Condor Urban Go Pack(Gen I)

[lone-wolf]

I make this review cause it's been about 8 years since I purchased it, and the first problems have finally showed up.

To start, price, was about $100. Spending $100 on a backpack at the time seemed nuts, but after every backpack I had in school blowing out due to heavy books, I wanted something that might last.

Purpose? This backpack has a large rear pocket good for paperwork but specifically for laptops under 16" screen size.
I purchased this pack for the first job I had out in Alberta/BC, that was well testing with grant pts out of grande prairie.
I'd be packing a laptop with me on the place trips and potentially daily to keep me entertained on slow days.

Since then I have used it to carry some heavy books for technical college, hunting gear, it's ridden shotgun with me while trucking, and just for anything grab and go purpose I could find. It almost always got some positive remarks from coworkers. The only thing I somewhat regret is the od green colour, and having to explain it's not actually milsurp.

Positives, carries almost anything job related you'd need, plenty of pockets and little organizing spaces inside the pockets. Top pocket easy to access for phone/wallet/aspirin or antacids. The little extra storage areas in the compartments were used for securing extra batteries or any little things like it you didn't want bouncing around too much. Inside the main compartment was a pocket for paper work or anything flat.
Outside molle webbing if you need it, I found it handy for keeping pens and markers within easy reach. Also easy for clipping a knife or light to.
The side pockets were perfect for some water bottles, energy bars, bug spray, ect.
Straps were padded and comfortable. It did come with a waist belt too that I never used.
Drainage holes! Oh, the jellos I took from camp that never lasted the trip - remove the bulk and just rinse the rest out over the sink and set the pack over the vents to dry.

Cons, I loved this pack, and the only negative I have about it is what happened after 8yrs of use and I took a picture of it.
A piece of the zipper has started letting go in a couple places on the main compartment.

Condor has a bad rap I found, but I know at least this one pack has served me great. I think it warranted a review.

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[Ruff]

$100 isn't that much for a quality pack, in fact I've paid several times more. Regarding your Condor and any pack, zipper failure is no small thing because the whole length can unzip in an instant and the entire contents of the pack can end up dumping out behind you at a very bad moment, either socially embarasing or putting you physically at risk. Ask me how I know, I did both pretty close together and then I went to the more top of the line stuff. But I still watch those zippers.

As far as looks go, a lot of get home baggers do not go for the military look, favouring more harmless looking dweeb stuff as a disguise, but I confess a weakness for the spec ops sort of look (and it more or less comes with high quality, except for some of the Arc'teryx LEAF stuff, which in turn shows how serious they are). To make up for that, I have some rain covers that, while functional, look like absolute hippie wanker crap- bought them at the MEC when I still went there.

[lone-wolf]

Just wanted to update this with the fact I have retired this bag to avoid potential embarrassment like Ruff said, of having that zipper give up even more.
It's a pita now anyways to try and work the zipper pull with it falling apart.

I have replaced the bag with a maxpedition condor 2 w/ 10x4 water bottle pouch on the side. I like it a lot.
I don't mind the military look, I'm in the woods or I am working blue collar jobs so no one bats an eye at such a thing.