some call me...tim?
Double Eagle Member
I like seeing the tweaks that people make to their equipment to suit their purposes, or to make their bag just a little better. Like one of my friends reinforces his stress points with rivets, or there was the dude that modified his Kong to hold a couple speakers. That kind of stuff is cool.
I've already posted in the Bag Waterproofing thread, but wanted to make one solely dedicated to bag modifications in general. So here's what I've done to my Simian (so far):
Impressed by the Phenix bags, and tired of my bags getting wet from the ground up, I added water proofing to the bottom:
Not a good pic, but I added a handle from an old piece of luggage to the top strap, this makes it way more comfortable to lug around one handed.
And not really a performance modification, but the bag is Mandalorian approved:
Needless to say, my Sim is fairly new, and I'm pretty stoked on most of its features, so there isn't a whole lot for me to modify. There are a few little tweaks I think I still may make though.
I've had a few questions already about the waterproofing on the bottom of the bag, and I'll try to fill you guys in on the pertinent details. The stuff I used is called Grizzly Grip. A pint of it (the aromatic) should be an ample amount--I could probably have done a smaller bag in addition to the Sim if I was judicious in the amount I poured out while applying. The Grizzly Grip guy recommends picking up his specialized rollers for application, but you can skip this. I'm sure they work great on big flat surfaces, but the roller was pretty much useless for applying on a bag. What you want to use instead is just a couple cheap foam brushes from the hardware store and dab the stuff on. Make sure you have a metal paint tray or something similar to use because the Grizzly Grip will melt through plastic as it cures. :shock: (It's fine on fabric though, obviously).
As for the actual application, make sure you do it outdoors or in a place that's well ventilated. Also make sure you have a good ground cloth down or aren't worried about the floor...this stuff has the amazing ability to get everywhere, and cling to it tenaciously. To mask the bag off, I'd recommend filling the pockets as much as possible with something small, like packing peanuts maybe. I used wads of newspaper, which worked fairly well, but still left some crease-causing gaps (note the right side of the bag in the first pic). I think that would help with keeping the masking tape in uniform contact with the bag too. I used blue painter's masking tape for this, and it worked pretty well, but there were some spots where the tape didn't make solid contact with the fabric, and I got some drips. And in a couple spots, where the Grizzly Grip ran under the tape, the tape became embedded in the coating (you can see a little bit in the second pic on the left hand side.) I plugged the grommet holes with little rolled up pieces of newspaper which seemed to work all right. The newspaper kinda got stuck in the Grizzly Grip like the masking tape did, but it wears away really quickly.
After that, it's all pretty easy. Just shake up the bottle of Grizzly Grip really well to get the chunks mixed around, pour a bit into the tray, and dab away. Get one coat on, let it set up (an hour or two, IIRC), and then put a second one on. Let it sit for a day or two, and you're good to go. I think that about covers it, I can try to answer any other questions anyone might have though.
If you've made any modifications to your bag, post up some pics!
I've already posted in the Bag Waterproofing thread, but wanted to make one solely dedicated to bag modifications in general. So here's what I've done to my Simian (so far):
Impressed by the Phenix bags, and tired of my bags getting wet from the ground up, I added water proofing to the bottom:
Not a good pic, but I added a handle from an old piece of luggage to the top strap, this makes it way more comfortable to lug around one handed.
And not really a performance modification, but the bag is Mandalorian approved:
Needless to say, my Sim is fairly new, and I'm pretty stoked on most of its features, so there isn't a whole lot for me to modify. There are a few little tweaks I think I still may make though.
I've had a few questions already about the waterproofing on the bottom of the bag, and I'll try to fill you guys in on the pertinent details. The stuff I used is called Grizzly Grip. A pint of it (the aromatic) should be an ample amount--I could probably have done a smaller bag in addition to the Sim if I was judicious in the amount I poured out while applying. The Grizzly Grip guy recommends picking up his specialized rollers for application, but you can skip this. I'm sure they work great on big flat surfaces, but the roller was pretty much useless for applying on a bag. What you want to use instead is just a couple cheap foam brushes from the hardware store and dab the stuff on. Make sure you have a metal paint tray or something similar to use because the Grizzly Grip will melt through plastic as it cures. :shock: (It's fine on fabric though, obviously).
As for the actual application, make sure you do it outdoors or in a place that's well ventilated. Also make sure you have a good ground cloth down or aren't worried about the floor...this stuff has the amazing ability to get everywhere, and cling to it tenaciously. To mask the bag off, I'd recommend filling the pockets as much as possible with something small, like packing peanuts maybe. I used wads of newspaper, which worked fairly well, but still left some crease-causing gaps (note the right side of the bag in the first pic). I think that would help with keeping the masking tape in uniform contact with the bag too. I used blue painter's masking tape for this, and it worked pretty well, but there were some spots where the tape didn't make solid contact with the fabric, and I got some drips. And in a couple spots, where the Grizzly Grip ran under the tape, the tape became embedded in the coating (you can see a little bit in the second pic on the left hand side.) I plugged the grommet holes with little rolled up pieces of newspaper which seemed to work all right. The newspaper kinda got stuck in the Grizzly Grip like the masking tape did, but it wears away really quickly.
After that, it's all pretty easy. Just shake up the bottle of Grizzly Grip really well to get the chunks mixed around, pour a bit into the tray, and dab away. Get one coat on, let it set up (an hour or two, IIRC), and then put a second one on. Let it sit for a day or two, and you're good to go. I think that about covers it, I can try to answer any other questions anyone might have though.
If you've made any modifications to your bag, post up some pics!
