Halve the weight?

[Timelord]

I used the Meths burner from my Triaga stove and made a telescopic type can to sit on it and the 2nd half sits on top as a food container. A gas lighter & a few emergency Hexi blocks sit inside when closed up. It is far lighter & superbly more compact than the triaga stove was. Thats 1 bit of kit minuteurised. Now for the rest.
The Rucksack has 2 major flaws. Even though it is a very good quality & rugged one, it is far too heavy. It weighs in at approx 3.25 kilos on its own!!! Also, the large padded hip belt makes wearing any other webbing style belt & having pouches on it and other gear like knives or axes etc is just not really possible. The ruck is an 88litre one and after weighing it up, I have decided to look for something around the 40 to 50 litre mark and without a seriously chunky hip belt. Preferably one of those that stows easily out of the way if not required.
Looking on ebay, I could actually buy an obselete Warsaw pact rucksack at about 40 litres that is just a robust canvas rectangular bag with webbing straps. Not particularily comfortable, but the shoulder straps could be fitted with extra padding and molle type hoops & other stuff could be added. Ok, so it won't be the latest cordura water repellent materials, which by the way also need an overcover to guarantee waterproofness, but I suppose all I have to do is that - fit a cheap enough waterproof cover/bag over the top if it rains. The strapping arrangement means it would ride higher and leave the waist free for more critical items of personal kit. Just like the modern infantry patrol/fighting set up. In fact this type of Warsaw pact bag I am on about, does not look much different in size or shape to the latest uber patrol molle packs that are 40 or 50 litres & cost about £135 on ebay. The warsaw pact one costs £9.95 and dosn't have any plastic clips or zips to break. Ummmm...