After two weeks of use, the strap is now flexible enough to be easy to use. There is a belt loop at the bottom to keep the strap from flapping around. It’s made of a double layer of leather stitched together with one row of stitches. I don’t think that this belt will wear out over a million opening and closing cycles. The front of the bag contains the strap and belt buckle that fastens the front flap closed. Then again, the bag is meant to exude a rustic flavor, not a frou-frou metrosexual vibe.Ĭonverting the bag into a backpack requires you to unstrap the adjustment buckle, remove one of the two shoulder pads, attach one end of the strap to a bottom D-ring, thread the strap through the top O-ring, slide the second shoulder pad back on, then rebuckle the adjustment strap and attach it to the bottom d-ring on the other side. Not that it will cut you, but it is not the polished kind of hardware you would expect to find in a high-end leather bag. The point where the metal closes to form the loop is pretty roughly finished. It is very sturdy and quite comfortable.īehind the handle is an O-ring designed to be used to convert this bag into a backpack. The handle is attached to the top flap of the bag by the same kind of leather loop/stitch/rivet arrangement as the D-rings are. It’s made of a single piece of leather, very cunningly folded and stitched to create an excellent way to carry the bag in the hand.
The top of the bag is home to a rugged carry handle. Here is the back of the bag with an Orion Telescope ad magazine and a Make magazine stuffed into the back pocket:Īnd here is the interior of the rear pocket!
Stress points are tacked with rivets with an aged bronze patina. The termination points of the stitches appear to have been melted to prevent fraying. All edges have two rows of stitches, about 1 cm apart, to keep the leather pieces strongly together. The stitching is thick thread (about a millimeter thick) and the stitches themselves are wide (about 5 mm between stitch holes). The leather is thick and supple, yet stiff. Once you get over the heart attack of instant scratches, the charm of the bag hits you. Well, it stops being in new condition right out of the box. Saddleback accepts returns, but only if the bag is in new condition. If you freak out when your car gets scratched for the first time, then avoid this bag. It’s meant to be beaten up, and the process starts right out of the bag. This bag is not a bag for someone who worships pretty leather pieces. Within moments of unwrapping it, the pristine leather surface was covered in scratches. You know how fingerprints can appear out of nowhere on the surface of an iPod? Well, scratches are kind of like that on this thick leather. I took the rich, dark brown bag out of its confinement and held it up to my eyes. I took it inside, slit the plastic tape keeping it from me, threw back the paper padding and carefully removed the plastic bag protecting it.
It was not on my porch one moment, then it was. As Tom Petty said so eloquently, the waiting is the hardest part! I figured after a couple of years of agonizing over this purchase, another week wouldn’t kill me. Funny how that can happen! Shipping prices got expensive in a hurry, so I went with ground shipping. I finally called the nice people at Saddleback, had a very good conversation with the woman who answered the phone, and managed somehow to purchase the Medium Satchel in Dark Coffee Brown while talking.
I spent a whole day last week doing nothing but trying to find every single photo, video and review of the medium satchel online. After Julie’s reviews of Saddleback Leather Company products, I have been trying to justify dropping a huge chunk of change on a Satchel for some time. My primary uses for a bag are for bringing my laptop and papers to school with me (a job that the SF Bags Waterfield Medium Cargo Bag has performed nicely for the last two years), taking with me when I go out for a weekend trip (including the Victorinox Horizontal Tote, the Fire Hose Field Bag, the Europa Field Bag, the Olympia tote) and to hold my gear when I take my annual storm chasing trip (the Roadwired Pod, Podzilla, Photo/Video Convertible Bag, CityWalker pack, Lowepro D-Res waistpack, among others). In some cases, it wasn’t quite large enough to hold everything I really need to have with me on a daily basis, or they were a little too large for my needs. All of them have, to some degree, left me a little cold. From the Ellington Europa Field Bag (no longer manufactured) to the Duluth Trading Fire Hose Bag, I have tried many bags over the years. Learn more.Īs many of you who read The Gadgeteer know, I am a bit of a fanatic about gear bags and have reviewed my fair share of them. If you buy something through the links on this page, we may earn a commission at no cost to you.
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