The Golden Boy 

A while ago I had been looking through some websites about WWII boots and webgear and stuff- I ran across the M1945 combat pack and cargo pack system. The combat pack was a rucksack that had a removable cargo pack- the idea was that you carried the stuff that you NEEDED for combat in the combat pack and personal and non-essential equipment in the cargo bag and you could remove that and lighten your load before action.

Here are some pictures of the M1944 version of the system- it's pretty much the same as the M1945 with some different buckling schemes.






Now, I'd been sort of wanting a saddlebag- sort of looking at the Acorn large saddle bag and the Carradice Barley- but when I saw that M1945 Cargo Bag- I started thinking that would be the perfect size and shape for a saddle bag. I was in the Army when I was a kid- I still wear, seek out and use stuff I was issued 25 years ago, so the idea of repurposing a piece of government issue equipment was appealing. So after a bit of looking, I was able to find a few unused cargo bags that were made in 1950. I kind of figured I'd just be able to put a leather support inside the bag, cut a couple of holes and tie some toe straps to a dowel running across the back, however I realized I have no way of sewing though thick leather- then remembered that @rootboy did some nifty custom leather work- I shot him a message and after a fair amount of pleading he agreed to take on the project. At the time, neither of us knew what I had just tricked him into doing...

Again, I had a pretty simple concept of what I wanted, but through the course of talking to Rootboy- he came up with a great idea for attachment and stabilizing- he also realized the bag lacked internal stiffness, so he fashioned a "plate" to help the back of the bag hold its shape. He came up with the stabilizing bungees and knob to keep it attached to the rack- My only contribution to this whole idea factory was having a foam pad that had been harvested from a thrift store laptop bag- to help the bag maintain it's shape in conjunction with the leather plate.

If anyone has had any of Rootboy's fabrications- they're all so graceful and elegant and purposeful and he REALLY goes the extra mile to put his thoughts into the project- as well as checking to see what you want. Last year he made me a set of custom milled and painted aluminum bar end plugs for my Voyageur SP. And now he's put this bag together for me- it's cool because it's a unique take on something 2 generations of US soldiers carried, and the leatherwork and stitching is all top notch. I'm really proud to show this off.

Here's some pix on my 1985 Trek 620:










This shows the water resistant inner flap and sewn to that are the instructions of how to put the contraption together!






This shows the leather stiffener that runs along the front and bottom of the bag- I think Rootboy only used this much to avoid the amount of weight a full stiffener would be. Again, I just happened to have a foam pad that wasn't big enough to make a full U shaped liner (like a Cannondale bag handlebar bag), but it was the right width, and the perfect length to combine with the leather stiffener.




Again, I'm really looking forward to spring and getting going- I'm considering getting some fabric wax to wax this canvas to waterproof it a bit more- but I kind of like it as is.

Thanks Rootboy!

oddjob2

Wow, great design and execution Scott! Dave that looks great on your Trek! Hope you get many years of enjoyment out of that bag.

Velocivixen

@rootboy - Creative genius! He ROCKS! Really nice collaboration and execution. Like.

jyl

That is very cool and one of a kind. Kudos to both of you!

Steve Whitlatch 

That really looks good.

KonAaron Snake 

Your system looks fantastic...and Rootboy really is as fantastic as you say.

Sir_Name 

Well done - great collaboration.

cobrabyte

Really smart to use the leather to keep the interior shape and prevent sagging. This is the best 'hack' of a non-saddlebag into a saddlebag that I've seen. Kudos, rootboy!

Italuminium

Thoroughly impressed.

rootboy 

Thanks Golden Boy! I have to thank Dave for providing me with a real challenge to my skills. This turned out to be much more difficult than I figured it would be. But that is usually the case and a good experience.

Thanks again, Dave. This was a fun project.
And thanks for putting up with my incessant notes, inane ramblings and off-topic screeds.

Scott

inkandsilver

Oh, wow, that is so cool. I like everything about it. Nice ideas, both of you.

forestine

That looks fantastic!

gaucho777 

Great concept, GB, and awesome work, rootboy! Your many talents continue to impress.

Michael Angelo 

Great idea.

dicktill

Very nice. Kudos to you both.

Regards, Dick

RobbieTunes

Outstanding.

Now, for your next performance, Alice, Alice Alice.....
(for those who know what Alice is.....or can name that song..)

I'll bet rootboy could revolutionize bike touring with a few Alices to bang around.
Just think, with good racks, you can have Alice from each side and the back.

(It's not what it sounds like. Don't go there)

All-purpose
Lightweight
Individual
Carrying
Equipment

The Golden Boy 

When our son wanted to get equipment for hiking, I tried steering him towards a Large Ruck- one of the ALICE things. You had immense amounts of storage for food, water and equipment, you had the webbing on the side to hook MORE stuff to- and you could carry and OBSCENE amount of weight with those things. The heaviest ruck I had was 153- I did that on a jump. I could barely stand with it hooked up to my parachute harness- at the time I weighed around 123.









When he started showing me "new" technology for backpacks- there's just no comparison; weight, ergonomics and functionality- new stuff is just "better." However, I can't even think of how ungainly even a small ruck without a frame would be even as panniers. Maybe if you mounted the back to a large plastic backing... but even then... there's not that style there.





Maybe the old ALICE buttpack might make a decent handlebar or saddle bag... Nah... stick with the canvas pre-ALICE stuff...

The Golden Boy 

I've had it on 4 different bikes-

I'm really lucky in that with my leg length, saddle height and rack placement- it fits on all my bikes (I haven't tried the ATBs yet) because the rack sits high enough to allow the bag to rest on it.

And I happen to think it looks quite sporty on all of them!

rootboy 

I can see I'm going to have to send you a small hole punch, GB.
BTW, don't buy any wax treatment! I've got many tins of that stuff.

The Golden Boy 

I just used the awl on my old Swiss Army Knife. Messy.

*sigh* sorry for messing up your beautiful work.

rootboy 

Heh heh. No worries.