Written by: XEONIQ [ Instagram | Tumblr ]
Contents
1. Introduction
The Arc’teryx Granville 10 Courier Bag is the smallest option in the urban reboot of the Granville line of personal carry. I purchased this bag roughly seven months ago with the intention of using it as a camera and valuables bag on days that I did not need to carry more substantial work-related gear. Having owned and used this bag one to two times a week over this period, I feel confident enough to give it a comprehensive review. The bag was purchased from Arc’teryx directly for approximately $USD150. Third party online retailers intermittently offer discounts between 10% and 15% for this item.
2. Performance Specifications
Arc’teryx offers the following performance specifications and quality claims:
- Material: N400r-AC² nylon 6 Ripstop (420D Nylon with Ripstop treatment and a waterproof coating)
- Arc’teryx AC² (Advanced Composite Construction) System which adds taped seams and waterproof zippers to above material to create a water-resistant bag
- External (behind flap) zipper-closure pocket with contrast key clip chain
- Branded TPU zipper pulls for main entry and access
- Padded laptop compartment and internal zippered mesh divider pocket
- Clip-adjustable body stabilizer strap
- Elastic holders for nylon webbing strap
- Top-situated nylon handle
- Capacity: 10 Litres
- Weight: 520 grams
3. Design Features and Usage Impressions
Arc’teryx has long been a strong contender in the outdoor apparel and accessories market. The 2019 Granville line was a part of the manufacturer’s push into the growing urban technical market where competitors such as The North Face had been successful in selling jackets and bags in particular to a growing cosmopolitan consumer base – particularly those working in the IT field. Many of the garments and accessories remind me of Veilance, albeit significantly more robust and practical in their tangible quality and designs. With a more palatable price point in line with TNF, and a range of neutral and less bright colourways to suit urban use, Arc’teryx has provided a strong response to this market with seasonal sub collections of urban clothing and gear.
The Granville 10 Courier presents very well in person and I was impressed with its apparent construction, most of its hardware and size. I personally do not care for the office look that most messenger bags provide, nor the unstructured, simplistic pillow case design that many “techwear” bags use. Available in three colours: black, grey and a yellow tinted green, I opted for black for versatility. I wanted to test the purported increase in utility claimed by messenger bag fans of this courier design, particularly its ability to rotate the bag around the body to access its contents without removing it. As a major proponent of the backpack as an ideal daily carry solution, I felt I needed to give the courier design a fair try. I also wanted to test a small bag for carrying my camera, Kobo eBook Reader and wallet while out, and perhaps for photo shoots.
The quality and condition of the bag has held up over the past seven months. Admittedly, I find myself using the bag less and less, but in the period I’ve owned it there have been no major defects bar one (discussed in Section 4 below) and as shown in the image above, the construction and assembly of the bag is of good quality. Arc’teryx is careful to rate this bag as “water-resistant” and not “waterproof” despite the N400r-AC² material it is made from being claimed “waterproof”. While I have never used this bag for commuting, and have never been caught in a heavy rain for longer than a few minutes, I feel confident based on its construction using waterproof zippers and a heavy flap in this coated material that it will have no issue protecting your electronics during brief treks in the rain in urban environments. For anything serious and prolonged however I would still recommend using a bag with a dedicated waterproof rain cover like the Condor Failsafe Elite.
Being as brand-adverse I am with my clothing, I opted to block out the high contrast white Arc’teryx logo with a black permanent marker. The logo remains reflective under bright light but otherwise presents as black.
4. Issues and Concerns
4.1 Wrinkling in Foam Back Padding and Fading on Primary Strap
This was an issue that occurred within a week of owning the bag. It appears the interfacing between the outer polyester and the foam warps quickly with use. I attempted steaming the wrinkle but there was no change. This is not a large issue, in my opinion, as this wrinkling will never be visible while the bag is worn or laid down on its back. However, fastidious buyers need to be aware this defect may occur with their bags. As shown below the primary strap has also quickly faded with light wear. For those who want their accessories to stay a true black for a long time, this could be an issue. I was not personally bothered by it though.
4.2 Insubstantial Plastics used in Front Fastener Clips and Webbing Buckles
While the TPU zipper pulls, metal buckle and waterproof zipper hardware all feel and present as quality items, the plastic used for the clips and buckles of the bag feels inexpensive and jarring. None of the strap buckles or fastener clips have failed, however the clips have sustained numerous hairline scratches over them. Thus, this is primarily a cosmetic and “feel” issue, not a performance one and I assume the use of lightweight plastics would save some minute amount of weight. Yet knowing how many premium hardware options are out there I feel this aspect of the bag could have been better to match the rest of the high quality components.
4.3 Insufficient Padding in Laptop Compartment
I did not purchase this bag to carry a laptop, as my primary work machine is much too large to ever fit in it. However, I did want some measure of padding and shock protection for when I would carry fragile camera equipment. While there is a light foam padding at the back of the bag, there is absolutely none on the bottom of it. This is an issue as when you set the bag down on the ground while holding it’s primary strap the first area it is going hit is the bottom. Thus, one must be extremely careful with setting the bag down at all times to prevent any damage to sensitive electronics.
4.4 Elastic Webbing Strap Holders are Unreliable
One of the reasons I was drawn to the Granville 10 Courier Bag was that it provided elastic loops to hold excess webbing straps after adjustment. When wearing a relatively fitted outfit, I find it both annoying and uncoordinated if there are numerous straps dangling from the middle of the chest and other awkward areas. Unfortunately, I’ve found that even when painstakingly wrapping excess webbing up and pinning it underneath these elastic loops, they will rather quickly come undone. As the bag is rather structured in its presentation and without much “drape”, I find the loose webbing to be a jarring look. For those who enjoy the aesthetic of dangling webbing straps, this is a non-issue. I think Arc’teryx should continue developing this feature as there will be a portion of buyers who do value this function and it is not effective in its current design.
4.5 Coated Outer Textile becomes Marked Easily
Due to the nature of the coated N400r-AC² main textile, it will present light-coloured marks easily over any part of the bag that brushes against abrasive surfaces such as walls or cement. This is to be expected for such coated materials but buyers should keep this in mind. The marks are somewhat easy to remove with a small wet towel.
4.6 Carry Issues due to Low Volume plus Structured Design
Another issue I found is regarding the carry of bulkier items that do not have a slim profile. While an eBook Reader, a small paper back and other relatively flat objects have no issue being carried, anything with more “depth” to its form such as a full frame camera or larger lens is going to deform the body of the bag in an awkward way. Further adding much weight to the bag at all, such as 2kg+ loads disrupts fitment significantly. This bag is ideal for stacking slim, flat objects in it and not anything with much 3 dimensional shape. However, there is a plus side to this structured rigidity and thin profile, and that is the bag looks quite good with a very light load. There are many bags that look deflated and awkward when you are not carrying sufficient items in them.
4.7 Fitment Concerns
The last issue is fitment concerns. I bought this hoping to wear it over a tank top or t-shirt in the summer. What I found was that because I have a large chest the bag awkwardly gathered my top fabric and presented poorly on body. I imagine this will be the case for anyone with an ample chest or breasts that wish to wear this bag with just a top. Putting a boxy shell or fleece vest under the bag however dramatically improved fitment and comfort. Further, I found adjusting the bag with the modular clip system to be time consuming and sometimes frustrating to get an ideal fit that both looked good and felt comfortable. Relative to backpacks which fit pretty much uniformly across the shoulders, this bag can be challenging to fit right. Keep this in mind based on your body type and what you intend to wear the bag with.
5. Personal Use Case and Styling
The personal use case I have for taking the Arc’teryx Granville 10 Courier out for a day is one where I will not be in need of heavy work gear and where the sling messenger style of the Granville 10 may be aesthetically more pleasing than a backpack. Over the last seven months and continual attempts at styling the bag with different outfits, I have come to the conclusion that it is not terribly versatile as a casual bag, as far as aesthetics go. As the bag has a hard technical edge to it in its colour and synthetic materials, it is not suitable to be worn over menswear, such as button shirts, much less suits. Neither will it work well with longer coats or bomber jackets. The ideal styling I’ve found on myself has been over an A-Line technical shell, fleece vest, sweatshirt, or a shacket (as styled below).
I have tried carrying the bag on long photo shoots, however I found it inferior to the Condor Failsafe Elite for this usage. During fashion shoots a photographer needs to be able to climb on to structures to get higher vantage points as well as crouch very low or even lay down to capture the subject from different angles. Despite the presence of the body stabilizer strap, even at its tightest setting it will not hold secure against the body in the way that a properly secured chest and waist-strapped backpack will. Being used to quickly retrieving items from my backpack with one strap over the shoulder, I found the so-called advantage of the messenger bag where one can swing the bag to your front to be exaggerated in utility. The bag’s lack of compartmentalisation further reduces its value in this use case, with a dedicated camera bag or backpack with sufficient compartments being superior. The bag is not marketed as a camera bag so this aspect is just to be kept in mind for photographers who are considering using this for small equipment carry.
A typical casual, urban outfit for styling the Arc’teryx Granville 10 Courier is shown below.
Outfit summary:
- Arc’teryx Granville 10 Courier Bag
- ROSEN-X Minerva-2 Overshirt in Ripstop Cotton
- Outlier Rivetworks Trousers
- Mr Leight Griffith CL Frames with Griffith AL Clip-On Shades
6. Summary
6.1 Pros
- Excellent availability worldwide from bricks and mortar and online retailers; easy to find below RRP ($200CAD)
- Relatively inexpensive as a “techwear” bag with a body stabiliser strap
- Striking coated nylon black material with Ripstop both looks and feels premium compared to Cordura and other nylon based bag materials
- Fits a Macbook Pro 13″ model laptop or smaller
- Rigid structure means that the bag looks aesthetic even when not substantially filled
- Majority of hardware looks and feels premium
- Highly water-resistant
- Adjustable fit
- Small size lends to a more form-fitted aesthetic than the majority of bigger messenger bags when on body
6.2 Cons
- Not aesthetically versatile for many styles of clothing (limited to casual urban looks, ideally over a light outer layer)
- Cannot hold bulky items, much more suitable for slim, flat items such as a tablet PC or paperback book
- Certain hardware such as the buckles and clips feel cheap and scratch relatively easily
- Foam interfaced backing may wrinkle with light usage, appears to be unfixable (but this cannot be seen when the bag is worn)
- Primary strap will fade with light wear
- Lack of sufficient shockproofing with none at the bottom at all (it is recommended to use a case or cover for your electronics while in this bag)
- Lack of compartmentalisation with only one zippered pocket that can only hold very slim objectives in the middle
- Not ideal to wear when in certain positions, such as photo shooting at very low angles
- Users with large chests/breasts may find fitment issues compared to a backpack
6.3 Verdict
If you want a relatively affordable technical courier bag with a small size, I believe this is a good option. If you want to take out a tablet PC, a light packable outerwear, and several flat or small sized items in your personal carry for urban use, this bag will have no problem performing. The Granville 10 looks best over casual looks with some type of light layer over the top to mitigate awkward chest fitment issues. If you want a bag for carrying small bulky or heavy items or one that is aesthetically versatile in a range of outfits, I would seek other alternatives such as a backpack, dedicated camera bag, or hand carry work bag/messenger.
Ethical Statement: This product was purchased by myself with my own funds and is in no way endorsed or otherwise sponsored by the manufacturer (Arc’teryx).