a while ago i was riding home in the pouring rain 2 nights in a row and the second night i got home to find that water had soaked in through the threads in the back between the straps and soaked into a magazine i had in the bag. i also found water in the front pocket with my tools. has anyone else had this problem in really heavy rain? i was under the impression that the vinyl liner made it rainproof. i usually carry a laptop and camera gear and i was lucky this time...is there any way to seal up the offending seams? i've already emailed reload with no reply.

i really thought i paid a ton of cash for a bag i could trust....wtf?

Spray the seams with scotch-guard or one of the numerous other spray-on sealants. Go to a camping gear store and pick up something that they recommend for use on tent seams.

Edit: Or, undertake a project. Sew some Gore-Tex fabric into your bag as a liner.

That sucks hard. I'd angle for a free repair or new bag if I was you.

^^ +1

I'm kind of surprised that it leaks, too. I wonder if the Ortleib bags or Sealline have leaked (as they are manufactured differently)

there are going to be limitations to non-sealing bags in monsoon-type conditions. when you get past saturation point on cordura -- where water starts to bead up and roll down the flaps, etc -- it can end up in the pockets pretty easily from adhesion. ortlieb type bags are the only real solution in such situations.

two night rides of about 20 minutes each with a day of being inside between them in Melbourne, Aus. rain hardly constitutes monsoon conditions. i'd understand if i was out all day in it, but i wasn't. i guess i'm just p*ssed off that such and expensive bag leaked so easily(imo). i'll email reload again and see what they say.

yeah absolutely email them. they seem like solid people who will back you up

emailed.

i did email them as soon as it happened and never heard back. they did seem like really solid people when i ordered the bag. i was surprised not to hear back straight away.

on their website it says they'll be back on the 3rd. ill post updates.

Please do, I'll be interested to hear what arrangement they propose.

Very few bags are completely waterproof. The seams are usually the culprit. I spilled a bottle of water in one of my bags and it started to leak out of the corner.

I'm sure if most people dumped water in their "waterproof" bags it would start to leak out.

on the flip side they're water proof enough that an old bag makes a decent make shift cooler when the situation arises

Same thing happened with my girlfriend's midpack. She got a reply from Reload about it, but I don't recall the details now.

update: i got a reply from Ro at ReLoad.

"sorry to hear you're having trouble with your bag....it should keep the elements out, of course. it's impossible for us to investigate the situation without having the bag physically here, so we'd just need you to send it back so we can check out what's going on and fix/replace it if necessary.

thx
ro"

thats probably the perfect response shy of "ps. in your paypal is the money to send it up from Australia"

its tempting, but it was like $45 AUD to ship it here in the first place, i dont think i want to add $90 to money put into that bag. ill try the seamsealer stuff and see how that goes. i'll reply to Ro and ask him if he has any advice.

Ortleib are completely water tight.

sealline makes dry bags, so I can assume that their roll=tops are damn close to waterproof

i know that ortlieb and other roll top brands are completely waterproof, i already have a roll top bag. i just love my midpack for all the reasons i hate my roll top. i can beat the crap out of it and not worry about it falling apart and fill it to the brim and still ride it home comfortably. i fit 24 bottles of beer in it and walked home, that would KILL in any of my other bags and until recently, it was completely rainproof as well. the only thing besides the leak that i don't like about it are some customizations that i've only thought of since i got it...i'll get them on the next one.

you knew before you got the bag that it wasn't an ortlieb.
was it really until recently that it wasn't waterproof, or were you just not that wet before?
spend the $10 and get some seam sealer and then spray the bag with scotchguard.
i too have a midpack and i love it. there are sometimes that you have to accept that a bag made of cordura, thread, and nylon with non-high frequency welded seams is not 100% waterproof.
if you really have to, carry a plastic bag/dry bag for when you need to carry a document in the rain. this absolutely does not merit reload paying the shipping back for you, or a replacement product.

Ortlieb messenger bags aren't foolproof, or drybags for that matter though they are very good bags and they make even better panniers (the panniers, not the messenger bags though I have seen the messenger backpacks converted to panniers). The rolltop is good for expanding & retracting capacity too.

Cordura is nylon, the liner on a REload is PVC. Scotchguard may exacerbate your troubles as it could cause the water to bead more than it already does on the exterior, thereby channeling it more efficiently into the cleft between your back and the bag, where it collected well enough to saturate and deep enough to penetrate the seam where the shoulder is attached to the bag which experiences a great deal of shear force which could expand the stitches of the seam.

Get yourself a tube of Goop Marine or similar marine adhesive sealant. Apply liberally to the area where strap attachment meets bag, where they are pulled apart by the opposing forces of your shoulder strap and your load in the bag. Apply while pulling the two components apart form one another in the same directions you'd find it under load. Allow to set for a day. All done.

thanks man, thats the best advice i've seen on here in a while. i'll give that shot and update...thanks again.