Is this the Ideal Backpack Size? CTB26 vs Max EDC vs Bellroy Venture Travel vs Synik 26 vs GR2

[@BigFuzzyGuy11]

When you add in the trunk capacity of the 89 Camry you get with the TB Synik, it’s way more than the 26L advertised.

[@charles7852]

Danny, great review and comparison video as usual sir! You know I go back and forth between CTB26, ACMEDC, and A19 Evade 1.5 for larger EDC carry. It’s hard to pick the best one but I lean toward the ACMEDC as the most versatile of the bunch. Thank again!

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the support! Definitely tough choice with so many great options these days, I think the max edc is a great one to go with

[@shanebellare]

great selection! my favorite 26L is the Alpaka Elements Backpack Pro! although their version of 26L is super slim, which can both be a pro and a con.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and good call out! Big fan of the elements pro as well!

[@GridironGameSim]

I've tried the Evergoods CTB26 & the Able Carry MAX EDC. Unfortunately, both bags' backpanels stab me in the back and cause significant discomfort. I'm really looking into the Bellroy Venture Travel now as it looks like a great bag with great materials, but man... I wish they used beefier straps... I'm a guy who *needs* large EDC and all the best designs are used on bags with capacities like 19L, 22L, etc. Rough out here for us... lol. Either way, great video.

[@Lillither]

Same exact situation as you and view of those two bags! We need a comfortable large EDC bag!!

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the support! Might be worth checking out something like the aer travel pack 3 small, Evergoods cpl28 or mystery ranch blitz

[@sentryion3106]

Why don’t you try the aer city pack pro? Feels like everything you need. It’s 24l, but I doubt the 2l would matter too much

[@Lillither]

@@sentryion3106 at least for me that bag (great as it is) has rubbish weight distribution and pulls on the back when loaded :(

[@GridironGameSim]

@@sentryion3106 Because AER bags are hideous and seem too small, lol.

[@Chambros703]

Love the Dragon and Griffin 2. The Dragon is fantastic as a one bag travel and performs well as an edc. Love the internal water bottle pockets and the QAP on top is way bigger than it seems. Both are my go to’s right now

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and that’s great to hear the bags are working out well!

[@tharealrobj]

Thanks for the video. I would have loved the round up to rank your preference in the different areas comfort, load out space, straps, laptop compartment, etc. I assume that you don’t want to anger any of the bag makers, though. Would love to know your favorite and why.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and good suggestion! It’s tough to say which is my favorite overall as some work better depending on the situation and some of those preferences are fairly subjective. In general, of these the able carry is probably the most comfortable for my preferences, for space and organization id lean towards the Ctb26 / gr2, for daily carry I think the Synik works best in terms of its size, the Bellroy feels like it has the best weather resistance, for the laptop conpartment of these options I might have to go with the CTB or dragon (although there are other bags not on this list which I think offer better laptop protection)

[@tharealrobj]

I totally understand and it’s one of the reasons that the search for a bag never stops. Honestly the AON Evade 1.5 should be on this list because it too clicks a lot of the same qualities. I wonder if PD will create a bag close to these specs.

[@MVirnig3D]

Carryology collaborations are fantastic! I own both Griffin and Dragon 2.0, and I often find myself torn between choosing which one to use each day.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and I agree, definitely hard to choose! :)

[@bani_niba]

Nah for any bags that are 4 lbs or more. Especially since so many of these are so expensive. It was an eye-opener to me to see the Able Carry as one of the least expensive bags in this video.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and fair point, these are definitely pricier bags!

[@TLhike]

Great mix of bags. Able is sweet. Mystery ranch was from designer/owner of old Dana design packs, their Harnesses and straps are next level they make lot military gear. Synik is cool too Tom B in xpac would be cool. Im trending down to 24L as airlines are more & more being dicks for personal items. Great review as always!

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the support! I agree that 24l is starting to become a safer size to move towards if you can make that work!

[@TLhike]

@ depends on application but im exclusively for persoanl item flying and use carryon for week plus. Man the goruck dyneema GR2 is a spoil yourself bag tho! Thanks!

[@Auralphile]

Danny - thanks for doing these! It was nice to be able to see a comparison of so many popular EDC-ish bags on the market right now. With the Able Carry Max EDC, did you notice any issues/discomfort from the lower tabs on the back panel (where the straps connect)? I know that issue has been getting some air-time with other reviewers but I don't know if it's being blown out of proportion.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the support! I haven’t had an issue with the able carry on my back but I know that can be so dependent on someone’s height (many people have issues with the CTB for example but so far it’s worked great for me)

[@b3kind69]

Got the Tom bihn s26 but it was too small and now I'm considering the ctb and able carry EDC. This is vid is v timely for me. I think my issue with the Tom bihn was that the volume in that main compartment is smaller since the rest of the volume is in the pockets

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and I’m glad the video was helpful! The CTB and able carry would definitely be worth checking out

[@bharatagarwalla]

As per the dimension the bellroy VT is more seems to be taller and chunkier compared to the AbleCarry Max EDC. But as you have tried both the bag do you feel the bellroy is shorter in height and less chunkier?

[@colinmsmall]

I want that waxed canvas CTB26 so bad lol I’d trade my Carryology edition for it. It looks so cool.

[@Jesper-bl2ns]

It really does. It's the bag we have been waiting Fjellraven to make in their G-1000 canvas - but they are not that creative.

[@e3vL1]

Wax canvas looks good. I was about to make a purchase when it was available, but decided not to due to the water bottle pockets not being the same as original

[@colinmsmall]

@ Good point, I did t even check the water bottle pockets

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and I agree, the CTB26 in waxed canvas really looks great!

[@phywyc]

Three comments: 1. I'd appreciate if you could mention whether the bag could stand on its own in your future videos. One thing that drives me crazy is many of these super expensive bags could not stand on its own! Like the designers never use their own bags. Don't they know how convenient to have the bag able to stand on its own?! 2. Could you review more bags below maybe $150? The bags in this video are all very expensive (>$200!). While they may worth the price, the majority does not want to spend that much on a bag. Many popular brands such as osprey, north face have very good functional, durable, and affordable bags. But I don't see many reviews on those. 3. Could you show how you use the bag in a day-to-day basis, or some tips, or pros and cons when use them in practice? Thanks!

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the suggestions! I agree the standing piece is very important and I usually talk about that in the dedicated reviews for the bags but will include that in similar videos in the future. I agree north face and osprey bags are great, I’ve actually reviewed quite a few of them and have a few playlists that have the various videos I’ve done for them if you want to check them out :)

[@jonuiuc]

My favorite one this size range is still the Evade 1.5, my fave harness out of all of them (load lifters yay), and they solved the weight issue on the new version. 2nd fave is the CT21+, those are hard to get and their though. 20-22L bags are just too small for me, I'm a bigger guy though, so all my stuff is bigger.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and good callout on the evade! I almost included it here since it’s so close in size and a great alternative as well

[@dayulin3058]

Nice update!❤

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the support!:)

[@CryingCroc.]

Wow! A 26L daily pack for $500!?! That's got to be a pretty extreme outlier?? And yet, my own style may be extreme too - going the other way! My one-bag for multi-months solo travel is the Ecohub 20L, costs $30, and qualifies as a personal item on all the airlines. It's full panel loading and a joy to pack and use. It's NO Goruck, but it's tough enough for my trips to Europe, Middle East and Far East over the last few years. Still looks new!

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the suggestion! That ecohub bag looks pretty interesting!

[@CryingCroc.]

@@dannypacks Having been used to Eagle Creek and Osprey, the Ecohub fabric material felt "flimsy" at first. However, as mentioned, having used it daily for months at a time in various different trips, I am delighted with this pack. For popular type travels (hosteling worldwide) - why pay substantial price and weight penalties (e.g. $500/4 pounds) when a much cheaper/lighter pack ($30/1.25 lb) will already do the job well? I neither baby nor abuse my gear.

[@GucciKraken]

Thanks Danny!

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the support!:)

[@fellowninja]

The GR1 26L is taller than the GR2, right?

[@fellowninja]

I should add, it’s taller but as thin as the 21L, right? Since the GR2 has two pockets?

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and yes the 26l gr1 is taller than the gr2 26l (it is similar in height to the 34l gr2)

[@IWTBFOY]

I can't believe you haven't reviewed CTB 20!

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and I’m just waiting on my preorder to ship out, can’t wait to start testing it!

[@CDwill1223]

What’s your thoughts on the CTB Phoenix2 26L compared to the Waxed Canvas?

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching! Both are really great overall and I love the look and feel of waxed canvas but if I had to pick one I’d probably go with the phoenix 2 in xpac for the additional weather resistance

[@JK-zn7hl]

Hear ye hear ye Patagonia black hole series 26L~

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and great callout! That’s another solid alternative!

[@JK-zn7hl]

@ too bad it was released two years ago and is no longer officially available, been looking all over for this exact size

[@v3n0s]

Evergoods 500💲???😱 (it says 500 on their site)

[@sennahojw]

The new a19 evade should have been included

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and good callout! I almost included it, and it’s a great alternative to these bags!

[@HarimaKenji22]

Man that Tom Bihn really does give those "old boomer" vibes

[@e3vL1]

I'm getting an old engineer/IT vibe

[@malcolmaquino974]

Tom Binh gives me "topo grews up"

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching! The look definitely isn’t for everyone but that pocket layout is tough to resist!:)

[@GG-sj6sm]

Need AON collab carriology 👍

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and I agree, would be great to see another collab with AON!