I have the 2011 version of the BlackWolf Monashee 40L daypack. The backpack has a lot of nice features, and also has some serious quality issues.
It’s one of the largest side loading backpacks available, and there are lots of options available inside it for storage. It has a padded laptop sleeve attached to the back, and an insulated hydration pouch attached to the laptop sleeve. The main pouch is suitable for binders or textbooks. In the divider between the main and secondary pouch there is a zippered pouch.
The secondary pouch is almost as large as the main pouch, and contains a zippered mesh compartment on the exterior side of the backpack.
On the outside of the backpack is a tertiary pouch which has a hook (for keys or similar), and some storage for change and pencils. The small outer pouch can be partially unzipped from the backpack to facilitate holding a bike helmet against the backpack.
All over the exterior of the bag are heavy duty mounts suitable for attaching objects to the backpack using carabiners (not included). It also has an integrated rain cover that you can remove to cover the bag when it rains. The backpack material is water resistant, so for very light or short rainy periods you’re fine ignoring the rain cover.
…and those are all the nice things I can say about this backpack.
The Laptop pouch: In reality 13″ is probably as large as you will be able to squeeze in. I have a 2008 15″ MacBook Pro and it barely fits in the backpack. If the backpack is very full you’ll even have difficulty getting a 13″ laptop in or out. The bottom of the laptop area isn’t padded at all, so you need to watch how carefully you set the backpack down on the ground to not damage your laptop. Additionally, there is zero back support unless you have a laptop or binder in the backpack.
The hydration pouch: For starters, it’s right against the laptop pouch. While it does keep water quite cold, precipitation is a very real issue in hot weather, and there is no moisture protection between the insulated hydration pouch and the laptop pouch. If your CamelBak ever leaks your laptop is getting wet too. The right shoulder strap is insulated, which keeps the water in the hydration tube nice and cool, except for the part that goes between the hydration pouch and the shoulder strap, which will always be warm.
The main pouch: Firstly, the zipper (#10 waterproof) did not stay waterproof or even water resistant for more than two months, the waterproofing seal just flaked away from the zipper. Then the entire zipper failed, after only 8 months. Had I lived anywhere near Australia I would have taken it back for warranty repair, but I was half a world away, so I bought a #10 Uretek zipper to replace it and the replacement zipper has been holding up nicely ever since.
The secondary pouch: Nothing really wrong here. The mesh isn’t great quality and tears rather easily. Don’t put sharp objects in the mesh pocket (like a camping fork) because it’ll rip the mesh.
The bike helmet holder: Actually the most useless “feature” of this backpack. To be able to actually put a bike helmet in it takes about a minute of undoing zippers and loosening compression straps. Combine that with the fact that storing a bike helmet there will effectively halve the capacity of the backpack, and that your backpack will become so monstrous you cannot turn around unless there is at least room for two people to stand width wise. The backpack becomes comically large. Imagine being pregnant with twins, then double that. That is how large your profile will become with a bike helmet stored the way the backpack was designed to hold it. Save yourself the time and effort, just clip the helmet to the side of the backpack with another carabiner to prevent it from flopping around.
Exterior pouch: It doesn’t hold much, but it is convenient for accessing things like pencils, a passport or house keys.
Waist straps: They come with small zippered pouches which are useful for holding keys or a small cell phone. Again, the zippers lost their water resistance almost immediately. They’re large enough to store a deck of cards in, but nothing much larger. The shoulder straps are mounted to the waist straps at an awkward angle that puts a lot of stress on the stitching. After about two years of use the stitching started to fail and required repair.
Rain cover: A nice inclusion, and on the whole, it fits the backpack well. Where it fails, critically, is that it doesn’t fit over the top of the backpack, and there will always be an exposed portion near your back that becomes soaking wet, which is just above the laptop pouch. Additionally, the rain cover is only water resistant, and will not protect the backpack through heavy or prolonged precipitation.
Pros:
+ 40L side loading backpack
+ Padded laptop pouch
+ Insulted hydration pouch
+ Lots of exterior mount points
Cons:
- Zippers are horrible quality
- Stitching is horrible quality
- No built-in back support
- Laptop pouch lacks bottom padding
- Laptop pouch doesn’t provide water protection
- Helmet holder is beyond useless
- Rain cover isn’t waterproof
Conclusion: I thought this would be an awesome backpack. After looking for something that was designed to hold a laptop but brought the quality and durability of a hiking backpack I bought the BlackWolf. After 3 years (only 2.5 of which saw use, it took me a while to source a new zipper) it’s falling apart, required numerous repairs and has some severe design flaws that can’t be fixed.
Perhaps other BlackWolf customers have had more luck with their products, but given that the backpack didn’t even make it to 1 year (the warranty period) before a major issue, I can’t help but wonder: Are all their products this poorly made?
