saintz

Appreciate any tips or suggestions.

Current carry:
Tumi 96130D4 small leather laptop briefcase
Costco Kirkland 22" roller

Problem:
Was great for when I traveled to Europe or multi-hop in US
Now I travel mostly overnight, only need space for a suit and shirt
22" is too big, it's mostly empty
When I board late I have trouble finding a space overhead and have to gate check

Solution?:
Go to a bag or bags that can fit under the seat if needed and/or on the "small" overhead side of a MD88.

Options I'm considering:
Current Tumi with small clothes roller like Briggs U116 or Costco Ciao under seat bag
+ Can find space easier than 22"
? Will this fit a suit or do I need to wear it? I normally fly in jeans and pack suit.
- Need overhead space for one
- Still need Tumi to hold laptop

Larger expandable Tumi only
+ Don't need overhead at all
- Won't fit suit, just shirt
- Have to hand carry

Tumi roller briefcase
+ Don't have to hand carry
- More bag than I need when I do travel for a week with 22" roller

Any ideas? I still need a presentable bag to take into client meetings with a laptop. I don't know if I'm better sticking with rolling or just carrying, and if going 1 bag will be better than 2 bags.

saintz

I just bought a Tumi 96114D4 (large expandable briefcase) and a Eagle Creek 15" packing folder. I'm hoping the folder will fit in at least the larger Tumi brief and should hold a shirt or two for overnight and maybe a pair of jeans.

IsleOfMan

I currently use the Ciao bag and a nicer Eagle Creek ES2 Round About before that for trips up to 3 nights. I slide a very small Amazon Basics 11.6" Laptop Brief on top to carry my Surface Pro, notebook, and chargers/gadgets. I fly in jeans but wear my sport coat or suit jacket so I don't have to fold/pack it. Along with Eagle Creek Pack-It Folder 15 for dress shirts, Pack-It Cube for underwear/socks/undershirts, and pants folded on the bottom I have no problem doing 3 nights (though some re-folding of dirty clothers is required to keep it from bulging on 3-night trips).

I like being able to put the Ciao bag up in the bin and have my small brief under the seat for easy access. I can also put the Ciao underseat if necesarry and find a small crevice overhead for the small brief (haven't had to yet). I've also never had to gate-check the Ciao and it's easy to close the handle and hand-carry both if I see a gate agent or gate-check agent who's pink-tag happy making everything rolling get checked. Even on Q400s, I haven't had to gate-check yet.

I probably wouln't buy the Ciao bag again as after only 4 trips it's already dented the handle slide channel causing it to hang on extenstion/retraction. I'll probably be getting another Eagle Creek ES2 even though it's not as crazy cheap as it was a few months back. If don't mind spending the money (it doesn't look like you mind) then go for the U116 or one of the other similar B&R bags.

saintz

I was considering the Eagle Creek, I guess it's still a decent price, just not as crazy cheap. I've had good luck with the Kirkland bags (last one did over 10 years and 500k miles) but not sure about the Ciao quality. I looked at a Briggs and Riley in a store, but at $450, not going to happen. They even had nylon Tumi bags for almost half that. But I see several models of BR for ~$100 on eBay, so I might try one. I just need to figure the difference in model numbers, because I can't find the U116 exactly. And the exterior cart handle seems to look less polished than the internal of the Tumi or Ciao, especially for a one-bag solution.

IsleOfMan

What B&R models are you seeing on eBay for ~$100? I might be interested but I agree that the external handle is more of a downside to me than a feature (I pack socks/underwear between/outside the handle voids if I really need to maximize space.

The Ciao is a good bag for $30, but it's nowhere near the quality of the Eagle Creek. If the Eagle Creek drops even to $50, I'll jump on it in a heartbeat. At $80 I'll make due with the Ciao for now and maybe get the Eagle Creek for Christmas or after with gift cards.

rgustafs

Other than the laptop, you don't mention what's filling out that Tumi laptop brief so it's hard to make a solid suggestion, but I'd imagine you can go down to one bag for overnight trips.

Unless there are physical limitations that would prevent you from carrying your bag, I'd be looking at the Tom Bihn Western Flyer or (if more room is needed, though I can't imagine it would be on an overnighter) the Tristar. Both fit in the overhead of a CRJ, and -- unless something crazy happens -- you will likely never be asked to gate check. Both can also go under some seats when needed. In a dark color, both look professional enough to hand- or shoulder-carry to a conservative client site as a computer brief with the benefit of being able to go full-on backpack if needed to hoof it through the airport.

There are lots of folks on the Tom Bihn forums willing to enable your purchase and also help you maximize use of space in your bags. (I would post links, but my darn iPad erases this post each time i move to a new window, which is annoying as heck.)

Hope that helps.

Rgustafs

saintz

There's a BR BRW14 and a U114 for around $100. Not sure the exact difference from a U116 but these all seem similar.

saintz

At minimum a dress shirt and socks (probably in a Eagle Creek folder) and toiletries. If I can fit a pair of jeans or a suit (pants and/or jacket) would be nice.

Those may be at the edge of what I'd consider ok for a meeting (if my only bag). Some people bring backpacks, so it's not unheard of, but most people bring something more conventional (in the case of my meetings).

IsleOfMan

I'm squarely in the roller camp mainly because I travel wearing a sport coat 90% of the time and every shoulder bag I've ever carried (duffle, brief, backpack) has majorly wrinkled even my most wrinkles resistant sport coats and suit jackets. I even remove the shoulder strap from my briefcase, though it is a very small 11.6" laptop bag containing only my Surface Pro, notebook, chargers/gadgets, and business cards/pens/etc (I never carry paper files with me, and only occasionally a few flyers)

rgustafs

Keep in mind that neither of the TB bags has to be carried in to the office with the backpack straps visible, but I totally appreciate that you don't feel the bags aren't "upscale" enough for your particular office environment. Among other things, I was thinking that the lighter weight and more compact form factor of the TB bags would be better than carrying a heavy leather briefcase throughout the trip. But again, the Tom Bihn bags may not be good for some office environments.

And I agree with IsleOfMan that wearing a sport coat (or suit jacket) with a shoulder bag is not a good look. I got the sense that Saintz was not traveling in a sport coat, but that is surely something to consider -- especially with a heavier bag.

Rgustafs

saintz

I normally wear a sport coat, so I was looking for something to either hand carry or roll. However, I'm looking at the Tristar (and Patagonia MLC and Eagle Creek Weekender) again. It looks like I could maybe fit a sport coat in those and then use as a backpack around the airport, and then take the coat out when I get to a client. Is that feasible, or are these not good for packing a suit/sport coat?

saintz

I'm still struggling with this.
The Tristar is 19" x 13" x 8"
My giant Kirkland roller is 22" x 14" x 9"

So the Tristar is barely any smaller. How does it fit in an overhead easier? On a CRJ? How does it fit under the seat? How do you carry one into a meeting without looking like you're carrying the world's largest computer briefcase? Not seeing one in person, I'm having trouble visualizing this.

IsleOfMan

I would never expect to remove a sport coat from a folded position in a bag with other contents and wear it directly into a meeting... I wouldn't expect to wear anything into a client without at least a good spray and tug with Wrinkle Release, though this along with a good steam and hanging overnight would be preferable. If you plan on packing a sport coat, plan on at least a stop by the hotel before heading anywhere you'll be seen wearing it.

TPACjv

I just received B&R KB307X and used it for a weekend. Everything did fit perfectly - laptop, external HD, cables, 1 pair of shoes, toiletries, and clothing for 2 days.

IsleOfMan

I do similar with a Travelpro 17" computer brief for 1-night trips. While not big enough to pack shoes, it will handle a pair of dress pants, shirt, underwear/socks, toiletries, Surface Pro, cables/gadgets, etc without issue... everything but the pants and toiletries go in an Eagle Creek Pack It Folder 15 for compression and organization, and then into the main computer/filing compartment. It's a pretty low end and somewhat older bag, so there's minimal lining and no velcro straps to clutter or otherwise minimize packing space in this compartment (it was part of a lower-end 3-piece set like you might find at TJMaxx). This is the only time I travel with a non-rolling bag.