Timbuk2 Courier bag

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blaidd drwg
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Timbuk2 Courier bag

#1 Unread post by blaidd drwg »

Got a new Timbuk2 courier bag for x-mas. I've ridden with it a few times on my wife's Monster, so here are a few extemporaneous first impressions:

Courier bags are nice on a bike. Not as hard to get on and off while wearing gear as a backpack, can be worn lower, and no need to detatch them from the bike.

This one is very well constructed, surprisingly water resistant, though a few rivulets of water can find their way inside from the creases in the fabric and the slightly uncovered ends, where the flap folds over. If you want truly impervious waterproof, buy a Chrome bag. The waterproofing is through a membrane completely lines the interior of the bag.

Choice between form and function: Timbuk2 will make a bag from a wide variety of colors, and you can mix and match panel colors, so you could get a cool tri-colored Irish flag look or whatever. But Timbuk2's dedicated Moto-courier bag has a panel of entirely reflective material (in white or orange). Looks ugly, but it is definitely visible at night. I kind of wish I had gone that way instead of with the fashionable bag, because the only reflectivity on mine is a suquare inch on the tab ends. But make no mistake, this is not a purse, like the fashion accessory bags that Timbuk2 also sells. This is a very durable bag. It's not as hardcore or freaky weird as the pro courier bags though, which for me is a good thing.

The cross strap across the front really works, and to me this is what separates a good courier bag from the pretenders. Otherwise the bag will flap around behind or beside you at speed, which is a hazard. You crank this extra strap down on your torso, though, and you're good to 80 mph, indicated, on a sportyish posture naked Monster. Maybe higher, I dunno, that's as much as I can stand on a nekkid bike.

Organization: I'm not that organized, and this bag has way too much in the way of inserts and do dads. I supposed I'd miss them if they weren't there, but I still find features I didn't know about after 2 months. And you can add more, like a padded laptop sleeve, etc.

Construction: first rate fabric and stitching. I had an Eddie Bauer bag fall apart on me after three flights, but this one is rock solid. The straps and hardware are beefy, though plastic. If you get a "made to order" bag, they are made in the USA. If you go with an off the shelf version, they are made overseas. Supposedly there is not much difference. For $100+, I got the USA version. I can easily see that you'd get bored of it well before it wore out. If I get bored of this color scheme, maybe I'll sell it on E-bay to pay for half the price of a new one.

Cool factor? If a 40 year-old dweeb like me has one, then this fad must be played out. I don't care much. Still a nice bag. Good compromise of form and function. I can use it as a brief case when I don't ride, which these days is most of the time.

Other options in courier bags: Aerostich, Chrome, Roadgear all have good bags.

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basshole
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#2 Unread post by basshole »

Both are nice bags. Chrome is a cool little company in San Francisco and all there bags are made locally in the USA. Personally, I'd think you would get much better service from Chrome and that's who's bag I would buy IMHO.
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