Side Effect review

[conejo23]

I did email Darcy and she was kind enough to reply this evening. She said an 8-ounce water bottle should fit, but that's a pretty small water bottle. The average one sold in a store is typically 12-16 ounces. I think you'd have to get a pretty small one to fit, which kind of defeats the purpose of using it to bring water with you.

Wish this thing were just a tad bigger. Looks like a really interesting bag.

[conejo23]

Another question about this bag: does it have the clip required to attach to an o-ring? Would be great if it did, so one could clip it into one of the two large compartments of the Brain Bag.

If not, would it fit into one of the front/side compartments of the Brain Bag if it wasn't overstuffed?

Also, Darcy followed up and said she's now not sure, but the water bottle pictured may be bigger than 8 ounces. She's gonna check this weekend.

I just love the customer service with this company, the kind of interaction available with the people who work there. Good stuff.

[dorayme]

It has o-rings on the sides to attach the handle. You can use a keystrap to attach it to internal o-rings if your desire was to use it like a pouch vs. a separate bag.

[conejo23]

Dorayme.....so to attach it to an o-ring, I'd need to buy a keystrap, I'm assuming? I think it comes with one, but I wouldn't want to have that coming out of a pocket such that I couldn't fully zip the pocket shut, so I'm guessing I'd need to buy the accessory to make that work.

[dorayme]

You don't have to have it come out of a pocket. Just unclip it from the interior o-ring and re-clip it to the exterior o-ring. Both ends of the keystraps have clips.

[conejo23]

Awesome, thanks!

[darbs]

Shh...don't tell Tom, but I cut the waist straps off of my SE. I watched maverick's video and they do stay tucked quite nicely, but it was too much bulk for me. And since I am blessed with womanly curves, a waist pack isn't ideal for me. Conejo, I use my SE as a purse and then easily stick it inside my briefcase or gear bag or tote bag. I've had it a couple of weeks now and it is great. I use it pretty much the same way you are talking about. It easily fits in any other bag, but then pulls out and is great to carry on its own. It will NOT fit a full size Nalgene bottle, but I can fit a regular plastic bottle of water (16.9 oz) in it. It is a little tight, but works, although it takes up almost half the bag. I do however stuff an unopened can of Diet Coke in mine every morning to drink when I get to work! :) Hope that helps some!

[dorayme]

darbs, I hate those straps and would love to remove them. If I ever needed to carry my SE at my waist, I would thread it through a belt. Where did you cut them off at? Is the Cordura wing still attached? Was there any remainder that needed to still tuck out of the way?

[conejo23]

Thanks Darbs, that sounds good.

I think I'll probably just tuck them in the way maverick showed. I can definitely see using this as a waist pack.

[darbs]

The wing is still attached, I just cut the straps off. The wings tuck in nicely behind the straps. I know a few people mentioned they used a lighter to melt the nylon ends so they wouldn't fray, but I have bad luck with fire. I just used a little nail glue on the ends and once it dried, they are fray free. It has been a couple of days now since I did it and I haven't had any issues with the wings sliding out. I thought about maybe pinning them together behind the little pouch just to make sure they stay tucked, but haven't had the need to do it yet. Having the straps gone just makes the big sit a little nice against my hip and is less bulky. I knew there was no way I would ever use them and after going through the forums, it doesn't seem like there are any plans to make a SE 2.0 without them. If I know how to attach a picture, I would do that.

[darbs]

My SE Wing



Here is my little wing! I was a little nervous at first, but am glad I did it. Easy Peezy!

[dorayme]

My scissor trigger finger is itching! Thanks for posting! I've often thought the SE would have significantly less bulk with the straps off too. I'm trying to decide if I just deconstruct and remove the wings entirely at the seam, or just cut like you did.

[conejo23]

I have bad luck with fire.

That would be a great opening line to a short story.

[darbs]

I seriously thought about removing them at the seams. But that is where the pockets meet as well as the edges and then there is a a piece of fabric covering all of those sewn together edges. Needless to say, that is way above my skill level. So a quick snip it was and I am super happy with it.

[Badger]

I was a little nervous at first, but am glad I did it. Easy Peezy!

First of all, good on you for taking off the straps. The SE was the only thing I've ever returned to TB because I could not handle the straps, and for me removing them would not be, as you say, "easy peasy lemon squeezy," but "difficult difficult lemon difficult."