Travel Products - 24 v 27 inch Luggage?

I am trying to decide what size "big" bag to get. I have decided on Briggs and Riley, but I have to choose between the 24-inch and the 27-inch bags. I am going to order at the same time the BR 20" Wide-body expandable carry-on. I travel quite a bit for work and I often need to carry works boots, hard hat, and some small tools for trips that last 7 days to multiple months. Currently I am working overseas and have at least 4 pacific crossings planned in the next three months.

I am concerned that the larger bag will be over weight when fully packed. This is not generally a concern for work related travel, but I have concerns for personal travel. I have silver (and soon gold) status on United, but I won't always have those luxuries.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

the 27 can go over the weight limit. I use the 24 inch, sometimes, expanded when going overseas....

I also have a 27 inch Samsonite. For some odd reason, the 27 seems to get more abuse than the 24. Perhaps it's the sheer size that causes awkwardness to be thrown by the handlers.

Another reason why I don't do 27 is that outside of the US, cabbies and Intl colleagues don't like hauling that huge bag into their cars. FYI. the real estate in car's trunks and real estate in general are smaller than whatever we have in the US. Just try fitting your sturdy and square Briggs 27inch into a tiny taxi trunk. You get the idea.