Yussss I’m glad this review finally happened! The first thing I commented on when it went to Kickstarter was “Please get Chase Reeves to review this bag and send him one!”
Looks to be an amazing bag -- just looking, their best one yet. I wish they had the more "fabric" finish, like the black camo, in plain black, too. Meanwhile, I think the black one which you less enjoy, tactilely, is a bit less expensive. I miss the location of the smoke sac. Bring it back.
I was literally yelling “Where’s the snacks?” and my husband asked if I needed him to go to the store. “Umm no, I’m talking to Chase.” “Of course you are.” Another great video!
thanks for the review Chase. I wish this was up when their kickstarter was running, I’m kind of regretting canceling that and went with another bag that was timing in parallel. This is a great video that showcases that their pledge page and now their product page was insufficient. Love from Malaysia. 😻
that backpack strap design is genius, i don't doubt well see many bags rip that off in the coming months. it's one those things that you don't realize was obvious until you see it.
You ratcheted the production quality to mad levels brother. Keep it going. Interesting bag, looks really well made and designed. I love the backpack that can be a real briefcase. Don't ever want that bag to become a travel bag. Whatever that category is (think Silicon Valley EDC to East coast corporate meeting) I want real options in that crossover category.
I stay focus (hypnotise?) during all the video because of this amazing stuff and you ! Great job. And keeping me focus with my Middle English is more than a challenge. 😎
+1 to the Peak packing cubes. I usually use the big one ("medium" by their assessment) for all my travel with my Minaal carry-on, but I just got the "small" packing cube as for my next trip, I'd like to fit my Peak 5L sling in my bag to use as a camera packing cube/sling for my daily carry. I think it'll be pretty doable to travel with the small one and I'm excited to get even more minimal in my travel set up.
Love your reviews man. However, i have to say that "they are really thinking" doesn't have any sense since they haven't included a water bottle dedicated spot. In 2020 that doesn't make any sense at all
I got the July pre-order for the bag. I needed a waterproof bag to deal with the rainy seasons in SE Asia on my bike commute. Not many choices with a cool look like this bag. Was going to get the MW Rhake, but it has too many external crannies to retain water. Imma use the hell out of this bag when it arrives.
Lovely intro! That onnit stick gave me a terrible John C Reilly in Scorcese's Gangs of New York flashback, no lie. The bag is goregeous, I was sold by the thumbnail. (I write my comments in the first minutes usually.)
So...wait... I always that you were being euphemistic when mentioning "business papers." Threw a curve ball at me in this video. But yeah...I guess imma need a tech pouch, too. It just now clicked.
Glad to see that Black Ember included a velcro to the pocket above the pen pockets in the front organization compartment. The 3 other pockets in that compartment are still very flimsy to be useful in backpack mode though. I was the first to complain, about items dropping out of that compartment as it was upside down in backpack mode, in their kickstarter campaign. Look forward to them solving another design issue of making their backpacks lighter when empty, for their future backpacks.
Quite an interesting review. Considering the versatility and thoughtfulness of Black Ember Carrey, could you per chance review the Black Ember Dex 45L Travel 3 Way Carry Travel Bag
The outside access pocket at the front needs two way zippers. What if you have the bag vertically? All the items in small contraption compartments will fall out
I just bought a new Forge since I was happy with an older backpack of this brand, but ibstead if the model shown in pictures, which was in a gummy fabric finish like the other one I use, it came completely different. I asked to exchange it since it is not compliant to the sales page images, and they said they changed the fabric and that’s it. But if you buy on line you trust the pics and its not fair to send a different product. I loved my old one I gave my boyfriend and now I am just disappointed. Its not right to be sent a different product and be ignored, like it was my fault for their mistakes. I am not happy, feels like a scam. If you change the product, just SHOOT NEW PICS. Is it that difficult? Don’t blame a client that trusts your pics, please. Its sad and helps no one.
You seen the bags by Recycled Firefighter? The THE BATTALION 24HR backpack looks like a good competitor to the mythical Goruck GR1. Would love to see a review
Ooh just posted while I was sitting holding the phone. Was initially excited to be first... now I'm actually really into this bag. Ok last edit. This bag looks as if the black Peak Design travel backpack and the black multicam Greenroom136 rainmaker in my closet got together and had a baby. Maybe I should've separated them. Seriously, its dope though. I like it.
I’m looking for a camera backpack, almost decided on the Peak Design V2... but I’m drawn to the look of the Forge a lot more that I’m actually considering it as a camera bag using the pouches in the Forge as lens storage!!
Almost bought this but too many pockets and weight. Also agreed the laptop should be easier access. Wish they just made a stripped down version of this.
Nice review, was looking at this bag for a while. Could you also do the new Waterfield Air Duffel? Looks like a great "successor" to the Atlas Athletic Holdall but more focused on travel
Great looking bag! I just bought one on the website. I tried following your link but got a 404 error. But I did go to the Forge product page, added ?rfsn=1079387.e6a79f at the end of the url, refreshed and placed my order. If you have an affiliate relationship, hopefully that worked.
Aloha Chase, I torn between this backpack (BLACK EMBER FORGE) and a fully custom YNOT - MAGNETICA. Please help me decide, I need your opinion because you were able to see, touch, and hold both backpacks :) I’ll be using the backpack for my university and I ride my bike to commute. It will be a daily carry backpack. I’ll list things that are important to me from greatest to least. (1 being the most important) 1. Aesthetics - I’ll be getting multi-camo 2. Size - slim profile when empty and ability to expand; Some days I’ll be storing extra clothes in for the gym 3. Weather resistant 4. Organization - ability to hold a water bottle, laptop, iPad, textbooks.. 5. Back support - rigidness and airflow (I live in Hawaii = Humid weather lol) don’t want a very sweaty back haha. 6. Weight of backpack 7. Price - not an issue. Yes, I watched both your reviews on the YNOT and Black Ember :) I appreciate your help!
I have the black ember modular backpack, and it's great, but I find myself lusting after the forge. Nice that the made the laptop holder, not just a sleeve, I think that's the weakest part of the backpack. If you have a 2018 MBP the laptop sleeve can be a little too tight: the orange bar of death. Pretty sure the multi-cam color isn't waterproof like the black version.
@Abran Mendoza My mistake, when I looked up the specific material under the spec sheet ( 500 D cordura) the sites I saw didn't say it was waterproof, when I looked up 800D 3-LAYER MICROHEX TEXTILE, that came up as waterproof. Probably something they should include in the specs as well: (waterproof).
Chase, I’d love to hear you thoughts on the laptop access for EDC use, i.e. speed when arriving/leaving your desk at the office. I too don’t like those buckles over laptop sleeves, but overall this doesn’t seem to have just one quick “slot” zipper, like Peak Design’s top-access, or something like the front zipper on this very bag. I feel this is the bag’s only biggest oversight. But I preordered anyway (!), black with the ‘coyote’ compression straps. Totally taking a chance because there aren’t any photos of this colorway anywhere. Good point on the fabric of the black bag, and I kind of wish I had the fabric you demonstrated. The black is Microhex, and camo is Cordura fabric.
Maybe i missed it but is the expansion material equal to other outer material on a bag?
4 года назад
Looks amazing, the black camo is so sexy, I'm almost regretting preordering on Kickstarter the black one. I'm curious about the weight though, but with decent shoulder straps shouldn't be a biggie.
Are u going to make a review of the new Boundary Supply Duffel??? It will be great, maybe a comparison between that one and the peak design duffel. Thanks Chase ur vids are totally awesome!!!
hey man, i got the forge-20. And I am just looking for some way to remove the back straps. Any idea or inspiration? The top part could ben removed but lower part not. Wondering if you would have some ideas
Trying to decide if I need this. Do you think that those compression straps are necessary when you're just carrying the bag around? Like, does it get floppy without them? I hate a sloppy bag.
So I actually ordered the kodiak leather backpack on Kickstarter but I'm quite disappointed with it. Its just a showpiece with very little real world functionality. And the straps are painful and uncomfortable, they have this canvas material grip on the underside of the strap that grips your shirt and pulls it every which way while walking around with the bag. In essence it's just a leather cave with close to no organisation.
I'm between this one and the nomatic travel pack. They both go from 20L to 30L. I feel like this one has better straps and better material. The nomatic looks like it's way more functional though and they do have the lifetime warranty if something breaks on it. I was hoping this video would have had a small comparison to the nomatic.
@@spyhunter66 I ended up getting a black ember forge that expands about a year after my first post. They had a really good black Friday sale that year. It's a great bag, but it is heavier than I expected and I'm not able to fit as much as I initially thought I would be able to. Those issues were mostly my fault though as it was a matter of understanding the specs better. I ended up going with the solid black color black ember forge. I went with it because I thought at the end of the day it had a more professional look and a higher water resistance compared to the nomatic. Additionally I ended up buying a lot of accessories that black ember also sold, but I don't believe that most of them are necessary.
@@spyhunter66 no problem, if you end up with more questions please let me know. Best of luck in your decision. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the 3 bags you're considering.
Do you think there's a place in this bag where a packed-out Peak Design Tech Pouch could live happily? My go-to for travel + daily carry is that pouch. It has all my cables + dongles + a battery + laptop charger + when I'm travelling I can fit a Nintendo Switch Lite in there for those long flights. But it's a pretty hefty brick. Those items perfectly fit 100% capacity without squeezing anything in, but it's large. Could that live in this bag?
@@chasereeves Sorry, but maybe this is a better question. How much bigger than this does the Peak Design Travel Backpack seem? Based on looking at it with the stuff you put in, it doesn't look like a 15 liter difference comparing expanded vs. expanded mode, and the expanded mode here certainly seems comparable to the compressed PD Travel Bag (30L vs 35L). THoughts?
This is a thought I'v had many times about a "one" bag but, how heavy is too heavy? I got rid of my 34L GR2 because it was too heavy. This seems like it's approaching that "too heavy" marker especially with all of it's drag-doodads-danglers. I'm not sure you can get something versatile enough to take in a torrential downpour AND have it be light weight? The AER Travel Pack 2 in XPAC seems pretty close to that compromise but like you I don't like to be told what I use a pocket for so the shoe pockets have always kind of bugged me. Maybe the Chase Pakt will come close? The Forge seems like a solid pack with just a little too much dangle, especially if you consider adding their very Mountain Smithesque chalk bag water bottle holder...more dangle. Most of the Forge's pockets seem engineered for the briefcase style of carry which seems like a missed opportunity? Any thoughts on this Chase, or community-at-large?
Hmm, it’s the first backpack first bag I’ve considered buying instead of the Pakt One. Since I prefer duffels 90% of the time I’d almost certainly use this as a duffle but it sure is nice the other 10% of the time to have the backpack mode. I wish it wasn’t quite as expensive but it looks like one of those few bags that are. I also don’t like buying it and having to wait 3 months to get it. I understand why they use this ordering system across their product line but I’m not a fan. One question, how big is the laptop compartment? Does it easily fit your 15” MacBook? My laptops a bit bigger but not by much but if the sleeve only just fits a 15” MacBook I guess it’ll have to be a pass. Thank you! :)
Christopher Rines I have the same dilemma. I’ve been waiting for the Pakt One Backpack and this is a marrying of many things I’ve liked in other bags I’ve owned. Not sure which route to take. I currently have a GoRuck 26L GR2 and I like it but wish I could use it as a duffel or messenger at times. And it’s a little too Bro-EY for me. But I like it being so durable and worry free. Not sure which way to go.
Paul Dominic Martin hi Paul, I almost bought a GR2 as well for the same reason but I do vastly prefer duffle style bags most of the time. I think it could be because I’m smaller and I just find them more comfortable though I do like having the backpack mode for really long hauls or if I have to move really fast both of which are infrequent but regular in my use cases. It’s a tough choice. I have to wait till the end of November to buy either anyway so I have time to think about it but I’m heavily leaning towards the forge even though I’ll be travelling most of December so won’t have access to it which is annoying and may in the end push me back to the PAKT One. Cheers. :)
Chase, I've been researching this bag so appreciate the review. I've also been researching the Tom Bihn Tri-Star. Any input since you've had the benefit of seeing and using both?
Victor Kao I’ve owned the TB Tristar and love most of what I still own with Tom Bihn. In practice when I traveled with the TriStar if you maxed it out the backpack straps were not great, I would experience shoulder pain and it got really boxy (and I carry a minimal amount of things and do laundry a few times during a 7-10 day trip). With the absolute strap it was more comfortable but I think this bag is a better approach with the compression straps and the ability to expand the bag. It reminds me of my Mission Workshop Vandal Backpack that I owned several years ago. If the TB Tristar and MW Vandal Backpack had a child it would be this bag. :-P
@@pauldominicmartin2331 Thanks for the input! I watched some videos of the Tristar and saw that once it was fully packed, it seemed pretty uncomfortable. I've actually decided on the Forge and pre-ordered. I'm eager to check it out!
Hi chase, thanks a lot for this great review, this bag seems to be very useful ! I’m a motorcyclist and I’m looking for a waterproof backpack… Can you tell me if this bag is still waterproof when it is used as a 30 liter bag ? Do you think that the material used to extend the bag is waterproof ?
