Playing with a favorite bag format
I used to go walkabout a lot as a kid. Stick a massive pack on my back and go bush for a couple of weeks of adventure and discovery. For all the sites and experiences, my overwhelming memories revolve around trying to get at stuff jammed down the bottom of my pack, ramming my arms down their and trying to feel for the item I was after. Thanks memory…
Since then, a number of trekking packs have innovated with new access ideas which make pack life much more accessible. One of our favorites is the Tri-zip (or 3Zip), which Dana Gleason has designed into various Mystery Ranch packs, and then shared with Camelbak through some joint projects.
The Tri-Zip gives you a lid style top opening for everyday access. But then if you’re packing complicated items or for a long trip, you can open the pack right up and get horizontal access the way you would a shallow suitcase.
While mostly used for military and outdoor packs, the format also has a huge benefit in carrying odd shaped loads, as it gets around the bottle neck issues that chunky items can create. If you regularly jam a DSLR or helmet into your backpack, the Tri-Zip works a treat.
The downsides? So far the Tri-Zip format has always been used with a lid pocket. Personally, lid pockets annoy me a bit because if you fill them, you then need to keep swinging that bulk and weight each time you open the lid. Also, things like compression straps and snowboard carry systems can get in the way of opening the long vertical zip, making it a little more fiddly. But really, these are both pretty minor.
We’ve been road-testing the Camelback version of the Tri-Zip (pictured above), which we’ll give a more in-depth Road Test for soon. In the meantime, you can check out a few Tri-Zip bags at Mystery Ranch, Camelbak Tactical, and Camelbak Recreational.
Oh, and sorry to tease you with that top image. It’s a Mystery Ranch x Maiden Noir collab from a few years ago that still gives us goose bumps. We’re still hoping that one day Mystery Ranch bring out a proper urban range…
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Love the tri-zip form factory. Wish the CamelBak didn’t have the little embroidered design up at the top (yeah, I’m picky), otherwise, looks great.
hello ando, i never understood this concept. If the goal is to access the entire why not a clamshell instead of 3 zips? 3x more hypoteses failure, and leaves the junction of 3 zips a hole through which water can enter.
Never had a bag like this, maybe ican change my mind when isee one.
Yeah, it’s a great point you raise Valter.
First up is the easy bit… the hole at the zip junction isn’t an issue. A bit of backing gusset and you don’t get any leaking.
Now, the raison d’être. The main argument away from clamshells with this sort of pack is that a clamshell slot opening works well for flat things like laptops and magazines, but if you want to carry bulky or irregular shaped items like SLRs, helmets, large equipment or thick clothing, you end up having to open a clamshell up almost the whole way to fit these things through the gap. There is also the bonus that you get access to more internal wall section with a Tri-Zip, as it unfolds and lays the full interior out infront of you. And then with a clamshell if one zip fails you’re gone. With a Tri-zip, sure there’s more zips, but there’s also more ability to work around a failed section of zip.
Did that all make sense?
Great question by the way. I hope I managed to explain it a little more.