Mr. Lentz Leather Work Bag review

Let me begin by saying hello, my name is Ryan and I an a leather addict.  Admitting I have an obsession to leather products is about as far as I am willing to go in this 12 step program so with that out of the way, let’s talk about Mr. Lentz and his Work Bag.

Opening the box, the olfactory hue of quality vegetable tanned leather reminds me of all the reasons I love leather products, especially vegetable tanned leather.  Upon first inspection of the bag, I can immediately see that these were designed and made by a true craftsman with an understanding of what is important in high quality leather bags that are meant to serve a utilitarian function.  The leather as I mentioned is 100% veg tanned leather that is made in the USA and has a wonderfully finished and smooth exterior with an unlined natural interior. The rivets are nickel over solid copper and the buckles are stainless steel, no pot metal or plastic here, the hardware is as solid as it gets.  Quality hardware is important for both the longevity of the product and rust/corrosion resistance and Mr. Lentz did not cut any corners when it came to selecting this aspect of the bag either.

As someone with an admitted leather problem, I look for signs that the designer wanted to make something that will last and also be appealing to the eye.  There is no stitching on this bag whatsoever.  All of the seams, straps, buckles, and handle are riveted, producing a sturdy product with a very clean and unique look.  There is an optional shoulder strap for this bag for an additional cost but the one I am reviewing didn’t come with that.  If your intent is to carry this bag for a long period of time, carry a bag full of steel tools or just want the freedom of having two free hands, the shoulder strap may be a good investment for you.  For me, I don’t anticipate packing this with anything that I would need the strap for and with a bag this size it just seems at home in my hand.  The hardware to attach the strap to the bag is not included if you do not add the strap at the time of purchase.  You can request that the hardware be put on the bag if you think you want to buy the strap later but this would require contacting Mr. Lentz or making a customization request in the order, he even said you can send it back to have that option added, what a guy!  If you are on the fence, I would lean towards buying the strap , you can always disconnect it and store it when not in use.

One of the first things I noticed about this bag is that the entire body (not including handles, straps and buckles) of the bag is made from only three pieces of leather.  The flap extends all the way around the back of the bag and back up the front, creating a cylinder of continuous leather when closed.  The two end caps are separate pieces of leather that are securely riveted in place.  The continuous piece that makes up the body of the bag is a sign of quality in a leather bag.  The fewer seams a bag has, the stronger it will be, having fewer places to fail.

The size of this little duffel/work bag is fairly unique, in a very good way.  At 14.5″L x 7″D x 6″H, I was able to pack it with more tools than I would ever need for a project around the house with room to spare.  Other uses for this bag could include an overnight bag, an emergency kit for your car or home or even the coolest lunch box if you carry your lunch to work.

With a retail price of $280 (+$50 if you want the shoulder strap), the Work Bag is not inexpensive but within the first minute in your hands, you will see where your money has gone.  Straight into a quality leather bag that will outlast you, and if it doesn’t the 100 year warranty is there to have your back.

Proes: Made from the highest quality materials, rugged and sturdy design, simple yet handsome appearance, unique sized bag to meet your needs for short trips or around the house/shop/ranch/whatever, small business so you can expect a rapid response to questions and he will work with you on helping make your bag right for you, free shipping in the USA, HANDMADE IN THE USA, 100 year warranty.

Cons: The $280 (+$50 for optional shoulder strap) price tag may push the Work Bag into the luxury category for some, one color of leather is offered currently (but it is beautiful!), high quality leather products like these are very addictive…seriously, you’ve been warned so please don’t go writing angry letters to Julie demanding justice because you developed a leather problem because of me.

Overall I couldn’t be happier with this little duffel bag.  I am looking forward to using it in all those situations where other leather bags are just too big and to just get another piece of leather into my daily life.    He offers a number of wallets and accessories if you want to start with something small to check out first and also offers a larger duffel that is a sized up version of the Work Bag and also a briefcase.  I highly recommend this bag to anyone interested in quality leather goods that are meant to be used.

Source: The sample for this review was provided by Mr. Lentz Leather Goods. Visit their site for more info.

 

Product Information

Price: $280 (+$50 for optional shoulder strap)
Manufacturer: Mr. Lentz Leather Goods
Pros:
  • 100 yr warranty
  • Quality materials
Cons:
  • Price could be considered expensive to some

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Mr. Lentz Leather Work Bag review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 29, 2017 at 8:00 am.

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This fitness tracker may soon be iconic, the Fitbit Ionic

The fitness tracker wars seem to be heating up again. Misfit is releasing a new fitness tracker this summer and now Fitbit is releasing the Ionic fitness tracker which is designed to cut into the Apple Watch market. 

With a built in heart rate monitor, sleep tracking, built in GPS, and water resistance of up to 50 meters, the Ionic is setting itself up to be a top contender in the fitness tracker market. Powered by a Lithium-polymer battery, the Ionic has a 4+ day battery life with the ability to fully recharge in about two hours.

The Ionic will sync with Mac OS X 10.6 and up, Apple iPhone 4S and later, iPad 3 generation and later, and Windows 10 devices. Fitbit is taking pre-orders for the Ionic with the base model starting at $299.99. With the fitness tracker wars heating up let’s see if Fitbit can land the first decisive shot.

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This fitness tracker may soon be iconic, the Fitbit Ionic originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 28, 2017 at 12:00 pm.

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The KLAX Axe head is an EDC multi-tool for lumberjacks and lumberjills

The next time you go out into the forest to camp or hike, leave your axe at home and just take the KLAX Lumberjack Head from Klecker Knives.

The KLAX head is a stainless steel axe that does more than chop down trees. It features additional tools like a knife blade, hammer head, hex wrenches, bottle opener, ruler, and more.

The KLAX Head uses a special clamp so you can attach it to a handle that you supply yourself. That means that you can pack the KLAX without the handle and scrounge around for a limb when you need to use it. This saves space in your pack. Of course, you’ll need to find a limb to use it 🙂

You can read more about the KLAX Lumberjack Axe Head at kleckerknives.com and you can order one for $149.99 from Amazon.

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The KLAX Axe head is an EDC multi-tool for lumberjacks and lumberjills originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 28, 2017 at 11:00 am.

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SmartQ Lightning pen drive review

The SmartQ lightning pen drive is a small flash drive that plugs into an iPhone’s lighting port. It can be used to back up all of your important data, including calendar, contacts, and photos. Let’s take a look at how it did for me! 

The SmartQ comes in various space sizes and colors. I received a 64GB drive with gold finish.

It comes with the drive, a short A-Male to Micro-B USB cable, and a user manual.

The SmartQ comes with a small plastic cap to cover the lightning port when the drive isn’t in use.

Here’s the bottom of the SmartQ drive

There’s a small loop to use if you want to hang the drive off of a key chain.

The SmartQ is here on my iPhone 7 Plus, and as you can see it sticks out a bit. I don’t mind this as I have a case on my phone and there’s still room to use the drive.

After downloading the PowerDrive app in the iOS App Store, you can plug in the SmartQ drive. It will prompt for access.

Inside the app, you can select Calendar, Contacts, or Photos to back up.  It’s very easy to do and backs up in under a minute or two.

There’s also an option to use Touch ID or just a passcode to unlock the app, which is nice to keep your files private on the SmartQ drive.

In the PowerDrive’s finder, you can look for your files under Movies, Music, and Documents. You can also see how much space is left on your phone, and on the SmartQ. If you need to find your backed up photos, just use the PowerDrive finder to see them. It displays easy to view thumbnails.

You can also view the files on the SmartQ drive on your computer. On my Mac, It showed up as an Untitled drive.  If you had a password in your app, you just need to give it temporary access via the PowerDrive app, and the files will mount in the finder (Or Windows Explorer) as any other USB drive.

I really like the SmartQ for the simple usage it has for backing up files and using it as a thumb drive. It’s convenient and great to use as a second backup method for your phone, with the added security of using a password on the drive.

Source: The sample for this review was provided by SmartQ. Please visit the product page on Amazon for more information.

 

Product Information

Price: $39.95
Manufacturer: SmartQ
Retailer: Amazon
Pros:
  • Password protected
  • Extra backup for the iPhone
Cons:
  • None

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SmartQ Lightning pen drive review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 28, 2017 at 10:00 am.

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This Bluetooth speaker uses the sun to blast Taylor Swift’s Look What You Made Me Do

Chances are that you own a Bluetooth speaker. I bet there’s also a good chance that your Bluetooth speaker’s battery is dead when you want to use it to play some of your favorite tunes. With the E.TUNES Bluetooth Speaker from Renogy, that won’t be a problem for you ever again because the E.TUNES is powered by the sun.

The E.TUNES Bluetooth 4.2 speaker is perfect for use outdoors it has a built in solar panel that will keep the speaker playing by converting the sun’s rays into power.

The speaker has a IPX6 rating, which means it’s splash proof so a little rain won’t hurt it. The E.TUNES also features an LED flashlight with an SOS mode, and a 5,000 mAH rechargeable battery that you can use to recharge other devices like your smartphone.

The Renogy E.TUNES Portable Solar Power Bluetooth Speaker is priced at $134.99 from Amazon.

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This Bluetooth speaker uses the sun to blast Taylor Swift’s Look What You Made Me Do originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 28, 2017 at 9:00 am.

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