Cambiata-Created Consternation

[dirkhaun]

Mine arrived today, too. It's ... smaller than I imagined?!

My first intended use case will be this Saturday. We'll see how that goes.

[Talesofyarn]

Smaller was my initial impression also — which I like because it’s not going to be overwhelming to wear.

What pulled me into ordering this one is that it seems perfect for large and crowded festivals where you don’t want to accidentally bonk someone with your backpack. I’m planning to use it as a backpack going to and from the car, and converting to wearing it in front where I can keep an eye on it in crowds. I won’t have a chance to fully test that use case until next month, but so far it seems that it’s going to fit the bill perfectly. Keeping the center mostly empty will provide the perfect space to store any treasures I find during the event.

[dirkhaun]

Just in case you needed to know: The Cambiata can hold up to 7 Cubelets in a row. Mountain Grey, Black, Dawn, Cobalt, Viridian, Coyote, Sangria - those are all I have

[Chicagoan]

Just in case you needed to know: The Cambiata can hold up to 7 Cubelets in a row. Mountain Grey, Black, Dawn, Cobalt, Viridian, Coyote, Sangria - those are all I have

MikeV, why exactly aren’t you guys making Coyote/Viridian bags? That’s a handsome combo.

I didn’t realize how nice a color combination that was until dirkhaun packed his entire Cubelet collection into a Cambiata (impressive!).

Next question - what does one pack across seven different Cubelets?

Follow up question - why stop at 7? :-)

[Walker]

Mine arrived today, too. It's ... smaller than I imagined?

Mine arrived yesterday afternoon. I did not get to see it until last night when I got home from work.

It is bigger thank I imagined. It is a rectangular box, no denying its lack of svelte or elegance.

I am going to test back my EDC and items I usually carry in a personal bag during airline travel this weekend.

Then decide whether to keep or return.

[dirkhaun]

Next question - what does one pack across seven different Cubelets?

Follow up question - why stop at 7? :-)

Some of those are still waiting for their use case. Most of them contain power supplies of one sort or another.

And I stopped at 7 because I don't like Halycon on the outside and they stopped making ones in 210d Ballistic. Looking forward to the announced new Cerylon colours - maybe I'll add some of those then

[Chicagoan]

Some of those are still waiting for their use case. Most of them contain power supplies of one sort or another.

And I stopped at 7 because I don't like Halycon on the outside and they stopped making ones in 210d Ballistic. Looking forward to the announced new Cerylon colours - maybe I'll add some of those then

I actually ordered the last Cobalt Cerylon Cubelet (say that five times fast!) the other day and should have it early next week.

The only Cubelet I currently own is coming along on a car camping trip this weekend (serving as a minimalist toiletry kit) but it's 210 Ballistic, so I'm excited to see how the Cerylon compares!

[Astrid]

I ordered the Cambiata to carry music, DI's, guitar cables, bottled water and a few items I use at gigs (musician here..). The endless search for a bag large enough to hold outsized scores and lumpy-ish music bits may be finally over - it's almost perfect. Almost...

1. I swapped out the strap right off as the simple strap it comes with is entirely unsatisfactory with a fully loaded bag
2. The backpack straps are useless. They take up a lot of space and are intensely uncomfortable. The rear pocket is useful for slipping a newspaper or map into and would be even better with a cool diagonal opening (like the Ristretto and Cafe bags).
3. The handle stitched into the top is unbalanced when the bag is full. I would like a second short strap anchored at the same side points the current side straps are that functions like the bail on a bucket.

Seriously considering cutting off the backpack straps. Should I??

[vcdgrips]

Only if you leave enough slack at the top such that you could re attach w a tri glide or some other type of hardware.

Perhaps have somebody (Cobbler?) sew in some clips like there are on the bottom of the straps?

IMHO/YMMV

[G42]

Astrid I had a luggage repair shop make a simple strap with Gatekeeper clips to use as a simple top grab handle

I posted a bunch of stuff in this other thread, but here's the relevant post

https://forums.tombihn.com/forum/tom...386#post342386

[Astrid]

Astrid I had a luggage repair shop make a simple strap with Gatekeeper clips to use as a simple top grab handle

I posted a bunch of stuff in this other thread, but here's the relevant post

https://forums.tombihn.com/forum/tom...386#post342386

Thanks for the link - good solution!

[Chicagoan]

Some might think I'm a glutton for punishment, but I did go ahead and order the one last Cambiata they had left in Coyote.

Why? My packing style changed.

I recently got a new (well, "new to me") car and it has to be physically inserted into the door and ignition. My previous vehicle had a fob that would allow me to enter and start the vehicle keylessly because it worked on proximity.

But that is how dialed in my EDC setup was! I kept my key fob zipped inside an organizer pouch I also used as my wallet and it never left the pouch, or the bag, either. Ever. I only took out the key when I needed to hand it off to an oil change or repair tech at a shop. Otherwise it stayed inside that pouch for five years I owned that car.

It doesn't make much sense anymore for me to keep the key stored inside a pouch, stored inside a bag, like a nesting doll, if I'm going to have to remove it every time I get in my car.

So I decided to give the Cambiata a second chance.

One of the best pieces of advice I ever got about criticism was from a college professor who taught theater. She suggested that, when you see a play, always find one thing about it you liked. Oftentimes identifying at least one positive thing becomes the impetus to find more.

The first time I ordered this bag, I had a hard time with that.

But this time around I'm going to address my previous problems with a more open mind and fresh set of ideas to see if I can make it work better for me than it did the first time.

I'll update later in the week, but I did make one immediate improvement when I placed the second order - a longer, 16 inch key strap. I don't like using too many key straps in the same bag, but I've found the shorter stock-length key strap works well for my wallet pouch and the longer strap makes it much easier to reach the doors with my house keys.

(Yes, I've been buying a lot of bags lately, but I literally use at least one Tom Bihn bag every day, so I sold off some surplus backpacking gear in favor of investing in some more Tom Bihn bags that I'll actually use)

[ittoujuu]

With your well-known love of your Co-Pilot, it's a bit surprising to see you going over to backpacks - especially one you had tried before and found unsatisfactory. What I'm curious to see is, what is it about the Cambiata specifically that you think would meet your daily carry needs that another Tom Bihn backpack wouldn't do better? You recently scooped up a Smart Alec, too, and though that pack has always (to me) looked rather slouchy, I feel like it's got a versatility going for it that bests what the Cambiata offers--unless you find yourself really benefiting from the cross-body carry option here.

There are so many options out there in the world of backpacks and everyday carry that it's unusual for people to give a product a second chance. Most of the time, if we order something and trial it at home and it doesn't work for us, we either return it or sell it on the secondary market. Sometimes we're rather ruthless about it, but it's because of all the aforementioned options that we're able to be fairly cutthroat about something that doesn't work for us, because we know that there's probably a product out there that will do what we're looking for. That's why I'm curious why you'd go back to a bag you hadn't been fond of the first time rather than look for something you hadn't yet tried that might meet your needs.

[Chicagoan]

I've used backpacks as my EDC before - the Luminary 15 I liked well enough to buy a second, spare pack (and glad I did given its retirement). I think that pack worked so well as it did because of the 2 side slash pockets - I could slip one shoulder strap off, swing the bag in front of me, and my keys or wallet were within easy reach and able to be used at a door or checkout counter. It's also great for apple picking (who knew?).

90% of how well a bag works (or not) for me really depends on how easily I can use my keys and wallet, and if I can figure out that much, finding a home for the rest of my items is easier.

What drew me back? Because of the orientation of the pockets, it's a top-loading bag (you can carry with compartments unzipped and not have to worry about items falling out) and it's self-supporting (I can set it down on a desk and it won't tip over). I've already almost had a Swiss Army Knife slide out of one of the two front pockets on the SA! So I like bags I can carry around "open."

Neurodivergence (ADHD) sometimes means I get distracted and miss a pre-flight checkbox to zip something I should have, so it's a little extra security to know my contents won't spill out when I forget to zip things up - much like the SK and CP I also like carrying.

The Cambiata also holds its shape better than the SA and fits a similar [20+ liter] capacity into a more compact package.

Is the Cambiata better than the SA? No, but I am learning both bags have their strengths, and there are actually SA cons solved by Cambiata pros.

[Chicagoan]

I think I finally figured the bag out!

Since all my EDC items can fit into all the smaller compartments, leaving the main compartment open, it's been great for carrying larger items and especially odd-shaped ones that don't stack well.

Sometimes I come home from work already carrying a full armload in with me and if there are any packages I need to pick up from my mail area, it becomes a balancing act for me to try and get it all upstairs to my apartment without dropping anything.

This morning I used the bag to transport some things into the office: a couple boxes of breakfast bars, a desktop artificial Christmas Tree, box of ornaments, set of miniature string lights, package of ornament hooks, and even a plush opossum!

But coming home at night it will be a big help transporting items picked up on a Target run and whatever mail and/or packages need to be carried upstairs to our apartment from the mail room.