crappy school bags?

[wywern209]

k, so heres the story. back in 7th grade, i began to geta higher load of homework and pretty soon,my school bag had to be replaced. now in high school and (3 bags later) i see the same problem happening in a adidas bag i paid good money for. i paid like 50 bucks for it and about after 2-3 weeks of use, the plastic/ mesh type material on the bottom of the inside of the bag began to rip. no kidding. this problem is in just about every school bag i've bought. does anyone have a good bag they have used that well, can take the heavy load of HS textbooks( like 10 lb or more each) and some notebooks, because right now , Q4 of 10th grade, i think my bag is gonna rip one day and im gonna be screwed that day. only one condition applies. it has to be within 50 bucks. so does anyone know ofa good company that makes durable school bags that don't rip from soo called heavy use when everyone knows that school books weigh like a ton.

 

[hatehereyes]

Jansport.

 

[wywern209]

what about high sierra?

 

[Abstract]

I'd get a Caribee.


Personally, I believe nearly every decent nylon school backpack is going to be able to do the job. I'd be more concerned about the straps being able to handle the weight.


Oh, my Caribee Recon is fantastic. It holds a lot of stuff, and looks awesome. I was thinking about a North Face one, but they were too small. I wanted something 35 to 40 litres in volume, and most North Face ones are 30 litres.

 

[Ryan1524]

Go to nearest Gap. Grab the first $20 bag you like. Enjoy it for the next 5 years. I bought this one random bag at a Gap about 6 years ago. The damn thing is still not dead after being abused day in and day out through university. It really was CAD$20.

But yes, get one with a decent width strap for comfort, and obviously look for one that looks well stitched and constructed. That means tough looking materials(cordura, ballistic nylon, etc), rip-stop stitching if possible and some buckles or zippers to make sure stuff don't just fall out.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

Swiss Gear bags all the way.

The are well worth the money. Even if it is designed to hold a laptop it would still be worth it and hold everything you need. Plus it will still be useful when you go to college and get your own laptop.

In High school i destroyed multiple Jansport.

My Senior year I got a bag made by Wolf Creek I paid like 30 bucks for it. It lasted my senior year of High school and then on and off again throw 6.5 years of college. Quite often being pack as full as possible. Going though over 7 years for 30 bucks not to bad.

Now I still have the bag but for the past year for my personal life I used a Swiss Gear backpack.

 

[Kirjava444]

When I was in high school, I had a backpack from here: http://www.mec.ca/splash.jsp.

Is it possible for you to not carry all of your books at once? I used to leave the ones I didn't need immediately in my locker, and at one point completely stopped using a backpack to carry my books (my neck is a little messed up and having a heavy backpack didn't help) and just carried what I needed in my arms.

I wouldn't really recommend using a shoulder bag to carry all those books either, I can imagine it would be very painful.

 

[0098386]

I got a Vans bag back in 1999, its survived way past school, college and university and off on some adventures. Only cost me around £20 at the time.

 

[kymac]

obviously you should get a north face backpack. classy and long lasting.

 

[Sdashiki]

Obviously these people here never went to school.

Eastpak for boys
Jansport for girls


Buy the leather bottom versions if you want them to last 10+ years. The bottoms wear out of all nylon bags without it.

 

[0098386]

obviously you should get a north face backpack. classy and long lasting.

That goes without saying, but they're monsters! At least the ones I've seen/owned. My current one can fit me inside .

 

[duncanapple]

I second the eastpak suggestion. I have also had Jansport too though. The only reason I ever had to get rid of any of those bags was b/c i wanted a change. I would suggest getting a color that you will like and will stay clean looking the longest (so basically I am suggesting black) and you will have that bag a long long time.

I think Jansport and Eastpak still offer lifetime warranties on their bags too? they did when I bought mine at least. Not bad considering a basic version of these can be had for well under $50 (prob closer to $30-$35).

 

[wywern209]

nice! i was thinking of swiss gear too.think i will get that with my own cash sometime as the SG stuff is expensive in brick and mortar stores and amazon has it for like 40

 

[ButtUglyJeff]

Maybe its time to consider a messenger bag. Check eBay, and maybe look for a balistic nylon model.......

 

[kindablue09]

They are a bit ugly, but the targus backpacks are incredibly sturdy. I can't see it failing me... ever.

 

[wywern209]

i want a backpack as messenger bags would kill my shoulder because my math book and my history book, pretty much all of them weigh like 10 lbs each, maybe more and that plus notebook. binders, folders etc. and i have a backpack with a hole in it. however there is one thing i need to clarify. i don't carry all my textbooks at once but when i go home, some times, the weight of everything put together rly weighs a lot and apparently my adidas bag can't take that and started to rip at the bottom. now my bag just has some elastic sort of fiber holding the bottom together and some duct tape holding the hole at the bottom together.point is , i need a solid US$40 or maybe 50 is the maximum, a bag that can last. and just to be sure i am a boy (so no pink bags plz)

 

[Rodimus Prime]

I own and have used a messenger bag. They are great if you are carry a small load or are taking things in and out while on the move but when you start putting a lot of weight in them they do start hurting your shoulder.

I stand by the swiss bag. It well worth the money. The one I own is not as nice as the top of the line one everyone goes after but still great. I got it as a gift so I am not going to complain.

I think swiss gear makes great stuff. I own their polite suite case which I find is great for a weekend trip. Plus I can and do use it as one of my carry ones to a plane. The other being my backpack.

 

[brax.j]

1. USE a locker they aren't there just for kicks.

2. Doesn't your school have a classroom set of books for at school and a book for you to take home.

3. If you really want to carry around a backpack get Dakine they are amazing bags some are more than $50 but it is worth it in the long run and remember you get what you pay for.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

1. USE a locker they aren't there just for kicks.

2. Doesn't your school have a classroom set of books for at school and a book for you to take home.

3. If you really want to carry around a backpack get Dakine they are amazing bags some are more than $50 but it is worth it in the long run and remember you get what you pay for.

Lockers are not always useful. For example when I was in HS my locker almost every single time was on the opposite of campus than the path I took to get my classes so it made it worthless to stop at. Seem to be that way for the 4 years I was there.

Now I had other way to reduce my book weight my Jr and Senior year. In High School i was in band and my Junior year band classes fell in such a way that it worked out great for me to use the band hall as my locker. My senior year I used my car as my locker. I had to walk pass where my car was park between my heavy book classes.

Also might like to point out that there will be times in college one has to run with a very heavy book load because one does not have time to go home or somewhere to dump one set of books for other.

 

[Abstract]

Perhaps you should buy a bag with one of those cardboard-ish bottoms included. If not, then cut a rectangular piece of cardboard and put it into the bag yourself.

It's rarely the nylon that's the problem. It's usually the friction from your books moving around a lot in there, and perhaps the edges of your books poking into the nylon. A harder surface inside will flatten out the bottom of your bag, and disperse some of the pressure from the books.

 

[ikermalli]

Swiss gear for sure. I have had mine 2 and 3/4 years, still great, I got it a bit dirty but that is the only thing which I don't like about it (stains), it has been through tossing it around, getting kicked a few times, stepped on, thrown into piles of bags, rained on, hailed on, carrying 3 text books and 4 binders everyday + a laptop sometimes, and more ( a lot more, I abused it) and it is still going strong, I just need to get the very front zipper (for a small pocket) fixed, I was in a hurry and I tried to take my bag out of my locker, then I pulled on the front very hard (my bag is stuffed and my locker is small) and the zipper detatched, I'm sure I could fix it myself

Get one!

 

[twistedlegato]

The North Face "Jester" book bag. I'm in the same situation you are. Tons of homework and lots of heavy books. My "Jester" is amazing. It's hardly showing any wear.

Plus it's only about $50. It's The North Face's cheapest backpack, but since it's that brand, you can pretty much guarantee quality.

 

[wywern209]

1. USE a locker they aren't there just for kicks.

2. Doesn't your school have a classroom set of books for at school and a book for you to take home.

3. If you really want to carry around a backpack get Dakine they are amazing bags some are more than $50 but it is worth it in the long run and remember you get what you pay for.

1. i have a locker but some of my classes are either on the upper floor or it is not time efficient to run back and forth.
2.no, the budget for my school is pathetic right now we are lucky enough as it is having one set. my district is currently using a normal 1 yr budget to cover 3 yrs.
3.i have seen some ppl using that brand, so i might check them out or get a swiss bag since i am hearing a lot of good things about them.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

2. Doesn't your school have a classroom set of books for at school and a book for you to take home.

I have never heard of a school doing this. very few school could even hope to be able to afford to this and even fewer would waste the money on doing it

 

[Tomorrow]

...take the heavy load of HS textbooks( like 10 lb or more each)

My BS detector is going off. Are these textbooks or family Bibles?

When I was in school, I rarely brought even a single book home, let alone several 10-pounders I did my homework at school for the most part, or much of my homework wasn't out of the textbook. Even a few years ago in graduate school I didn't have to haul books back and forth (although they only weight a couple of pounds each and fit in my briefcase). Have things really changed that much?

But to help with your problem - buy a rollaround briefcase. I use one daily, and it's a huge relief on my shoulders compared to my old over-the-shoulder briefcase.