bluegt

Hi everyone!

After reading nearly ever thread that I could find on Rimowa, I have narrowed my choices down to two bags, the Salsa (Matte Blue) and the Limbo (Night Blue), 73cm model

I like the look of the Limbo but there seems to be a lot of tradeoffs. Any opinions from people who own the bags? Also, any idea why the Limbo has 15L less capacity despite almost identical dimensions??

Limbo Pros:
- Metal Frame - Sturdier
- Watertight Seal (vs. water resistant zippers)
- Metal Corners
- 2 Flex-Dividers instead of 1
- Add-a-bag feature
- Nicer look (clasp closure, nicer finish and colors)

Limbo Cons:
- 35% more expensive
- 33% heavier (Salsa is 4.5KG vs. 6.0kg)
- 15% less interior capacity (Salsa is 98L vs. 83L)

It seems the common point of failure on the Salsa is a cracked corner, on the Limbo it is a bent frame. Appreciate any advice!

SometimesFlyer

I have both of the same large sized one you are looking at and happy to add the following :

Limbo :
+metal frame makes large loads a little more "reassuring". When both bags are fully loaded and you lift from handle, you can see the salsa "distort" a lot more
- same metal frame can make packing (or overpacking) a challenge. The clasp locks instead of zipper requires that the bag close completely aligned before you can snap the clasp. Zippers on salsa a little more forgiving.

Salsa :
+ zippers more forgiving to shut if you are trying to "overstuff" this bag
- given size of the bag, a fully packed one can come in at close to 40-50lbs. I have my concerns about the entire bag distorting and zippers coming apart ... I leave this bag for light but bulky loads now.

Cheers,
SF

Baghoarder

I have Limbo in various sizes and a Salsa cabin spinner. The reinforced corners on the Limbo can be an advantage - damage to the corners of one of mine attests to the rough treatment our bags get. But if you are an overpacker I'd say the frame and clasp structure on the Limbo might not suit you for the reasons outlined by SometimesFlyer.

My Limbos are in Midnight Blue - it's a gorgeous colour. Understated yet still distinctive on the carousel.

bluegt

Thanks Baghoarder and SometimesFlyer,

Based on your input it seems like the Limbo is a good choice for me! I am planning to pair it up with a Salsa Air in Marine Blue so hopefully they go well together.

For the benefit of others, I am planning to get it from Hetzenecker in Munich, and will try my luck at getting a full 19% VAT rebate.

EWRorJFK

Great choice!
I got the Limbo 73 and IATA 52 in August of last year. We have taken the 73 on two transatlantic trips. It has dents at every corner and I've been plenty glad that the aluminum has held up and protected it. I use my IATA 52 for regular business trips every month as cabin carry-on and it's held up great too. Again the aluminum corners have absorbed beatings from friction with other carry-ons. Even when they are packed completely full, I love that they weigh much less than the old TravelPros we used to have. I'm usually the one lugging both the Limbo's in & out of taxis and up & down steps. The 4-wheels have held up really well even on cobblestones in old European cities. But we don't push it too far and will catch a taxi if it's more than a block or two of cobblestones.

bluegt

A few days ago I successfully made my purchase at Hetzenecker in Munich. Bought a Blue (for me) and Red (for GF) Limbo 73 and a Blue Salsa Air IATA.

I tried several Hetzenecker locations and they all refused to help me with the 19% VAT refund (with bank transfer of VAT back to me) and instead suggested I use Global Blue, an 11% refund, I eventually went with that.

After the various discounts, etc., I effectively paid 28% less than German MSRP and 50%+ less than US/SG pricing (for Limbo 73)

alphaod

In Shanghai basically every sidewalk uses cobble stones it's kind of ridiculous.

Anyways after a year of use I did manage to wear out one of the wheels to the point that my bag started a track a little. But that was fixed easily with a visit to the local Rimowa repair center where all four wheels were replaced in just a minutes and at no cost.

I say use it! ^

tuffcalc

I have a lot of experience with the limbo. I would say don't get it. My (3) large 30 inchers all have had their frames distorted multiple times. It's a pain filing a claim with the carrier then getting rimowa to repair. I'm so fed up with them that I ebay'd my limbo carryons and replaced them with salsa deluxes. Also - after 1 flight I gurantee your limbo will no longer be "waterproof". The frame bends as soon as you hit around 40lbs (lift by the handle, you will see what I mean).

All 3 of my large limbos are about a year old and have been on less than 5 trips.

My next large piece will be a zippered salsa or different brand if can find something as awesome looking.

All that being said, rimowa service has been excellent- just think it is ridiculous I have to get these bags serviced every second flight.

troyb

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 8_1_2 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/600.1.4 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/8.0 Mobile/12B440 Safari/600.1.4)

I agree with this completely. My Limbo is nice to look at and feels pretty sturdy, but the frame hasn't been aligned since the very first time I used it. It's been repaired several times including once where I even sent it back to the Rimowa factory and even then they didn't get it back to new. I actually think my Salsa is more waterproof at this point and am kind of concerned about using it if there's going to be rain because I'm pretty sure if it were left out for any period of time water would get in.

Part of me thinks American airline carries are primarily to blame since it seems to get less damaged on trips solely flown on Asian carriers but that could just be happenstance.

The service has been good and that is nice but it is incredibly annoying to have to take it to a store so often. I'm also worried about what happens after the warranty is up in another few years. For this reason, I'd never get a Topas, at least not for a checked bag.

sapguy

Interesting!

I would have to disagree with some of the assessment of the Limbo made on this thread! My Limbo pieces have held up well, so far, while my Salsa have performed well beyond my expectation and I got my money's worth out of them.

That said, I would buy the Salsa for checked luggage and the Limbo as carry-on.

midnightmartini

I am looking for a new carry-on, and this thread is perfect. I'm debating between these exact two:

Rimowa Salsa Deluxe Hybrid, with the pockets - the pockets look very handy, but not too aesthetically pleasing IMO

Rimowa Limbo - looks amazing, but I tend to overstuff I've never had a non-zip luggage, thus I'm afraid I might mess up the alignment.

I'm also afraid both of these are too big for American carry-on, being over 14" in width.

If any owners can comment on these, that would be appreciated!

Safetravel3

We just bought a Rimowa Salsa Deluxe. We have the budget for a Topas, but chose Salsa Deluxe instead. Well, we don't think Topas or Limbo, without the zipper, is appropriate for checked-in luggage. Our old Limbo got hit pretty hard on the frame and could not be closed properly anymore, and the store couldn't fix it perfectly. Now as we tend to overpack our old Limbo, it actually has a gap in the middle and could not be used anymore. For Topas or Limbo, if handled properly, should definitely last longer. BUT, if ever got hit on the frame and cannot be sealed perfectly, it's finished. On the other hand, zippered luggage is not as rugged, but more repairable. Furthermore, Topas also attracts unnecessary attention. Money takes no part in our decision-making process.

Cosmic Charlie

Adding on for other people that may be in same situation:

Its not exactly an apples to apples comparison... but somewhat close:

I have four pieces of salsa deluxe (1 IATA, 2 Cabin Spinners, and 1 26inch)

I also have the Topas Sport 80.

Two of the carry on's get used at least weekly, mostly for u.s. domestic air travel. The 26 inch and the Topas Trunk gets used every 3 months for international travel. The Trunk exclusively carries SCUBA gear.

I have had zero issues with any of the salsas. They get checked frequently on return flights, and get dragged around lots of urban areas (NYC streets and subways, etc). They hold up to scratching pretty well too.

The trunk is a different story. It usually has between 50-70 pounds in it and takes a serious beating. Every trip has a new dent in it. I love that part of it. After two years of use, it looks like a beat up aluminum can with stickers all over it. Lots of character.

However, I have had some items break on it. One of the wheels sheered off from luggage handling, one of the velcro tie down straps cracked, and one of the combo locks was ripped off. All were replaced by an email to rimowa service free of charge. For the wheels, they actually sent me a few extras too. Takes 60 seconds to swap one out.

So to answer the question directly, if dents and such are a concern, consider the polycarbonate. If you overpack and check, i'd forget about the watertight seal as the frame will eventually bend a bit and the rubber gasket will get chewed up too. Also the zipper will structrually support the closure all the way around versus an overstuffed suitcase holding it in three spots. Having said that, i've never had a problem with the Topas popping open.

The Salsa Deluxe has two of the flex dividers (which are fantastic) and come in the glossy colors. It also has the add a bag feature (I use it but always am concerned its going to pop off, which it does if a lack of tension occurs in the strap... also concerned my carry handle is going to fail but it never has)