Howdy, all—I have long promised a review of this bag here and on r/onebag, but I wanted to have time to put it through its paces! Now I have, so here we go.
TL;DR: This is a low-frills, lightweight pack that has the potential to be an excellent personal-item-sized onebag for minimalist travelers. It’s also a capable EDC bag if you don’t mind the lack of built-in organization (read: no admin panel). If you used V1 and didn’t like that it was a top-loading black hole: it’s still a top-loading black hole. For some folks, that’ll be a deal breaker. While I didn’t get a chance to use V1, I can say that the increased size makes it an extremely compelling personal-item option. The flip side is that some folks may find it a bit too large + floppy for EDC, depending on what you carry. Overall, it’s a bag I’m glad to carry during my travels and my work days, and I think it’s an outstanding value at $130.
Now for the long review!
Background
I have used this for work commutes by public transit (with a few miles of walking included), and on two short trips now. The most recent of those saw my partner and I fly to Chicago on personal-item only tickets with United, which meant we needed some spacious under-seat bags. Crucially, we also had long travel days, as Chicago was not our final destination, so we would be lugging these bags around Chicago and beyond for 10-12 hours on those days.
Aesthetics
Urban outdoorsy. Loaded out, the bag looks a bit more sleek, but, realistically, it’s often got some flop/sag to it. That unstructured look, the mesh across the bag’s exterior, and the ripstop fabric means that you’ll definitely look more ready for a hike than a board meeting. If that works for you, wonderful! It works for me, too. :) (I’d much rather be on a hike anyway.) It’s understated and quiet—literally, which is one of my favorite things. I hate a jingly bag.
Materials
For me, perfect. I love a ripstop nylon. It’s sturdy but flexible, provides a bit of visual interest, and feels like it is going to last forever. It’s certainly on the more outdoorsy end of main pack materials, but the all black helps tone that down a bit. The mesh on the kangaroo and water bottle pockets is also great. Feels like I can throw anything into any of them and know that 1) it will stay put, and 2) the mesh will take it in stride. It’s also soft to the touch, which is a nice tradeoff vs something like ultra mesh (though the latter is markedly more durable). The tote handles are also nice and sturdy, with a smooth handfeel and rounded shape that feels great to use.
Comfort
It’s good! It’s not outstanding. I have never found the bag to be uncomfortable, but I don’t get the…plushness of something like Able Carry’s straps. GG is an ultralight hiking brand, which means they are thinking first about weight and second about everything else. Like the Aero Jet, I find that these straps feel best when they’re under a decent load, as the stiffness will keep them a bit rigid on your shoulders until there’s enough weight pulling them down and into shape. Overall, though, carrying it through airports, on the L, walking through Chicago, on Amtrak, etc., I had few complaints about how the bag felt on my bag. It’s shallow enough to not feel like I’m swinging around a big turtle shell (a la the Daylite 26+6 et al), and narrow enough—even with a Nalgene in the side pocket—that I could move through crowds quickly.
Capacity
Astounding. Genuinely. I believe its listed size went from 23 to 26L, and it feels like it dwarfs some other 26-28L bags I’ve used in capacity. I’ll get into the list a bit more in detail below, but it really is incredible how much fits in this footprint. The thin outer fabric means that there’s no padding taking up your valuable real estate, and the bag just seems to mold around anything you need to squeeze in. For EDC, this can be a bit of a double-edged sword, as you can easily end up with a great deal of unused space. Even with my general work loadout of CAP2 + a small lunch bag, theres’ massive space left over. That’s not inherently an issue, but the nature of the fabric means the bag gets a bit floppy when it’s not full of stuff to provide it some structure. I don’t particularly mind that, but, for those of you wary of the “outdoorsiness” of the pack, it may be a turnoff.
The Trip
Four days in warmish weather, with no need for fancy or workout attire. I had a rain jacket packed but took it out at the last minute when the forecast cleared up. To nobody’s surprise, that obviously meant we got rain while we were there. I didn’t melt, though, as I was able to borrow an umbrella.
Packing List
TPC8: My clothes
Eagle Creek Shoe Cube: Bedrock Clogs sz 13
GG Clear Cube S: Dopp Kit
CAP2: Camera + tech
Bellroy Sacoche: Plane kit
Able Carry tech pouch/pencil pouch (I don’t remember the exact item name): snacks
Loose items: Alpha60 hoodie, ILE Apex pop-up valet tray, iPad mini, deodorant stick (too big for dopp kit)
Packed the bag with the TPC8 horizontal along the bottom, which took up the bulk of the bag. The clogs then got slid in front of the cube with their soles against the front of the pack. On top of the TPC8 was the Alpha fleece (along with the rain coat while I had it packed), then the CAP2 vertical against the back of the pack with the sacoche just in front for easy access. The dopp kit and deodorant got shoved into the gaps along the sides, while the valet tray went in the laptop sleeve and the iPad mini in the tablet sleeve. The interior mesh pocket remained empty.
Water bottle pocket 1 held my 32oz Nalgene, and the other held the snack pouch. Kangaroo pocket held the other snacks that were too large to fit in the pouch (I like my vegan jerky.), along with lysol wipes for the plane. QAP on the front of the bag had my passport-sized travelers notebook + a Baggu tote.
With everything pictured, the bag was full without being jam-packed, and I was able to squeeze a couple bags of coffee in on the way home, too.
Bonus Test Pack
To give an additional conceptual packout, I included some photos from when I loaded the bag up with the GG compression packing cube set + clear cube, the smallest cube from Matador’s (now discontinued?) set, as well as a pair of vivobarefoot shoes in place of the clogs. Again, pretty staggering capacity for a bag that never looks particularly large.
Random Additional Thoughts
Shoulder strap pockets are nice for quick access to snacks/headphones/etc. on travel days without having to take the pack off. If you do use the pack for hiking, they’re also a perfect place for face sunscreen, chapstick, etc.
I quite enjoy the tote handles! Particularly now that they’ve added the luggage pass-through on the back panel. If you want to give your back a break, you can tuck the straps into the pass-through to rid yourself of the dangle, and then you’ve got a nice tote. Fun for farmers markets/etc.!
Conclusion
I was going to wrap this with a “who’s it for” sort of section, but, realistically, I think folks can probably come to that conclusion on their own. If panel/clamshell access is important to you, obviously you won’t enjoy this. If you have a massive laptop, you will probably find the access finicky with the top fabric sections. If you love to hike or spend time outdoors on your travels, though, I think this is a fantastic option. And, even if you don’t, it’s an amazingly lightweight and capable pack that will adhere to a lot of airline restrictions. If you have any questions about a particular aspect of the bag, whether/how a particular item will fit, etc.—feel free to ask below! Always happy to help.
Photo Alt Text
Gossamer Gear Vagabond Jet fully packed
Contents of Vagabond Jet exterior pockets (water bottle, snacks, etc.)
Contents of Vagabond Jet interior (packing cube, fleece, tech pouch, shoes, iPad, ILE valet tray, toiletries, Bellroy sacoche)
Contents of tech pouch (camera, sunglasses, general tech, travel pillow)
Contents of GG Clear Cube S (toiletries)
Gossamer Gear Vagabond Jet fully packed
Key leash in front QAP pocket
Contents of Vagabond Jet Interior (GG large and small compression cubes, GG shoe cube, GG clear cube small, Matador small cube)
“X-Ray” view of pack contents
“X-Ray” view of pack contents without shoes on top
Shoes packed inside GG shoe cube
