r/ManyBaggers

Hi everyone , I need help for a Gift.

Here is the context; My girlfriend has a pretty weird work schedule/place where she need to bring load of things depending on the week day for work, she has to walk +/- 1 Km with work computer suitcase + full gym bag + Lunchbox and some other work stuff. She has to walk all this on crushed stone trails, so no wheels. She's been trying to find a Bag for her Gym stuff that can be either a Duffel shoulder bag OR used as a backpack, depending on what she needs that week. We purchased many in the last years on amazon ( see image ) but they all fell apart within a month or two.

So I want to find her perfect new bag for work. Budget is 400$ CAD. I don't know much about bag brands or whatever but I am a quality product enjoyer and it is why I am here asking you people today. I know that what she truly needs is a fucking 4x4 ATV with a trailer but whatever.

Thank you all for your precious time !

Just wanted to give my thoughts on these.

I use an Alpaka Elements Travel backpack (discontinued) as my EDC. Austere Mfg came up on my radar shortly after I got the bag and I was eager to upgrade my backpack, while giving it a bit of personalization. I bought 4 ladder locks - 2 for the shoulder straps and 2 for the load lifters.

Installation should be easy if you have the pliers they always show on their videos. I didn't have those, but i had a non-abrasive steady platform on which to hammer and steel pins that would allow me to hammer precisely onto the ladder pins' heads. A little tricker, but I managed to successfully get them installed.

After installation, I was super pleased - they looked awesome. Operation was very smooth, as well.

I do have one critical thing to say, however, after having used them for about a year: I always felt like i had to adjust them often. Like, daily. I tested their holding strength to see if there was any visual slippage under constant tension. The were solid. I'm guessing that the slipping is only happening when the straps are loose and/or when the angle of the straps to the ladder pins are at any angle less than 180.

I mean, a quick cinch every time I put the bag on isn't so bad, I suppose. Overall, I still like them.

I'm curious about others' experiences with these...

I’ve been using the new CTactical CT Messenger for a couple of weeks now, and I think they did a really nice job with this one.
My first instinct was to load it up pretty heavily, and while it handled everything, I’ve found the bag works better when you give it a little room. At 10L, it is definitely on the smaller side, and I think it shines more as a compact work/EDC messenger than as a bag you try to stuff to its limits. (the 14 refers to size of laptop it can handle)

One of my favorite things about it is the access. A lot of traditional messenger bags make you open the big front flap every time you want something from the main compartment. CTactical gives you zippered access through the top, so you can get into the bag without dealing with the flap at all. It sounds like a small thing, but in actual use it makes the bag much easier to live with.
And there is organization everywhere. You have the rear pockets, a full admin area under the flap, additional exterior storage, and then the main compartment has dedicated laptop and tablet sleeves plus even more internal pockets. Despite being a fairly compact bag, there are plenty of places to separate your gear.

For reference, I’ve been carrying a 13-inch MacBook Air and 11-inch iPad with no problem. In the main compartment I also had an Alpaka Vertex Pouch Mini, although it is honestly a little too wide for this bag, a Lochby Venture Pouch Mini, Sony WH-1000XM4 over-ear headphones, a small Ghost Whale pouch with comfort-care items, and a 3x5 mesh envelope with gum and mints.

That is a decent amount of stuff for a 10L messenger, but it also reinforced my point about not overpacking it. Everything technically fit, but the bag carries and accesses better when it isn’t packed completely full.

The side bottle pockets are also fairly small, but I’m almost reluctant to criticize them because it has external water-bottle pockets on a messenger bag. That alone is a win. A smaller bottle fits just fine.

Carry has been good too. Worn cross-body like a traditional messenger, it slides easily from my back around to the front when I need access. That is one of the things I want a messenger to do well, and this one does.
Construction is excellent. The materials, stitching, hardware and overall design all feel very premium. It feels less like CTactical simply decided to make a shoulder bag and more like they actually thought about how people use a messenger.

One thing to keep in mind is that it can get heavy pretty quickly. That is not really a knock on this bag as much as the reality of carrying everything on a single shoulder strap. If you are truly loading it out, a backpack is almost always going to be more comfortable over time. But that is also part of the tradeoff. A messenger has a different aesthetic and a different feel in use, and for the right load I think that is part of the appeal.

This is a quality product and what I like most about it is it still feels like a classic messenger, but CTactical updated the format in some smart ways, especially the top access, organization, device storage and bottle pockets.

I hope some other bag makers take a hard look at what CTactical did here when they design their messenger…
u/nomads_nation **…**hint, hint.

I am so happy with the way this bag came out I thought I would show it here. This is a custom ULA Dragonfly 30 in Ultra 800TX with a fully lined interior in X-Pac VX21 RS. I wanted a pack that would fit between my two current favorite travel backpacks: Osprey Daylite Tote Pack and Tom Bihn Techonaut 30 in 1050D Ballistic.

For modifications I switched to RC YKK zippers, removed all the water bottle mesh pockets and changed the front pocket to the main 800TX body material with pleats and a full lining. I believe it comes out to around 22L (vs 30L as standard) with these changes.

It's not a lightweight hiking bag anymore but for me it's the perfect overbuilt travel backpack (okay I'd still prefer 1050D ballistic but it's so hard to find in an unstructured bag).

Roughly 20L size, weighing in at 540g so I would consider it ultralight. Main material is ultra 200x and then some ultra stretch for the internal front pocket.

Got this bag made by nashpacks from the UK and very pleased with how it has turned out. Reminds of a smaller ula dragonfly but a much better front pocket system.

I personally love the look of ultra 200x but definitely not for everyone.

Just got the On Cloud Sling Pack 9L and I’m loving it! It holds everything I need without feeling heavy. I wanted something roomy that would still be comfortable to carry around and this has been a great fit.

One of my favorite features is the extra side strap. It keeps the bag snug and secure when I’m riding my bike so it doesn’t swing around. Plus, there’s room for my essentials with a few Pokémon friends tagging along. 😂