Hi all!
I'm posting for the first time. I'm very enamoured with these bags, however I'm having issues with the Synapse 19. I got this to replace my current daily backpack which is a Timbuk2 Showdown. It's a 22L pack and is about 17ish inches long. For reference I am 5'5". I don't carry a lot of stuff daily but well maybe I do. Sometimes I have to lug my laptop to and from work, but usually the largest items I carry are a couple bottles (1 32oz nalgene, 1 ~18oz thermos) and a u-lock for my bike. It is often a bit chilly in the morning so I wear a light jacket in the morning that I have to stuff in the bag for the super hot ride home in the afternoon. Theoretically this does not seem like too much for the Synapse 19 and I got it after researching and reading quite a few reviews.
As soon as I got the bag I moved over everything from my current bag. It fit okay but it felt so heavy. Putting it on, it felt very uncomfortable. I tried different arrangements, tightening the straps to hold it high, or lowering the bag. I tried with the sternum and hip belts and without. I even adjusted how items were placed in the bag. I compared back and forth between my old pack and the new one. I kept taking heavy items out of the Synapse to see if it felt better. At one point I had about 10lbs in the Showdown and 5 lbs in the Synapse and the Synapse still felt heavier. The Showdown has a stiffer back so it seems to have a sort of soft frame in it. It holds it's shape at the back very well, though it gets really lumpy at the front when stuffed.
Okay so my last resort is I have ordered a frame for the Synapse to see if that helps. Do you think this will make a good difference? Has anyone had this issue with the bag feeling heavy? It must have something to do with where the straps fall on me.
Ultimately do you think this bag might not work for me? I've read through reviews that the Synapse 25 seems too large for most folks and I'm a smaller person so I imagine that would be the same for me. Do I need to hold out for the Synik 22? I really want to make this bag work because it's so beautiful and I love it.