In-Depth Review of the 14.5L farmer’s racer Bag

The Craft of Making A farmer’s racer Bag

Lars makes all the bags himself. With the ideals of the brand in mind, you would expect nothing less. But it also makes him able to answer all the questions he gets about the design and construction.

Outsourcing Is Not An Option

There’s one aspect of the bag that will never change; where it’s made:

“The farmer’s racer craftsmanship stays within the company, and if I reach the limit of how many bags I have time to make – the production will be limited, not outsourced,” Lars promises.

The Canvas and the Leather

Each bag is crafted from a single sheet of 18 oz. custom made, waxed cotton canvas supplied by Halley Stevensons from Dundee, Scotland. The waxed canvas is both water resistant and very durable.

The full grain vegetable tanned ox leather used for the straps comes from the renowned Swedish Tärnsjö tannery. To make the dense leather smoother, all edges are bevelled and hand polished with beeswax.

The Construction

It took Lars one year to develop the design, but just a few weeks to fall in love with the materials and machinery. He only needs two machines to make the bags: a Singer 246K3 for overlocking and a Dürkopp 239-525 for the heavy stitching. Both machines are geared down and adjusted for the extra thick thread Lars uses.

While the sewing is done by machine; the rest is all made by hand with scissors, knifes, and punches. The leather pieces are carefully cut with a knife and no less than 83 holes and slots are hand cut on each bag.

To keep the bag’s characteristic boxy shape, the front, base, and the back of the bag are lined with 2 mm full grain leather. The sides are left unlined to make the bag foldable and easy to close. The sturdy construction makes it possible to carry almost anything in the bag. Potatoes, computers, clothes or tools – the leather interior handles it all.

Opening and Closing the Bag

The most striking part of the farmer’s racer design is how you get stuff in and out of it. The bag only opens and closes at the top, and to keep whatever you’re carrying safe, Lars has incorporated five fasteners. The three main ones at the top are mounted on an aluminium rail, but the real feat are the buttons on the side.

These snap buttons are the kind usually used on classic convertibles to hold the cloth top in place. They only open one way, which means they won’t accidentally snap open when you’re cruising down the highway with your bag strapped to your bike. Talking about ways to use the farmer’s racer; you can wear it as a shoulder bag or as a backpack. Or you can get the bike mounting straps and attach it to your bike.

Highlighted Features at a Glimpse:

• 18 oz. waxed cotton canvas from Scotland
• Full grain vegetable tanned Swedish ox leather
• Leather-lined
• Secure snap fasteners
• Can be worn in multiple ways
• Bench-made in Sweden
• Two colours and two sizes
• €270 for the 12.2 litre versions – €290 for the 14.5 litre version

The farmer’s racer comes in two sizes; we recommend you go for the larger 14.5L one, which holds a 15-inch laptop.

Go to page three to find out what the bag is like in everyday use