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- Verified Buyer
I had very high hopes for this bag, although it meets my needs for the purpose I intended for it it still lacks some features for a bag this expensive.The goodIt is HUGE!! Plenty of room for all your gear, easily a 4500+ cubic inch bag.Many pockets 4 main compartments and 4 side compartments big enough for your gps/camera/iPod ect.The largest compartment is a front loading pocket with internal compression straps built in, a sleeve for inserting a water bladder and a small mesh pocket (on the panel closest to your back which means is inaccessible if you have a bag full of clothing strapped in) for music players ect . This compartment also can expand another 4 inches giving you more room for gear and a small covered slit at the top for headphones/drinking tubes to pass through.The next biggest pocket is about the size of a small backpack capable of fitting 2-3 college text books inside, also an additional 2 mesh pockets for storing smaller items.The next compartment is flat panel type allowing you to tuck a tablet device/small laptop intoThe smallest has more pockets inside for cell phones, keys, wallets ect. Also has the MOLLE webbing on the front to attach more accessories.The shoulder straps can stow into the bag and has 2 aluminum stays running the length of the bag for rigidity, which leads to the only complaint for this bag, the waist belt. Perhaps I have been spoiled by having a nice backpacking waist belt but I have seen far better belts on cheaper bags. It doesn't allow you to strap it tight onto your hips where the majority of a heavy load should ride, the buckle works its way loose so your constantly synching it down and it only goes down to about a 36-38 inch waist, I wear a 33 so it is very loose around me. On top of all that there is no where to stow the waist belt like you can the shoulder straps without completely removing the belt from the bag and stowing it in with the shoulder straps. So for me the waist belt is pretty much useless which is a shame for such a nice bag.If your looking for a giant school bag, this is awesome... But if your need something you can strap snug to your back for a ruck run, look elsewhere.*****UP DATE REVIEW*****Another con: minus one star.I've had this bag going on 5 months now carrying a very light load (<15 lbs) to an from work. The bag sits on a shelf all day until its time go back home again, so it gets very little use. I bag has started to show some premature wear for the limited 'use' I've put it through. The material on the shoulder straps have some sort of fake leather type material sewn into it and has become brittle and started to crack. I'm starting to wish I had spent more time looking at other companies that incorporate a better harness system (shoulder straps and belt) into their bags. My buddy has a 'camelbak' bag he's had about 3 months longer than I have had this bag and he carries a good 25+ pounds in his every day and his 'camelbak' doesn't look nearly as beat up as my bag does now.I generally try not to review right after receiving purchases...but I figured with the relative lack of reviews for this bag someone might want more input.This will be used to hold gear on 4-5 day trips for field work, probably loaded with ~20-30lbs of misc tools and equipment on a pretty regular basis. So I'll update the review after a few months.-----------------I bought a similar bag from the same company in 2010 and only recently had the stitching along the bottom start to blow out from constant use in the field. Hopefully this one will work as well as the old one did.Fabric seems to be OK, but lighter than the older one I had. There's some loose threads where the stitching was finished, but they don't look like they'll affect the integrity of the seams, so that's more of a cosmetic thing. (I hope.) I'm not sure if it'll be a problem but the zippers aren't nearly as beefy as the older bag, so it's got me a little nervous. This bag also doesn't seem to have the same kind of waterproofing the old one had, but I was planning on applying an external coating and using seam sealer on the interior anyway.It's pretty big, so if anyone is planning on using it as a carry on they might want to check with their airlines to see if it'll go or not. Just eyeballing it, this bag should be fine if it isn't completely stuffed. I personally haven't had issues taking it on the plane, but supposedly most airline companies are going to be reducing the max carry on size.Overall- I think it'll probably work fine, but my first impression is that quality has gone down a lot. I wouldn't suggest it for backpacking since literally any frame pack would probably be more comfortable for that purpose. If you plan on using it for luggage, short trips, or packing some equipment to/from base camp it should work fine.------Edit 1/11/2017The bag has been holding up surprisingly well despite the lighter fabric. I don't think it'll last as long as my old one did, but I like the layout of the compartments and carrying capacity it offers. It's actually my favorite travel bag and I also use it to haul camera gear when I need to take more junk than my camera-specific bags will hold.
