Heresy? Tom Bihn vs. Tortuga vs. Minaal for "One Bag" Travel?

[sarah_atx]

I took a look at the Minaal and the Outbreaker. Too bad they don't come in more colors! That's one real plus, to be able to say 'it's that green bag there' if I have to ask someone to grab it out of the overhead or just to be able to spot it. That might not matter if you're getting black anyway.

One thing I did like was that the Outbreaker (maybe both?) have a water bottle pocket on the side. If the A30 or A45 somehow had a water bottle spot when it's carried as a backpack, that would make it perfect for me.

I did consider those brands before going with TB. I think they were different models then though, but TB seemed like a better investment for the price. Although... considering all the bags I've bought since then... hmm.

[Buffalonian]

My story:

I lived out of an A45 and pilot for 3 years. In the last 6 months I moved to an A30 and WF pairing. And then travelled for a continuous 6 months after that.

I went to Morocco, Egypt, through central America, turkey, most of Western Europe, Canada, Iceland. The A45 was solid. It’s comfortable enough to carry but I wouldn’t be tracking etc with it. But if you’ll travel like me to a place, drop it off at the hostel then just carry around your day pack in the place you’re visiting, then the A45 is magic.

My tip though. Highly consider the A30.

Thanks! At this point I'm definitely leaning toward an A30, possibly paired with one of two bags from Mystery Ranch -- either a One Up (14L) or the 3-way Briefcase (22L).

[babblinbeanz]

I think it comes down to how you travel. For me, the Minaal’s organization looks nice, but doesn’t really work for how I travel. I like the expanse of the Aeronaut and the flexibility of organizing items the way I like it. I tend to pack my tech items in a small pouch because then I can just move that into a small edc bag I bring along with me. Just to be able to transfer those small items without forgetting anything. So, for example, I want to go to a festival or a museum that doesn’t allow large backpacks then I bring our my little cross body take the little pouch (or clear wallet/op/EC cos packing cube) put it in the bag and go.
Mission Workshop is bomber, but ask yourself if you like its top loading ways. If you can dig it, cool beans. But when it’s full extending for that 35L travel sweet spot it looks a little tall, doesn’t it?
The Tortuga bags don’t really speak to me. They look like a tombstone on your back. Granted the straps are nice. But I have to say, the new hip belts and packing frame for the Aeronaut are very nice. (Especially for a heavy packed A45) The hip belt can be stored in the empty space of the main portion of the A45/A30 when not in use. Or either the backpack strap area.
Also, as far as the laptop goes... in the A45, i can slide it into the back strap area with inside of a case. I think the A30 as well. (I’ll check). Note, I have a Mac air 13”. I’ve also used a DAyLight Briefcase and packed it in part of the main compartment of the Aeronaut with my clothes packed in cubes underneath. Then I just bring it out going through security, repack to go past the gate agents, and unpack for on the plane.
These trips were business/leisure travel where I knew I wasn’t going to hike in the jungle, but it worked well for a couple of months. But I did hop through the urban jungle of trains, planes, buses, autos, and ankle bending cobblestones.
So, yeah, I like my Aeronauts. I also love bags in general, so I backed Cotopaxi’s Allpa 40L and Peak Designs Travel line. The Cotopaxi great bag for when you do need to do some light dusty hiking, but fit can be finicky for fit due to its fixed hip belt (which on my friend is more like a belly band). Peak Designs i really don’t know it’s still in the works. Looks good, but heavy. Also, may not be as flexible as the Aeronaut for packing and definitely would not fit under the seat like the A30 can... but I backed it because it looked techie cool and I was bag curious, that i was not in need of another bag. I will echo what others have said here, do a practice pack and think about what activities you expect to do. Then go from there. On this forum there are so many resourceful people who have learned to optimize their bags for some many different travel situations and love to help. So, have fun. Don’t stress and keep asking your questions.

[vargan]

I think you have to start with a test pack. That way you will know exactly how much space you will need and how heavy the bag will be.

Then you have to consider how much you will have to carry it. Do you plan to do long commutes on foot? What about hikes?

This will determine if you need a bag that has good suspension, comfort, hip belt, etc. If the weight and volume are low, you can get away with the briefcase style bags like a30, etc.

Personally, I like bags over 30L to have good suspension, ventilation, hip belt, etc. Especially on trips that will include tropical and hot climates, and will likely require a lot of walking with the bag. Luckily I don't have a problem with hiking style bags, so I could choose function over form.

I ended up going with Stone Glacier Avail 2200, this bag is also really well built, and made in USA. Although where the bag is made is more of a happenstance, rather than a requirement for me. And the daypack I went for is S19. I could either stick it inside the main pack or attach it to the outside.

Like many here, I too wasn't a fan of the Minaal and Tortuga. But there are other options out there, it mainly depends on the volume you need and the features you want.

[Buffalonian]

I ended up going with Stone Glacier Avail 2200, this bag is also really well built, and made in USA. Although where the bag is made is more of a happenstance, rather than a requirement for me. And the daypack I went for is S19. I could either stick it inside the main pack or attach it to the outside.
.

Thanks! I've spent hours researching packs, and had not seen the Avail 2200. It looks like a fabulous option.

[Yam]

This is an old thread, but the new Techonaut seems like it would be the solution to many of the above-mentioned weaknesses of the Aeronaut. Unfortunately, the price has gone up, making the Outbreaker the cheaper option.

[GrussGott]

This is an old thread, but the new Techonaut seems like it would be the solution to many of the above-mentioned weaknesses of the Aeronaut. Unfortunately, the price has gone up, making the Outbreaker the cheaper option.

Agreed, though a lot of it comes down to travel style, use-case & personal preference.

The MW bags, for example have KILLER hide-away hip belts and straps with load-lifters & 2 sets of chest/torso straps, which is great for me as I rarely use the upper one. MW (or an ultralite bag like Zpack) would be my choice if I was going to be doing a lot of overland carrying of my bags

Both Minaal & Tortuga are great digital nomad bags but, for me, just wouldn't ever be my choice for anything. I've recommended them to others, but not for me ...

My travel is usually nicer hotels, taxis, & cars versus hiking so for all of those use-cases TB would be my pick, esp the new TN as the biggest hike would be a 20 min run across Schiphol or similar.

With that, I do use my MW Rambler (similar to Radian) quite a bit, but usually in addition to TB, and it's almost never my main bag.

[Cooner]

Stumbled across this old thread (recently resurrected) and wow, it brought back some memories …

When I was researching and preparing for our 2-week trip to Japan in September 2017 (my first international trip … man, was it so long ago?) was when I first discovered the concept of one-bag travel and minimalist packing. Tortuga was one of the first companies I stumbled upon, and while I slavishly poured over descriptions and reviews of the travel packs they were offering at the time, I never did end up getting one -- they were a bit pricey for me at the time, and even in retrospect I think I felt them a little too over-engineered for my tastes, and … well … kinda ugly. (For the Japan trip I ended up getting an eBags weekender backpack; it was still a bit over-engineered but at least it was a lot less expensive.)

For awhile I was also listening to the Tortuga founder's podcast. Thinking back on it, yeah, definitely a very different vibe and company philosophy than Tom Bihn. The two guys definitely sounded hip, trendy, and … how shall I say it? … privileged. Digital nomads for sure. A huge chunk of podcast time was spent talking about living in China and finding various outsourcing companies and supply chains to contract. Kinda surprised with all that cheap labor their prices aren't lower.

So yeah, on the whole, even though I travelled with an eBags for a few years, I'm glad that left me open to discover Tom Bihn, who not only have a lot more experience and much nicer company values more in line with my philosophy, but also offer a wider variety of options and types of bags depending on what you need. Thanks TB.

[vcdgrips]

Tortuga is a hard no go because they are manufacturing in the PRC. If I thought I needed a real hipbelt to shift weight (12 kg+) then I would likely be pivoting to a more hiking oriented bag by Osprey given their designs and warranty. Otherwise, packing light with a T30 or an A30 (and some type of packable day pack) would be very hard to beat for the stated application.

[GrussGott]

Tortuga is a hard no go because they are manufacturing in the PRC.

I had an email exchange with Black Ember who basically said manufacturing in the USA was "not possible" due to cost is run by 6 founders with "60+ years" of "soft-goods experience" between them so they totally know what they're talking about.

When I gave them many examples of companies like TB who DO mfr in the USA they weren't impressed:

"TB + Black Ember are different products. We utilize highly advanced technical construction processes as well as utilize proprietary textiles made especially for us to go through our signature bonding process."

"[the machines that make the secret sauce for BE bags] do not exist in the USA. The US is not a manufacturing nation. Facilities in which to produce highly technical equipment are specialized and only found overseas along with the skilled labor."

I guess what they're trying to say is TB and those like them are a bit of a anomalous miracle!

In any event, I prefer to buy just about everything from small artisan-type shops who support their local communities and honor & support their warranties/products - that's for sure who TB is.

[MTeric22]

I had an email exchange with Black Ember who basically said manufacturing in the USA was "not possible" due to cost is run by 6 founders with "60+ years" of "soft-goods experience" between them so they totally know what they're talking about.

When I gave them many examples of companies like TB who DO mfr in the USA they weren't impressed:

"TB + Black Ember are different products. We utilize highly advanced technical construction processes as well as utilize proprietary textiles made especially for us to go through our signature bonding process."

"[the machines that make the secret sauce for BE bags] do not exist in the USA. The US is not a manufacturing nation. Facilities in which to produce highly technical equipment are specialized and only found overseas along with the skilled labor."

I guess what they're trying to say is TB and those like them are a bit of a anomalous miracle!

In any event, I prefer to buy just about everything from small artisan-type shops who support their local communities and honor & support their warranties/products - that's for sure who TB is.

I use to own a BE bag but ended up returning it. To me, it seemed over priced for what it was. I own a lot of bags from many different manufacturers from ultralight packs to casual and everything in between but theirs just didn’t stick with me. Maybe for others.

[GrussGott]

I use to own a BE bag but ended up returning it.

Yeah ... a "special bonding process" isn't a big attractor for me.

[spicynoodles]

I had a Tortuga years ago and TB wins by far for me in terms of organization (pocket layout), weight, customer service, comfort and durability. Everything!