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Fascinating stuff. I remember my Timbuk2 with a custom vinyl panel falling apart pretty quickly, which made me realize just how big of a deal picking the right

Fascinating stuff. I remember my Timbuk2 with a custom vinyl panel falling apart pretty quickly, which made me realize just how big of a deal picking the right fabric for your everyday bag is. I've been pretty pleased with my Peak Design gear these last few years, I've yet to find a brand that makes bags that feel as well-built. They're not cheap though.

steve_adams_86 5y ago
I’ll second you there, my PD 30L pack has been pretty amazing for a year now. It still looks brand new but gets used heavily about 5 days per week. A year isn’t that much I guess, but I’m always blown away by how durable it has been. It really does look a lot like the day I got it. Apart from being durable I love the way it looks and the overall utility is hard to beat too. While it isn’t cheap, I can’t see myself needing more from a bag or breaking this one soon enough for the cost per year to seem high relative to other bags I’ve had. Also worth mentioning is that their customer support is second to none. I’m just a customer for what it’s worth, not getting paid to say anything about them.
- nl 5y ago
  I got a Peak Design 30L when they did their Kickstarter, so I've been using it since heavily I guess Jan 2017 (although a lot less since 2020), and it's been great. The fabric backing on bottom parts of the padding at the back of the pack has started to wear through though. I guess this is where it rubs most on my back, and I was walking maybe 5km a day with it daily for a few years. Still, very happy with it.
  - steve_adams_86 5y ago
    Ah, this reminds me - I’ve walked with mine a lot too, and the only thing I can really criticize is that the shoulder straps aren’t quite what I’d like them to be. They seem a little too narrow. When my pack is light it’s not so bad, but if it’s really loaded, it gets pretty uncomfortable. Do you know if the bag has changed much since the kickstarter? I wonder if they’ve addressed potential wear like you’ve experienced. Regardless, 5 years is not bad for a heavily used bag!
syntheweave 5y ago
The durability is a combination of fabric and how it's stitched. Good fabrics can be wasted for the sake of slightly cheaper manufacture - I've had a few backpacks like that. If you really want to make the most of fast fashion etc. the best thing to do would be to immediately stitch in some reinforcement when you get it home. Of course, I never actually do this. The higher price items deserve their cost.
hombre_fatal 5y ago
I got the 45L (compresses to 30L) Peak Design backpack for carry-on-only travel. https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-backpack?variant=11530908172332 https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-backpack?variant=... $300 is a doozy, but the quality is noticeable, and it was one of the few backpacks I saw that unzips into one big compartment which is what I want when I'm packing a bunch of clothes. Too many backpacks seems to maximize compartment count where I don't really understand the utility and it limits what I can stuff in there. My girlfriend's Osprey pack has the same volume but is split into four compartments that can barely fit a pair of jeans. And it also looks modest but cool. Most packs in the space make you look like you're about to go camping, there's enough of that.

steve_adams_86 5y ago

I’ll second you there, my PD 30L pack has been pretty amazing for a year now. It still looks brand new but gets used heavily about 5 days per week. A year isn’t that much I guess, but I’m always blown away by how durable it has been. It really does look a lot like the day I got it. Apart from being durable I love the way it looks and the overall utility is hard to beat too. While it isn’t cheap, I can’t see myself needing more from a bag or breaking this one soon enough for the cost per year to seem high relative to other bags I’ve had. Also worth mentioning is that their customer support is second to none. I’m just a customer for what it’s worth, not getting paid to say anything about them.

nl 5y ago
I got a Peak Design 30L when they did their Kickstarter, so I've been using it since heavily I guess Jan 2017 (although a lot less since 2020), and it's been great. The fabric backing on bottom parts of the padding at the back of the pack has started to wear through though. I guess this is where it rubs most on my back, and I was walking maybe 5km a day with it daily for a few years. Still, very happy with it.
- steve_adams_86 5y ago
  Ah, this reminds me - I’ve walked with mine a lot too, and the only thing I can really criticize is that the shoulder straps aren’t quite what I’d like them to be. They seem a little too narrow. When my pack is light it’s not so bad, but if it’s really loaded, it gets pretty uncomfortable. Do you know if the bag has changed much since the kickstarter? I wonder if they’ve addressed potential wear like you’ve experienced. Regardless, 5 years is not bad for a heavily used bag!

syntheweave 5y ago

The durability is a combination of fabric and how it's stitched. Good fabrics can be wasted for the sake of slightly cheaper manufacture - I've had a few backpacks like that. If you really want to make the most of fast fashion etc. the best thing to do would be to immediately stitch in some reinforcement when you get it home. Of course, I never actually do this. The higher price items deserve their cost.

hombre_fatal 5y ago

I got the 45L (compresses to 30L) Peak Design backpack for carry-on-only travel. https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-backpack?variant=11530908172332 https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-backpack?variant=... $300 is a doozy, but the quality is noticeable, and it was one of the few backpacks I saw that unzips into one big compartment which is what I want when I'm packing a bunch of clothes. Too many backpacks seems to maximize compartment count where I don't really understand the utility and it limits what I can stuff in there. My girlfriend's Osprey pack has the same volume but is split into four compartments that can barely fit a pair of jeans. And it also looks modest but cool. Most packs in the space make you look like you're about to go camping, there's enough of that.