Utility Cycling - Messenger bag-which one???

hey everyone,

i'm thinking about getting a messenger bag to carry groceries and other things around the city. i'm thinking about getting either a chrome or REload. with regards to the chrome, i'm debating between the kremlin and metropolis - anybody have any experience with these bags? is the kremlin too big or metropolis too small? how well do the REload bags hold up? i know they're more expensive, but the customizable designs sounds pretty awesome.

thanks in advance for the help guys.

If you plan on hauling much weight, I would go for panniers. That said, I have a chrome metropolis that I like pretty well. It hauls as much as I would really want to have on my back.

I have loved my Chrome Metropolis, at around 2,000 cubic inches it's been a great size (I even regularly used it as my only bag for 1-2 night business trips - no luggage to check in!)...until I started bike commuting with more frequency and seriousness. All my stuff fits but having all the weight on one shoulder sucks, and the load doesn't always conform to the back. After three years it's not showing the least sign of wear on the outside; the tarp material inside is wearing, but that's hardly Chrome's bad...it's the material most bagmakers use.

I bought a Chrome Backbone backpack instead. Same bomber construction, way more comfortable...and 2400 cubic inches. For a carry that's A) long, B) with a lot of weight, or C) with things that are rigid against the back (laptops, for example), I've found the Backbone superior in every way to the Metropolis (it even has organizer pockets with the same layout). (There's a weatherproof-zipper compartment ideal for cable and lock that allows you to access stuff without opening the pack. Love it!) Way better for groceries, IMHO.

YMMV, but works for me!

http://www.baileyworks.com/catalog/product.cfm?id=2

Get an XL...

panniers. I dont get the messenger bag thing

I have a Chrome (and a Timbuk2 rotting in a closet) and it's great. A mess bag has it's uses, but it's not my first choice for grocery shopping.

If it's a messenger bag you want you will get a lifetime bag from.....

http://www.courierwareusa.com/

This is a small company that makes bags that are so durable they could be considered
"bullet proof" . I own three (well, two now my son took one) that are simple do it all
bags made for the long haul of whatever you care to put in them. They lack fancy
buckle's and such that break but their simple design works each and everytime.

Do a search, I'm pretty sure this topic has been debated ad nauseam and comes up at least once a month.