Saddleback Leather Company - Official Affiliate thread - Page 6

Chiming in just to say that mink oil works fine, and though I think it probably isn't necessary to waterproof it, it will definitely help make sure that it doesn't hold water should you go through a storm.


No, it looks fucking great with a suit, just take off the two extra belts and the shoulder strap and polish it up. Look at all the compliments I got any time it appeared in my WAYWT posts in MC. I will admit that the bag definitely was designed first with ruggedness in mind though, not with carrying to the office (scratches very easily).

Water isn't going to get in it, I've carried it through a typhoon before and everything was perfectly dry. That means sideways wind and all.

It definitely makes sense since the government would be paying the tab. It just seems hard to find the time to go full time with work and all the other life commitments. Let us know when you go to flight school and how it went.

Thank you for giving us your experience! It would be fantastic if you could post a pic of your bag and let us see how it looks.

Fantastic Review! Thank you for sharing. I'm copying and pasting it below for others to enjoy.

I've been carrying my Saddleback for a week after switching from what has literally been my signature brief for the last five years -- my 3" Zero-Halliburton Elite.




I like to have a lot of stuff with me (queue Carlin joke here), everything from a supply of extra calling cards to a knife, a roll of electrical tape (can seal up most any cut and used, in a pinch, as a torniquet), LED flashlight, and the cable that lets me tether my laptop to my cell and check my email most anywhere you can see a tower. The Zero stowed everything with aplomb - I carried it through undergrad with a text, folder, and my TI-89. I once carried a bottle on Pinot Noir and two glasses (Reidel, obviously) in it. I have inserts for it that let me carry a set of camera gear one day and my competition pistol the next. You can even use it as a seat (have done many time)

But it met its match in law school. One casebook and my netbook fill it up, leaving no room for another binder or book.



Plus, with that much weight it gets tiring on my 10-15min walk. I needed a backpack, and I am not a backpack kind of guy, at least, not an urban backpack kind of guy. Member Sigmatic recommended a bag from Saddleback Leather to me and after carrying it a week I'm sold.

The bag is the Traveller's Cut Medium Briefcase in Chestnut. This is a serious piece of kit. I post it in SW&D because it has got to suit the ethos here -- it is not an Edward Green Chelsea, it is the Gentleman's Traveler of briefcases:

* The Impression: Cool. I got two compliments the first day. I have worn it with a suit and my three year old Earnest Sewns. It is does not contradict either role.

* The Leather. That bridle leather everyone talks about? That's what this thing is made of. Completely. The smell when you open the box is incredible. I cut the edge at one of the shoulder straps to confirm that it is, indeed, vat dyed through and through. The bag is lined front to back with pigskin, left suede on the sides. It's as heavy duty as a saddle. All the major seams are double-stiched, none of the edges are rolled. This is no Gucci bag, it is not a pair of jeans with the oil-filter mark pre-stained at the factory for poseurs. It is a serious piece of kit.

* The Hardware: All corners and load-carrying areas are riveted. There's nickel-plated steel throughout the twelve D-rings, one round ring, four buckles, and three clips -- none for show. The hardware is stout and allows flexibility in your carrying of stuff, you can clip the shoulder strap to different points to better balance the bag for unusual loads, or run the strap from the bottom Ds through the central ring to carry it as a backpack/knapsack. I was worried that the ring that makes this functionality possible was going to pull out it's rivet, but I see that it is in fact riveted to a wide aluminum bar sewn between the top flap and its pigskin lining. Nice engineering there -- it's never coming out.

I've already used a carabiner on a Dring to attach my baby Slik tripod to the bag. The clips on the shoulder strap are particularly interesting to this engineer -- for your bag to drop due to clip failure at its weakest part, two separate pieces of metal would need to break. Interesting. There are no snaps, zips, buttons or other closures other than buckles.

* The Storage: The bag has two main compartments, about 4.5" x 15" each, two small external compartments (cell-sized), an external paper/magazine pocket, two large and two small internal pockets. The most I could stuff in the bag was my 15" HP laptop and a 1" binder in the back, two casebooks (vertically) in the front, and all my other stuff. That's a ton of weight, surely over 30lbs, and I hope to never have to carry all of that.

I mainly use one compartment for my Eee netbook a binder, and sometimes a file or two, while the other compartment gets a casebook and my Lumix DMC-LX3 in its fitted case. The lumix would fit in the largest of the four internal pouches, but I've already got those crammed. The outside two pockets are a little small, but remember, this is good leather that will stretch and conform like holster -- my thermos bottle now fits securely in one of those pockets.

* The Functionality: It's a briefcase with a very comfortable carry handle and a shoulder strap, so I tend to think of it as a messenger. But the shoulder strap has two pads, and in about 45sec you can convert it to a backpack/knapsack. It's very secure in that mode, and while not perfectly comfortable, it's what you need and want when your arms are tired or you need to be hands free. If you were broader than I, you might feel the lower Drings against your back (I do if the bag's not centered), and I'd advise getting the wider bag then. I wonder if Saddleback could arrange for little leather flaps to guard against this? They probably could. I wouldn't buy it as a pure backpack (Saddleback does make one of those also), but as a 50% duty item it would be hard to ever live without.

The buckles take about a day to get used to. I have thus far only used the center one to close the bag, leaving the other two belts just tucked away, though they serve fine to keep my umbrella or raincoat. They are also completely removable belts and could be used as such admirably.

Some call the bags too heavy. Well, the leather just is. It's heavy because there are no shortcuts. I've been carrying a metal briefcase, and that is just not an issue for me -- the straps/pads are excellent, and unlike thin nylon webbing, do not tend to collapse into the smallest possible area to cut through your neck. Loaded, I'm around 22lbs now.

* Conclusion: This is the raw denim of bags. It is made very, very, very well but is not an Anderson and Sheppard suit. It has, as I once described myself, "a white collar, but blue hands." They would understand the notion of wabi-sabi. You buy it and make it yours as age and life scars it and you -- after a week of hard use you can see mine is already picked up some 'patina.' But it's honest and that appeals to me, as does this company's ethic. The bags are made in Mexico by people they claim who have "never made as much money before in their lives" which I'm sure is not U.S. standards but I believe from all my interaction with Saddleback that they treat their people much better than comparative firms. After I ordered this bag (I bought a second on eBay as I thought it would be too big for my needs, nope), I was informed that 10% of my total was being donated to charity -- this stands in contrast to the max profit at any cost model that much of the Western world has adopted and I applaud that sense of humanity. It is something I look for in all of my purchases.

So yeah, I love the bag. It is going to replace my trusty Zero day to day. When I break out the Kilgour suit for a big meeting, the Zero will still go with me, but for everything else it's the Saddleback for me.









~ Huntsman

(ps. sorry for too much compression in the pics)
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That's a very nice website & the leather products look pretty amazing & sturdy.
The satchels looked particularly nice & jolted some memories for me.
I grew up in South East Asia, In Bangkok since I was with both of my parents at the time. My folks were originally British and according to them, every school kid in their generation went to school with a satchel & Clark's shoes. We had a guy in Bangkok construct a dark brown leather satchel for me, nothing nearly as sophisticated as what you produce, but it suited a young kid. I went to an international school in Bangkok, which was truly a melting pot.

Upon returning to school in Saratoga, since I was born here in California, the hostility, & bad vibes was palpable within the first hour of going back to school & "catching up" on American culture. Apparently I didn't know who Evil Knievel was which was a pretty big sin. I remember walking down the hallway in Clarks shoes which had perforated leather near the toe & my satchel & I got the "Evil Eye" from one five hundred yards in all directions. I think they thought I was either gay or a transplant from another planet or both. I got pushed into some nasty fights & ditched the garb to try and fit in. Actually, I'm remembering now, I used the satchel for several years after coming back here.

The pressure to conform is sometimes a pretty horrendous thing.

Jesus, I don't know what to make of this story in the context of this thread. I came to read about leather bags; I walk away feeling no hope for humanity. I justed wanted to look at bags, man.

At least you can take solace in the fact that you were a trendsetter. Nowadays, you can carry a Saddleback, and if any young punk gives you grief just tell him, "It's not a bag, it's a leather sarcophagus, motherfu...."

Hey SantaCruzGuy,

I completely understand. I didn't go through anything like that myself, but I went to a Christian college and met a lot of missionary kids who had very similar difficulties. I guess my answer is to just be who you are and say F#@! off to the people who can't handle your true self.

On a side note, you're experience in Bangkok is something not many people can say they've had. Why were you there?

I love the fact that this thread isn't just about leather bags because Saddleback isn't just about leather bags. More than anything, our products try to create a different kind of life experience. They put you in an exclusive, different kind of community. We don't want to be like everyone else and we sure as hell don't want to avoid the conversations about real life. We just want to make cool leather stuff we hope will create adventure and community in people's lives. No experience is off limits and no one's experience is any better or worse than anyone else's experience. We like real.

Have you ever thought of making a standard billfold wallet?

As a matter of fact, we have. Saddleback is all set to launch a new set of products, one of which is a very cool bi-fold wallet. We are just making a few design modifications and the wallet should be launched by the end of the month.

Congratulations to Dano Bennet out of Rochester, Michigan for winning The Awesomer Saddleback Messenger Bag Giveaway!

Hi Guys!

I was in Bangkok growing up because I was really young & still with my parents. My dad worked for Kaiser Cement & we were transferred out there. I was lucky inasmuch as I was also able to travel around a lot as well as grow up there too. It was very much a life changing experience!

I felt really bad & a bit embarrassed actually after reading the first response to my post & felt the need to apologize. I wasn't in a foul mood that night, but was merely recounting my anecdotal experiences. I didn't want to make anyone feel bad when they just came in to read about some very cool new bags, etc.

I do want to add that I'm thrilled to see American companies that are producing or nearly producing an American made product. In America, we've thrown away so much of our skills, talents, & know how really into the garbage & simply looked for a quick buck regardless of how we get the cash. I really resent Levi jeans for ex. when I look inside the label & see they're being made in Honduras, South Africa, etc. & spout off about being an "American original", genuine product, real deal type of thing. There's a lot of unemployed people in California that I'm sure would be delighted to be put to useful work making high quality jeans & working for a respectable wage & getting health care to boot. I'd be willing to pay for that too. I think if America is going to succeed in the future, we need get back to making & producing things that are useful & have long term value to society. Your bags seem to harbor many of those qualities that I admire in an American product.

Enough of my soap box rant!

I really enjoyed spending time reading about the history of your products on your website.

Cheers.

Now I feel embarassed (my post was that post). Please don't apologize, it was meant in jest. I liked the story...