My cheap no-name Chinese backpack is finally falling apart, after over 20 years of absolutely solid service.
I want something that will last at least another 20 years, will hold a modern 16" laptop (e.g. Macbook), and will also let me toss a pair of jeans and light jacket in, when I ride home from work in the spring and fall afternoons.
I’d like to avoid American brands if possible.
Looked online at the SwissGear 5698 and Endure, but don’t know how well they’re built, or if they’ll hold my junk.
Any recommendations?
You must log in or register to comment.
Fwiw, different SwissGear model, but after my kids went through cheap backpacks every year like clockwork, I picked up similar backpacks for them, and theyve lasted three years and counting
I have a Hedgren backpack and it’s lasted through the toughest of outdoor drinking trips and daily use for more than 30 years.
I’d suggest them, but I have no idea whether the company has the same values anymore and if the new backpacks are even comparable.
Hedgren looks great - the “Trip” might be the perfect backpack!
…except that they apparently aren’t sold in Canada. :-(
I have a Camelbak that I got as I was ETSing from the US Army in 2005. There are a few threads starting to come loose, but it has survived very well out in the field.
Just got a Fjallraven Skule 28 for exactly this. I like it so far.
+1 for the Skule.
Fits everything I need, water bottle pockets are actually large enough to be useful (surpassingly difficult to find), and doubles as a hiking pack thanks to it’s built-in bladder suspension loop and hole for a tube at the top.
I have it in black and my wife got jealous and got it in green.
Looks great full or empty. I take it everywhere - work, travel, hiking, you name it.
https://freitag.ch/en_CH/products/bags/backpacks
I am using a Freitag backpack (they don’t sell the one I own anymore). It is now 10 years old and it basically looks like new. They are made from old car/truck parts and very durable in my experience. Bit pricey though.
Its going to be pretty pricey but the commuter bag from LTT is probably exactly what you are looking for. Canadian company that’s mostly tech centric but they have a consumer goods portion of the company that focuses on making high quality items that are built to last.
Honestly, if it were 5L larger, I’d buy it in a heartbeat.
20L is pretty tight for clothes - and their next model up is 35L. Something, ANYTHING in between those would be ideal.
But I’m sorely tempted…
I’ve got a millican backpack that seems like it’s going to last to the end of time. I’m pretty sure it’ll hold all your stuff and then some. I’ve been using it daily for maybe 10 years and it has no signs of wear beyond looking dirty.
https://homeofmillican.com/products/smith-the-original-roll-pack-25l
Another pack I have for bike commuting is a ortlieb commuter. It’s waterproof, light, and probably an even better bag but for me it’s drawback is no outside water bottle pocket. It’s also tough as nails. I accidentally ran it over with my wife’s car once and it didn’t hurt it at all.
https://us.ortlieb.com/products/commuter-daypack?variant=45082296287410
Millican is heavier and has smaller dedicated padded laptop pocket but more organization overall. Ortlieb for lighter potentially wet situations and has organizational insert with laptop pocket. Both comfy to wear.
Ortlieb is expensive as hell but extremely thick, waterproof (resistant?) fabric. I have just a bike bag Urban Roller Plus I think. It is a nice fabric texture instead of smooth dry-packish and it has a nice insert to organize everything and protect my laptop.
My girlfriend has the Various which you can flip the cover over to switch between backpack and bike bag and it is awesome, but more expensive.
Fjallraven is also good, but the strap padding wears out rather quickly. Every teenage girl in Belgium had a Fjallraven pack back when they were in style and every one has the strap pads completely flattened and useless lol.
Dutch company Newlooxs has a couple bike and backpack switchers. The material is thin though and mine ripped open on a fall during my commute.
For the laptop, you will want to ensure that the bottom of the laptop compartment is not at the bottom of the bag. A good design puts a few cm air gap between the bottom of the bag and bottom of the laptop compartment so that when you set down the bag, no shock reaches the laptop.
Maybe it’s common… not sure.
That’s an excellent feature! My existing bag is well-padded, but the padding is at the bottom of the bag. Moving it up even a centimetre would be a great safety feature.
The Wenger Swiss Gear backpacks are tanks. I’ve had 3 over the past 20-ish years. If you buy them from the company website, or Amazon I think, they come with a 10-year warranty. I can’t remember the model I have, but I don’t think they make it anymore. I see someone else with one every time I fly somewhere for work. Very popular among road warriors.
I also buy swissgear, but my use is light enough that my latest one is basically mint condition going on 7 or 8 years I think. It holds my laptop/overnight stuff, so just holidays and the odd camp trip
Mine is basically my office. I think the heaviest I’ve had it was close to 40 lbs! It’s usually around 30 lbs when I’m traveling for work.
I know you said not MiUSA but I have to shout out my favorite brand, Timbuk2. I had a Swiss Gear break on me at a bad time and went with Command laptop backpack. It’s been over a decade and it still looks like I’ve owned it for maybe 2 years, and I’m not easy on my stuff. Taken it all over the country, out of it, and always packed with tech. Almost no issues with the petty despots in the airports, and I keep it pushing.
It doesn’t look like they make the same model, but closest might be an Authority or Commuter. I can’t suggest them highly enough, and anyone I’ve know that’s bought them has felt the same.
Thanks for that. Their stuff looks pretty solid, and I appreciate the smaller companies making great stuff. Unfortunately, the US government is negotiating a half TRILLION dollar loan to destroy my country, so I’m going to pass.
Completely fair. I think the other reply to my comment looked good though, might suggest to check it out
The OP is in Canada.
The Canadian version of Timbuk2 would be PAC Designs, but PAC Designs are much higher quality and a bit more expensive also. They are professional level products. Literally every element on a PAC bag is higher quality… Fabric, stitching, hardware, straps, padding etc. PAC is literally top quality possible.
Getting ahold of these bags is a bit of a dark art (always has been) but I think they have a Facebook contact.
I’ve been using a Miltec for the past five or six years. Not pretty by commin standards but sturdy as fuck. The only thing broken on it is a clasp that I broke with a car door on accident. Bonus points for the molle system on it, so you can customize what compartments to attach
Can’t beat a Fjallraven Kanken Laptop 15. Additionally, I would suggest investing in a generic backpack organizer insert. My Kanken carries around my full “tech bugout” kit with lots of room to spare, which includes but is not limited to:
- Thick-ass Dell Rugged 5430 + power brick
- Hiby R4 DAP
- Koss Porta Pros
- Shokz OpenComm2
- Garmin GLO2 GPS
- NESTOUT 15000mAh bank
- Field notebook + Majohn A2 Retractable + Uni Kuru Toga Roulette
- An assortment of other goodies, such as screen wipes, a few sets of nitrile gloves, disposable masks, etc.
Kanken backpacks are 10/10 on the style front and SUPER lightweight, but those straps are a joke IMO.
Got one as a lightweight camera bag with similar insert, it’s perfect for short trips, would be a great commuter bag as long as your backpack is off for most of your commute.
Can easily toss it in the car and wear it from the parking lot to my desk. Would have died in college wearing it with a laptop and textbook walking for miles around campus every day.
For longer wearing those straps will drag you down.
I think this bag might be what you’re looking for. Solid bag.
Saw the bag for two seconds, horrible thing by the way, and then got this, which is pretty incredible.Oh that makes the joke even better.
Is that a parody site? It can’t be real, can it?
Funny
Pretty sure that humor isn’t gonna land here. But I tried.
I’ve been using an Ortlieb Commuter for over a decade. No issues whatsoever.
