Satchel? Man Purse? Shoulder Bag?

[Mackdaddy]

Ill give it a shot:
Current book, current magazine, clipboard, Sigg water bottle, moleskine notebook(for scribbling blog entries), Rhodia pad( from when I was a student last year, still use to draft letters etc), pen roll with fountain pens highlighter, mechanical pen and sharpie, sunglasses, sunglasses cleaning stuff, stress ball, steel ruler, phone charger, thumb drive with lanyard, hand sanitizer, medications, moo cards, nail scissors etc, jewellers loupe.

That's a purse, you need a girl friend to carry that stuff. Nail scissors? Really?

 

[Mackdaddy]

If it doesn't act lie a briefcase, it's a man purse.

 

[Acmemfg]

That's a purse, you need a girl friend to carry that stuff. Nail scissors? Really?

What he said....

Egad, I'm far from one that fails to acknowledge the need to tote around more "stuff" than 10 or 20 years ago, but "stress ball, loupe, steel ruler..." and pens, highlighters, sharpies, etc???

Dude, MacGyver never carried around that much inventory. "Girl friend"?? No you need a sherpa.

My list of things to carry is a bit more pedestrian, but it works-

Wallet (Saddleback Bifold-medium)
ID Case (kinda like a 2nd wallet)
Pocket knife (usually a Case Sodbuster Jr.)
Truck keys
Samsung Galaxy S4
....and very often but not always, a Beretta Nano 9mm in a Desantis Model 85

That's it...gets me through the day most adequately

 

[Kazeryu]

I've sometimes wondered if there would be a market for a more bandolier-style male cargo accessory. Something leather, with just a few slim smartphone-sized pockets and a some covered areas with clips or elastic rings for pens, pocketknives, flashlights, pipes, etc.

It certainly sounds convenient and less purse-like in my head, but I'm not certain I can actually see myself wearing one.

 

[RatMan]

This is a facinating thread. one I'm sure to hate as now I'm thinking of getting one too.
crap!

 

[JaggerDragger]

I need a bag to carry my lunch, prescription sunglasses, and anything else I need for the work day. I cant stand messenger bags because they always move around to my side and can dig into your shoulder when on the move.

I use a nice slim backpack that has an internal frame and is cut for ergonomic movement because my commute involves walking/biking through the forest trails for 5 Km a day. Sometimes I need more room to stash a jacket/toque/gloves if the temps rise in the afternoon, or to hang my snowshoes in the morning if the trail is bullet hard. This is my system and it works for me

 

[jkingrph]

That is a great and functional style choice, I am considering the back pack.

Those are marginally larger than the large satchel but more square and will hold more. I actually took the shoulder strap off my satchel and use on the backpack and it makes it more like a very large messenger bag. Mine is an older model with toggle closures on the side pockets.

 

[StillShaving]

Okay, I have discovered a bag that looks incredibly cool . . . thought I'd post a pic.

Definitely expensive, but it looks like something that should last a lifetime.

For those of you with "expensive" bags, how do you treat them? More specifically, how do you get over the "this is too nice to actually use and/or might get stolen so I don't use it" phenomenon? I have a leather duffel that I haven't used in decades for precisely that reason . . . On the other hand, this might be the coolest bag I've seen . . . maybe ever.

I believe you just have to use it and enjoy it. Sure there is always some risk of theft, but the scuffs and scars will add character to the satchel over time. Something you cherish years from now as it reminds you of all your journeys.

 

[Renaldo]

Not sure how I feel about the whole "Murse/Manbag" thing.

Due to where I work, my daily commute is on the bus. For years I've switched it up between a Timbuk2 messenger bag and an 'urban' style backpack (Currently Dakine). I live in the NW, so waterproof is very important. I wouldn't consider taking either of these bags with me anywhere besides work though. I use them to carry a water bottle, lunch, thermos, magazine/book, iPod and my phone, and it's all specifically geared towards my work day/commute.

I don't carry incidentals, nail clippers, etc. Anything like that I keep at home or in my desk at work. I think there are at least two different groups here. Those like me, who have their work/commute type bag and that's it; and those who indeed rock a full on Murse with all the male versions of what would be found in a purse.

 

[Teppanyaki]

I went ahead and ordered the 15" bag from Oberon. My first "real" briefcase/bag besides backpacks and duffels that I've used since grade school. Really looking forward to this. It'll definitely be an upgrade compared to the plastic grocery bags I've been using (I'm actually serious on that), or an old leatherette lawyer-style bag that I got from my family many years ago that I've never cared for.

 

[urbanlegend]

Nothing wrong with having or using one at all.
Not to offend anyone, but I believe it is more of an American and Canadian mentality to believe there is something wrong with a man having a bag that he uses and carries with him..as if there is some shame in doing so.

 

[accunlmtd]

If you want to carry a bag, that's your choice. I'm not really commenting on that. But here's my question. And it's directed to men carrying a "man purse" or teenageers w/ backpacks filled to the brim. When I was a kid/teenager (1970's/80's), I carried nothing. Literally nothing, except cash (if I had any!)

What the heck are you people carrying in there? Holy smokes.

I'm an attorney in a large Eastern US city. The only bag I ever carry is a trial bag with a legal file in it. (Or if the file is really big, the trial bag is on wheels.) And I only carry it to & from court.

On a regular jaunt through the city, all I have is my smart phone on a "holster" on my belt, my wallet in my right inner coat (suit) pocket and my keys and 1 pen in my left inner coat (suit) pocket. That's it. And that's when I'm fully outfitted. Sometimes I don't even carry a wallet and only a money clip w/ some cash.

So really, what are you guys carrying in those bags? A toothbrush & toothpaste, dental floss, aspirin, change of socks, blow dryer, short wave radio? Are the items you carry that essential to carry around with you all day? Yikes!

Hmmm...
wallet
keys
camera
small gorilla fingers tripod
note pad
a couple pens
small first aid kit (you have no idea how handy that is to me and others)
knife or multi tool
sunglasses
spare magazines for whatever I am carrying that day
cell phone
maybe an ipad that day
25 ft of para-cord (another item that gets used a lot)
tobacco pouch
pipe of the day
a small pack of pip cleaners
lighter or matches
a few tea bags
It sucks to need it and you don't have it

 

[Doc4]

I've sometimes wondered if there would be a market for a more bandolier-style male cargo accessory.

Depends if you want to end up looking like batman ... or a carpenter.

 

[Teppanyaki]

Batman!

 

[Argonaut]

Take your manpurses, sew on a Dewalt or Porter Cable patch, and you've got no worries. Maybe a Hitachi patch for the one with the dragon on it.

 

[Mackdaddy]

If it walks like a duck, quack likes a duck...

 

[Kazeryu]

I live in the NW, so waterproof is very important. I wouldn't consider taking either of these bags with me anywhere besides work though. I use them to carry a water bottle, lunch, thermos, magazine/book, iPod and my phone, and it's all specifically geared towards my work day/commute.

(emphasis added)

So... you carry a bag for your commute, specifically geared for your commute, and you live in a rainy place. Why isn't there an umbrella in your bag?

 

[Renaldo]

(emphasis added)

So... you carry a bag for your commute, specifically geared for your commute, and you live in a rainy place. Why isn't there an umbrella in your bag?

Well, this is going to be one of those cultural things nobody else gets, but.. Only tourists use umbrellas in Portland. Relocated Californians too. I've lived half my life in Portland, and the other half in Seattle, and I don't know any native/local person who uses an umbrella. You buy a jacket that has a hood, end of story.

 

[Mackdaddy]

Well, this is going to be one of those cultural things nobody else gets, but.. Only tourists use umbrellas in Portland. Relocated Californians too. I've lived half my life in Portland, and the other half in Seattle, and I don't know any native/local person who uses an umbrella. You buy a jacket that has a hood, end of story.

Have no problem with that! I would rather wear a hat and jacket.

 

[Renaldo]

Yeah, exactly! Umbrellas are a pain in the... If everyone on the sidewalk is carrying an umbrella, there's no place to go and you crowd each other out. Not to mention if you've got an umbrella you've got to pay attention so you don't poke the eyes out of those people around you. And what's the point of using an umbrella when it's windy and it's raining sideways? Then what do you do with a wet umbrella when you're on the bus or in the office? It's certainly not going in my bag!! So much better just to cover your head and dress appropriately.

Also, I've been all over the country, and there are a few places where people call something a downpour where in the NW we'd say it looks like it might be raining a little.