As I mention briefly in [post=6920211]my shaggy dog story of a hijack[/post], I’m looking for a bag to replace my dying softside briefcase. I was looking at the Patagonia Half Mass bag–I’ve a Critical Mass bag that has survived many a boat/plane/hiking trip with only moderate staining–but it isn’t large enough to accept my 15" PowerBook with a protective cover. I don’t want a big leather computer case, and indeed I’d rather avoid something that screams out, “Hey, look at me! I contain an expensive laptop computer! Steal me!” I’d like something that is either a bookbag-style briefcase or a large messenger bag that is relatively weatherproof, with a couple of internal pockets, a place to stash pens and cards, and ideally a 1l nalgene bottle externally, though the latter is negotiable. Price isn’t a big factor–as long as it’s in the low three digits I can swing it without cutting into my whiskey budget–but I want a bag that is going to hold up when it comes to action, adventure, and really wild things that form my dislocated sense of reality.
When I got a laptop I looked around for laptop-type bags, computer places that had decent ones wanted $120-$200+ for them, even for just nylon ones.
… I found a great one by accident at a local Cummins tool store. I paid $20 for it, the website has it for $16.88, item #5401, the Toppers™ Wallstreet Computer Bag. I don’t know how big a 15" Mac with a protective cover is, but my laptop (closed) is 13 x 10.5 x 1.5", and it’s still got a couple inches of width left in the bag. The inside of the bag measures around 18" but the info on the Cummins site says it’s only 16.5", which might be when the whole thing is crammed full of stuff to block it out perfectly. And no 1L water bottle pocket, unfortunately. http://www.cumminstools.com/browse.cfm/4,1418.htm
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Yeah, not only does Timbuk2 make great bags you can get them customized in exactly the colors you want for not much more than an off-the-shelf version.
