Lochby Mini Field Journal vs. Paper Republic Grand Voyageur

The Lochby Mini Field Journal and the Paper Republic Grand Voyageur in pocket size are both tough covers, and each one serves its own purpose. The real question is not which one is better made. It is which one you will actually have on you when you need it.

Same capacity, very different bulk

I have seen a lot of reviews of these two covers, but I have never seen anyone show how many notebooks each one holds when you stuff it to the rim.

I started with the Lochby. It comes with four elastics, and I used all of them, one notebook per elastic. Four notebooks fit very comfortably.

The cover closes with no issues, and it feels great in the hand when I carry it around.

You can fit a fifth notebook in the back, and the cover still closes. At that point it gets tight, and some of the notebooks may need to be shifted around.

Squeezing a sixth notebook into the front is probably as far as the Lochby goes. Six notebooks in a cover this size is a loaded package, and pretty impressive.

The Paper Republic does not come with the extra bands the Lochby ships with. I put notebooks under its two bands, then tucked two more on each side to test the same load of six.

I expected it to close just fine, and it did.

The beauty of leather is that it starts molding to your notebooks, so you can adjust the spine until everything fits nicely. Fully loaded, it is chunky, but not as chunky as the Lochby, which has a thicker waxed canvas cover.

Even with six notebooks inside, I don't see any overhang.

I have never actually carried it that full, because I would not want that many notebooks on me at once. If I needed to, I could.

To be clear, six is the result of my stuffed-to-the-rim test, not the capacity either brand puts on the box. I went past a normal load on purpose, because reviews rarely show where the ceiling actually is.

How thick is each one, really

To get a little nerdy, I measured the thickness of each cover.

The Paper Republic's leather is right about a sixteenth of an inch thick. That is pretty slim.

The Lochby's thickness depends on where you measure it. The thickest point measures closer to an eighth of an inch or a little more.

That makes the Lochby noticeably thicker, which is worth considering when you are choosing between these two.

The honest part

Switching did cost me something real.

The waxed canvas is tougher. If it gets wet, you just wipe it off, while leather needs a little more care. By switching, I gave up a small amount of durability.

That was a trade I was okay making.

The Lochby is also the cover I recommend to someone who is rough with gear. If you are outdoorsy and carry your things around a lot, get the Lochby. When I know I am going to be outdoors, the waxed canvas is the way to go.

Leather wins on longevity. I own a few leather products, and they will last forever while developing a really nice patina. My Paper Republic is already getting a little shiny, and it shows every mark, which I actually appreciate because it makes the cover my own.

My one real complaint with the leather cover is its elastics. They are a little thinner and flimsier than I would like. The Lochby's elastics are very solid and hold each notebook securely.

I do miss that, and I will probably replace the Paper Republic's elastics eventually.

What I actually carry now

Right now I carry two notebooks in the Paper Republic Grand Voyageur, pocket size, in olive.

The first is my catch-all, where I jot down notes and random things, and it comes in and out of the cover very often. The second is what I call my collections notebook, where I capture things as they happen that I will need to reference later.

Keeping that second notebook means I do not have to transfer information from one notebook to another. Both are fairly slim, and I fill one in about two to four weeks, depending on how busy I am.

I keep it to two notebooks day to day because that leaves room to tuck my pen inside.

With one notebook inside, the cover almost disappeared in my pocket. It is still pretty slim with two.

Carrying a notebook in your pocket is not a new idea. Benjamin Franklin kept his daily schedule and virtue chart in a small handmade booklet he carried with him, and Leonardo da Vinci carried notebooks to capture ideas as they came.

Pocket carry is not a trend. It is the original format.

Bottom line

If your notebook lives in your bag, your pocket, or on your desk, leather is a great choice. If you spend time outdoors and are a little rougher with your gear, waxed canvas is the better choice.

You really cannot go wrong with either one.

I did not leave Lochby behind, either. I still use other Lochby products, like the Venture Pouch and the Pocket Journal, for other jobs.

You are not picking a brand. You are picking a cover for a specific job and a specific way of carrying.

Watch the full video to see both covers loaded and measured.