Crumpler Bags?

[Allen in Montreal]

I went to order a Domke bag today and the shop is pushing a Crumpler bag.
Has anyone used these?
Any good?
I cant see not sticking with Domke but thought i would ask.

Thanks,

[brian mcweeney]

I have some of both. The Crumplers are well made but a little tight/small for my likes. Domkes seem a little more "old school".

[Joanna Carter]

I had one but didn't like it. It wasn't "square" enough for LF gear.

[John Koehrer]

The Crumplers I've seen and sold leave something to be desired for the ease of dividing it up and having extra bulk(padding). I haven't been following the stuff lately but Domke has very nice dividers available for their bags.
I've had my Domke F2 for years.

[Nathan Appel]

They look really "hip" and are really well built, but, I'm not a big fan of the function compared to a similar tenba or high end bag (domke) I sold my last one. Plus, they kinda look, well, "metrosexual"

[Ross Chambers]

I can't speak for their camera bags, but I have one which would take a small laptop and extra bits and pieces. My problem with it is that the material from which it is made is extremely sturdy but very abrasive on clothing. It was only when if found wear holes in 2 pairs of jeans at the same place and considered where the Crumpler bag was rubbing that I concluded that the fabric the bag is made from is like sandpaper.

This particular bag also has so much stuffing that it fits rather less inside than outward appearances would suggest.

[Noah A]

I had a smaller one that I tried for 35mm once. It was very bulky and over-padded in my opinion. The strap was stiff and as Ross said, the fabric was very abrasive.

I used it on one trip and went back to my Domkes. They're durable, understated and don't add a lot of bulk to your kit.

I use an F803 for 35mm/digital gear and I'm using an F804 now for my 4x5 kit.

[Marko]

I wanted to like Crumpler, I tried a couple of models but they just would not agree with my idea of a good bag.

If you like well-padded bags and don't care if they are a bit too obvious, Kata bags are much better than the Crumplers. They provide much more protection and much more configurability.

Personally, I like Tenba bags the best overall.

[sienarot]

I guess I'm in the minority in that I love Crumpler bags. I have a bunch, 4 of which are camera bags. A big part of the reason why I like them is, like others have mentioned, they are incredibly durable. One of the backpacks I have I've taken traveling with me all over the place. It's been with me on beaches, boats, caves, me crawling around floors, etc... and it still looks almost as good as the day I bought it. And if it wears down under normal use, send it back to Crumpler and they'll repair it for the cost of shipping.

I do agree with what others have said though: for the money, there are better options available in terms of functionality and space. Since they are well padded (read: bulky), they're probably not well suited for large format as they are 35mm/medium format/digital.

[Allen in Montreal]

Thanks guys,
I will stick with Domke.


.....the material from which it is made is extremely sturdy but very abrasive on clothing...... I concluded that the fabric the bag is made from is like sandpaper.



Domke is hard on the clothing too, most my pants show the signs of having the canvass rub on my right side. But even close to being that bad.



....Domkes seem a little more "old school".

Cool, cause I am Old School too. :)



.......

They're durable, understated and don't add a lot of bulk to your kit..

That was what made me buy my first Domke 20 or so yrs ago. :-)

[Bob Salomon]

There are two different Crumpler bag companies. One that sell in the USA and probably Canada and another that does not sell into NA. There designs are similar but the bags may not be exactly the same. So base any responses on the owners of bags in your market area.

[Noah A]

...


That was what made me buy my first Domke 20 or so yrs ago. :-)

I replaced my first Domke about two years ago after years of heavy use. It was an F803 I bought in college. I used it for my last two years of school then pretty much every day during my 11 years as a staff photojournalist. I used it hard, often stuffing it with way too much big SLR gear then using it for my Leicas on personal projects and trips.

That bag has been to more countries than most people and even survived the war in Iraq. When I left my newspaper job it seemed like the end of an era so I figured I'd treat myself to a new one. I gave my old one to one of our interns. It was ugly and the strap was fairly badly worn, but I figure it still had another five or ten years worth of life in it.

[scorpio516]

I've got a Crumpler Complete Seed messenger bag. As a messenger bag, it is quite good. I little on the shallow side though.
Then I've got the photo-specific insert (called the complete seed bucket). It fits a 645 setup, a couple lenses, a couple flashes, about a dozen rolls of 120, and a box of 4" filters. But it still might not fit a monorail 4x5.

[Allen in Montreal]

Noah,

I love that story, thanks.
I still have my first Domke but it is a "misc junk" bag in the trunk. I don't think I have ever thrown a Domke away.
I can't keep my bags as long as I once did, I shoot a lot of events for the society page and the war torn Donke does not go down well at the Daffodil Ball etc etc. :(
But I am gettin' old, I have slimmed down to the F3x for daily assignments now.:)


I replaced my first Domke about two years ago after years of heavy use. It was an F803 I bought in college. I used it for my last two years of school then pretty much every day during my 11 years as a staff photojournalist. I used it hard, often stuffing it with way too much big SLR gear then using it for my Leicas on personal projects and trips.

That bag has been to more countries than most people and even survived the war in Iraq. When I left my newspaper job it seemed like the end of an era so I figured I'd treat myself to a new one. I gave my old one to one of our interns. It was ugly and the strap was fairly badly worn, but I figure it still had another five or ten years worth of life in it.

[gnuyork]

I have both a Crumpler and a Domke satchell. The crumpler is for my laptop. not really a camera bag, and the Domke is for my traveling with my smaller format cameras.

I also use the Domke for my 4x5 and every thing used to fit, until I got some more lenses, but if I walk with the camera mounted to the tripos, I can fit everything else in the Domke.

Both are nice bags, but I would prefer the Domke for cameras.