My Top 5 Tom Bihn Bags

[Kirri]

1. Shop bags - use for everything
2. 3D organizer cubes - always have at least one with me
3. Little swift and medium cafe bag - every day carry depending on whether I'm driving a lot or walking
4. accessories - clear organiser wallet, q-kits, pouches, etc...
5. aeronaut - only last because I travel less than every day (unfortunately)

[hillview]

1. SCB for EDC
2. Smart Alec for travel -- can use for overnight or as a carry on
3. Aeronaut30 -- for longer travel work trips
4. WesternFlyer -- overnight or 2 night work trips -- love that I can pack a suit in a travel envelope and shoes in this bag. Fits on the smallest of commuter planes.
5. Assorted accessories (cheating here!) LOVE my key strap for my KEYS. Clear Organizer is my wallet. Travel tray for cords (even around the house). Q-kit for my earpods.

[Robw]

Think this is fascinating to resurface. So much love a few years ago for s19 rather than s25 and also the SA. Wonder how this has changed?

Mine are:

S19 - have the s25 too but s19 perfect size for work edc.

A30 - love this bag. Great for quick trips away

SA - great chuck everything in Type bag. I would love more organisation and 1 more quick access pocket. Need to put a side kick / side effect on it not UMP have gone

A45 - long trips sorted.

S25 - great bag. But there is a sweet spot. Don’t overpack - it goes too egg shaped for me. Love the look of guide edition and ability to strap stuff to outside which stops overpacking.

Would love to add bags not got but keen to try - Guides Pack, TS, MCB and MB.

[kmw]

What a great thread. My top 5 are the bags I use most in all contexts: work and play, around town and traveling, walking, driving, and public transportationing:

1. Shop Bag -- Quintessential workhorse. I originally questioned the cost and benefits when they first came out; then I got one, and now I can't believe how much these bags get used, how much easier they've made our lives, and how we ever managed previously with all those many, many free canvas schwag bags.

2. Large Cafe Bag -- My go-to bag for pretty much everything. The Medium Cafe comes in as a close 6th place on my list, but LCBs will always have my heart.

3. Clear Organizer Wallet -- Light, compact, and can easily carry small items like bobby pins, safety pins, and a pill or two (in addition to money and cards) in a way that's accessible without having to take your wallet out of your pocket. COW + phone + keys = my minimal EDC. I never leave the house without all three.

4. Synapse 19 -- When I need a bottle pocket, am carrying something heavier, or want a little more hands-free-ness than the LCB.

5. Synapse 25 -- When I need to carry a laptop or a ton of crap.

[adalangdon]

Unranked, but the most useful 5 for me are:

- S19: just the right size for laptop + office EDC. Plus point: The morning train is packed with people, and the S19 is slim enough that I won't smash someone's face with it while squeezing into the carriage.
- SSB (black halcyon w/ white grid): great overflow bag for carrying to court - will usually stash it in my trolley bag or tote
- Side Kick: great for short outings and research trips to the library - holds a SSB, foldable umbrella, sunnies, wallet and stationery
- COW: small, neat and practical
- TT (black halcyon w/ white grid): good office organiser and easy to pack. I use it to pack post-its, pens and other stationery for big hearings. Closes quickly and securely and is smooshy enough to be crammed into a corner of an already-stuffed trolley bag. Since it's black, it doesn't look out of place in court.

[Bugsy]

1. Western Flyer - My first TB bag and still favorite even though I mainly use it when traveling. I particularly love it for casual weekend trips and have used it for one bag carry on for long-haul trips.

2 / 3. Daylight Briefcase and Stowaway - The DLBC has been my EDC for a while now, but sometimes I need something a little bigger or more structured, and my new Stowaway has quickly jumped into close contention for daily use. The fact that the latter also makes a good travel bag means it will get lots of use.

4. Shop bag - Didn’t realize just how much I’d prefer this to the countless canvas and cloth shopping bags I’d acquired over the years. Need more of these.

5. Aeronaut 45 - I don’t use this one often at all, but when I do I am always amazed at just how much stuff this can swallow. And I love that it’s easy to get stuff out of when it’s in the overhead bin, either from the side pocket or quickly pulling it down in a way I never would with a rolling carry on.

I’ve also got a Smart Alec that I like but don’t love, a Daylight Backpack that I find just okay, a Field Journal that’s never really been used, and various organizers / accessories, some of which are loved and others that don’t get brought out very often.

[G42]

2 / 3. Daylight Briefcase and Stowaway - The DLBC has been my EDC for a while now, but sometimes I need something a little bigger or more structured, and my new Stowaway has quickly jumped into close contention for daily use. The fact that the latter also makes a good travel bag means it will get lots of use.

Do you use the backpack feature of the Stowaway?

EDIT: Just saw that you chimed in on the Stowaway thread, so ignore this, thanks.

[threeteez]

Honorable mention goes to everything I have in original (white grid) Nordic which is my favorite TB color, therefore special whether frequently used or not.

These are the bags that I use daily:

Double Organizer Pouch with handle loop: everyday wallet and occasional minimalist purse

Travel Cubelet: carries DOB mentioned above plus sunglasses in case, keys, phone, pen, hand sanitizer

Shop bag: both sizes are versatile

Travel Tray: Zest for my packed lunch & Solar on the bedside table for lotions/lip balm. A Sitka small TT sits inside the Solar one for phone/Fit Bit charging cords

Imago: my hands down favorite...love the curved design on the flap. I have the ballistic version & twice have nearly acquired a Plum cordura version which continues to be my holy grail bag.

[tdivcr]

1. Synapse 19. My grab bag for out and back to the gym and around town errands. It also accompanies me occasionally on domestic and international trips.

2. Aeronaut 45. Main international travel bag. This thing often gets stuffed with purchases and gifts on return to the point of being quite a load to carry.

3. Travel tray. With me on every trip, unless I forget, which is only about 5% of the time. Just great as a pocket dump going through airport security, in the hotel, and for rounding up some valuables for the hotel lock box. (I did a review for this on Kevin Kelly's Cool Tools a couple of years ago.) I've frantically had to go back to hotels twice to retrieve it before heading to the airport.

4. Freudian Slip (medium, I think). The Freudian Slip rides in my briefcase as a place to corral pens and miscellaneous tools, and is easily shifted to other bags.

5. Tristar. Good 2-3 day trip bag. I often use it for long weekends at the beach because of light packing. It's just right for this.

Runners up. S25 and LCB. I've used the S25 for trips and it is great, but it is really big so I have not used it as much as I would like. The LCB is also a good grab bag, but is heading for a swap or sale because I'm trying to get rid of stuff. The S19 is the substitute, but the LCB is still different enough to make me think twice about losing it.

[Rocks]

1. Daylight Backpack in original Halcyon/steel. It holds everything I need and can be used as a packing cube or folded in travel bag. It's my Tom Bihn security blanket.

2. Smart Alec. Really tied for 1st. I have had many iterations of this bag and currently possess two. A steel/Iberian one from eBay and a nordic/wasabi brand new one, which I LOVE. The Smart Alec is great for one bag travel. It's comfortable, carries everything, and is easy to pack.
It's a bit hard to live out of though.

3. which brings me to The Aeronaut 30/45. Great for one bag travel. You can live out of it at your destination. I currently have a navy/northwest sky Aeronaut 30. But I prefer an under packed Aeronaut 45 to a packed Aeronaut 30.

3. A tie for third is the small shop bag. They're colorful and packable and the handles are the best thing ever.

5. a surprise even to me, the packing cube shoulder bag. They fit in almost every bag as a packing cube and are great minimalist day bags.

honorable mention goes to my wallet, which is a mars red/canyon Side Effect that gets transferred between bags and gets used every day.

[luvdabags]

1. Pop Tote-used as giant pit to carry EDC stuff (Side Kick, book, and other people's stuff that they pawn off on me) on daily basis when needed.

2. Side Kick-carries wallet (OP wallet), cash, coins in OP, phone, chapstick, earbuds, notebook, pen, tissues and goes from bag to bag or as stand alone.

3. Moveable Feast/DLBP-These stay in my car. MF has books I need as reference for work, and on each side, needed car bits-umbrella, windshield scraper, extra gloves, box of tissues, pens, notebook, CD case-yes, I am old. DLBP has my quick change of clothes/shoes/sunhat for emergencies. Kids stuff is in a Vera Bradley tote.

4. Makers Bag-work EDC. Holds SK, notebooks, books, phone, keys, pens, stethoscope, snacks.

5. DLBC-Good non-work EDC if PT is too bulky or hands-free is needed. Lightweight in Halcyon. Went with me to UK last year, so always will have place of honor for that!