Help me select a 22" expandable Roller (luggage)

[bry2000]

I am in the market for a 22" expandable roller suitcase. Key considerations are durability and space/design to pack 2 suits comfortably, among other things for 1 to 2 week business trips. So far, I like the Victorinox (Swiss Army) and Briggs & Reilly models. Tumi is great also, but I wonder whether it is worth spending the extra money for Tumi. I currently own pieces (27" roller, garmet bag) from Victorinox and I have been generally happy with them. Should I just stay with Victorinox or does Briggs make a better 22" (actually 21" in their case) roller? Briggs does offer a better warranty than Victorinox (or Tumi). Also, Briggs has the frame on the outside, which allows one to pack the suitcase flat. What are your experiences and recommendations? Thanks. Victorinox: http://www.ebags.com/victori....d=14612 or the Briggs & Reilly version: http://www.ebags.com/briggs_....d=16436

 

[FIHTies]

Happiness is Briggs and Riley.

Love all the items that I have from them. Additionally, they guarantee any and all Damage (even the airline damage).

The BR site shows it available for the same price, so I guess you benefit from the free shipping offer on eBags, but why dont you try walking to a retailer that stocks BR and find out if they do better?

 

[Cliff]

Travelpro is top-notch. Designed by an airline pilot and used by many airline industry pro's. They have great stuff. Well designed, rugged. http://www.travelpro.com/

 

[philosophe]

I have the B&R piece you're looking at and love it. The outside frame is great, and I like the absence of all sorts of special pockets and compartments. If you like pockets and compartments, go with Travelpro.

 

[Kent Wang]

If you go with Victorinox, are you getting the red one?

 

[bry2000]

Kent, if I stay with Victorinox, I would get the black bag.

 

[Kent Wang]

Darn, the red is pretty gutsy. I agonized over whether to get the red, but chickened out. I have the Victorinox 22 actually (or maybe a smaller size). I like it very much, but I don't travel enough -- though I'm packing tonight to go to Vegas -- to say anything about its durability. I do like the red detailing on the black model. For example the large outside compartment, when pulled out has red flaps.

 

[bry2000]

Kent, the only reason I say black is that I have the Victorinox 27" expandable roller and the Victorinox garment bag both in black. I like the red also. I don't think it is that gutsy. But the red shows dirt and wear a little more than the black and that factored into my decision. As mentioned, I have been very happy with my Victorinox pieces. I am considering buying the B&R for the 21" roller, largely because of the warranty and the fact that you can pack the B&R flat (frame in on the exterior). It is unlikely that I will be travelling with both the 27" Victorinox and the 22" roller so I dont think I need to worry about mismatched luggage. But on the other hand, maybe I should just stay with one brand for matching purposed. I cannot decide.

 

[gardel]

I have both Briggs & Riley and Travelpro pieces. They've spent months in harsh Third World travel conditions (roofs of rain-soaked Bolivian microbuses, United Airlines check-in counters) and I've found them to be impressively durable.

I own a Briggs & Riley 21" expandable that looks just like the one in that link. Here's what I don't like about it:

1) The wheels are spaced too close together. If you are walking at speed and make a turn, the bag wants to tip over. You may not notice this in the store while the bag is empty but if you load the bag down with 40 pounds of content, the increased inertia will make the problem obvious.

2) The handle release button is on the bag not the handle. This means you need two hands free. It makes going through customs, security, and getting in and out of taxis a bit more of a pain as you need to drop whatever is in your other hand.

With all the competition out there, I don't see any reason to buy a bag with these design defects. They may have since been corrected. I've had my Briggs bags for about seven years.

I have a 26" or 27" Travelpro Crew5 which I love. It doesn't have the wheel and handle design problems of my Briggs. I find the internal frame to be an advantage despite Briggs marketing hype because it gives you more usable space, all things being equal. Clothes are soft not rigid. It's not a big deal though.

I'm all for bags that are not black. I like being able to identify my bags from a distance. My Briggs are olive. The Travelpro is black. It popped up at a Marshalls so I didn't have a choice in color. I attached several bright orange wire-ties with the excess snipped off to make the bag easy to spot from a distance.

 

[thinman]

I love my Travelpro 22" rollaboard. Space for a suit or a laptop plus files that is accessible without opening the main compartment. After approximately 10 years, it shows no wear other than a lost zipper pull. The wheels are rugged and roll just as well as when it was new.

 

[retronotmetro]

My Briggs rollaboard (3 or so years old) has the handle extension button on the handle, and the wheel alignment and stability is better than that of my old Travelpro.

This tells me that (1) competition is the mother of incremental improvements and (2) don't buy luggage without seeing it IRL in a brick and mortar store.

I agree that you should always do something to make your luggage distinctive. I once got a call on my cell phone about 2 hours after a flight from a frantic guy asking if I had taken his case from the baggage check--he had mine. Identical black Tumi bags, with identical luggage tags and locks.

 

[TimelessRider]

I have a French Luggage 26" roll-along. Very solid and very distinctive. http://www.classicluggage.com/Herring....62.html

 

[Kent Wang]

Hmm... ways to make it distinctive. Like cell phone charms except bigger. (Though the only decent cell phone charms I've ever seen are LV logoed leather straps). Wire ties are an OK idea, but any ideas for something more elegant?

 

[gardel]

There's nothing elegant about rollaboard luggage, in my opinion. My check-in luggage is scuffed and scraped heavily from all the handling. It's unavoidable. If you're checking your luggage through, which is when I care about my bag looking distinctive, it's going to have various paper tags and stickers applied by the airlines, TSA, etc. I think whatever you attach to your luggage to make it distinctive isn't going to really matter at this point unless it's a Hello Kitty keychain.

Maybe you could find a leather luggage tag in a distinctive, contrasting color? Or maybe turn some leather shoelaces into zipper pulls?

 

[retronotmetro]

On my rollaboard I have a bright green luggage tag on the top handle, and I wrapped the top and bottom (the one between the wheels) handles with pieces of ribbon. Â It is fairly easy for me to spot, and anyone who makes an inadvertent grab for it is going to stop and think "who the hell wrapped my handles so carefully with a ribbon?" Or you could always duct tape a big X on it.