Daylight halcyon vs. ballistic?

[aroc]

I'm deciding between the halcyon or ballistic material for the Daylight pack. I intend to use it when I travel, packing inside by bigger pack and taking it out to use as my daily carry at my destination.

I have a Synik 22 in halcyon that I *absolutely love*. The material stays clean, is nice and light, and I like the feel. But because the Daylight doesn't have anywhere near as much structure as the Synik, I'm concerned that using the halcyon version as my daily carry for many days on end at my destination is going to be a bad experience. It *seems* the ballistic version offers additional structure that would be better here.

Anybody have any experience with both versions that they can share?

[bchaplin]

I have a Daylight Backpack in Halcyon and don't really use it day-to-day, because it doesn't offer enough structure to keep everything from slumping to the bottom. (However, it's great for certain uses, it stays around for those rare circumstances when it's perfect for what I need, usually carrying a few large, flat items.) I'd often considered buying one in ballistic for this reason, but then the Paragon came along and I use that instead. Similarly, with that bag, the ballistic version works great for me, but I then bought one in Halcyon, and while I like the color and feel, I don't find myself using it regularly. The Paragon is even more of an unstructured rectangle than the DLBP, and the slightly firmer fabric helps everything to 'stack' neatly if I plan it right, so I'm not carrying a football.

OTOH, the product photo of someone carrying the Taiga Paragon shows it holding its shape, so it must really depend on how it is packed.

So this isn't exactly an answer to your question, but a similar comparison; hope that helps.

[aroc]

Thanks bchaplin ! It seems to be like the ballistic is the way to go then, including for the Paragon if I take that route. I'm often at my destinations long enough + traveling around the area enough that I want my destination day pack to have solid structure. I'd just bring my Synik 22 if it wasn't so big and harder to pack into a bigger back for single bag travel.

I appreciate the insight on this

[sungolds]

Seems like you've already made a decision, but just putting in my two cents - ballistic is the way to go, IMO. I have both versions of the DLBP and although I love using my halcyon pack because of the feel of the fabric, it just doesn't feel like I can throw it around as much as I can my ballistic pack. I don't really throw my bags around, esp TB bags, but I hope you get the gist

[BigBadD]

I often pack a Daylight Backpack in an Aeronaut to use at a travel destination. Yes, the Daylight Backpack is a bit of a compromise compared to a Synik or other backpack with more features. But it’s much lighter and lies almost flat when packed, so far more practical. Like previous replies, my preference is also for ballistic material.

[bchaplin]

I should clarify my post above... I was comparing the two versions of the Paragon because that's what I happen to have. But I wasn't trying to say that the Paragon was preferable to the DLBP; it's just my choice for an EDC because it fits my unique carry requirements in terms of getting back and forth to my job these days.

In fact, for traveling, and overall packability, I'd think the Daylight Backpack might be the better choice.

[gadgets]

I have a ballistic DLBP, and I regret; I should have bought a halcyon. I don't know why "structure" is such an important factor for DLBP that has simple straps with no padding; You throw in a few stuffs in it and carry very lightly. If you carry lots of stuff in DLBP to the level of worring about the structure, I think you chose a wrong bag. You should have brought a Paragon, Luminary, or even a Synapse, in my opinion.

[aroc]

gadgets I certainly would prefer to bring a Paragon or Synik when traveling, but they take up a lot of room in the main pack when doing single bag travel. The DLBP seems like it would fit much better given how much less beefy it is.

I used to use the "Tortuga Packable Daypack" for this. It's about the same weight material as the TB halcyon, but much more water resistant and "crinkly". Because it was so thin, I found it felt like walking around with a plastic shopping bag on my back – droopy and everything falling into the middle more than I'd like. It *did* have a bit more structure to the back panel. Though I wouldn't compare it to any "real" back-panel like those from TB, it was much thinner and flimsier, it did help give the bag a lot more structure. I couldn't imagine using it without that slight addition to the back.

So it feels to me like the ballistic DLBP might give more of that "structure" to the overall bag, so things aren't quite falling into the middle like a plastic shopping bag. I may be wrong here though, and ultimately may have to make the additional room in my main pack for a Paragon or Luminary.

Really, the best approach would be to reduce my main pack size to something smaller such that it can become my day pack at my destination after I remove my items – but I'm not quite at the point of being able to do serious travel with only, say, a 25L bag. Maybe one day! :P

[gadgets]

So it feels to me like the ballistic DLBP might give more of that "structure" to the overall bag.

I understand what you mean. What I meant by struture is "structure" structure. For example, Pilot is more "structured" than Maker's bag due to their structural differences. So, halcyon pilot will be more "structured" than ballistic MCB. The DLBP doesn't have any structure with no padded back. 525 ballistic is still quite pliant without any structure supporting it. I say this because you said you like Halcyon. If I like Halcyon more than ballistic (I do), then I would rather go with halcyon for DLBP. I think halcyon works better for the purpose of DLBP (for my use). I am not sure how much "structure" the ballistic will give over halcyon for DLBP... probably not much. It'll just make it harder to stash into a bag. Remember ballistic will also get more pliant as you use more. Hey, you can buy both.

[aroc]

gadgets ah yeah, that makes to me! Also, you're right that I should remember that the ballistic will become more pliant over time too. It sounds like DLPB is quite well liked, so I wouldn't be surprised if I ended up buying both anyway. 🙃