Bag construction better in non-rush times? (eg. Not around Christmas?)

This is a silly question, but i always wonder - when ordering stuff from companies that have to produce a lot of various items in the run up to Christmas in order to meet demand, if it is better to wait until non-gift-giving times, so that the stock is composed of items that weren't produced during the rush.

The idea, in my mind, is that in the time approaching Christmas, workers may make more mistakes (even the tiniest of ones that are merely cosmetic - a stitch or two off here, a misaligned hem there, etc.) than at other times. I'm not questioning Tom Bihn's quality control, but just wondering from a human nature perspective.

Has anybody noticed such a trend in any products they've bought from small companies that probably have this approaching-Christmas rush?

I ask, because I was cleaning something with a can of acetone, and accidentally knocked it ALL OVER my Brain Bag. I took everything out of it, and am letting it all evaporate, and I doubt there are any easily-disolvable parts to the bag (except maybe the waterproof coating inside, which doesn't look like it was touched), but was thinking of replacing it given my worries about that. Also, the waterproof lining I mentioned is starting to get a little ragged after all these years.

- Tim

Smaller companies, that care about quality, can't afford, in regard to both finance and reputation, to allow inferior products to leave the factory. A good quality control person or persons is vital.

Think about what happens if a "bad" product leaves the factory. After waiting for it, the customer gets it and is disappointed. They contact the manufacturer and complain. An employee's time is taken away for their regular duties to deal with the customer. Then the manufacturer has to pay for shipping of the return of the bad product and pay shipping to send a replacement. Additionally, they lose out on profit on the original item even if it is sold as a "second."

As for reputation, in general, a person happy doing business with a company will tell 2-3 people. If they're unhappy, they'll tell at least twice that amount. And it can be even worse with the internet.

Smart companies don't wait until "the run up" to Christmas to manufacture. Part of good management is predicting sales and making sure there is enough product on hand to meet demand.

Just to add to Frank's comments, I never worry that the quality of Tom Bihn bags is any different when shopping near the holidays or other high-demand times. The main concern is that they will sell out of color combinations or items you may want that are particularly popular if you don't get your order in early. Also, if you make many changes to orders, there's more of a possibility that one of those won't get picked up, since when the push comes to getting items shipped out, everyone pitches in, including people who don't regularly do this. (One time, many years ago, I got a phone call from Tom Bihn himself, who was involved in packing up my order, to say that every item except the Kit in Hunter was ready - did I want this hipped? And that was during the brief period when they had sapphire Dyneema shop bags, so that tells you how long ago that was!)

HTH. moriond

Hi Tim, that's a good question that I was wondering just the same. I've been following Tom Bihn on his twitter and recently someone received their Tri-Star but it was missing the backpack straps. I wouldn't say the QA team at Tom Bihn is infallible. I have no reason to believe that they don't try to do their best but they are human after all. Sometimes there may be gaps or misses regardless of season. What is commendable is Tom's response to that tweet. I think he will address major misses on bags with his name on them according to his guarantee.

Hey Michelle - were you referring to this tweet (https://twitter.com/GQtrippin/status...030994657280)?

The only reason I ask is that I read that as the bag was missing a shoulder strap ("ooops, we forgot to put that in the box!") instead of the backpack straps ("woah we really missed something when we were making the bag!"). It's a bit of a difference, especially when you're talking about quality control of the bags themselves.

I've always been impressed by the construction of the bags, and even more impressed by the customer service that TB provides.