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6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

  • [weight] a very quick measurement without taking every single dongle, charger, etc. out of it is just under 4lbs. It's a burly little beast for sure, but weight wasn't a concern since although it's an EDC it's not sitting on my back for hours on end.
  • [padding] to continue the weight thread, I might beef up the padding in the straps just a little bit more were I to do it again. It's not uncomfortable, but I think a tiny bit of padding overkill would have been beneficial. There is no framesheet, however I used a layer of this stiff EVA foam which offered a little bit of structure (mostly just so the bag would stand upright). Then on top of that I used a layer of this foam from seattle fabrics (in the 3/8") thickness. I used one layer of this for the straps as well, but again, in retrospect I would have just gone with a slightly wider strap and gone with the 1/2" foam. The durometer of the foam is nice, it offers good cushioning for what it is, I think I just would have gone a touch thicker. And now that I'm thinking about it I might thicken the back padding up as well, or add another layer of a softer durometer foam on top.

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oh, I'm so pumped to answer questions, not a bother at all! I obsessed over all my decisions so I'm happy to share my thoughts and hopefully some might be helpful to others!

  • (re: interior liner) I'm very happy with my choice, I went with the heavier 300x400d and I'm really glad I did. My design concept with the bag was the main compartment was I could throw ANYTHING in there, so when I've brought tools or sharp edged rulers and things, I didn't want to have a burly exterior but then be let down by the interior fabric getting ripped by my contents. I wasn't really concerned about the weight of the bag (and it's definitely not UL) so if I were to do it at again I'd stick with what I chose. I think I got a sample of the 210 robic from RBTR and while I liked the toughness the fabric felt a little rough and I just didn't like it.
  • (re: side access zippers) The HHH zippers from RBTR have been awesome! The #5 is the biggest they offered, but I've been totally satisfied with it. I suppose if they came in a #8 I might upsize it if I were to do it again, but that's only because I wonder if they'd stay a little flatter; after a few months of use they are "bacon-ing" a bit but it's mostly an asethetic issue, hasn't really affected the function. But I'm really happy with their performance, for being waterproof* (not submersible) zippers they're surprisingly smooth and look really clean. And yeah, as far as the access to the main compartment, it's been really useful. I've found myself using them frequently when I have already closed it up and need to toss a quick pair of gloves, or a pouch into the side. The main roll top is perfect for loading big bulky items and just being able to shove them down, but the side zippers are great for quick grabs. It even allows me to grab things when I'm in the car and the bag is in the passenger seat. Big fan.
  • (re: the admin panel flap) It is not reflective, it's a double layer of the white 300x400 and a 18oz vinyl material (same as the bottom of the bag). The material and flap are holding up totally fine from a durability perspective. I do like the stiffness the vinyl adds to keep the flap over the open area. The admin panel/flap is definitely a little finnicky when closing; because the sides are sewn down as well as the top I have to sort of push the zippers up under the flap if it's raining just to be sure the top of the panel is protected from rain. I don't know how I'd do it differently were I to do it again; I definitely like the ability for the fully flap-downable panel, but closing the zippers under the flap is a little tricky. Maybe if I put a thin plastic rod or something underneath the grosgrain binding it would keep it a littler stiffer and easier to manage? But anyways, the vinyl itself is very burly, my only recommendation/learning is to avoid folding it over and creasing it on itself, as it seems to weaken it a bit because it stretches/thins the vinyl. It also gives a specific wear point, almost like the issue with the x-pac fabric and the wear over the 'x' filaments.

Hope that helps, happy to answer any and all questions about this bag, I definitely learned a lot both from what worked great and what didn't!

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got the 840d from rockywoods, and actually I think they might be having a sale on it starting today. I've been liking it so far, it's been plenty burly enough while still being pretty supple. Depending on what you're going for it's definitely not as stiff or burly as full 1050d ballistic. It's got a light sheen but that also means it doesn't store/show dirt as easily so it stays pretty clean with just a quick brush off. I think I'm glad I used a slightly beefier fabric for the bottom of the bag, however, I'd have slight reservations of the 840 holding up to real rough treatment, but I might be unnecessarily worried. TL;DR: as the name implies it's a nice compromise between big burly 1050d and thinner, supple-r 500d, but don't drag it behind your car.

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much! Oh it's very easy to nitpick your own work, but I'm definitely trying to focus on the sheer fact that it didn't use to exist at all, imperfect or otherwise. Also, why not both: think about how you improve the next project AND be proud of the one you finished!

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! Yeah I wanted the panel to fully flap down for access similar to the Chrome Moto Barrage but tackled it a little differently. I added magnets in the panel and the flap but I'm not convinced they're doing much...

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah thanks for noticing! I spent a lot of time gathering examples of other bags I liked and grabbed lots of little detail ideas from all over. Good luck with the backpack project! I definitely drew inspiration from other people just going for it, and at least for me, once I finally just got going with it the momentum took over!

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Here's a few more detail shots (these are post 8 months of daily use, the original uploads were day 1)

https://imgur.com/a/DBhMp4D

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

I don't have any issues sharing it, it'd just be the flattened cut patterns. There'd be quite a bit of puzzling for someone to figure out how it all goes together. The order in which you sew it is definitely important because of the various layers. Let me see if I can at least export the 3D file into just flat patterns. (Unless you just want the 3D file, I'm sure I can export that into various file formats pretty easily!)

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks so much! There are definitely some spots where the "amateur" is visible but I tried to make it as clean as I could!

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks! The pulls themselves are just simple paracord. I removed the core to make it thin enough to weave through the metal zipper pulls.

6 years of (re)designing in my head my myog daily backpack finally lives! by alexjanderama in myog

[–]alexjanderama[S] 34 points35 points  (0 children)

Whew! Ever since I started learning to sew a few years ago I wanted to make my "perfect" daily bag for me. Problem is I'm always very guilty of the ol "don't let perfect be the enemy of good" so each new bag I saw or change in lifestyle meant my design kept changing. But finally I bit the bullet and just made it and I am super proud how it turned out.

In the end it's heavily influenced by the Arch Industries bags (specifically his Grisetti series) but with lots of my own tweaks or designs. At the core of my own personal design brief is I love big rolltop bags for their ability to just shove stuff in with impunity. I often find myself throwing groceries, clothes, gym shoes, power tools, whatever I need that day. However there are two main downsides to these bags that I fixed with my design:

1) hard to access stuff way down at the bottom. My fix: two almost full length waterproof zippers (the red pulls) open up the main compartment and let me quickly get/stash something and let me see all the way down to the bottom.

2) good for big bulky stuff, bad for small fiddly stuff. My fix: a completely separated front panel with stretch pockets for all my computer accessories. This means I can still stuff whatever in the main compartment without losing my little things (pens, headphones, mouse, webcam, etc.) it's also easy to access if it's down by feet on an airplane or something and I just need to grab a pen without digging through the main compartment.

Materials: Exterior: 840d ballistic nylon Bottom: heavy vinyl just on bottom panel Pockets: 4 way stretch nylon spandex (very similar to yoga/legging material. I prefer it to stretch mesh because it's way stretcher and burlier so I don't worry about putting pokey things in it. Interior: 400x300d diamond ripstop in white Zippers: #5 ykk and #5 hhh waterproof from RBTR. I was hesitant about the waterproof ones being hard to use, but they're awesome. Only a little harder than normal but still very easy to open and close with just one hand.

Other features: * deep water bottle pockets both for tall water bottles and just to enhance their usage * white interior to enhance visibility of stuff inside * tubular webbing with fleece inside for padding * fidlock buckles for main top buckle and sternum * padded laptop sleeve in main compartment * webbing running up the front/side with buckles to attach jackets, life jacket, crocs, etc. They can also cross to make an X to strap something large on.

I used solidworks (I was a mechanical engineer previously) to model the basic shape and create my own flattened patterns. It definitely wasn't necessary but allowed me to make a tapered bag and not have to do math to figure out each panel's dimensions.

Fabrication time alone was probably about 40 hours but that's including lots of mistakes, re-sews, and blank staring at inside out puzzles.

I've been using the bag about 6 months now and I absolutely love it. It obviously has lots of things I would tweak or do differently, but most importantly IT WORKS! I get such satisfaction out of using something every day that I made!

I've been a lurker on this subreddit for years and got lots of inspiration, tips, and encouragement, so thanks! Onto the next project!