The Grizzly Works Record Tote-Bespoke Luxury for Bin Divers

April 15, 2019 by Bill Hart 1 Comment

The Grizzly Works Record Tote

I don’t do vinyl as a “lifestyle” and usually don’t offer fashion advice. But this luxe quality record tote–from “Grizzly Works”– is the sort of thing you’ll want if you attend record shows, take records with you for listening purposes to someone else’s home, a store or hi-fi show or you simply want an easy, well-made way to carry some albums. It comes from a vendor in Australia, Anthony Sawyer, a very nice guy whose specialty is custom hi-fi racks and speaker stands. According to Anthony, the conception, fabrication and marketing of the record tote was not something he planned as a product:

For a number of years, I’ve been making custom hi-fi racks and speaker stands as a very part time affair and outside of my 9-5 job (metalwork is my background) and thoroughly enjoy everything about designing and creating something unique from scratch. I had the idea of a nice bag to carry records to friends’ houses floating around my head for ages but never acted on it as I assumed it would be too costly. Plus, I frequently forgot….
Anyway, serendipitously I had it in mind when I was in the vicinity of a leather craftsman so asked and was pleasantly surprised so had it done. While we were talking about the design it occurred to me that maybe others might be interested. So, I asked whether he might be able to emboss my business logo on the flap which turned out to be easier than I expected.
I threw a picture of it on my Facebook page to see what sort of reaction it would create. Very shortly after that a guy here in Australia (Marc Rushton), who runs a similar forum to Myles^[1]called Stereo.net (AU) , contacted me and ordered two then asked if he could do a write up on it. That snowballed to quite a few guys from that site ordering their own and the rest seems to have taken a slow burning life of its own. I’ve done a few custom variations as well- different sizes for folks to use as laptop bags and one in purple leather too!

The bags are made to Anthony’s specification by a second generation Balinese leather craftsman:

All of the leather is marked and cut by hand and sewn using specialized waxed heavy-duty cotton on purpose designed leather sewing machinery (very similar process to a conventional home sewing machine so hand fed). There is no automation in the process. Brass fittings are used for adjustment. Sandy, the leather artisan, also takes care of the logo embossing by hand. The closure system consists of 4 small magnets hidden between the leather and lining so there is nothing visible about the closure mechanism. Each tote is individually wrapped in tissue paper and shipped in a perfect sized carton with certificate of authenticity on 176gsm paper, filled out and signed by me. We offer a 12-month replacement warranty, provided no signs of misuse are obvious.

I am informed that the capacity is up to 20 of the older style 12-inch LPs but Anthony said one customer squeezed 28 albums in to one and his shoulder gave out rather than the bag. Sizing is 350x350x50mm or approximately 14x14x2 inches. Anthony has updated the design to include 2 internal pockets for wallet and phone and is willing to do custom orders as well, with dividers or other internal partitions more suitable for a laptop or business bag.

I know several people in the States who ordered and received their bags pretty quickly. Shipping charges aren’t crazy either. You can reach Anthony through his website at https://grizzlyworksracks.wixsite.com/home for a quote.

Certainly, beats the hell out of a canvas tote bag (which doesn’t protect your records very well) or the recycled plastic bags you almost have to scrounge for at record shows. Vendor: “Oh, that album- it’s a thousand dollars. No, I don’t have a bag.” Now you don’t even have to ask.

Bill Hart

Austin, TX

April, 2019

^[1]Myles Astor, a long-time hi-fi guy in New York who, among other things, is a senior editor at Positive Feedback and has a forum on the net, audionirvana.org that is a refreshingly information-rich community of professional engineers, long-time audiophiles and music hounds where I first spotted the bag.

Comments

Grizzly says

April 17, 2019 at 5:20 am

Thank you Bill!!

Log in to Reply

Milt Ward Virgo Reissue Coming from Frederiksberg

Although I don't have all the details yet, I have learned that Frederiksberg Records, a small, eclectic label from New York, is in the process of reissuing the hard to find (and even harder to pay for) jazz obscurity, Milt Ward and Virgo Spectrum. You can find out more by keeping tabs on Frederiksberg's Bandcamp page, https://frederiksbergrecords.bandcamp.com I'm told there is a bootleg out there so be careful. Frederiksberg is doing this project with the participation of the family of Milt Ward, which is to be applauded. Hopefully, this will give more access to a great jazz record at a reasonable price. The Roots album reissue from Frederiksberg (which is sold out on vinyl on the Frederiksberg Records bandcamp site) still appears to be available through some online retailers as a pre-order, so that's another one to jump on now if you can find it-- the original is extremely pricey and … [Read More...]

Clem Snide- Forever Just Beyond

Clem Snide- Forever Just Beyond With a name derived from a character in the same literary work as the band name so famously identified with the Walter Becker-Donald Fagen duo, Clem Snide has an extensive discography, typically cataloged as “alt country.” This latest release is the work of one of its founding members, Eef Barzelay, who was responsible for much of the songwriting and singing. According to his bio, Barzelay suffered some serious bumps in the road during the last decade, including a failing marriage and financial ruin. At the same time, he learned that Scott Avett was a fan and they found inspiration in each other, leading to this album- a collaboration of artistry where Avett and Barzelay share some writing credits and Avett produces. The result is a fresh, upbeat set of tunes that are appealing in their simplicity and refreshing in their sincerity. The band is first tier … [Read More...]

Muriel Grossmann- Reverence

Muriel Grossmann- Reverence Muriel Grossmann continues her quest for musical ascension on Reverence, which was released on vinyl in early December, 2019 on the RR Gems label as a 2 LP set. The compositions are Grossmann’s, and the band is much the same as the group of seasoned musicians with whom she has worked for some time (and detailed in the review of her Golden Rule), but for one notable exception: the addition of a keyboard player who brings that rich, woody Hammond B-3 sound to a series of compositions devoted to Africa. In some ways, Ms. Grossmann’s exploration of the roots of jazz deliberately eschews any superficial attempt to make African music. Instead, she draws inspiration from its influences, which are wide ranging and deep—you can hear rhythm and blues sounds mixed with more traditional African instrumentation and polyrhythms and come away with something that is both … [Read More...]

Stylus Life- StylusTimer

Stylus Life- StylusTimer Stylus life is a recurring question in audio discussions. Some serious attention was devoted to the subject here, in Mike Bodell’s “The Finish Line for Your Phono Stylus.” That article examined the issue from a number of perspectives, including early studies, claims by cartridge manufacturers and real-life experiences by users. It also generated a long, interesting thread on the Steve Hoffman forum that is worthwhile to read. The Hoffman thread also generated an experiment by Ray Parkhurst who documented the wear of a new stylus under certain controlled conditions, which included a microscopic examination of the stylus at various time intervals over long hours of repeated play. See https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/the-finish-line-for-your-phono-cartridge-stylus-wear-by-mike-bodell.842572/#post-21292730. Whether you lean toward more optimistic … [Read More...]

Incoming! (More Interesting Records)

Incoming! (More Interesting Records) An "interesting record" to me offers something unexpected, whether it is a fresh take on a recognized genre, or something that opens a new way of experiencing instruments in combination. It does not have to be "strange" or challenging to listen to; in fact, I'm a sucker for a good melodic hook and enjoy technical prowess as much as anybody, but there has got to be something "more"-- an intangible that differentiates the record from the millions of others to which we all have access. As mentioned in a recent editorial, a lot of records come in and not all get written up. It’s not an editorial decision or any reflection of the music or sonics; I only have so much time, and I tend not to write short blurbs, but longer (some may say ‘too long’) reviews. My “incoming” piles continue to grow as I publish. This series of short capsules is meant to … [Read More...]

Comments

Leave a Reply Cancel reply