It’s been a cold, wet, miserable month here in Pennsylvania. But that’s OK! We’ve got our hands on the Flowfold Stormproof Limited Conductor, a duffle bag that fears no weather. We’re taking advantage of the awful weather to put it to the test.

It’s raining. We’re getting soggy. But our gear isn’t. To the review!

What is it?

It’s a 40-liter duffle bag designed for travel and outdoor activities, made with ultralight high-tech materials for durability and weather resistance.

Hardware specs

• 12” High by 22” Wide by 12” Tall
• 40 Liters capacity
• 12.7 Ounces (15 Ounces including the shoulder strap)
• X-Pac water-resistant fabric
• YKK water-resistant zippers

Design and features

The Stormproof Limited Conductor, like all Flowfold products, is all about simple & functional design. The form factor is a barrel-shaped duffle bag, 12″ in diameter and 22″ long. There’s a single main compartment accessed by a full-length top zipper and a 12” by 12” zippered outer pocket on the front face for your smaller items. Clean lines and a two-tone finish add a touch of sophistication to the bag. I especially like the color combo in the heathered gray and black model I’m testing.

X-pac has become quite popular in carry products, and is the primary material of choice here. Initially designed for sailing, the layered ripstop fabric provides excellent resistance to water, abrasion, and tears. It’s a deceptive material because it is so thin and light that it feels almost insubstantial… until you put it to the test and experience it’s durability. Combined with YKK water-resistant zips and reinforced seams throughout the bag, you get excellent water resistance as well. Like all Flowfold products, the construction is also excellent with refined touches like zipper garages, nylon cord pulls, chunky hardware, and reinforcement at key stress points. It’s a great build and made in the USA. 

The bag includes a pair of carry handles and a shoulder strap, both made from webbed nylon. The carry handles are folded over and reinforced to provide some extra grip. The shoulder strap is adjustable and removable. It’s all simple, rugged and well-assembled without adding any extra bulk to the bag.

Performance

Simple, lightweight and durable. Ready for action. That’s the name of the game with the Flowfold Conductor Limited Duffle bag.

If you like wide open spaces, you’ll be very happy with the Conductor’s 40-liter capacity. For my test loadout, I loaded the Conductor up with two pairs of sneakers, two pairs of jeans, a sweater, a sweatshirt, and a couple of t-shirts with room to spare for toiletries and accessories. You could live out of this bag for a week. The outboard compartment is great for your wallet, keys, and other small items.It also meets carry-on specifications, which is another plus if you’re not planning on checking a bag. 

I took advantage of the lousy weather on a recent Saturday afternoon, loading up the bag and plunking it down on my front walkway to put its weather resistance to the test. 30 minutes of steady soaking rain and both compartments stayed bone dry… even with water pooling on the zipper line! That’s ideal for camping or other outdoor activities where you’re trusting your bag to keep your gear dry. The lightweight is an added plus: even with the shoulder strap attached, the total weight of the bag is less than a pound. Impressive.

Speaking of the shoulder strap, that would be the one area that could use some improvement. Nylon webbed straps tend to slide around on your shoulder. While the strap is wide enough to help with weight distribution, a bit of padding would be nice to keep the bag in place during maneuvers. I’ll probably swipe one from one of my other bags when I use this for travel. 

Finally, it’s important to note that the straightforward design requires you to bring your own organization. Other than the front pocket, there’s no internal compartmentalization or padding to protect your gear. This may be an issue for frequent flyers who live out of their carry-ons. Personally, I’m OK with it. I tend to travel with my tech in a separate bag anyway, and organizer pouches or packing cubes will do just fine for sorting out the small stuff. 

What I like

• Simple, streamlined design
• Ultra-lightweight
• Excellent durability and water resistance
• Sized for carry-on use

What needs to be improved

• Lack of internal compartments requires you to bring your own organization if that’s your thing
• Would like a pad on the shoulder strap for stabilization

Final thoughts

I continue to be a fan of Flowfold’s products. The Stormproof Limited Conductor duffle represents everything I like about the brand: simple, functional, good-looking, and tough enough to handle a bit of weather or rough travels. With a 40 liter capacity and ultra lightweight, it’s great for travel and overnight trips. If you’re looking for a simple & durable duffle bag, I’d highly recommend checking it out.

Price: $98.00
Where to buy: Flowfold.
Source: The sample of this product was provided by Flowfold.

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Tagged: Bags

Flowfold Stormproof Limited Conductor Duffle review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on March 14, 2018 at 4:00 pm.

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When I first learned of Waterfield’s recently released Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall, my first and only thought was…that bag is so me. I do my best to workout as often as I can, especially those days I’m in the office. Making lunch a mandatory exercise time not only makes me healthier but is an excellent break in my hectic day to refocus and destress. The Atlas is designed to (stylishly) enable the tech carrying, modern day fitness folks of the world the ability to transport everything they need in a single EDC bag from their laptop to their gym shoes. So let’s see if Waterfield Design hits the mark with their new Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall.

Typically I carry all my needed stuff into the office in a number of different bags: Colonel Littleton Navigator bag as my EDC tech bag, old nylon Air Force helmet bag for my workout gear, and reused plastic bags for lunch. Occasionally I even have to carry additional bags/containers if the office is having an event, definitely adding up to a very cumbersome commute. Being able to smartly consolidate all my cr@p into a single bag is definitely advantageous and desirable.

What is it?

The Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall is a combination briefcase, EDC/gear bag, and athletic duffle all in one, that transitions seamlessly from office to gym and back. The Atlas has a padded tech/laptop compartment for all your EDC gear, a separate space to hold clothes, and a collapsible, zippered area to store your shoes.

Design and features

The Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall is available in one size (16″ (L) x 10″ (H) x 8.5″ (W)) that is divided into two compartments: the Briefcase and the Athletic Workout sections. The bag is made in the USA from ballistic nylon (or waxed canvas), reenforced and trimmed in full grain leather.

The Briefcase section opens fully enabling the front face of the Holdall to lay flat allowing for easy access to its four slipper pockets. The tech portion of the bag has 2 padded pockets engineered to protect a laptop and a tablet plus two additional pockets for stashing power cords, pens, and other EDC gear. There is a dedicated pen slot between the two smaller pockets. The padded laptop slipper pocket fits up to 15” laptops and the tablet slipper pocket fits up to 13” tablets. The two vertical pockets are deep and large enough to hold a decent amount of stuff. The tablet space held my 12″ MacBook very nicely. You could also transport paperwork in this compartment as well.

The Athletic Workout compartment can fit a fair amount of workout gear, work clothes, towel, shaving kit, etc. Both interior compartments are lined in WaterField’s smooth, finely-woven bright gold fabric.

The separate, collapsible shoe pocket can hold a pair of gym shoes or work shoes…here you can see my size 13 running shoes fitting inside. This separation keeps any wetness or dirt from getting on your clothes or tech gear.

Specifications:

Materials:

• 1050 Denier black Ballistic nylon or brown Waxed Canvas
• Full-grain leather accents

Dimensions & Weight:

• One size: 16″ (L) x 10″ (H) x 8.5″ (W)
• Ballistic 3.1 lbs. / Waxed Canvas 3.4 lbs.

It can transport a lot of gear…

• 12″ MacBook
• 10.5″ iPad Pro
• Jabra Sport Elite true wireless earbuds
• Shinola Manhattan pocket knife
• Surefire pen
• Work identification
• Bits/cable zipper bag
• MiFi
• Running shorts / DryFit t-shirt /socks/ shoes
• Sunglasses
• Keys

Even with all this gear, the Waterfield Altas Holdall can still accommodate my lunch & snacks.

Build and material quality:

The ballistic nylon, full grain leather, zippers, rivets, and stitching are all very well done and “built to last”. In addition to strength, the leather adds a nice look and style to the bag. All of the zippers are low profile, covered, and waterproof. The entire bag holds up to liquids very well, (as the story goes…) I accidentally spilled my coffee all over the bag and it cleaned up like new with a damp rag.

The main face of the Altas has a quick-access, zippered pocket engineered to hold smartphone, keys, business & misc cards, wallet, pocketknife, pens, etc. The inside of this exterior pocket has a dedicated, lined smartphone pocket and key fob for easy retrieval of your cell and/or keys.

The open-topped, end pocket can transport a large water bottle for convenient access.

The bottom of the Altas Holdall is completely covered in leather for greater resistance to wear and tear.

The Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall can be transported in several ways. Waterfield includes a removable suspension strap for carrying the bag over the shoulder or crossbody. The bag rides very comfortably over the shoulder, hanging at hip height.

The reenforced, built-in handle carries comfortably as well. The handle is wrapped in the same full grain leather as the rest of the Holdall, for a solid grip and greater durability. With all my gear, the Athletic Holdall is not all that heavy, especially considering it is approximately three pounds lighter than my all-leather Colonel Littleton Navigator & old helmet bag combo.

The back of the Altas has a pass-through slot for slipping onto wheeled suitcase handles.

Positives

• Excellent material quality and craftsmanship
• Well designed/thought out
• Stylish, professional design
• Wheeled-suitcase handle pass-through
• Relatively lightweight

Negatives

• Expensive

The Waterfield Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall available in:

• black ballistic nylon with chocolate leather
• black ballistic nylon with black leather
• brown waxed canvas with chocolate leather

The waxed canvas variant weighs in at 3.4 lbs and ballistic nylon ones, 3.1 lbs. The Altas Holdall meets most airline personal carry-on item size requirements and makes for an excellent overnight bag on the fly.

Waterfield Designs backs all of their products with a (limited) lifetime warranty.

Final thoughts

I really like the Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall from all points of view: quality, function, and design. Waterfield has done an excellent job engineering this bag for the athletic urban warrior, creating a professional looking EDC bag for all your tech and gym gear alike. This bag functions as advertised, a single solution to replace all your other bags…doing so in polished style. While admittedly expensive, the Altas Holdall not only gets the job done, it does so with the looks for both office and Club.

Price: $429
Where to buy: Waterfield Designs.
Source: The sample of this product was provided by Waterfield Designs.

The post Waterfield Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall review appeared first on The Gadgeteer.

Filed in categories: Reviews

Tagged: Bags

Waterfield Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on March 11, 2018 at 11:00 am.

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