2023 Wish List

[Chicagoan]

<deep breath>

Alright.

Here's a hot take.

I get why it's hard. I do. But I'm also hoping someone with a better mind than my own over at Tom Bihn could make a bag up to the challenge.

Strap length. Width. Flare. It's a lot to consider. And one size, at best, will always fit "most" and not "all."

I used a pair of strap keepers on my L15 when Darcy gifted me a set for testing as they were on the cusp of releasing them. Ultimately I removed them and just lived with the long straps, which didn't bother me as much as the newly created strap keepers wanted me to think I was bothered by them.

Oftentimes the posts on this forum will go to great depths to explain why something is difficult, or maybe even impossible, but I would love to see them design something that could solve - if not champion - the problem.

Mostly I'm just sitting here hoping and waiting and wanting for new design ideas, and admittedly getting a little frustrated with the lack of them.

Don't get me wrong. I love the items I have. The other week I scooped up the last Coyote OSCA in stock. Today a matching Pilot came in the mail. I'm still a customer, and even a regular one, at that.

But quietly and offline I have been auditioning a few other brands of American-made bags...just to see how they compare. I've been using TB so long and so often I really didn't have a clue what the market was like outside this brand anymore. I won't say which brands they are...but I will say both brands make bags from Xpac.

I've found a couple makes and models I really like. But neither can perform as well overall as my Tom Bihn Side Kick or Co-Pilot. I haven't found a single bag that organizes my things as safely, neatly and comfortably as the bags Tom designed.

And that's what I've always loved. Tom came up with these awesome solutions to everyday problems that were unique to his brand and came not from mirroring the competition, but from his own creative mind.

But for those of us who have been following the company for a long time, and who own most the current (and maybe even retired) designs, it seems like it's been a long time without Tom and Nik and we've only had 1 new bag design debut in all that time.

Maybe straps aren't where reinvention or improvement are needed, but I'm hoping there might be a new bag design (or even feature) we might see soon.

I think I'm still enjoying a never-ending serving of crow after growing to love the Cambiata I once hated, but now I find myself hoping for something else new, exciting, and maybe even polarizing. Disruptive.

[John1970]

I would like to see some new designs as well, and agree with you Chicagoan that the Addax was a good first step by Jose (although I would tweak it in several ways, most notably by adding side access to the main compartment). Notwithstanding that, I most want to see--and admittedly have some sour grapes over TB's failure to deliver--the updated Smart Alec that Darcy promised was coming, meaning one with the Shadow Guide back, laptop compartment, and edgeless straps. I'm hoping it still happens, and would love to see it in RX30, but I'm not holding my breath. Other than that, I'd love to see Jose and the TBC use their imagination and try new things.

[Chicagoan]

I would like to see some new designs as well, and agree with you Chicagoan that the Addax was a good first step by Jose (although I would tweak it in several ways, most notably by adding side access to the main compartment).

When I first got the ADX in the mail and saw that long, tall zipper on the side, that's what I figured it was - main compartment access.

Talk about a fake-out when I discovered it was just a very tall, very shallow side pocket!

I will say this: no one uses better water resistant zippers than TB. The ones you find on other brand bags are either cheap and flimsy, or so overbuilt and sticky they're hard to open. TB is a perfect balance of sturdy, smoothly opening, and watertight.

Side main compartment access is something I wouldn't mind seeing more of - easier to slide off one shoulder strap and swing a backpack in front of you to unzip the side open than take the whole thing off, stop what you're doing, and unzip it fully.

[G42]

Random thought as I've been mulling over what we know about the new small bag(s) and how the Bantam is launching with an inside out X-Pac usage and what Cristina mentioned about the more formal look

It would be interesting to have a small bag that is, for instance, halcyon on one side and a Cerylon on the other... Not so much lined as fully reversible.
So double tab main zipper, the two end o-rings are for the strap on the outside and tether on the inside, maybe one side zip pocket and one side open pocket... knowing that will add more material which is why I'm thinking only the lighter halcyon, Cerylon, or recycled.

I'm imaging coordinating colors like Wasabi/Moss, Solaris/Marigold (kind of like the Addax with Constellation/Island)....

But would be cool in a bright opposite a dark.... Like Solaris for the day and Mountain Grey for evening.

So not to be prescriptive since I'm obviously not a bag designer and that's not the type of feedback TB wants... But the idea of other ways to do different looks vs different carry method (Bantam) or different useage (PCSB)

[carrot]

I'd really really like a zip top shop bag with attachments at the ends to allow it to be worn as a cross body.

And a zip top shop bag in a lighter material to make it more packable for light weight trips.

Halcyon and Cerylon are great, but in my world, they are very heavy duty materials. I have packable tote bags that pack down to the size of a golf ball. If a zip top shop bag could easily squish down to the size of an orange, that'd be a game changer for my travel.

[epeterson]

I'd like to see a plastic hanging hook (same one the 3DOC uses) added to the inside of the vertical packing cube. I use the hook on the 3DOC all the time.

[G42]

Now that TB received more Wasabi, Zest, and Tidal, it would be great to see those fabrics cycle into the VPCs.

And when the Cambiatas are restocked again, it would be neat to see Constellation or Deep Blue with blackout label with Zest or Tidal.


What with the NFTD making an encore appearance sometime later this year and more 200d halcyon on the way, I think my only major Wish List item left is the Moveable Feast
... And Halcyon OPs, especially in Small, which fit US passports

[dirkhaun]

Last night I was dreaming that I owned a Small Grab Bag in Mars Red. Please make it happen

[DanielCTA]

I dreamt the same night about getting a second Icon new from TB and I'm pretty sure that won't happen.

[moriond]

Last night I was dreaming that I owned a Small Grab Bag in Mars Red. Please make it happen

I dreamt the same night about getting a second Icon new from TB and I'm pretty sure that won't happen.

Those of you with logins and access to the Just for Registered Users forum can read the I've officially lost my mind--Tom Bihn Dreams thread started by jess in 10-14-2014.

moriond

[Shortie]

I would like a Side Hustle that is 2" wider and 2" taller so that it can be used as a laptop bag for 13-14" laptops. The SH has the internal organization that the DLBC lacks, which is why I have never purchased a DLBC.

[latchford]

Ghost Whale Organizer Pouch and Q-Kit in Constellation Ballistic. I'd like them in different colours from the ones I already have for colour coding my items but my brain says that the pouches *have* to be blue. Constellation is such a pretty colour and I wonder why they don't make GWOPs with it.

[Wanderlust77]

I would love to see an all Coyote Bantam (zipper, o-rings, w/ or w/o shoulder strap! It would go so nicely with my GE S25!

[Chicagoan]

1.) More Xpac color options. GORUCK just launched their own Xpac bags this week and it's the typical, safe, black and blue options. YAWN. I would love to see colors brighter than black, gray, or blue!

2.) A small *horizontal* FS made for bags like the Pilot. CP, SK, SH, etc. I love admin panel style internal organizers you can remove and insert into the bag with one motion.

3.) Redesign the hip belt pocket to serve as a universal water bottle holder for bags that don't have one built in (there was a Reddit post asking how to attach a pocket to a Side Kick just the other day!).

4.) Lose the internal tags. They tend to get in the way when accessing a bag's contents and fray over time.

5.) Some sort of shoulder strap accessory pouch for keys and/or a wallet. TB doesn't build a daisy chain into their shoulder straps and the webbing they mount the sternum strap to isn't compatible with most aftermarket solutions.

6.) Bring back the zip-away stretch mesh, water bottle pocket divider used on bags like the Luminaries and Stowaway.

[Shortie]

I passed on the Side Hustle debut because I wasn't sold on any of the color combos except my standard black/NWS. But this is a bag that will never be used for work so I want it to be more colorful. I'm also going to make a wish for new Halcyon colors. The next time the SH is available I would like one of these:

• Black/blackout label/azalea pink Halcyon
• Ursa/lavender Halcyon or azalea pink Halcyon or dusk Cerylon
• Nebulous Gray/lavender Halcyon or azalea pink Halcyon or dusk Cerylon
• Deep Blue/azalea pink Halcyon or NWS Halcyon

Instead of the bigger label I would like the side labels like what's on the other Side____ bags.