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Solution to the two-wheel vs. four-wheel condundrum

Solution to the two-wheel vs. four-wheel condundrum

Old Jun 11, 2019, 6:13 pm
  #16  
 
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Originally Posted by Allentown
Also if you are interested in wheel tech, check out the Gro. A couple of the less popular colors are on sale right now. https://g-ro.com/products/carry-on-c...13601938571360

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgiVBa1Q4z8
If I didn't have my BR I'd likely have given this a go, but in a crowded market a hard push. In the end like the supermarket or Costco you got to fight for the shelf space and get some good social media reviews in this modern world.

In the end given a choice I'm all in on spinners, everything is a compromise and I am willing to take them over what any two wheeler offers. I'd say the market has also spoken too, LOL
chipmaster is offline  
Old Jun 12, 2019, 8:57 am
  #17  
 
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Originally Posted by Allentown
I think that can be unpacked (pardon the pun). If you are older or have osteoarthritis the back pack is not an option so for that group I concede. That does not however explain why younger people use rollers. Younger people use rollers for 2 reasons 1) They are off the shelf at local brick and morter stores for cheap. 2) Most people don't understand how to properly travel and pack (look up any Rick Steves, Carryology, Bagworks or other pro traveler site and you will see that virtually none of them use or recommend roller boards...ever.. Well okay not "never" but the use of roller boards for pro travelers is a niche special circumstance case.....so the real issue for all the roller boards is the same reason the average person cant drive a car worth a crap, doesn't know anything about their own health issues, watches american idol instead of the science channel and people think the earth is flat...in short ignorance in the masses. You can hardly blame the manufactuers for keeping on making crap that people keep on buying though.

Problems with rollers
1. they take up too much floor space
2. they take up too much over head space
3. they slow you down when you want to be mobile and have a low travel print
4. they cant go with you certain places well at all....resturants shopping, on a ricksha etc when you arrive to a location early.
5. the average person DOES NOT NEED 80% of the stuff they pack period, and the realization of this means many of your arguments for roller bags simply vanish.
6. they often have to be checked which contributes to traveler stress, time waiting for the bag, lost baggage and fees
7. when they break a wheel you will have a bad day
8. when you need to cover rugged terrain ..or even side walks and cobble pavement, you will have a bad day.

I could go on but you get the point.

Problems with back packs
1) You carry some weight (largely relieved if you select back packs with a solid harness system and or simply know how to pack).
2) Cant do certain things....like long extended trips where you need more than 4 or 5 days worth of suits and no access to dry cleaning facility that you are aware of. So 10 days plus worth of suits..not going to work. But then i wont do a standard 25 inch roller board for that? Why would i when you have things like the Tumi Alpha 3 split duffle which has almost 100liters capacity and still fits under the 60 inch size limit? Of course you need to keep it under 50lbs to avoid weight fees but that still gives you 40lbs of clothes and all the capacity for things like coats and extra day bags you could ever want.
Come back and speak when you actually travel more than 75k miles a year.
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Old Jun 12, 2019, 10:08 am
  #18  
 
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Originally Posted by peterk814
Come back and speak when you actually travel more than 75k miles a year.
75 k miles a year is a joke. I often cover that much ground within Q1 or less.

A contest???

Come back and talk to me when you travel 50 weeks out of 52 most years. Monday through Friday, only home Saturday and leave again Sunday.....AND have to do a 2 air port trip to commuter locations including managing the CRJ 200 or the old Dash 8s (before they went out of service) on EVERY SINGLE TRIP.... Imagine you are forced to buy your tickets through concur and always take the cheapest seats possible which at times means BE with middle row seats assigned at the last minute. Now do that every consecutive year from 1998 to present and you'll be caught up.

Now be that as it may, i do use rolling bags at times (see below) for things like larger trips or if my back has been especially bothering me (I do have some mild degenerative osteoarthritis of the back although i find if you wear the back pack properly ((most people don't know how to wear one)) it is almost at times less painful and troublesome to use the back pack even with a bad back). Some of my bags feel like they have lumbar support and are down right comforting to wear. The trick is selecting the right back pack and then knowing how to wear it correct.

I use a Tumi intrnational sized 2 wheeled and i have a target bought swiss gear 4 wheel spinner. I have the Travel pro 2 wheeled garment carry on size which i absolutely love for managing suits and shirts as well. I also have a 4 wheeled samsonite garment bag but that thing is A) Huge and B)the Wire frame is exposed from countless check in damage from baggage handlers so i am thinking about retiring it.

Last edited by Allentown; Jun 12, 2019 at 10:35 am
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Old Jun 12, 2019, 10:11 am
  #19  
 
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Back on topic, I realized i probably shouldn't recommend any luggage i don't personally own. Full disclosure, i don't own a G ro but after reading some of the posts that the big wheel design largely solves the old 4 wheeled vs 2 wheeled connundrum i decided to order one and try it out. If anyone wants a review ill be glad to post. ON sale for $330.00 it seemed like a much better deal for a newer carry on sized roller bag with easier external laptop access than the $850.00 Tumi 4 wheeled International Office i was considering. To be fair, the target off the shelf swiss bag has external laptop access but i don't use it much because it lacks a suiter which the Tumi has.

Anyway, I decided based on cost but after reading about their wheel tech, i think the G ro may have more to offer than a cheaper price tag.

Speaking of rolling bags (cough peterk814), I also have the Tumi large split 2 wheeled duffle coming in but that is a checked only piece for sure. I may have quite a bit of extensive work in Saudi Arabia on the horizon and will need to pack for much longer trips. Again, glad to a do a review of that or any of my other bags if anyone is interested.

Last edited by Allentown; Jun 12, 2019 at 10:23 am
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Old Jun 12, 2019, 10:29 am
  #20  
 
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Originally Posted by Allentown
Back on topic, I realized i probably shouldn't recommend any luggage i don't personally own. Full disclosure, i don't own a G ro but after reading some of the posts that the big wheel design largely solves the old 4 wheeled vs 2 wheeled connundrum i decided to order one and try it out. If anyone wants a review ill be glad to post. ON sale for $330.00 it seemed like a much better deal for a newer carry on sized roller bag with easier external laptop access than the $850.00 Tumi 4 wheeled International Office i was considering. To be fair, the target off the shelf swiss bag has external laptop access but i don't use it much because it lacks a suiter which the Tumi has.

Anyway, I decided based on cost but after reading about their wheel tech, i think the G ro may have more to offer than a cheaper price tag.

Speaking of rolling bags (cough peterk814), I also have the Tumi large split 2 wheeled duffle coming in but that is a checked only piece for sure. I may have quite a bit of extensive work in Saudi Arabia on the horizon and will need to pack for much longer trips. Again, glad to a do a review of that or any of my other bags if anyone is interested.
Id like to hear about the G ro. The only thing that gives me pause is the weight. 9.3lbs or 4.2kg. That thing is a beast. I could never use it on airlines with a weight limit. It is really that heavy?
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Old Jun 12, 2019, 10:38 am
  #21  
 
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Originally Posted by Finkface
Id like to hear about the G ro. The only thing that gives me pause is the weight. 9.3lbs or 4.2kg. That thing is a beast. I could never use it on airlines with a weight limit. It is really that heavy?

Agreed. I noted that also. I never get my carry on's weighed in my most common travel routes via AA through Charlotte or Delta through Atlanta but even so...no one necessarily wants to purposefully lift more than 40lbs to 50lbs into the overhead bin on a regular basis. This limits your packing contents to 30lbs to 40lbs reasonably. Might be okay for summer or shorter trips. Might be okay for 2 bag travel. Will almost certainly present an obstacle for one bag travel if you are cramming EVERYTHING into a single bag (especially in winter).

Then again, they say it rolls like a dream so if the rolling mass is more your concern, it might be worth the trade off. Ill know eventually.
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Old Jun 12, 2019, 12:01 pm
  #22  
 
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Originally Posted by Allentown
75 k miles a year is a joke. I often cover that much ground within Q1 or less.

A contest???
Wow some people are so insecure, really doesn't matter how many times one travels, I've met engineers, doctors that have ton's of miles in their respective job and are idiots and newbies who are brilliant, same on internet forums, LOL

Anyone who feels their post doesn't stand up, and needs to grandstand their miles or status DYKWIA said, LOL.

Back on topic, read, filter the B$, know your personal needs/budget and usage and then decide.

Take it home, pack it up like you'd use it, if you can roll it around, but in the end read other's experience. Be aware people love to complain about little things on the internet as well as pump their favorite brands and call other idiots!
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Old Jun 14, 2019, 8:18 pm
  #23  
 
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Originally Posted by chipmaster
Wow some people are so insecure, really doesn't matter how many times one travels, I've met engineers, doctors that have ton's of miles in their respective job and are idiots and newbies who are brilliant, same on internet forums, LOL

Anyone who feels their post doesn't stand up, and needs to grandstand their miles or status DYKWIA said, LOL.

Back on topic, read, filter the B$, know your personal needs/budget and usage and then decide.

Take it home, pack it up like you'd use it, if you can roll it around, but in the end read other's experience. Be aware people love to complain about little things on the internet as well as pump their favorite brands and call other idiots!
Why did you quote me when it was Peterk814 who brought the topic of how far one travels up in the first place??? I was responding to someone elses BS, I am not the one who initiated the topic.
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