laptop backpack bags

Ventra Pack 2-in-1 Chest Pack / Slim Shoulder Sling Messenger Bag
Review by James S. Thompson : Works great for what it is

This thing works great, just remember it does not come with all the pouches, it uses the MOLLE attachment system, so you can swap out different pouches etc to it. Attaches to almost any pack (camelbaks etc), is great for magazine holders and first aid kits.

Ventra Pack 2-in-1 Chest Pack / Slim Shoulder Sling Messenger Bag
Review by The Traveller "Bristol View" : Excellent chest pack that works by itself or with a backpack

This is a basic chest pack with a few twists. Like most Civilian products, it is generally well built and has lots of pockets and organizer slots. Most Civilian products are so overbuilt you could hand them down to your kids and they might hand them down to theirs. This is the first Civilian product that I feel may fail with heavy use. The straps that attach to the pack are sewn on with one folded over area with a typical cross stitch across the webbing. It would have been more durable to run the webbing all the way down the back, and sew it the entire length. This one has 4 small areas where each of the 4 straps connects, each one looks like a potential failure point. So far, they are doing fine and have not failed, just a concern going forward. Minus that one concern, the pack is really very nice and I like it quite a lot.

The rear has an open top pocket with a little velcro closure which doesn't really do much to keep it closed. This rear pocket is great for stuffing a poncho or other item you want to pull out quickly. Next is the main pouch, which is a zipped area with weather resistant zippers. When you open it, a shelf drops forward showing you a map case with clear plastic cover over your topo map, wonderful. This map cover doesn't seal, so any rain would go right in. I sealed mine with duct tape across the top once my map is in. On your chest, opposite the map is a set of pockets and organizers. Most are open top, but all are inside the zippered outer shell so everything is protected. There are multiple slots for small to relatively bulky items. On the face of the pack is a broad flat chest rig, covered with Molle straps. These allow you to attach any Molle gear such as pouches, radios, knife sheath, etc.

This chest pack has attachments to clip to a backpack harness. This works great, and I use it on my North Face Terra backpack. It keeps anything I want easily accessible while hiking. When I take the backpack off, I unclip this pack and put the cross strap harness from Civilian (available as an accessory) on and now I can wear it by itself. In both cases, with a backpack and by itself, it rides very well and you forget it is even there.

I use this bag for backpacking to carry my essentials. I may set my pack down and go exploring, but my essentials always stay with me, just in case. One reviewer said it was small and useless. Here is what I have in mine; An Equinox Poncho, an emergency Bivy (AMK), SAS Mini Field Manual, Small fishing kit, signal Mirror, TruFlare launcher and 3 comet flares and 2 bear bangers, a lensatic compass, a Brunton monocular, Polar Pure water purification, a Frontier water filter, a notepad and pen, 2 fire steels with extra Magnesium, a Petzl headlamp, a backup compass, a fixed blade knife on the outside, a foldable saw, Fox 40 whistle on the outside, and a flat Tops whistle on the inside as backup, Swisstool Spirit Multitool, a fresnel lens firestarter, Gerber Mini-Covert pocket knife, matches in a waterproof container, a bic lighter, some birchbark for tinder, a foldable stove/pot stand, small cup for boiling water, sunglasses, a balacava and lightweight gloves, an Applegate-Fairbairn folding combat knife (not for combat, it's just a nice backup to my fixed blade), and 4 10-feet lengths of paracord. I'm sure I forgot some other stuff, but I do not at all find it too small to be useful. Most of the items listed are inside the main pouch area. I do have the fixed knife attached by molle on the outside, so is the Applegate folding knife. I also have a small pouch on the outside with a few items in it as well, just a basic small molle pouch.

It allows me to carry all this very easily, and separates it from my heavy backpack. I can take it with me, with or without my backpack and all the essentials are right at my fingertips and it carries the weight so well that I barely notice it. I went back country skiing this morning, covering about 8 miles through the woods and fields, and this went with me. No backpack needed, but I still had my important gear with me and barely even noticed. It was snowing very heavily (gorgeous!) and the chest pack was covered in snow. Everything stayed dry. It is small as was noted in the other review, but is far from useless. For my use anyway, it is fantastic. I would have given it 5 stars, but my concern with how the straps mount made me give it a 4. Highly recommended.