Large Saddleback Leather Classic Briefcases in Dark Coffee Brown One Year Later

When I first purchased my  Saddleback Leather Classic Briefcase in Dark Coffee Brown I was thrilled with it and it was actually a purchase that I planned for over a year before hand.  Almost immediately from the time of my purchase, many people asked if I could do a follow up after about a year, so here we are today, a little over a year from the original review.

Large Saddleback Leather Classic Briefcases in Dark Coffee Brown Back

One of the most frequent questions I got about the Saddleback Leather Briefcase was how the backside held up from being walked around with and brushing against my leg.  As you can see from he above photo, there is some wear on the side that brushes against my leg, but definitely not bad at all.

I usually wear dress pants to work when carrying the bag and on most Fridays I wear jeans so some of the wear you see is from the denim rivets which are obviously going to be much harder on the leather.  Overall though this wear is insignificant and the back side of the bag held up very well.

Large Saddleback Lea ther Classic Briefcases in Dark Coffee Brown Metal Clip

The metal hardware on the bag is very heavy duty and quite frankly shows absolutely no wear.  This is impressive considering it is the part of the bag that bears the brunt of most of the weight when being carried.  No visible chipping or scratching is there though when I look at them closely.

Large Saddleback Leather Classic Briefcases in Dark Coffee Brown Under Flap

One area of the bag that got some heavy abuse was the front area under the flap.  This is a part of the bag that was constantly being brushed up against with my laptop and notebooks going in and out of it.  As you can see there is some visible wear, again, it is not bad at all.  To me these are kind of like marks that give the bag some character.  One thing you will notice in this picture though that I did find to be a minor nuisance  was the buckle that you see on the left side hanging down.  For some reason the two buckles on either side of the main one held up differently over time.  The one on the left seems a bit lazy and dangles down now which I think looks a little sloppy, but considering the fact that I do not use it to serve any physical function I cant really complain.

Large Saddleback Leather Classic Briefcases in Dark Coffee Brown Shoulder Strap

The underside of the strap pad is still holding up very well.  You can see some wear on it, but this part of the bag is almost never visible to anyone since it rests on my shoulder.  Still pretty comfortable though after having worn it daily for over a year now.  The stitching used in the Saddleback Leather Briefcase is all top notch as well, as none of it has shown any signs of fraying or otherwise pulling or breaking down.

Large Saddleback Leather Classic Briefcases in Dark Coffee Brown Bottom

The bottom of the bag takes a pretty good beating since it is constantly being moved from the back seat of my car, to my desk, back to the car, then back home to my desk where it sits when not in use.  Again, this is an area of the bag that doesn’t get seen much, but it is certainly holding up well.

Large Saddleback Leather Classic Briefcases in Dark Coffee Brown Closure Strap

Looking at the bag straight on, you can see that the closure strap does have a bit of a curl going on now at the bottom.  This is primarily due to the fact that it is being tugged on at least 4 times a day to open and close the bag.  I remember one reader somewhere expressed concern that the flap would wear out and crack due to the constant use.  I can’t stress enough that this is nowhere near being true after one year of constant use.  The strap is definitely holding up well and shows not even the slightest indication of cracking or wearing out.  In the original review I mentioned that the gap below the handle was a little tight and my fingers didn’t quite fit between it, but over time that space has stretched out slightly and it is now much easier to slip my hand in that space to pick the bag up by the handle.

Saddleback Leather Classic Briefcase One Year Later, the Summary

Overall, the Saddleback Leather Classic Briefcase in Dark Coffee Brown has been a purchase that I am thrilled with.  The bag is holding up very well, and I can’t even count the number of times I’ve been complimented on it by random strangers that see me on the street with it, as well as friends and co-workers.  I would say that hardly a week goes by where at least one person doesn’t notice or compliment me on the bag.  I fully expect this bag to hold up quite well over time.  The only way I’d ever stop using it is if I got tired of looking at it and I don’t think that will happen anytime soon.

©2016, Brian Greene. All rights reserved.