London Fixed-gear and Single-speed SJS Cycles

Copy bag name
Go to Google
Paste bag name
Add "review" to the end of bag name
Click "Search"

Once complete you can try "features" instead of "review". 'ardcore

Well i could do all of that for any subject ever mentioned on here...but i hoped that seeing as there was a thread on messenger bags people would maybe have some opinions on which are best and why...nevermind...google it'll have to be.

Did you use the Search up there? Most of the people with opinions will have posted them already.
Scott not scot has commented on other bag manufacturers quite often.

Plus, it's subjective. beyond the personal preference of what features, style and size any person wants, there is always how the bag fits them. There are so many variables that there cannot be a conclusive view on even which manufacturers are best.

So hippy has a point, Google it. Only you can decide which seems best to your needs. GA2G has supplied the list, you know what's available... choosing which to buy comes down to searching for views on here based your personal criteria for choosing one manufacturer above another.

And when all is said and done, even if you reach a concensus and choose manufacturer X, you've got to be aware that just because 10 other people loved their bags, it doesn't mean you will love yours. Every bag is different, nearly all are custom.

The baseline advice: You decide the criteria that you want, so you do the searching, and when you think you have decided but are unsure, then you need to HTFU and put caution to the wind and just take a risk on a bag regardless of what others say.

http://www.under-the-weather.ca/ killer bag with teh most positives in the fixed gear gallery revieew
http://www.banjobrothers.com/ a good budget bag acording to the review


also dont forget Resistance bags of Japan, there are others that are not on your list too that art on japan list http://www.messengerbag.jp/index.html

How on earth has someone not mentioned Zo Bags? This is the bag design that tumbuktu and crumpler copied, pretty much the original messenger bag. And they rock.

I've been lucky enough to win a couple of bags, a Baily Works, a Bag Jack and my work bag, a PAC.

I love the pac. It balances everything out perfectly, I don't have shoulder trouble and it's still a convient swing bag. Would I buy one if I didn't have to haul things for a living? Probably not.

The Bag Jack that I have is a back pack, it's huge, water proof and pretty slick with lots of nice features like a removeable lining and a pocket that you can move around as well.

I really really dislike the baily works. Part of the problem is that it's an extra large and I don't have enough upper body to support it, so it kinda wraps over my shoulder. it has no padding, and the ones that I've seen that people have worked with tend to have a cracked inner lining.
The one I have is a special prize bag though, and through pride I still use it to haul my portfolio around.

Oh yeah, speaking of well made and moderatly priced...


http://www.myspace.com/trashmessengerbags

Plus they're called trash bags. How cool is that?

I didn't think Zo bags were being made?

Hmm.. looking at site, still not sure either way!
http://www.zobags.com/

Excellent thread - very useful, thanks.

I was considering one of those because of their massive capacity, I tend to accumulate stuff and keep it on me "just in case".

but theres some bags cost like 200ish might aswell add a bit more for Visvim . . .
plus its well worth it . . .
sooo tuff . . .
love my sand and black 1 . . .

either way I'd love to have a visvim.

well they are well worth it . . .

need a backpack soon . . . kinda miss riding with a backpack . . .

if you have a backpack in London, you might as well move to the North!

Zo Bags were given a mention in Moving Target.

But production does appear to be spasmodic.

Erik Zo Djed at a Rollapaluza last year

I read that wrong. I was ready to hold the presses.

'Messenger legend dies at world's toughest roller race'...

? ? ?

more pics of bags on the list and not on the list, zo bag from flikr, under the weather from road bike review, pac from, alsoo from flikr.

Do you ever wonder if the google someday wakes up as an artificial conciousness it will kill us all with its infinite knooledg?

not me

http://head-porter.org/blackbeauty/messengerm.html

head porter messenger ^^ my dream bag

THAT'S your dream bag?
Cheap polyprop webbing....no real strap padding...anti sway strap too high...and not even made out of cordura...could be a short lived dream.
IMO :)

when it starts leaking you'll be having yourself a wet dream

that bag is///...cheap. Bagjack has nice backpacks...adn if you did want thier cheap version messenger bag dont pay $500 for a $100 dollar bag lol lol that site is for japanese buyers that have the $$ to buy without worring about price, a fake status site exactly for paying too much for goods that arent actually that exclusive except that no one else around will have one for better reasons than not having money.

lol a pac bag on that site would probably go for over a thousand easy

porter is sooo poorly made . . . well if your goin to use it for cycling . . .

VAGX bags anyone?

I have a Yak Pak - its great. Cost £15 new from ebay (including postage)





I think the guy who sold it me bought it and never used it.

Scott already highlighted Norman Porter, but it's worth adding the address: Norman Porter Messenger Bags. Mike from Norman Porter has done a few things for me and I'd recommend them for price & quick turn around. Based outside the U.k.

The problem with both the head porter and the Yak is that they are not waterproof.

And why does the head porter use bag jack stuff?

I'm confused.

I might as well big up Bagaboo -had one for a couple of years now, and worth every penny -totally waterproof and massive (like jungle :) )

-expensive, but fab.

Just letting you lot know that urban hunter are replacing the banjo bros. bag with the newer model, which means they are selling last years ones for only 50 quid! Ordered mine earlier, site isn't too specific on how many they've got left though..

http://www.urbanhunter.biz/shop/cata...hp?item_id=139

I own a XL Timbuk2, thats been in constant use for 17 years or more now. It does slide around my back, and I have to keep righting it with my left hand, at least once in every 5 minutes. That said, it is rain-proof, but lacks any padding, so contents need to be packed thoughtfully. Often I've started to cycle, and had to stop and re-pack, because my 15mm spanner was digging into my back.

I'm going to have to replace this at some stage. But 17-18 years of hard work (I was a curryer in the early 90s) is pretty good. The clasp-buckle broke probably 3 years after I bought it, and I made a "temporary" fix with gold twine. This fix has lasted since then. It only means that the strap length can't be adjusted.

So, Timbuk2, for me, is hard-wearing, cavernous and rain-proof. But soon, I'll want some sort of internal padding and a stabilisation strap......if one is available for a bigger guys. Okay, really fat people. :))

I don't want to get lynched here... obviously it's not made with actual couriers in mind but any thoughts on the Brooks Barbican?

That's my bag! Pac are expensive but good pieces of kit.
As for the Brooks bag in the post above, probably a well made leather goods but that thing would swing all of over the shop. So for that reason, I'm out.

@Nahguavkire

:( Bye bye Forum...schniff...

Actually, I did think about including the loads of "style" messenger bags that I found, in putting together the messenger bag list, but I decided against, as they would not normally be hard-wearing, rain-proof, or carry a 12-pack of beer.

Failure of original concept IMO.

But if people want to have a laugh at, peruse, or choose from the "style" bags, it wouldn't be impossible to add them.

More amusement at planet Lfgss. :))

Yeah... the Brooks one is lovely though all the same... suspect my good lady has one coming for my belated Christmas present... I'm not a courier so it'll do me just fine :)

So, I have alot of bags, right?

I've got my three messenger bags,only two of which I work with, only one of which I work with on a daily basis.

I've got my waterproof baily works that i use to let universities laugh at my portfolio.

....And I have my party bag. It defies explination, anyone who has seen it will agree. It's red with gold chains and red tyres sew to the back to hold extra lights. And perfect for taking a few things out to dance with.

I would love to have another bag that was for going to do things that are classy, like the Brooks one only not leather, so I don't think you should be lynched.

Wait, who am I kidding? When have i ever attempted to be classy?

I'm not a courier, or have any ambition to be a fakenger, but want a smallish general purpose bag now I've chucked my pannier for the mo'. Anybody here used any of the below (Crumpler Super Snipe, Ortlieb Sling-It), or can recommend anything similar..?

All these bags are mega gay.

I just bought one of the ultra light marathon packs from innov8 - they look cool and don't move anyway.

As a general rule, we should mimick what bikers do, and thats the kind of thing they use,

Its the way forward.

just bought one of those banjo brothers from urbanhunter.biz. Pretty excited on my first messenger bag, now i'm a proper fakenger! hopefully i'll be able to get home from sainsburys without falling off beacuse the bags hanging from the handlebars go in the front wheel :)

Not waterproof (big gaps between flap and sides of bag), and the anti-sway thing is badly designed.

As a newcomer here i don't know how valid my opinions are over others...but in what way are the previously mentioned bags mega gay?
The list clearly states 'messenger/courier' style bags....which they all are.
I assume you meant to say we should mimick what 'hikers' do, as we're already bikers?
If that's the case then i'm sorry to say you're wrong....a bag for cycling shouldn't mimic what a bag for hiking does at all.
Most hiking bags are very tall and narrow...they tend to continue down below the waist and lower back and above the shoulders...this means they'll be getting caught on the saddle while you ride, and obstruct your vision when checking over your shoulders.
That's why there are cycling specific bags...how many 'messenger/couriers' do you see dropping packages with a massive hiking pack on their back? maybe they could complete the look with some saucepans hanging from the bottom....it's the way forward ya know!
The bag you've shown in your pic above may be a nice little back pack that doesn't move while riding, but as the list is for messenger style bags, i assume it's to cover bags that are both hardwearing and also able to carry a good amount inside.
The bag you've shown would struggle to carry even half of the amount of shopping and bulky items i carry in my own bag.
Maybe you should try a proper good quality 'messenger' style bag and use it for transporting proper loads like it was intended for...and then try and carry the same loads in your 'biker' style backpack before you start labelling them all as 'mega gay' ?
Just my own opinion of course. :)

Of course if you actually did mean 'bikers'...ignore part of that...;)

There are no rules, fool!

Actually, most of the European messengers use back-pack style bags. Ortleib etc.

bill, this is not a polo thread, go away!

There's only one person that could deserve banning, and it sure ain't Buffulo Bill.

:))

Sorry, but the whole premise is really funny.

me?


sweet!