TCX kit bag review

Forget fancy leathers or £1k lids – this is the most important piece of kit a bike journo needs

TCX Kit bag review

THE LAST thing you need when your heading to a bike launch is a wobbly suitcase, overloaded with bike kit, continually toppling over as you sprint to gate number 7056 at Gatwick. Trust me, I’ve done it.

That’s exactly why I sent off for this TCX bag from the good people at Nevis.uk.com. I’ve had it for about a year now and can honestly say it’s one of the handiest pieces of equipment I’ve got. Be it a track launch, off-roading, touring around Italy or carrying around the parts for my drum kit – it’s been there and done that, and makes life on the move so much more convenient.

The main section of the bag is a cavernous 200-litres, making it big enough for leathers and textiles, two lids and about four days’ worth of clothes, shoes, not forgetting my washbag, camera and computer. There’s a pocket for your boots at one end which came in handy on the recent Triumph Scrambler launch, everyone else had to spend day two riding on-road in mud-caked boots, but I’d managed to take an off-road set (TCX funnily enough) and my touring boots thanks to the large pocket.

There are pockets galore for carrying all manner of daily detritus, one large zipped pocket on the back, another on the side and a smaller zipped pocket that above that. All the zips used are YKK and are chunky enough that you don’t end up faffing about and getting pissed off with them when you’re in a hurry – which is most of the time when you have a flight to catch.

The extendable handle opens and closes with the press of a button, and will extend fully, about two feet, or just to halfway if needed. Because the handle is not separated from the main compartment or the boot pocket, items within the bag can sometimes foul the action and require moving to fully or partially extend it. It’s not a massive issue though, and normally just needs a little shake of the handle to break it free.

The best thing about this bag is that it has travelled further in a year than some people do in a lifetime and it all still works really well. The zips never stick, the decals are still bright – great for spotting it on a baggage carousel – and most of all; it’s never frayed or ripped, regardless of the fact that it spends most of its life massively overloaded!

The TCX kit bag is £109.99 and available from Nevis.uk.com