Our successful Kickstarter campaign in December last year means that our NEW CityBrix is now in final development and testing. We wanted to bring the efficiency of KitBrix in to the work place and the CityBrix backpack is designed with the active urbanite in mind. The CityBrix is designed for those who 'work and play' in equal measure.
The 99% finished sample is now in. We are super impressed with the comfort, the material and overall concept. We have developed the NEW CityBrix from Ballistic Nylon, not just because of our military background, but because it is an incredibly durable textile which has been used over the past 50 years on some of the toughest military, outdoor and urban goods around. We wanted to give you a bit more detail about the fabric at this stage. and the information behind the decisions that we have made in selecting our core manufacturing fabric.
Ballistic Nylon is a multifilament high tenacity, 2x2 basket weave nylon fabric. The name Ballistic goes back to the Vietnam war era when it was used for anti-fragmentation ballistic jackets for the military.
Multiple layers of the thick fabric were laminated together to help stop exploding shrapnel and fragmentation. By the late ’70s the military upgraded their armour to lightweight Kevlar® and ceramic plate technology that could stop actual bullets.
"Ballistic Nylon is the preferred choice in a lot of military applications. .. no room for failure "
Then in the ’80s Ballistic Nylon had found its way into the consumer market. At a time when heavy-duty, strong luggage was the flavour of the day, the term ballistic struck a chord with customers and the name stuck. The slick finish, heavy weave and excellent strength still make it a popular choice today, although as a single layer fabric it’s lost most of its actual ballistic credentials.
We had two options for the material, either Ballistic Nylon or CORDURA® Ballistic is typically the heavier of the two fabrics and it generally has the superior tensile and tear strength.
For reasons unknown, CORDURA® Classic typically has greater abrasion resistance. The generally accepted theory is that the air textured yarn has more bulk, which helps spread the wear.
The air texturing also creates a canvas-like look and feel, the downside being that the slight pile does tend to collect dust and lint. In contrast, Ballistic nylon has quite a smooth hand feel and gloss finish.
Looks-wise, CORDURA® is quite casual. It’s synonymous with school bags and hiking packs whereas the polished finish of Ballistic is more suited to business environments.
Both these fabrics are super heavy-duty, bordering on overkill for most people’s day-to-day needs. For everyday commuter and outdoor applications either fabric is going to be bombproof. And although these heavy-duty fabrics themselves won’t wear out, they can wear out lighter clothing that comes into regular contact with them so make sure your commuter clothes are up to the test!
It’s true that Ballistic Nylon is the preferred choice in a lot of military applications – but remember that the military is an environment with no room for failure and soldiers carry loads of over 50kg daily. I for one have used the material in the most extreme conditions and it has never let me down. So much so that we are looking at a whole range in this fabric for sport, business and travel.
PreOrder | The CityBrix
"The Material Test" | Written by the team at KitBrix.
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