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review

Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack

8
£160.00

VERDICT:

8
10
Great commuting bag that offers tons of storage, looks good, and sits nicely on the back
Weight: 
1,040g

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The Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack is an excellent choice for commuting, with a large capacity, a design that sits well on the back, and a huge number of storage options so you can organise your stuff. It looks good too, though it is pretty expensive.

  • Pros: Loads of storage, looks good, comfortable
  • Cons: Fairly expensive, laptop sleeve can be difficult to do up when bag is heavily laden

The Vigil's carrying capacity is listed as 26 litres, but its innovative use of space means you might be able to fit more in than you think.

> Find your nearest dealer here

First off, it has a large main compartment with a robust zip that comes down very low, letting you open up the bag much more than some and making it easier to get things in and out.

Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack - insdie.jpg

Inside the main compartment there are two large pockets that are perfect for things like keys, phones, iPads, spare lights, repair kits and so on. When you have somewhere dedicated to keep this kind of kit, it makes it so much easier to find anything on the go – so particularly useful for commuting.

Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack - mesh pocket.jpg

Across the bag there are several very useful pockets, with a large sleeve at the back large enough to fit a 15-inch laptop comfortably, a small pocket at the top of the bag and another small pocket midway down, so you can be really organised with where your kit goes.

Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack - laptop sleeve.jpg

The only slight downside I found with these pockets was that when the bag was particularly heavily laden the laptop sleeve became difficult to do up. On the sides of the pack are more pockets you can use for bottles, a lock and other smaller objects.

Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack - side pocket.jpg

The bag is claimed to be water resistant rather than waterproof, but in reality the only place a little bit of water came through was at the zip, and even then it was during a particularly heavy downpour. This water resistance is down to the material choice of nylon and tarpaulin, with the area that would get the most rain – the top and bottom – made from the more durable tarp, the rest being the not-quite-as-water-resistant nylon.

Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack - base panel.jpg

The front of the pack has dozens of reflective attachment loops cleverly hidden behind folds in the fabric, giving the bag a cleaner look while maintaining that safety element that is essential for city riding.

Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack - reflective.jpg

When worn, the backpack is very comfortable thanks to the adjustable straps and EVA back panel. The straps have a decent amount of padding without making your shoulders too insulated while riding, with webbing on the inside of the straps to help dissipate any excess heat. They are easily adjustable, even when wearing thick winter gloves, which allows them to be quickly changed based on the load. The adjustable chest strap in the centre has a magnetic clip, which can be fastened or unfastened quickly, even in winter gloves.

Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack - straps.jpg

The back panel isn't as well ventilated as some packs I have used, but certainly stands up to scrutiny, and with the thick EVA pads air can flow fairly well, so even if it's not as good as something like the Osprey Escapist, for example, it's still pretty good.

Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack - back.jpg

Value

At £160 it isn't the cheapest bag, but given the quality of the build and the elements included it's about what I would expect.

> Buyer's Guide: 17 of the best cycling rucksacks

The Shimano Tokyo 23 urban daypack, for example, is around £30 cheaper and offers some of the same elements, but it doesn't look as good, in my opinion, or offer the huge range of pockets.

Conclusion

Overall, I was very impressed by the Mazer Vigil Pack. It looks great, lets you organise your kit brilliantly, and keeps it safe from the elements. There is no doubt that it's expensive and it's a little bit difficult to do up the laptop sleeve when it's very full, but these are the only small issues I could find in what is otherwise a great bag.

Verdict

Great commuting bag that offers tons of storage, looks good, and sits nicely on the back

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Chrome Mazer Vigil Pack

Size tested: 26 litres

Tell us what the product is for and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

It is a commuting bag for city riding.

Chrome says, "The new Mazer Vigil Pack is a water-resistant urban expedition pack ready for anything."

This is an accurate description of the bag. There wasn't ever a time where I wished I had more space or a different bag.

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

Chrome lists these features:

Water-resistant urban expedition pack

Padded laptop sleeve fits 15" Macbook Pro

Hidden reflective attachment loops for extra gear

Adjustable ergo straps with EVA back panel

Durable nylon & tarp shell w/ ripstop nylon liner

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
9/10

It's a very well made bag that's likely to last for a long time.

Rate the product for performance:
 
9/10

Did everything I needed for a commuting bag, there were very few elements that I would change.

Rate the product for durability:
 
8/10

Early days, but Chrome has used a tarp material on the areas that should see most wear, and the hardware used throughout the bag is good quality.

Rate the product for weight (if applicable)
 
6/10
Rate the product for comfort (if applicable)
 
8/10

It has a good amount of padding on the back, and the straps are easy to adjust.

Rate the product for value:
 
4/10

Pretty expensive for a backpack. Shimano's Tokyo 23 is around £30 cheaper and offers some of the same elements, though not the same aesthetics or huge range of pockets.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

Comfortable on and off the bike, fitted everything in that I needed, and its tons of pockets meant I kept everything well organised.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

The storage options around the bag.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

The price.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Yes

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes

Use this box to explain your overall score

This is a great commuting bag with loads of storage, the ability to organise everything really well, and it looks good off the bike to boot. Yes, it's expensive, but it still rates a 'very good'.

Overall rating: 8/10

About the tester

Age: 32  Height: 6 ft  Weight:

I usually ride: CAAD13  My best bike is: Cannondale Supersix Evo

I've been riding for: Under 5 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: commuting, club rides, sportives, general fitness riding, fixed/singlespeed, mountain biking

George is the host of the road.cc podcast and has been writing for road.cc since 2014. He has reviewed everything from a saddle with a shark fin through to a set of glasses with a HUD and everything in between. 

Although, ironically, spending more time writing and talking about cycling than on the bike nowadays, he still manages to do a couple of decent rides every week on his ever changing number of bikes.

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3 comments

Avatar
brooksby | 4 years ago
0 likes

"Looks good"... I'd beg to differ. It looks ugly as sin and as if it would be £20 in the middle aisle in Lidl/Aldi, IMO.

 

(Full disclosure: I do own two bags by Chrome. A fifteen year old Citizen (bought by me, new, and its been present at the births of both of my kids)  and a six year old Metropolis (a very generous gift from my in-laws)).

Avatar
kevvjj | 4 years ago
0 likes

£160

Just what special materials is this pack made from to justify that price? There are literally dozens of similar 'commuting' packs made from the same materials selling for much, much less.

Avatar
LastBoyScout | 4 years ago
0 likes

It's black and costs £160 = fail.

Yes, it might have reflective accents, but they don't work if there's no headlights to reflect.

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