed on the discomfort while seated - unless you happen to be the ideal size and shape for it. 

I always recommend the Wild Country mosquito. Super lightwieght, and the gear loops are pretty large and easy to clip onto (one of the reasons I stay away from BD stuff). The downside of the mosquito is the back gear loops aren't rigid, so it can be tricky to rerack your anchor equipment or large cams.

Fortunately! I just checked their site and they released the Flow 2.0 sometime last year. Just a tad heavier than the mosquito, but it has a little more padding on the leg loops and waistbelt + rigid gear loops in the back. IMO if you're looking for a balance of weight/comfort/functionality this might be your harness. I'd try it on person first if you have large legs though, the fixed leg loops can be a hit or miss and run a little smaller than other brands.

If you really like Petzl designs, I'd honestly suggest the Aquila (a little heavier but more gear space) or Hirundos (5 gear loops, but little lighter). Like John Clark mentioned upthread, at the end of the day you can smash a double rack onto most harnesses. It just depends how much room leftover you want to have and the comfort of the harness with all that weight sitting on ya. 

I have the Sitta and like it a lot. I also have Blue Ice Choucas Pro in two sizes for winter and summer clothing. I prefer the Sitta since I think the gear loops are better. I however still use the Choucas Pro for winter since the difference is not enought to motivate me to move the ice clippers... Choucas Pro are cheaper and lighter. 

Big fan of the CAMP Alpine Flash.  Holds more than enough gear, super light and packable, and comfortable enough that I use it for most of my cragging.

Paul L wrote:

Big fan of the CAMP Alpine Flash.  Holds more than enough gear, super light and packable, and comfortable enough that I use it for most of my cragging.

Forgot about this one! I used the camp harness for about a year. Originally got it as a cheap harness for friends to use and then it became my preferred one to use! Super comfy, big loops, and very light. +1 for this. 

I was rather impressed with the Beal Phantom the last time I sat in one.  As noted above, any old sport harness that's comfortable will hold plenty nowadays, and there's also universal ice clippers that fit on any harness if you really wanted more.

Check out Blue Ice Choucas Pro. Its  comfortable enough that i basically use it for everything. 4 gear loops, 4 ice clip slots, wide but unpadded straps. Other contender is the Edelrid Prism Guide with solid (but small) gearloops.

I have a Sitta and Alpine Flash. 

I like the Flash's gear loops way better than the Sitta's, and also like 4 ice clipper slots. It's less comfy than the Sitta.

Sitta just came out with a new version, $175. By the pictures, I'm not seeing a whole lot of difference.

*Oh, yeah. I think $60 is a good price for a harness, btw.

The Wild Country Flow looks pretty good. Only wish it would have a larger rear loop. But the photo of the climber wearing a chalk bag finally helped me understand why almost no harness has a storage loop on the back.

I love the BD gear loops so I got a solution guide. I like it quite a bit. I tried a petzl aquila but I didn't like the gear loops nearly as much. 

Arc'teryx AR395a, my trad harness. 

Blue ice Cuesta - just as light as the sitta but 1/3 the price. us.blueice.com/products/ms-…

DMM Renegade. Super light. 7 gear loops.

Jacob Miller wrote:

I love the BD gear loops so I got a solution guide. I like it quite a bit. I tried a petzl aquila but I didn't like the gear loops nearly as much. 

BD discontinued the Guide but I love my regular Solution.  I just put a piece of cord between the back two gear loops of my harness as a "Guide" hack to emulate the fifth gear loop on that version and it works great.  Besides that, I think the Guide has slightly bigger front loops and more durable webbing, but neither of those are a major plus for my uses.  The loops on the Solution (and BD harnesses in general) are definitely smaller than other harnesses, but I was able to fit a double rack to BD #3 and 22 draws on it once without issue.  The weight and comfort of the harness are the real selling points and are truly incredible.  Comparing it to a Petzl Corax that I previously used, the Solution sits so comfortably on your hips and makes the weight of a rack feel so much less than on the Corax, which sagged so much and felt so bulky.

EDIT:

It's on sale for $44 on Steep and Cheap at the moment:

https://www.steepandcheap.com/black-diamond-solution-harness-bldz9er

I use the AR395a a ton and love it, but I wouldn’t categorize it in the “lightweight and packable” category. The Sitta is nice, but I’ve had to replace it a few times. Blue Ice has some interesting new options too. 

Love my  Beal spot harness, sport, trad, ice, does it all. 

https://www.beal-planet.com/en/sport-harnesses/1480-ellipse-xt-harness.html#/208-size-size_2

Chris C wrote:

I use the AR395a a ton and love it, but I wouldn’t categorize it in the “lightweight and packable” category.

To me it does but again YMMV. ;)

giraud b wrote:

To me it does but again YMMV. ;)

Our AR395a harnesses are the same, so I don't think our milage really vary, but our definitions do   

When I think "light and packable", something like my Blue Ice Choucas Pro comes to mind.  It's about the size of my fist and is 134g.  (That's about 35% of the weight of my AR395a.) I own both, along with quite a few other harnesses. I climb with my AR395a the most, however, it's actually my heaviest and least packable harness.  The Sitta sits kind of in between the two of these.  I like them all!