Description
Meanwhile is a fitted waterproof dry bag/tote, intended as a Wald basket bag (137 or 139 basket sizes). With convenient carry handles, it is well-suited for grocery shopping and basket touring alike. A simple, waterproof roll-top closure allows Meanwhile to expand as needed. Packed and rolled tight, with the lower buckles looped under the basket’s rails, Meanwhile sits securely in a Wald basket, and can be removed in seconds.
For carrying heavy, solid objects (think 6-packs) it’s best to lay a shirt down at the bottom of the bag to act as a buffer between your cargo and the rack. This will help prevent wear on the bag’s bottom layer (no fabric likes getting stuck between a rock and a hard place : )
Standard features include :
- Welded, 100% waterproof seams
- Roll-top closure with hook and loop velcro mating at top of bag
- Colored carry handles for use as a shopping tote
- Bartacked in critical stress points
- Duraflex™ acetyl buckles
- Double-coated 420D fabric
- Handmade in Asheville, North Carolina
Ghostship Matt –
I loved the idea of this bag when I saw it on the PR site, but never pulled the trigger. Received it as a birthday present and am mostly happy with it. Very light, waterproof, fits my 137 rack perfectly, and is not insanely overpriced (like every other basket bag on the market). The three gripes I have that would make this bag a slam-dunk-home-run-hat-trick-sports-analogy:
I had no idea that the opening of the bag is lined with velcro, as it’s not listed in the description. I have an intense distaste for this. It will wear out over time, grabs and creates snags on fabric gloves and clothing. It seems completely unnecessary being that this is a roll-top bag. I will likely add a strip of loop-tape to prevent it from snagging, but this is sort of annoying. Maybe other folks will like this feature, but it’s more of a frustration for me. Maybe add two or three tabs of the stuff vs the whole opening if you really feel like it’s necessary?
The female-buckle hardware has an odd opening, which has allowed the lower strap to twist, which prevents it from being able to be snugged down all the way. This is a giant PITA to straighten out, and led me to wondering why a heavier strapping, or a more closed buckle wasn’t used to reduce the likelihood of the strap twisting.
The straps holding the buckles at the top of the bag could be a bit longer. Sometimes I find I have to re-roll the bag to ensure that the buckles will be exposed enough to meet the lower ones when affixing the bag to my rack. Maybe my hands are just dumb, or I haven’t figured out the trick yet, but it’s annoying to have to open it and reroll if I did it wrong (which is often), especially while wearing the aforementioned snagged gloves.
I also just noticed that the carry handles are two different colors. Not certain if this intentional (help determine front from back?), or if it was a mistake during construction?
Overall, this bag works great, and the welded construction is really awesome; lots of value for the price. Once I get this strap untwisted, I’ll be stoked to use it again.
Gregory –
Hey Matt! Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I’ll add the velcro info to the description, thanks for catching that. For the female buckle on the 1″ web, not sure what you mean with this twist. If you shoot me a quick picture to [email protected] I can take a look.
Colors of the carry handles are intentional. It helps with separating them quickly so you don’t try to pull them apart when they are looped through each other. Thanks again for your support and happy b day!
cheers,
greg
Collin –
This is a great little bag for running errands and living that basketpacking lifestyle. Totally waterproof, very durable, and quite light. However, the bag could be much more useful for the urban cyclist if the handle straps were long enough to run as a shoulder bag, especially when the bag is close to full. It works fine in a bike camping setting, just not 100% perfect for regular errands and using the bag for off-bike tasks (groceries, commuting to work when that was still a thing, etc.).
Gregory –
Hey Collin! Thanks for taking the time to drop a review. Shoulder straps for off the bike errands makes sense, especially for the larger 149 size as these bags can swallow a ton of groceries. We’ll give this some serious thought. And here’s to hoping bike commutes to work make a comeback this year… cheers! -greg
Austin Osborne –
I have the Porcelain Rocket Wald 139 bag with the basket mounted to a Crust Small Rack v2.
Overall fantastic. I used this to commute to work and class for a winter and worked for its exact purpose without fault.