Help Needed - Clear Urethane!

[thephotomatt]

Darcy (and/or Forumgoers)-

A few months back I ordered a Clear Quarter packing cube. The clear urethane on this item is soft and smooth to the touch, very glossy, and CRYSTAL clear.

However, I just received a 3D Clear Organizer Cube, and that very same clear urethane as noted in the description of each of these items is rough/grainy to the feel, cloudy, and has significantly less gloss. It's almost as if the urethane is -- dare I say -- dirty or unfinished? Is it meant to look this way on the 3D cube? Also, in looking at the pictures on the site they too look crystal clear, and not cloudy like mine is.

Anyone have this same issue, or might be able to offer up feedback/suggestions on the matter?

Thanks again for the help.


-Matthew

[Darcy]

We did change to a new kind of clear Urethane, and we will announce this soon on the blog, in the email newsletter, etc. The new Urethane is a little cloudy though we (and our testers) found that it didn’t make it difficult to see contents of whichever Organizer Pouch (or bag) one is using. Here are the reasons for the switch -

1) Our previous Urethane came in a width that we made work for us, but it wasn’t as efficient as the width we can get the new Urethane in. This simply means less waste of material, and we really don’t like wasting stuff.

2) Some users of the Swift knitting bag, Clear Organizer Pouches, 3D Clear Cube, etc. didn’t like how the previous Urethane would stick to itself - for example, if you had a Clear Bottom Yarn Stuff Sack and you slipped it in the Swift, the clear bottom might stick to the clear pockets in the Swift. The new Urethane doesn’t do that.

3) We think that the new Urethane has a more luxurious hand.

[Darcy]

Here's a quick photo of a Clear Organizer Pouch with the new Urethane -

[thephotomatt]

Thanks for such a fast response, Darcy. And thanks for the explanation, which makes total sense now.

Nothing else needed here (except more Tom Bihn bags, heh)...you're the best!


-Matthew

[Darcy]

You're welcome. In light of the explanation, what do you think of the new Urethane? Personally, I like it...mostly because I do think it does feel more luxurious.

[thephotomatt]

Funny how the mind works...

Now that I know there's nothing wrong with it (which I should never have thought in the first place), I like it too. It does have a very interesting texture, as if it were dipped in a super-fine powder. And unlike the clear urethane of old I'm sure this will not have that same "sticking" problem.

I can definitely get used to the slight cloudiness, and appreciate the continuous improvement that the Tom Bihn team constantly strives for.


-Matthew

[backpack]

Does that mean that the proud owners of the many items that were made from the previous urethane are now in possession of "vintage" Tom Bihn Clear items?

[keb]

Does that mean that the proud owners of the many items that were made from the previous urethane are now in possession of "vintage" Tom Bihn Clear items?

Yeah baby!!!! My multiple clear items... Along with my Aeronaut without compression straps, and my two original Absolute Shoulder Straps, and my black padded organizer pouch!!!

[Darcy]

Does that mean that the proud owners of the many items that were made from the previous urethane are now in possession of "vintage" Tom Bihn Clear items?

Note: the clear clear Urethane and the new cloudy Urethane are equally as durable. We'll be seeing clear clear along cloudy for some time to come....

[Polcamilla]

I just came here to ask about this issue after receiving an order that was all clear pouches and stuff sacks.

I DO NOT LIKE the new cloudy urethane!!!!

I received a Stuff Sack with my Swift for Christmas and LOVE it and really want more, so I ordered another regular and a tall Stuff Sack to go with my Swift. I also ordered several clear pouches to use as notion holders.

The cloudy urethane *really* distorts the color and texture of what is in the bag behind it. That means, if I'm in the yarn store and I have to match a yarn, I now have to pull it out of the bag (which runs the risk of it getting tangled or dropped and lost) whereas before I could just compare from the clear bottom of the sack.

Since the cloudy also blurs texture it makes it harder to see smallish items like needles and paperclips and harder to read text (or follow charts) through the clear pouch.

I haven't personally had any problem with the urethane in my bag sticking to itself, but if I had to choose between sticking and high visibility, I'll MUCH rather visibility, since the whole reason I got these was so that I could see at a glance what was inside. I'd like to be able to see at a glance if I have 3 or 5 double-pointed needles in a bag or be able to read patterns off my iPhone while it's clipped to my Swift.

This is the first time I've ever been disappointed with an order from Tom Bihn.

[Darcy]

Hi Polcamilla,

I'm sorry you're unhappy with the new Urethane on your accessories.

It is highly unlikely that we will go back to the previous style of Urethane - most people prefer the new kind to the old kind, and in our day-to-day use, we find it to still be clear/allow items to be visible, though we know that will not be everyone's experience.

You can email us at [email protected] with your order number and we can look to see if we have any of the items you ordered with the previous style of Urethane so we can exchange them.

I hope this helps!