Originally Posted by
abfab
The biggest risk is that as Ryanair don't gate-check bags, if they did decide to get picky with your bags at boarding time, checking in your outsize cabin bag will no longer be an option and you will be off loaded from the flight.
You will NOT be offloaded of a flight for excess carry-on luggage. Worst case is you have to pay, more likely you won't and your luggage is just fitted with pre-printed tags and jammed into the belly.
@Raffles: Might be true for Aer Lingus, but as suggested in your link this was some way to give the staff possibilities to earn more money. Asked someone at Ryanair and he said they deffo do not get paid extra.
Now with that being said I saw people coming to an Aer Lingus check-in counter with a 26kgs bag and they weren't charged. Same for boarding controls. Never saw one.
Their handling agents are quite strict though.
And finally: Of course abfab is right. Every flight is different, every employee is as well. Most of them probably don't care but if someone does he can make your travelling very unpleasant. If you want to take more with you than you are allowed to try not to be too obvious about it. There is no need to show up with 4 bags or a suit-case that is so full it almost bursts.