Saddleback Leather Medium Gadget Pouch - K2 and K3

[fidjit]

Saddleback certainly isn't the cheapest leather products out there ( then again it's certainly not the most expensive either   ) and it can become a bit of an obsession ( or is that fetish   )

Once you see and feel one of their pieces you'll know it's going to last a long time and oh,  the beautiful leathery smell...............  

I have a large bifold wallet ( that's what started it all ),  medium classic briefcase, small gadget pouch for my HTC desire, small wallet, couple of luggage tags.

As soon as I ordered my Kindle I ordered a SB medium gadget pouch. All my other pieces are in Dark Coffee Brown so figured I'd go with something different this time. The Tobacco has an almost suedy feel to it.

Here's some pics

Here you can see the size of the pouch compared to the K3. Note that the second layer of stitching on the inside is purely decorative


Here's the K3 inside the pouch, you can see that there's a small bit of space on each side of the pouch. For a glass full answer, this adds more cushioning if you drop the case on it's side.


The Kindle sits so the top of it's level with the curved in the top.  It's easy to insert the K3 into the pouch. It doesn't move once it's in there even if you place the pouch upside down. To "release" just squeeze the sides. It'll feel a bit "tight" initially, but the leather will mould itself just right to the kindle as time passes.


I'm currently using a combination of naked, the standard Amazon cover and the SB pouch.  The SB pouch certainly gives it the most protection. It covers 3 of the 4 sides completely and because it's "recessed" at the top, it offers you some drop protection there as well. I'm a bit "worried" with the standard cover as 3 of the 4 sides are still "exposed".

The pouch actually fits the K2 a bit better, though the top edge is slightly more exposed. It wasn't designed that way, just a coincidence.

And the best thing is that the SB leather just looks better and better with time and use.

Note that when you first get a SB piece it's very stiff . It's 4-5 oz leather and lined with pigskin so the leathers around 1.5-1.6mm thick.

The stiffness  will decrease with time and usage ,that's part of the "beauty" of really good leather. You can "work" the leather by flexing and bending it to soften it up to speed things up . Putting something inside and just leaving it helps speed up the process as well.

Hope this helps  

p.s. here's a pic of my small pouch and wallet  

[Mutz]

Great photos and write-up, fidjit.
I have a question for you: would the K3 fit inside the SB pouch while wearing the Amazon cover? Looking at your pics, it appears that it might. I don't prefer to use my K3 "naked" as some do, but I'd love to be able to slip it into a beautiful SB leather pouch like yours while carrying it around but still have the Amazon cover on it when I take it out to read. I suppose that if the fit was a bit snug with the cover on, an extra bit of stretching and flexing would take care of that. What do you think?
Oh - and one more question: do you think the Tabacco leather is the most soft and supple of the SB products you've tried?

TIA,
Mutz

[fidjit]

Great photos and write-up, fidjit.
I have a question for you: would the K3 fit inside the SB pouch while wearing the Amazon cover? Looking at your pics, it appears that it might. I don't prefer to use my K3 "naked" as some do, but I'd love to be able to slip it into a beautiful SB leather pouch like yours while carrying it around but still have the Amazon cover on it when I take it out to read. I suppose that if the fit was a bit snug with the cover on, an extra bit of stretching and flexing would take care of that. What do you think?
Oh - and one more question: do you think the Tabacco leather is the most soft and supple of the SB products you've tried?

TIA,
Mutz

Mutz,

I'm not sure. I'll have a look at tonight when I get home ( it's 8:54am here at the mo ) and see.  Something I'd thought about briefly and never got round to trying.......

Yes I have Carbon Black, Coffee Brown and Tobacco. The Tobacco is more of a suede feel on the outside and after just 1/2 and hour of flexing feels more broken in than either of the other two did.

[fidjit]

Hokay

Guess what , it does fit !!!

It's very tight at the moment but the pouch is brand new and  those of you who know anything about good quality leather will know that  if it'll stretch and fit like a glove with time.

Now I've gotta make the decision if I stretch it to take the Kindle and Amazon ( no light ) case or just for the Kindle....   

[Mutz]

Thanks so much, fidjit, for checking that out for me! It's very helpful and much appreciated! Judging from your pics, it looks like it might be close to the same fit as a K2 would be, although the K3 inside the Amazon cover is quite a bit thicker. But the width and height appear to be close. And if I'm not mistaken, that pouch was originally sold by SBL as a Kindle2 accessory.

Well now I have a decision to make as well...two actually:

1) do I order a Kindle pouch now or wait till I receive the wallet and smartphone pouch which are already on their way?

and

2) should I get the same colour leather (Chestnut) as the two items I already ordered, or go for the Tobacco which just looks so soft and attractive in your pics?

Decisions decisions!! LOL

[Mutz]

I'm almost embarrassed to say so but....I just ordered a Medium Tobacco Brown pouch like yours.

Nothing but the best for my Kindle3!

Thanks again fidjit...for making me spend money like a drunken sailor LOL LOL   

[fidjit]

I'm almost embarrassed to say so but....I just ordered a Medium Tobacco Brown pouch like yours.

Nothing but the best for my Kindle3!

Thanks again fidjit...for making me spend money like a drunken sailor LOL LOL  

I'll take it as "Imitation is the greatest from of flattery"  

Well done Mutz, glad to spread the addiction.

Now let's see if I can get you  caught up in the vintage razor addiction as well ( see photo 2 ).  While it's often said to save you money.... one razor or soap or brush is never enough  
( The 4 razors and 2 brushes you can see in the photo isn't even 1/10th of my "collection"  )

[Mutz]

I'll take it as "Imitation is the greatest from of flattery"  

Well done Mutz, glad to spread the addiction.

Now let's see if I can get you  caught up in the vintage razor addiction as well ( see photo 2 ).  While it's often said to save you money.... one razor or soap or brush is never enough  

Don't think I wasn't already eyeing those razors!    LOL

[Mutz]

Speaking of addictions, I found evidence of someone on the SBL facebook page with a serious problem!



I can only hope to aspire to this same level one day...