Thought it might be nice to have a little archive here of BOGear bags seeing as they are now all done and dusted.
Sad day, but ace they existed for as long as they did. They were also HUGE supporters of FOA and all the events that have run over the years, so this is also a small thank you thread too.
Still awesome kit, still the best customer service going, still firmly believe my bags will last longer than anything else I own.
Anyway, put up a pic of your bag, I’ll let Dave know this thread is here if he wants to have a peek.
Here’s my four bags:
papermunky was first back in 2010? whenever the Hardcourt Bike Polo Champs were in Melbourne
chunky toad was next
spare camel was a gift from dave after he stayed with me for the world CMWC and is my favourite
dufflay was last as a great little camping bag
i’ve also got a fair few smaller items like the hip pack, two jersey pouches, shrapsac, laptop sleeve dave made, simple sally pencil case… oh, and some pedal straps! haha
Such a great everyday bag! Tough as. I’ll keep it forever. Would love a duffle. I don’t know him well, but I know for sure that Dave is a totally great guy. I’m sure whatever he does next will also be excellent.
My first was a Dub messenger bag, which I sold to get a Bullpup and a Paper Monkey, which made a great nappy bag for my wife and I. I also managed to snag one of the super rare Pushies Galore musettes.
Also had pedal straps and still have a couple of jersey pocket pouches and shrappers.
Also, there’s a couple in Canberra with some of the very earliest messenger bags, with awesome fluoro BO Gear logos in colours inverted to the other’s bag.
I first got onto BO Gear in 2012 when I sent Dave a whole lot of emails as I was pretty chained to my messenger bag and the way it worked - Dave suggested the Chunky Toad which he sent me a tester for. I liked the chunky toad but thought that it was way too big for my needs. It was big enough to fit all of my ice hockey gear though.
A while later Dave sent me a tester bag of an upcoming range that he had been working on. I put it through some testing on hikes with the wife and was able to send Dave some feedback on my findings on the bag which was included in the final run and also made their way into other bags (little velcro tabs for tying up the loose webbing on itself so you aren’t left with dangling straps) - The Shrinkage was born!
I soon after ordered a black one with a red interior with added drink bottle holders on the side. Here began my man crush on Dave and BO Gear.
I used the Shrinkage for some time for commuting, travel, hikes etc. It was plenty big for everything I wanted but once Dave released the Spare Camel… i knew me gusta have!
So again began the process of me sending emails to Dave, to try and dig deep into his head and extract the best from the bag. He developed a cool little pocket for one of my knives and a pen that I carry with me all the time, it worked really well and I am sure it caused Dave some headaches!
This bag got handed on to Seb here which I am sure he uses it a lot!
I fell in love with the Black and Gold look and ordered another Spare Camel to replace the grey one. This one will be with me forever.
I also grabbed a Dufflay which goes with me on weekenders etc. Again I wanted something extra with the bag so I asked them if I could work in a bungee cord section into the opposite side of the webbing. They made it happen and it has turned out to be a bloody handy upgrade!
Apart from these bags, I have
CellBlock
A bright orange Simple Sally
Jersey Pocket Pouches
Packing Cell
And also this really cool limited edition Pushies Galore Tote that we have used in various hikes and it was with me the first day I got my Kumo.
I wish Dave and the BO Gear family all the best in the future - they have built a product that will keep people carrying for a very long time. My only disappointment, not meeting Dave in person. One day.
Chunky Toad from the first run when they came out. Still good as new after many, many commutes and adventures, still used regularly. Here’s a fave pick from when I schlepped my snowboard up to Keppels Hut a couple years ago :
Neither of those are great shots of the bag because, as usual, it was just doing what it does, getting the job done without getting in the way. Cheers Dave!
BoGear has been a key element in mine and others work gear used and abused day-in and day-out. Got my third bag shortly after I started messengering. Dave is always a good mate to talk to. Known him a few years, but only met him in person the once, but it always felt like we’d been mates for ages. (This last bit wasn’t meant to read like an obituary)
I have a bunch of Bogear stuff. Will post a picture when I find them all, but this is a brief history of them all:
Chunky Toad / 2011 - My first BO purchase, looks as great as the day I bought it. It’s been round the world a number of times, commuted with, thrashed around, used to haul shit across the city when I need to haul something bulky. This bag is fucking ace.
Babycandy - Used this a bunch overseas as a tiiiiny commuting bag. Got stolen from a bar in the Netherlands. Hope its still kicking around Europe somewhere.
Sindrome messenger bag - bought off Lemontimes to replace Babycandy, mostly for commuting when the chunky toad was too big, doesn’t get much use these days but its an excellent bag and will have many more lives.
Rolling tool roll - holds stuff now for camping, mostly.
Custom Dufflay - for all the travels.
Cell block M+L - for adding on extra travel stuffs/clipping onto backpacks/all kinda things.
Spare Camel+extras - Dave was a friggin legend and organised a <1 week turnaround on a present for a family friend over in South Africa. The guy is fucking stoked on it and does a heap of camping/hiking/absailing with it.
There are probably more. I use bags all the times and these are hands down the best, most well designed and personable company I have ever dealt with. Dave is a fucking legend and this shows through in his products, I cant count how many people comment on the bags, ask where they are from, and comment on the design and appearance being excellent.
I’ll post up some of the great BOGear stuff I’ve been delighted to use.
His ability to come up with excellent features and convert ideas (sometimes crazy) into workable concepts/colourways/etc and to do it in a humble and friendly way is what makes me firmly believe he will continue to find success in whatever is next.
Plus he is always down for a good old bag nerdery session…
Does anybody know what is happening next? I missed out on the whole BOGear thing, but given the rave reviews from all of you I am keen to follow what the next project is…
