Tom Bihn Aeronaut

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With my other half living over in Belgrade and a seasonal spate of wanderlust I seem to find myself taking many more flights than I used to. This inevitably results in time spent hanging around at the airport with little to do other than play with my various bits of tech or people watch. It was while doing the later that I started paying attention to what other people use to transport their belongings though the airport, and I started to evaluate what I use. Sometimes one can’t avoid taking a large bag that has to be checked in, but for a lot of my trips a carry on bag would suffice, but my problem was that none of my bags were either  big enough to absorb all my stuff (even my lovely Millican Dave rucksack!) or either small enough to pass as hand luggage. I first noticed the Tom Bihn Aeronaut while at Heathrow, and had to do some investigative googling to track down the brand as, not being sold in the UK, I hadn’t come across it before. I am very glad I did.

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The Tom Bihn Aeronaut seems to have an almost cult online following, and in the flesh its easy to see why. First off though this bag is not cheap, throw in the fact that it has to be imported from the USA, and it cost me a total of around £250 including £32 for VAT/ Import fees, $45 for shipping and £20 for the Absolute shoulder strap. For the full specs see the Tom Bihn website, but in brief the bag is a rucksack/ duffel / carry on suitcase. It is made of  1050 denier ballistic nylon on the outside and 200 denier dyneema rip-stop fabric on the inside, which makes for a very tough bag. It comes in a whole load of colour options both inside and out. Its made in Seattle, so has that coveted (in the US at least!) made in the USA label. It is currently only available direct from Tom Bihn, but they do make shipping it over to the UK extremely easy ($45!!).

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It has one main compartment that can be un-popped to include the space made available by the two side pockets, as well as a zipped ticket/ book pocket and a zipped pocket for the backpack straps to stow away in if you don’t want to use them. It also has an internal mesh pocket with a keys clip within the lid. All the zips are very heavy duty YKK and are seem sealed, so their would be no fears if you did want to check it in for any reason. The Absolute shoulder strap is a fantastic addition, and remarkably seems very effective at spreading the bags weigh effortlessly across the shoulders. The bag also has tough grab handles at each end to make shifting it around in overhead lockers or from the back of a car a breeze. The suitcase style carry handles have a well padded grip for comfort.

The overall layout of the bag seems great; it has the versatility of a rucksack for carrying, but has an opening and the ease of packing of a duffel bag. It is a total of 40L of space, so more than enough for a weeks packing (with a little thought!). I’ve not had it long and have yet to test it outside the UK, but I tried a number of packing scenarios and it has swallowed up everything I’ve thrown at it without any problems. It is easy to carry in any one of its guises and happily fulfils my previously identified criteria. Don’t just take my word for it though; a simple Google search will come up with a plethora of reviews and comparisons, and I firmly believe that you will not be disappointed if you do take the plunge! Another great company, another great product!

I have trips to Istanbul, Copenhagen, Split, and no doubt Belgrade coming up, so will be putting the bag through its travel paces, and will of course report back!

Swiss Army Knife

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Victorinox is perhaps the most, or at least one of the most famous knife manufacturers in the world. I was looking for a knife/ multi tool that could be carried discretely with little bulk or weight for everyday pocket use. There are many many options out there not only from the likes of Gerber, Leatherman and Wenger, but from within the SAK family too. Deciding what it is you need it for is perhaps key when faced with so many options.
I’ve owned a Victorinox Swiss champ for more than 12 years and its usefulness has been beyond doubt, but it’s weight proves to be a little more than I’m comfortable with for everyday pocket-able use.  I set about working out which tools I had used most over the years, and therefore which tools I needed and which I could do without. I whittled it down (please excuse the turn of phrase) to the Victorinox Climber. It has two blades, one big and one small, a pair of scissors, a multi purpose hook, a can opener/ small flat head, a bottle opener/ large flat head, a corkscrew (including mini flathead screwdriver), a reamer (don’t ask me!?), a key ring, tweezers and a toothpick. I opted for the black version, to add a bit of distinction between it and my faithful red Swiss champ.
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I could not have been happier; it’s size and weight is similar to a single AA torch and therefore it is truly pocketable without loosing any of my most used tools. It has the sturdiness and feel that all Victorinox SAK’s have and I have no doubt that it will be invaluable on the trip or even back in the UK. I had initially overlooked SAK’s for my trip to Africa, and am glad I revisited them. In my opinion, the perfect pocket knife. If by some spasm of the universe you don’t have one, then i think it’s about time you got one.
I purchased mine from Amazon.co.uk for £20 including delivery, but they are widely available all over the high street as well.

Millican

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Based in the Lake District, Millican inspire an image of an outdoor lifestyle of explorers and adventurers (Like the Lake District legend Millican Dalton they are named after). They talk of a simpler, slower way of life; analogue to the worlds digital, as if harking back to the Victorian era. Much like Finisterre, they have taken the quality and transparency approach over the more technical mass appeal approach adopted by many large manufacturers. The stories behind all their bags and the materials and processes used to build them are a big part of what they are offering.

The first bag I purchased a couple of years ago was Matthew the daypack. It weighs in at 1200gms and has a divided main compartment which is closed with a draw string. There are two concealed front pockets and a zipped area in the lid and lastly two outer side pockets that double as bottle holders. It has a padded and meshed back, as well as a leather grab handle.

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They may seem low tech compared to the competition, but a lot of thought has gone into the design. They are made of cotton canvas, and although not totally waterproof, are tough as anything else you will find out there, and have included an inbuilt raincover at the base of the bag just in case (They do come from the lake district after all!). The popper fasteners take a bit of getting used to, but make for a satisfying pop once you do. The front opening zip adds great flexibility to allow access to all the bags contents.

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The bag has been all over the place with me. Its spent hours and hours on trains, planes and automobiles, its explored tombs and deserts as well as festivals and picnics. It has aged wonderfully and has taken all things thrown at it with ease. My one gripe would be that the weight of the bag when fully laden can be a tad high, but i would say that is probably a fault of my packing rather than anything Millican could have avoided.

I would like to think that I am a discerning consumer, sometimes painfully so, and I know I have spent far too long researching, examining and using rucksacks of all shapes and sizes, but I was blown away by the feeling of craftsmanship and esthetic quality that is part of Millicans bags. They aspirationally talk of being able to leave pieces to their grand children, but my fantastic experiences with Matthew the daypack inspired me to buy Dave the Rucksack for my Father, which I think says it all.

Domke F-5XB. (The first of many photography related posts).

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Domke have been making solid and dependable bags for many years, so they seemed like a good choice to protect my camera kit during 6 months on the road in Africa. Compared to much of the competition they seem pretty pricey, but its clear why once you handle them. Similarly priced brands like Thinktank and Billingham also make fantastic ranges with many of the same features, so I think it’s just a matter of personal taste and preference.

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All this plus the camera and kit lens (not shown as i’m using them to take the picture!)

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Unassuming appearence is perfect for Africa (Perhaps not in Black though!)

The perceived wisdom seems to be that in certain environments an obvious camera bag is a hinderance, so I wanted a bag that was small enough to stick in a backpack, but also that would blend well as a stand alone bag too. I went for the Domke F -5XB in black. I also removed the Domke logo from the front as I felt this ruined its stealthy, not necessarily a camera bag, appearance. This bag is to house my Olympus OMD- EM5, which along with 3 lenses makes up my main expedition camera gear (I will go into more detail in a later posts), and it easily all fits in with room for the HLD -6 battery grip a couple of additional batteries and a host of other small accessories too. The version I went for is not the toughest Domke ‘rugged wear’ version, but I felt that the ballistic nylon would easily be up to the task.

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The proudly placed ‘Made in the USA’ label may or may not matter to you.

Its stood up well in the first 6 months, and has been with me on a number of trips. Much like the personally much admired Steve Huff it seems like I have found my perfect bag.  Lets hope it lives up to that billing!