Filson Bag Thread: With Pictures

[lineate]

Hey all! Longtime lurker here and now I am turning to you pros for a very odd piece of advice. Sorry in advance.

I have blacked out original briefcase that I bought about two years for everyday carry. Every time I use it, it's awesome. It fits my MacBook, camera, notebooks, Anker, everything I need day in, day out. I love it beyond reason, but I just don't get to carry it enough as I would like.

The problem is I'm a swimmer and I commute to work by train, which makes for oddball packing a lot of the time.

I leave the house, local pool, jump on the train, off to work. I have my carry down to the absolute minimum – trunks, micro fleece towel, chlorine removal soap, that sort of thing, but it adds up. Together with the everyday stuff, it's just that little too big for the briefcase, so I find myself packing a canvas messenger bag

Do I just stuff the hell out of my briefcase? Get something bigger like a tote (which feels profligate)? Carry two bags (which is super cumbersome)?

Also, if you know a more appropriate place for a neurotic question like this, point me there instead

 

[Stratkat]

Hey all! Longtime lurker here and now I am turning to you pros for a very odd piece of advice. Sorry in advance.

I have blacked out original briefcase that I bought about two years for everyday carry. Every time I use it, it's awesome. It fits my MacBook, camera, notebooks, Anker, everything I need day in, day out. I love it beyond reason, but I just don't get to carry it enough as I would like.

The problem is I'm a swimmer and I commute to work by train, which makes for oddball packing a lot of the time.

I leave the house, local pool, jump on the train, off to work. I have my carry down to the absolute minimum – trunks, micro fleece towel, chlorine removal soap, that sort of thing, but it adds up. Together with the everyday stuff, it's just that little too big for the briefcase, so I find myself packing a canvas messenger bag

Do I just stuff the hell out of my briefcase? Get something bigger like a tote (which feels profligate)? Carry two bags (which is super cumbersome)?

Also, if you know a more appropriate place for a neurotic question like this, point me there instead

Check out the 24 or 48 hour bags.

 

[TinMan3]

Hey all! Longtime lurker here and now I am turning to you pros for a very odd piece of advice. Sorry in advance.

I have blacked out original briefcase that I bought about two years for everyday carry. Every time I use it, it's awesome. It fits my MacBook, camera, notebooks, Anker, everything I need day in, day out. I love it beyond reason, but I just don't get to carry it enough as I would like.

The problem is I'm a swimmer and I commute to work by train, which makes for oddball packing a lot of the time.

I leave the house, local pool, jump on the train, off to work. I have my carry down to the absolute minimum – trunks, micro fleece towel, chlorine removal soap, that sort of thing, but it adds up. Together with the everyday stuff, it's just that little too big for the briefcase, so I find myself packing a canvas messenger bag

Do I just stuff the hell out of my briefcase? Get something bigger like a tote (which feels profligate)? Carry two bags (which is super cumbersome)?

Also, if you know a more appropriate place for a neurotic question like this, point me there instead

You have a lot of options my friend. Welcome btw, you came to the right place. For some reason we love to answer neurotic questions so long as they have to do with filson. To your first question, you can absolutely stuff your Filson as full as you want. Lol. You’re not going to hurt it.

My first reaction was that you could use a 257 or 258. The 257 has plenty of extra room (especially if the center divider is removed) but is not overly cumbersome to carry. The challenge with this bag would be sourcing one to try out as they are sadly discontinued. The 258 is larger even than the 257, but is padded which adds extra weight and takes up space. @speedy611 and @Tom Lebrando have these and could probably speak to this better than I could. The 24 hour would probably be too small, and the 48 is a great bag but I wouldn’t want it as an edc. Too much to carry in my opinion. The journeyman backpack may also work for what you are needing, but is a backpack and not a briefcase. Lot of opinions here for a slightly larger size than the 256. Ask as many questions as you like!

 

[speedy611]

You have a lot of options my friend. Welcome btw, you came to the right place. For some reason we love to answer neurotic questions so long as they have to do with filson. To your first question, you can absolutely stuff your Filson as full as you want. Lol. You’re not going to hurt it.

My first reaction was that you could use a 257 or 258. The 257 has plenty of extra room (especially if the center divider is removed) but is not overly cumbersome to carry. The challenge with this bag would be sourcing one to try out as they are sadly discontinued. The 258 is larger even than the 257, but is padded which adds extra weight and takes up space. @speedy611 and @Tom Lebrando have these and could probably speak to this better than I could. The 24 hour would probably be too small, and the 48 is a great bag but I wouldn’t want it as an edc. Too much to carry in my opinion. The journeyman backpack may also work for what you are needing, but is a backpack and not a briefcase. Lot of opinions here for a slightly larger size than the 256. Ask as many questions as you like!

Welcome @lineate

I have a 256 (original briefcase) and the 258 as Timman mentioned.

Are you 100% sure a single bag is the way to go? Are you putting wet swim stuff in your 256 along with a computer etc? Is swimming every day - meaning if it isn’t you might end up with a larger bag than you need on the off days? Is there a risk of having to transfer stuff to a different bag on the off days?

If it is a single bag, I’d look at the 257. The 258’s padding is useful but the overall interior space isn’t all that much larger than the 257. 258 scores if you want the front pocket or the padding. The Tin cloth 48 hr briefcase might work as already pointed out.

If it’s two bags, look at one of the Filson backpacks for the swim stuff. Possibly even go for the nylon version on the basis that it’s going to be covered in chlorine etc etc.

 

[lineate]

Hey guys! Thanks for the super quick feedback @speedy611 @TinMan3 @Stratkat.

Bit more background. When I go with a single bag, I put my wet stuff in a dry bag, like a waterproof sleeve, and then chuck that in with the MacBook etc. I've been doing this for years and never had a tech failure. This works well with another satchel I own, but makes the briefcase look overstuffed.

To your first question, you can absolutely stuff your Filson as full as you want. Lol. You’re not going to hurt it.

But maybe that's ok? I'll try it out. I'm emboldened.

Filson seems to have moved away from the numerical nomenclature, at least on the UK site? Does the 257 or 258 have a different name?

The 24 hour would probably be too small, and the 48 is a great bag but I wouldn’t want it as an edc. Too much to carry in my opinio

I've seen the 24 and 48 hour bags before and totally agree. The size lends itself to more of an overnight resource.

Further difficulty is I don't particularly like backpacks. I tend to wear a mac, and just don't like the way backpacks look there, so it's a brief, tote or satchel for me. Also, London is full of bankers who wear bad suits with very strapy, tactical looking nylon backpacks.

 

[OtterMeanGreen]

Open question: how much do you think the high prices on MiA products is reflective of the higher costs to make a US product - and how much is a company charging what it thinks the market will bear for said premium branded product? I say this as someone who is old enough to remember when almost all goods were manufactured domestically. And while the prices (in real dollar terms) were more expensive than today - where you can pick up almost any durable (and Chinese made) good at Target for a very low price - they weren't necessarily exorbitantly priced either like I see for the MiA brands typically discussed.

Good question. It's tough for me to articulate a response as I do have strong feelings for how we the consumers are being tricked into paying for "perceived higher quality" goods, when it's actually just the same goods of the past that somehow managed to live much longer then manufacturers intended (enter planned obsolescence). To better illustrate my point I can provide two examples. A TV and a washing machine; two of which are some of the most common appliances that need replacing or repairing. My 2009 Samsung LCD last about 10 years before it started to suffer a very common defect and will soon be inoperable. The second is our washing machine, which already needs replacing after 5 years. Rewind back to the 1980's and you have a 1987 Tube TV that we were forced to recycle several years ago, not because it didn't work (it worked as good as the day we bought it), but because we couldn't give it away for free. The first washing machine we had lasted 4 houses, 6 people, and basement floods and still managed to work for 15 years without a problem. I think we are being sold a very big, and expensive lie.

 

[OtterMeanGreen]

Hey all! Longtime lurker here and now I am turning to you pros for a very odd piece of advice. Sorry in advance.

I have blacked out original briefcase that I bought about two years for everyday carry. Every time I use it, it's awesome. It fits my MacBook, camera, notebooks, Anker, everything I need day in, day out. I love it beyond reason, but I just don't get to carry it enough as I would like.

The problem is I'm a swimmer and I commute to work by train, which makes for oddball packing a lot of the time.

I leave the house, local pool, jump on the train, off to work. I have my carry down to the absolute minimum – trunks, micro fleece towel, chlorine removal soap, that sort of thing, but it adds up. Together with the everyday stuff, it's just that little too big for the briefcase, so I find myself packing a canvas messenger bag

Do I just stuff the hell out of my briefcase? Get something bigger like a tote (which feels profligate)? Carry two bags (which is super cumbersome)?

Also, if you know a more appropriate place for a neurotic question like this, point me there instead

Hopefully these two articles will help you out in understanding the capabilities of the three bags in question. I find it best when they are compared side by side.

#256/#70256/#11070256: Original Briefcase
#257/#70257: Large Computer Briefcase (eBay and @GzStudio will be your best bet)
#258/#70258/#11070258: Padded Computer Bag

https://filsonfan.com/2012/11/26/briefcase-showdown-filson-256-vs-257/

https://www.askandyaboutclothes.com/forum/threads/filson-briefcases-256-257-258.109682/

Hope this helps some.

 

[speedy611]

Hey guys! Thanks for the super quick feedback @speedy611 @TinMan3 @Stratkat.

Bit more background. When I go with a single bag, I put my wet stuff in a dry bag, like a waterproof sleeve, and then chuck that in with the MacBook etc. I've been doing this for years and never had a tech failure. This works well with another satchel I own, but makes the briefcase look overstuffed.



But maybe that's ok? I'll try it out. I'm emboldened.

Filson seems to have moved away from the numerical nomenclature, at least on the UK site? Does the 257 or 258 have a different name?



I've seen the 24 and 48 hour bags before and totally agree. The size lends itself to more of an overnight resource.

Further difficulty is I don't particularly like backpacks. I tend to wear a mac, and just don't like the way backpacks look there, so it's a brief, tote or satchel for me. Also, London is full of bankers who wear bad suits with very strapy, tactical looking nylon backpacks.

Ok. You are in London. I’m UK also, not that far away.

257 is discontinued. Might be possible to find one on eBay although none I can currently see. Failing that @GzStudio or @TinMan3 will likely have several to choose from in their second hand stock. Not sure where you are with the whole vintage Filson thing, but if you like it then these guys can help.

If you aren’t familiar the 257 is a thicker/ deeper version of the 256.

 

[Soletrane]

You have a lot of options my friend. Welcome btw, you came to the right place. For some reason we love to answer neurotic questions so long as they have to do with filson. To your first question, you can absolutely stuff your Filson as full as you want. Lol. You’re not going to hurt it.

My first reaction was that you could use a 257 or 258. The 257 has plenty of extra room (especially if the center divider is removed) but is not overly cumbersome to carry. The challenge with this bag would be sourcing one to try out as they are sadly discontinued. The 258 is larger even than the 257, but is padded which adds extra weight and takes up space. @speedy611 and @Tom Lebrando have these and could probably speak to this better than I could. The 24 hour would probably be too small, and the 48 is a great bag but I wouldn’t want it as an edc. Too much to carry in my opinion. The journeyman backpack may also work for what you are needing, but is a backpack and not a briefcase. Lot of opinions here for a slightly larger size than the 256. Ask as many questions as you like!

Not surprising to anyone who has read my post history, but I would go with the Journeyman (or brand/model of your choice) backpack if you're looking for a one bag option.

I know it's not as Filson Thread Endorsed (FTE) an option as a discontinued 257, but if I am a hauling something bulky or heavy regularly, I would rather have it on my back than hanging off my shoulder especially if there's any amount of walking involved. A heavy shoulder bag is okay for the occasional business trip but I wouldn't want one for my daily commute for another of reasons.

However, if your load is just a bit more than the capacity of your 256, then I think the 257 would work quite well.

 

[Soletrane]

I wonder why it was discontinued? We may never know. That said, I was at a angler shop a few weeks back, and they had one brand new for sale.

I wonder how popular the 'old timey' Atticus Finch styling was with younger consumers in their 20s and 30s (especially as it was closing in on $1000 ea). It's essentially a pre-war style if you think about it. I guess one could argue the same with a lot of the Filson clothing but there may be more interest in vintage style clothing than a vintage styled briefcase.

I am just glad I got a nice one for a good price.

 

[M635Guy]

Good question. It's tough for me to articulate a response as I do have strong feelings for how we the consumers are being tricked into paying for "perceived higher quality" goods, when it's actually just the same goods of the past that somehow managed to live much longer then manufacturers intended (enter planned obsolescence). To better illustrate my point I can provide two examples. A TV and a washing machine; two of which are some of the most common appliances that need replacing or repairing. My 2009 Samsung LCD last about 10 years before it started to suffer a very common defect and will soon be inoperable. The second is our washing machine, which already needs replacing after 5 years. Rewind back to the 1980's and you have a 1987 Tube TV that we were forced to recycle several years ago, not because it didn't work (it worked as good as the day we bought it), but because we couldn't give it away for free. The first washing machine we had lasted 4 houses, 6 people, and basement floods and still managed to work for 15 years without a problem. I think we are being sold a very big, and expensive lie.

There are at least two or three different things going on there.

One is solder technology. With the switch from lead to tin solder for electronics for environmental purposes (RoHS compliance), the reliability has gone down for several reasons. Tin requires a lot more heat during production to solder the chips to the boards, which makes fallout during production higher and impacts long-term reliability. Tin solder also has a tendency to grow "whiskers" which can short if they grow together (which does bad things). Over time, companies have addressed those issues a bit, but not entirely. The PC maker Lenovo announced "Low Temperature" solder that addresses both, and it's offered without license fees to the industry, so as companies adopt that the inherent reliability should improve.

The other is inherent compromises in materials, etc. to reduce cost. Anything that moves is inherently less reliable, but with the reduced life span that results from the tin solder thing above I feel like lots of companies are using that as justification to bring down their design/testing standards. Or maybe they're just getting cheaper because they feel like they can. It's probably also increasingly expensive to make things "the old way" e.g. making something that lasts 15 years might price you right out of the marketplace - easier to make something that lasts just long enough that you're happy (enough) to get the new features/design/whatever (I'm thinking of the recent placement of my dishwasher here).

I'd guess greener materials/etc. and things like reduced power/water have some impact there also. (e.g. that fridge from 1965 is a freakin' tank, but horribly wasteful for power, materials, etc.).

Not all of that is nefarious, some of it is hyper-consumerism at work. Anyway, my $0.02.

 

[johnnymiz]

as a guy who tries to buy american and support our workers, this is a question i ask all the time for every purchase.
while i am willing to pay up for domestic stuff, i also want VALUE... i am not going to pay up just because it says made in usa. it has to have something added... quality.
in the case of the above mentioned copper flask, there is NO WAY i would willingly pay that kind of added cost simply because it was made here. if the imported stanley were $50 and another one made in usa $70 or even $80, i would be inclined as long as there was a little more attention to detail or something. but 5x (stainless jacob bromwell flask costs $250) more just because it is made in usa .... no way!
years ago, i bought chevy's trucks even tho they cost a little more than toyotas.. wanted to buy american and i put up with a few little niggles on the first few. but when my second suburban sht the bed with constant flaws, i bought a sequoia and it has been amazing for 12 years. so, while i buy american when i can, i refuse to feel like ive been screwed and will buy foreign if there is no difference in quality but a significant difference in price.
filson tin cloth stuff ... just try to find anything anywhere that is comparable in quality and longevity. you cant. my field coat is a decade old and i expect it to last me another 20, so im happy to pay the premium.
but filson shinola watches? i can find much better imported for far cheaper... so i wont buy the filson.

 

[speedy611]

There are at least two or three different things going on there.

One is solder technology. With the switch from lead to tin solder for electronics for environmental purposes (RoHS compliance), the reliability has gone down for several reasons. Tin requires a lot more heat during production to solder the chips to the boards, which makes fallout during production higher and impacts long-term reliability. Tin solder also has a tendency to grow "whiskers" which can short if they grow together (which does bad things). Over time, companies have addressed those issues a bit, but not entirely. The PC maker Lenovo announced "Low Temperature" solder that addresses both, and it's offered without license fees to the industry, so as companies adopt that the inherent reliability should improve.

The other is inherent compromises in materials, etc. to reduce cost. Anything that moves is inherently less reliable, but with the reduced life span that results from the tin solder thing above I feel like lots of companies are using that as justification to bring down their design/testing standards. Or maybe they're just getting cheaper because they feel like they can. It's probably also increasingly expensive to make things "the old way" e.g. making something that lasts 15 years might price you right out of the marketplace - easier to make something that lasts just long enough that you're happy (enough) to get the new features/design/whatever (I'm thinking of the recent placement of my dishwasher here).

I'd guess greener materials/etc. and things like reduced power/water have some impact there also. (e.g. that fridge from 1965 is a freakin' tank, but horribly wasteful for power, materials, etc.).

Not all of that is nefarious, some of it is hyper-consumerism at work. Anyway, my $0.02.

Don’t forget too that transport costs have plummeted in the last 50 years with the advent of the shipping container. So it’s now possible to part make goods in various places and then ship / deliver to their final marketplaces - and to do so at costs that were previously impossible. Also these cost reductions apply across the supply chain - from raw materials like iron ore through to finished goods - their ease of production and cost to store and transport are orders of magnitude lower.

So miUSA ends up having to be boutique / craft / heritage because it’s literally impossible to compete on price. Whether there are any actual quality benefits for miusa is another matter - it’s not logically a given.

 

[OtterMeanGreen]

as a guy who tries to buy american and support our workers, this is a question i ask all the time for every purchase.
while i am willing to pay up for domestic stuff, i also want VALUE... i am not going to pay up just because it says made in usa. it has to have something added... quality.
in the case of the above mentioned copper flask, there is NO WAY i would willingly pay that kind of added cost simply because it was made here. if the imported stanley were $50 and another one made in usa $70 or even $80, i would be inclined as long as there was a little more attention to detail or something. but 5x (stainless jacob bromwell flask costs $250) more just because it is made in usa .... no way!
years ago, i bought chevy's trucks even tho they cost a little more than toyotas.. wanted to buy american and i put up with a few little niggles on the first few. but when my second suburban sht the bed with constant flaws, i bought a sequoia and it has been amazing for 12 years. so, while i buy american when i can, i refuse to feel like ive been screwed and will buy foreign if there is no difference in quality but a significant difference in price.
filson tin cloth stuff ... just try to find anything anywhere that is comparable in quality and longevity. you cant. my field coat is a decade old and i expect it to last me another 20, so im happy to pay the premium.
but filson shinola watches? i can find much better imported for far cheaper... so i wont buy the filson.

I agree with this. Having been a Chevy family for 3 decades I feel I can weigh in on their cars as of today.....they're junk. We had a 1987 Chevy Suburban which was built like a tank and actually was called a "truck" and not an SUV. It was very reliable and even saved my life one day (no joke). Fast forward to today and we have a 2007 Chevy Cobalt that has lived most of it's life in the shop. My 2008 Honda Civic has literally (knock on wood) never had any serious issues mechanically, and I don't even know what or where the check engine light is on the dash, as it has not been on once in 11 years (127K). However the Cobalt had its on, almost on a monthly basis. After that I would never consider another Chevy. If I could think back in time I don't think we have had any major problems in the 1980's & 90's foreign cars; from Hyundai, Mazda, Toyota they were pretty solid built cars. However we did have a GMC Suburban that needed two engines in less then 150K and was also riddled with issues and a Ford Escort that broke down in the middle of Holland Tunnel (that was terrifying)

Never had Shinola watches so I can't comment, but I did have a few fossils in High School (cringe).

 

[OtterMeanGreen]

e.g. making something that lasts 15 years might price you right out of the marketplace - easier to make something that lasts just long enough that you're happy (enough) to get the new features/design/whatever (I'm thinking of the recent placement of my dishwasher here).

All great points I hadn't considered before. I think however that what you said above might be more believable for me, as it doesn't make sense for things to last as long anymore. Not when consumers literally line up down the block for the latest iPhone, even though the one they carry currently works perfectly fine and is only 1 year old. Not me, I enjoy getting the life of things before I add my share to the landfills of this nation. My iPhone 7 lasted me 5 years before the battery blew up like a balloon.