Our hope is that you’ll be proud of your bag because of the compliments you get and how long it lasts. But our deeper hope is that you join our community of those nurturing the vulnerable and loving the unloved. We do more than just quality leather bags; we do quality in all areas of our business.
Our purpose is not to change the world by loving orphans, single moms and ex-prisoners one at a time. It’s to work with a Love 41 community/family of loving and nurturing people to do it. If you want to but you’re not sure how, then join us on Facebook or sign up for our newsletter to learn more. We’ll help you get plugged in.
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The materials in our leather briefcase are full grain leather, pigskin lining, 316 stainless steel hardware, and German industrial marine-grade polyester thread. Our leather is tough and resilient, and our pigskin lining is super strong. Our hardware is 316 stainless steel and is rated to hold up to 750 lbs. Our thread is UV-resistant and German industrial marine-grade polyester thread. In addition, our hidden reinforcing straps ensure that the bag will never stretch and those straps will never deteriorate. This is over-engineering.
Full Grain Leather is the key to a quality leather briefcase. If you take off the top part of the leather (grain) it's like taking the shingles off of the roof. They get rid of the toughest and most resistant layer of the hide. When tanneries get a leather hide from the slaughterhouse, it's really thick. So, the tannery splits the top half with the grain from the bottom half. Now they have two hides to sell. The tough and beasty hide that still has the full amount of grain (full grain) is expensive, and that's what we buy. The bottom half is great for making low quality budget leather briefcases or laptop bags that will dry out and fall apart in a short time.
We glue and sew tough, strong pigskin leather to the cow leather. And the pigskin is even stronger than the cowskin. We've chosen this instead of using a shiny pretty fabric lining. We want all of our real leather bags to be durable, rugged, and sturdy.
Our custom hardware is 316 Stainless Steel. If you are a metallurgist, then I'm sure you just gasped. It's the metal you want to be used when your life depends on it. The testing laboratory told us that our clips were rated to hold up to a 750 lbs. bag of cats.
Our thread is unbelievably strong and UV resistant German industrial marine-grade polyester thread. It doesn't deteriorate when the sun hits it like nylon thread does. And we use the thick double ought version of it. It's the same thread used on ship sails and parachutes (things your life depends on).
Polyester is good and bad. The good is that it doesn't stretch and never deteriorates. The bad is that it never deteriorates. When it comes to polyester in your sheets and blankets, you won't sleep as well. But, when it comes to polyester straps sewn into the stress points of a bag, it's the best there is to get that extra strength.
The classic leather briefcase converts into a laptop backpack with a shoulder strap with two shoulder pads. Clip one end of the strap onto a d-ring on the bottom, run the strap through the o-ring, and clip it to the opposite side and you've got yourself a backpack. Now your hands are free to carry the wife and kid's luggage.
You can remove the side straps to use as an emergency size 36 full grain leather belt, tie-down, or tourniquet (hopefully you won't need that). But on the bag, they are great for holding wet umbrellas and blueprint tubes to the top of the flap.
The d-rings on the bottom are designed to strap on blankets, dirty boots, fly rod tubes, or blueprints. And you'll use these d-rings to convert your leather briefcase into backpack mode. The d-rings up top are great for clipping keychains, carabiners, or extra gear too.
The shoulder strap is adjustable (40" - 65") and it's removable. You can take it off to tie down the Christmas tree to the roof of your car. The shoulder strap comes with two strap pads for backpack mode.
There is a hidden flap on the bottom of this leather briefcase for hiding passports, extra cash, your collection of rubies, or whatever else you don't want anyone to know about. This false bottom can be a lifesaver in itself.
A small detail, but the main center strap has a hole all the way at the tip for closing when your laptop bag is really overstuffed. This gives you that much extra space in your leather briefcase, for "just in case." Comes in handy when you need it.
There is a pocket on the side, a pocket on the back, and pockets on the inside. From a place for your pens to a spot for your wallet in case you lose your pants. With two main compartments inside, you can take two laptops if need be, with room for chargers and accessories. These quality leather briefcases will protect your belongings and your reputation.
Classic Leather Briefcase Explained by Dave
Large Sized Briefcase Comparison
The Classic Briefcase in depth description and explanation on design
How to Knock Off a Saddleback Leather Co. Briefcase
I originally posted around the holidays after using the bag for a couple of weeks. Six months in, update: First, I made the gaffe of identifying my bag as a Medium Classic...I purchased a Large Classic. The tobacco leather picks up the best little nicks & scuffs & wear everyday. Nicks all over the front from opening & closing & buckling & opening again. And darkening wear on the back from my hip. The pads on the shoulder strap take about a month of regular use to break in the foam inside the leather so it curves to mold your shoulder. But once it does, the bag immediately feels lighter. So far I've only broken in 1 of the 2 pads. I tried for the heck of it converting the strap to carry as a backpack, and found it uncomfortable for my everyday load (laptop, folders, notebooks, cables). I noted in my original review that I folded a bandana into the bottom to provide a little bit of cushion for the laptop, and that works like a charm to date. Plus, now I always have a bandana with me. Creek Stewart would be proud. With all three straps buckled to close the bag, it does take some time to open/close the bag. So I usually just have the main center strap buckled with the two side straps tucked up like in all the promo photos. This thing feels like it's gonna last forever. It's Indiana Jones' fedora...it will survive anything. I would love to have another one, but then I would have to try to pick which one to use, and I'm not going to torture myself like that. Get one.
Ok, So it finally happened. I have the XL briefcase and have been carrying it for a few months now. Today is the first day that we had a good soaking downpour in the NE Penna. After I got in the car, it started raining like somebody had a hose at full throttle at the window. My heart sank because it was the kind of rain that even with an umbrella, my bag would get soaked (I wasn't worried about me, just my bag). I thought about a garbage bag to cover, I thought about taking off my shirt, I thought about all kinds of stuff but figured that this would happen sooner or later. So I braved the elements took the L-O-N-G walk from the car to the office and wanted to curse every raindrop that pelted my briefcase. Getting in the office I unpacked and just looked at all the water spots on my 'still new and precious in my head' XL briefcase. Thinking at worst, I'll just get the leather cleaner and risk having the original color deepen. Work took over and I just forgot to look at my briefcase. Coming back to my briefcase after an hour or so I did a double take. Not only did the water dry, but there were NO water spots at all. The briefcase looked just like new. Truly a wonderful experience and exactly the opposite from what I've experienced with other pieces of good leather products I've owned. Anyone out there trying to decide how this product will hold up in the rain...GO FOR IT!!! Superior product here!!! Ron
Alright, I'm a broad-shoulder, able-bodied young man of 6'4" That being said, I can understand why those of a smaller stature might balk at the bulk of my XL bag. However... I love it! It JUST meets most airlines' carry-on dimensions, and it can back everything I need for the weekend in one convenient super bag. When fully-loaded for my law school classes, walking hither and thither also allows me the opportunity to sneak in some upper-body exercises. This bag was the best College Graduation present I could ever have received.
After a few years of waiting and wishing, I finally got my dream briefcase. This was not an easy one to get either. Always sold out. But my consistent checking back on the site finally paid off! This bag is beautiful. It is the perfect briefcase. I love the new tobacco style. It adds so much more character to your bag. I'm looking forward to carrying this for as long as I can. And the large was the perfect size. I'm 6'4" about 200lbs. We'll worth the $$ for this one.
Large classic briefcase, Tobacco This no doubt the toughest briefcase ever. It definitely looks better with age. As the leather breaks in and softens, the bag will sag when resting, looks great. After 10-years of daily use, the stitching is holding strong and the leather gets better every year. I have conditioned it about once per year. My beef with the bag (haha) comes with the loops that hold the rings for the handle. After about 7 years of use, the leather was stretching. Give another couple years and it's severely stretched. I sent pictures to customer support and was told this is normal wear and tear, not covered by warranty. Hmm, a 100-year warranty to cover materials that wear out after 8 years. Really?? Saddleback Leather offered to repair it for a fee. Now the 100-year warranty sounds like a sales pitch.
