# Four months after replacing my backpack with a messenger bag...



## Farmpunker (Aug 6, 2002)

Just wanted to let the commuting crowd know that I am a messenger bag convert. I've been using a CarsRCoffins Chrome bag since spring, and love it. It's big, it's tough, it's bright orange. I use it to bike to the gym and the grocery store, or whenever I feel like throwing it on and riding. I really like the colour. Kinda blaze orange, like a hunting vest, makes me more comfortable riding my country roads and in town. The mess bag rides a lot better than the backpack when empty, and holds it's own when full. My only complaint is that the bag is fits a little large on me. I have to cinch it almost all the way to get it tight when empty. Maybe I should grow some shoulders and a chest.


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## luvmybike (Aug 19, 2002)

*confessed messenger bag user*

I use a large timbuk2 bag after having suffered through a couple years of backpack use. The messenger gag is soo much better I can hardly stand it!! I have also been completely impressed with how waterproof it is. I might be soaked but my stuff is dry.


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## lonefrontranger (Feb 5, 2004)

*I second the waterproof factor*



luvmybike said:


> I use a large timbuk2 bag after having suffered through a couple years of backpack use. The messenger gag is soo much better I can hardly stand it!! I have also been completely impressed with how waterproof it is. I might be soaked but my stuff is dry.


Arby gave me a large Timbuk2 bag that he won at an alleycat. I thought my Sidi backpack was the bee's knees until I tried this! I'll still be using the Sidi to ride back n forth to bike races, because it's got specific load straps for attaching a spare wheelset to, among other things.

But for commuting, I'm definitely sold on the messenger bag.

And yes, I can confirm the soakage factor. It's raining here in Boulder today. I considered (for about 2 seconds) taking the c*r to work. Then I decided that since I'm a bike racer, and I've paid good money to go a lot further, in worse conditions, and in a lot of pain, that getting drenched on the ride to work wouldn't kill me. Arby's got my rain cape, so since it wasn't cold, I just wore a skinsuit (bike racer equivalent of a wetsuit) and got soaked. Everything in the bag stayed nice and dry.

Observations on the Timbuk2 are dead on. I'm glad the bag Arby gave me isn't any bigger, quite honestly. Farmpunker, your comment about growing a chest and shoulders made me laugh... I'm 5'4" and a size S / XS blouse, so this bag is more than adequate - any bigger and I'd have trouble getting it adjusted properly.


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## Spinfinity (Feb 3, 2004)

*Another vote for messenger bags.*

I got by for years with a top loading JanSport knap-sack. Then I saw some North Face messenger bags on sale and set a price at which I would buy one. It's more comfortable, more waterproof and holds almost as much. The old bag, still fine for hiking and such, is now almost intolerable on the bike.


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## fastfullback (Feb 9, 2005)

*Huh.*

Here I've been thinking my Da Kine backpack with the reflective triangle attached is the ticket for commuting in Seattle. I do put my clothes in a plastic bag inside (Boy Scout training). I guess I'm figuring out one of my birthday presents here...

How's the air flow? That's the only real problem I have with the pack. It makes hot days hotter.


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## lonefrontranger (Feb 5, 2004)

*that's one of the best bonuses*



fastfullback said:


> How's the air flow? That's the only real problem I have with the pack. It makes hot days hotter.


Recently here in Boulder I've been commuting in +100 degree temps. No, it's not humid, but yes, anything over 90 is bloody hot, regardless of mitigating factors.

I vastly prefer the messenger bag to my backpack for airflow. It keeps my back much cooler, and even on the worst days, I don't notice at all the big wet patch on my back that used to be there from the backpack.


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## bighead (Feb 27, 2005)

I've been using a backpack (errrmmm... Vetta? Vuelta?Verma?) which is essentially an arch between my hips and shoulders. Its very comfy when riding (not so much when walking) and it has a chest strap and hip belt - it keeps the weight in place, too. 

I am, however, always open to new things - the backpack is definately dorky (until I put the yellow rain cover on, when it actually starts to become Devo). How do you keep the shoulder bag from shifting when you're standing and sprinting/climbing? 

Is it ok to wear a helmet and use handbrakes while I'm wearing one (kidding...)?


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## fastfullback (Feb 9, 2005)

*OK, so who's got the good prices?*

I need to know where my wife should look (he he)


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## RocketDog (Apr 9, 2005)

fastfullback said:


> I need to know where my wife should look (he he)


Performance has average prices for the Timbuk2 bags, but I think there is still a 20% off coupon floating around. Ebags.com has good prices on Chrome bags and I think I saw a 10% off code on one of the coupon webpages.


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## fastfullback (Feb 9, 2005)

*Thanks!*



RocketDog said:


> Performance has average prices for the Timbuk2 bags, but I think there is still a 20% off coupon floating around. Ebags.com has good prices on Chrome bags and I think I saw a 10% off code on one of the coupon webpages.


Chromes are cool but pricey. I believe you get what you pay for. Now I just have to convince her of that... unless lonefrontranger has any more Baltimore boyfriends ready to hand out a free bag...


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## lonefrontranger (Feb 5, 2004)

bighead said:


> How do you keep the shoulder bag from shifting when you're standing and sprinting/climbing?


Make sure you get one with a sternum strap, and learn how to adjust it properly.

Properly adjusted means learning the 'messenger huck' with the bag once it's settled around your shoulders. With a heavily loaded bag, what you do is kind of flip the bag up off your buttcheek whilst simultaneously performing a 'snatch' with the strap lock to shorten it up nice and snug under your pit.

Then fasten the front / sternum strap, snug it up snug, and away you go. All locked down.

It takes maybe 2 days to get all this figured out, then you're golden.


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## RocketDog (Apr 9, 2005)

bighead said:


> I've been using a backpack (errrmmm... Vetta? Vuelta?Verma?) which is essentially an arch between my hips and shoulders. Its very comfy when riding (not so much when walking) and it has a chest strap and hip belt - it keeps the weight in place, too.
> 
> I am, however, always open to new things - the backpack is definately dorky (until I put the yellow rain cover on, when it actually starts to become Devo). How do you keep the shoulder bag from shifting when you're standing and sprinting/climbing?
> 
> Is it ok to wear a helmet and use handbrakes while I'm wearing one (kidding...)?


If it ain't broke... I use a large Timbuk2 for errands and groceries and such (I'll have to post a pic of how much food (beer) I can fit in that thing and still ride home). For bigger loads, I find a messenger bag far superior to a backpack. It stays in place, and distributes the weight on your back more rather than piling it on you like a hump. For small loads, I don't really see much of an advantage other than ease of access to the cargo. You don't have to take a messenger bag off, and they're wide instead of deep, so no digging around for stuff. 

I've got brakes (front and rear) and I even wear a helmet.. Well, most of the time.


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## RocketDog (Apr 9, 2005)

fastfullback said:


> Chromes are cool but pricey. I believe you get what you pay for. Now I just have to convince her of that... unless lonefrontranger has any more Baltimore boyfriends ready to hand out a free bag...


Chrome bags are indestructable. I don't use my messenger bag enough to warrant one. But then there's always the cool factor...


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## siniam (Apr 23, 2004)

I've got nothing bad to say bout chrome bags. My bag has been through 2 accidents and 4 hurricanes. I've never had a bag stand up to so much abuse. My timbuk bag got destroyed after 1 accident. My chorme bag also holds a case and a half of beer. I know this from being the only one willing to get beer during francis.


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## fbagatelleblack (Mar 31, 2005)

*LeMond Bag on Sale at Nashbar*



fastfullback said:


> I need to know where my wife should look (he he)


I just got this one on sale at Crashbar. The price was too cheap to pass up, $24.99!!. So far, so good. It's much smaller than the bag I carried when I was a real messenger in Boston, but seems to work fine. Does anyone have more experience with this bag than I do?

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?...and=&sku=14268&storetype=&estoreid=&pagename=

or

http://tinyurl.com/cvu6j

- Forbes


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## RocketDog (Apr 9, 2005)

siniam said:


> I've got nothing bad to say bout chrome bags. My bag has been through 2 accidents and 4 hurricanes. I've never had a bag stand up to so much abuse. My timbuk bag got destroyed after 1 accident. My chorme bag also holds a case and a half of beer. I know this from being the only one willing to get beer during francis.


That's like 30 lbs of Beer! Jeesh, 20% of my body weight. I hope you didn't have to ride too far. In a hurricane no less! You get a gold star for being a truly dedicated commuter.


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## fbagatelleblack (Mar 31, 2005)

RocketDog said:


> That's like 30 lbs of Beer! Jeesh, 20% of my body weight. I hope you didn't have to ride too far. In a hurricane no less! You get a gold star for being a truly dedicated commuter.


Yeah, but did the beer weigh less and less as the ride progressed? Or at least did the weight get transfered from the bag to your bladder?


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## RocketDog (Apr 9, 2005)

fbagatelleblack said:


> Yeah, but did the beer weigh less and less as the ride progressed? Or at least did the weight get transfered from the bag to your bladder?


Good point. Add this to the list of advantages of a messenger bag over a backpack:

Rider can get a beer out of a messenger bag without stopping. Backpacks require said rider to dismount in order to procure a fresh beer.


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## PdxMark (Feb 3, 2004)

*Chrome, Timbuk2, Reload compared*

This RBR discussion has inspired me to go shopping 

I've commuted with my backpack for 7 years or so. With changes at home, I now sometimes go grocery shopping on the homeward commute, so in addition to the usual commute clothing I might also have a gallon of milk, bags of fruit & vegetables, loaf of bread, and brick of cheese. The flap-top pack works OK because I can strap a plastic grocery bag, or gallon of milk, on the outside of the pack... But all this talk of messenger bags got me into a couple shops during lunch today.

I tried two sizes of Timbuk2 and Chrome and one size of a Reload bag. I'm 5'10, 165#, 40" chest. The XL Chrome was enormous - way too big for me. The XL Timbuk2 was also too big, but not quite so cavernous as the XL Chrome. That put me at the Chrome Metropolis (Large) and the Timbuk2 large.

I wanted to like the Timbuk2. I like the pro series with the smooth ballistic cloth exterior and the giganticd reflective panels... it is for commuting, afterall. It felt OK on my back, but the plastic fold-flap shoulder strap adjustment lock was cumbersome and the bag looked like it could easily have a gap at the edges of the flap. In addition, there wasn't alot of velcro for the top flap, so the velcro adjustment range fror the main flap was marginal.

The Chrome was... sweet.... or whatever the new hip word for sweet is...It felt very good with the integral shoulder pad. The seat belt release seemed like a nice way to avoid lugging a full heavy bag over your head everytime. The adjustment mechanism was flawless. Cinching it was a snap. There were tons of potentially useful small organizer pockets inside. Plus, the bag had extensions from the corners up to the flap to minimize inadvertent gaps between the bag and the flap. The Chrome bags lack the acre of reflective tape that I very much like on the Timbuk2 and the smooth ballistic cloth on the pro series, but I think the balance for me swings to Chrome.

I tried a Reload at a different shop. It was very very simple. I thought it cam in a distant 3rd behind the Timbuk2. In particular, as cool as I was to the plastic fold-flap clamp on the Timbuk2, the Reload had a very stiff strap threaded through an old-style 2-slot metal device and was a chore to work. 

So, for my size needs I rank them Chrome 1st, Timbuk2 2d, Reload 3rd. Now I need to try one to see how many groceries I can carry with my commute stuff...


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## Farmpunker (Aug 6, 2002)

What? No backpack defenders here? 
I used a backpack for all my commuting and biking needs for three years. It was just a normal, 120 Cdn dollar North Face. It did it's job, was very comfortable, perfect biking size. It was a nice snug fit. But to get that fit I had to cinch the shoulder pulls all the way down, and even when riding exclusively in an upright position, the chest and waist belts would dig and constrict. When loaded, it was hard to breath. The worst aspect of that pack, though, was the top pocket, which was held in place by a single centrally located strap, instead of the usual two located to the sides. Even when empty it flopped around like a dead fish. If I had to put something in it... A heavy dead fish.
Now I have the Chrome metropolis. It's totally PVC. If I need to, I could wash it out with a hose and spray nozzle. It's maybe a little big for most of my uses, but I like that large orange splash on my back (I ride country roads, busy ones, single lanes, narrow, lots of transports and people driving fast and impatient at highway speeds). My largest load consisted of 50 dollars worth of groceries: enough stuff to fill that bag. 13 klicks later, I was convinced that a mess bag can hold it's own with a pack for loaded comfort. Or this Chrome bag can. I wouldn't have wanted to do that load with a narrower strap, and it would have been comical without the armpit strap. I did a smaller grocery run a week later, stopped in for a beer with a friend halfway, didn't do the armpit strap up on the last leg, and the bag was sitting in my lap in five minutes. Was a very tricky dismount.
Messenger bags are only stylish to cyclists. Where I'm from, no one rides a bike anywhere, except on group roadie rides which I shun (they drive into town to bike out of town). If I get any comments at all, they tend to be along the line of: what the fruck is that thing? Or, nice man purse, dude.
I'm sold. If I had the cash and needed a bag, go Chrome, or look at PacDesigns. That Canadian Flag one on their site is simply the coolest.


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## nkrax (Jan 12, 2005)

What are your recomendations for carrying a 15" laptop? I want to go the messenger route and can't decide between Timbuk2 or Chrome. Any thoughts?

Thanks.


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## JoeDaddio (Sep 3, 2005)

Chrome sells a laptop sleeve for their bags for like $15 bucks. 




joe


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