Leather Messenger Bag

June 28, 2006 9:05 PM

I'm looking for an inexpensive (less than $80 if possible), quality, brown leather messenger bag. It'd be great if it was big enough to hold my HP Compaq nc6000 (1.34 x 12.51 x 10.31 in).

Simplicity is certainly a priority, but I'd like to have some space to store pens, business cards, and the like as well.

posted by tnoetz01 to shopping (8 answers total)

I've seen a few nice ones on occasional basis at local T.J.Max stores...
posted by Agamenticus at 9:12 PM on June 28, 2006

High quality + leather = dreamland. Just kidding, please tell me if you find one at that price. I have to agree with the above poster--check out places like TJMaxx, Marshalls, and Ross. I always find great bags at great prices.

After a quick google search the cheapest I could find out there is this one from LLBean. I don't know how you feel about that LLBean logo. It's very prominent. Brown leather messenger bag.

Also, if you don't mind synthetic leather, Zappos.com has a few with great prices. Go to accessories, then to men's bags.

I personally love the black microfiber men's messenger bag at Banana Republic. It's sleek and stylish, and it's in your price range, but that's not what you are asking for, is it. :)
posted by LoriFLA at 9:57 PM on June 28, 2006

high quality plus leather at the price...duh. I need to go to sleep!
posted by LoriFLA at 9:59 PM on June 28, 2006

Bohemian Traders has some very nice leather bags on the cheap. You will want to put your laptop in a sleeve as the bags are not cushioned, but the bag itself is execeptionally sturdy.
posted by nathan_teske at 10:26 PM on June 28, 2006

If you go to enough Good Wills you'll find one for about seven dollars. I have several of them.
posted by zackdog at 11:04 PM on June 28, 2006

I dropped about $70 on a black leather Kenneth Cole messenger bag thinking I was buying quality. It lasted a few weeks before the zipper fobs broke... then the shoulder strap broke sending the bag flying onto the sidewalk. This wouldn't have been so bad except that it was spring in Chicago - so the sidewalk was covered in recently thawed pigeon shit. That was several years ago... I bought a Timbuk2 bag and never looked back.

I'm not saying that you can't find a reasonable quality leather bag for a good price... but often it's at the cost of style above function and reliability. YMMV.
posted by wfrgms at 11:30 PM on June 28, 2006

I've bought two different cases from (believe it or not) leather-briefcases.com and both are well made and thoughtfully designed. Several less expensive messenger models are in the $100-150 range (a bit above your ceiling), but at least worth a look. In a year or so of hunting in NYC I found nothing close to their quality/price ratio.
posted by dickyvibe at 12:04 AM on June 29, 2006

I love the Kenneth Cole messenger bag I received as a gift a year ago. It's not $80, so it doesn't quite qualify as an answer to your question. And I just remembered you want brown, and this bag comes in black only. But it is holding up well after a year of daily use (the only slight signs of wear are the two points on the strap where the metal rubs) and I highly recommend the bag if you become interested in a black version.

You can see the bag I'm describing here: http://www.luggageonline.com/product.cfm?product_ID=2634
posted by reeddavid at 1:10 AM on June 29, 2006