Hard sided vs soft sided luggage

[pdmlynek]

12 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

The best ones to get open like suitcase. Cotopaxi is one example. 

The problem with Cotopaxi (or any other brand) that opens up as a suitcase in 35 L size is that it relies on a zipper to keep it closed.  Cotopaxi's 35 L bags, such as Allpa, does not have a strap to keep the pressure off the zipper. 

 

I have no idea why a manufacturer of bags would think that relying on zippers is a good idea. How difficult is it to put a couple of strap on the bag?  😞 

[ldubs]

17 hours ago, slidergirl said:

Thing is, why not just get the 2-wheeler?  you lose some space for packing when you have 4 wheels.  2 wheels are kind of built into the sides of the bag while the 4 wheels are stuck on the bottom.  Maybe an inch deep of extra space in a 2-wheeler - room for goodies!

 

Fair question.  Because most all of the time, and especially with cruises,  a large luggage loaded with 50 pounds of stuff is just easier to move around with 4 wheels.  Space isn't an issue.  I run out of weight allowance before I run out of room in the luggage.   

 

It occurs to me you may be talking about carry-on luggage and I'm talking about large checked baggage.  

[slidergirl]

3 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

Fair question.  Because most all of the time, and especially with cruises,  a large luggage loaded with 50 pounds of stuff is just easier to move around with 4 wheels.  Space isn't an issue.  I run out of weight allowance before I run out of room in the luggage.   

 

It occurs to me you may be talking about carry-on luggage and I'm talking about large checked baggage.  

I've been dealing with winter guests with spinners with "HEAVY" tags on them, too.  Just not at a comfortable height for me and heavy to pull at my side.  

[slidergirl]

7 hours ago, pdmlynek said:

The problem with Cotopaxi (or any other brand) that opens up as a suitcase in 35 L size is that it relies on a zipper to keep it closed.  Cotopaxi's 35 L bags, such as Allpa, does not have a strap to keep the pressure off the zipper. 

 

I have no idea why a manufacturer of bags would think that relying on zippers is a good idea. How difficult is it to put a couple of strap on the bag?  😞 

I'm not sure what you are talking about.  Straps??  The Allpa has zipper compartments inside, to keep things compressed.  The external zipper has always been easy to zip for me.  

[donaldsc]

On 2/27/2023 at 6:46 PM, Ilovesailaway said:

I am a huge fan of carry on only. It can be done for any length of trip. Look up the bundle method on youtube. I also believe that the best way to pick a tool for a job is to look at what the professionals use and copy them. Every flight crew I see uses soft sided 2 wheel luggage. Personal bag clips to the lager carry on. This works great for dragging your bags over any surface. Spinners are great for hard floors but carpets or anything uneven and you will wish you had a 2 wheel bag.

 

Totally agree but based on the luggage that is available for sale now almost everyone seems fallen for the 4 wheel stuff.  My wife has a 4 wheel suitcase and I have a 2 wheel bag.  I hate her bag.

 

I will add that soft sided luggage tends to be lighter in general but hard side luggage will protect your stuff better.  There is very light hard sided luggage but it tends to be pricey.

 

I will also add that I know people who buy cheap luggage as opposed to the better more expensive stuff.  They assume that all luggage breaks eventually and if the cheap stuff lasts 4 or 5 trips they just throw it away and buy new cheap stuff.  There is something to be said for that philosophy.

 

DON

Edited March 2, 2023 by donaldsc

[Charles4515]

1 hour ago, slidergirl said:

I'm not sure what you are talking about.  Straps??  The Allpa has zipper compartments inside, to keep things compressed.  The external zipper has always been easy to zip for me.  

Glad you posted that. I was not up to arguing about it. 

[pdmlynek]

2 hours ago, slidergirl said:

I'm not sure what you are talking about.  Straps??  The Allpa has zipper compartments inside, to keep things compressed.  The external zipper has always been easy to zip for me.  

What I am writing about is that it is easy for zippers to break.  If a zipper fails on a bag like Allpa, then it just opens up.  With straps that combine the body of the bag to its lid, if a zipper fails, then the straps still keep the bag together.  

 

Having a bag held together is fine for small bags, say, 15 L, but for a 35 L bag it is much safer to have something more than a zipper holding the bag together.

 

But that is just my opinion.  If you trust zippers, then that's fine.

 

 

[slidergirl]

4 hours ago, pdmlynek said:

What I am writing about is that it is easy for zippers to break.  If a zipper fails on a bag like Allpa, then it just opens up.  With straps that combine the body of the bag to its lid, if a zipper fails, then the straps still keep the bag together.  

 

Having a bag held together is fine for small bags, say, 15 L, but for a 35 L bag it is much safer to have something more than a zipper holding the bag together.

 

But that is just my opinion.  If you trust zippers, then that's fine.

 

 

Sounds like you had an Allpa zipper fail...  If the zipper fails and the bag opens, nothing falls out because it is contained in the internal zippered compartments.  Same with zippers on any other luggage.   That said, it wouldn't be a big deal to go a store and get 2 straps to put around a bag.  Not a game ender.  I will say in my years with my Osprey, Eagle Creek, eBags and now my Cotopaxi bags, I haven't had a zipper failure.  Maybe I'm just lucky,  

[Charles4515]

24 minutes ago, slidergirl said:

Same with zippers on any other luggage.   That said, it wouldn't be a big deal to go a store and get 2 straps to put around a bag.  Not a game ender.  

Many years ago that happened to a soft sided rollerboard I had on a trip. That is exactly what we did, Bought two straps and we were able to finish the trip  with the straps. 

[ldubs]

10 hours ago, slidergirl said:

I've been dealing with winter guests with spinners with "HEAVY" tags on them, too.  Just not at a comfortable height for me and heavy to pull at my side.  

 

Maybe I'm lucky.  So far mine roll along with very little effort.  Last trip I did notice that one of the bags favored one side as the "front" while rolling it along. 

[cruisemom42]

10 hours ago, donaldsc said:

I will add that soft sided luggage tends to be lighter in general but hard side luggage will protect your stuff better.  There is very light hard sided luggage but it tends to be pricey.

 

I'm one who always had soft-sided luggage but decided to purchase a Heys suitcase about 10 years ago when they were quite popular. After traveling with it about twice, I hated that bag. For starters, I found out how much I hate packing in a "clamshell" type suitcase. Takes up so much bloody room. You can't pack it on a rack, you have to put it on your bed, and when open (on a twin size bed, which I often end up with when traveling solo), there is no room to fold your clothes.... Ufff, no.  

 

Second reason, after two trips, the bag looked terrible. It had dents, dings, and black marks. No thanks.

 

I know people will argue six ways to Sunday on this topic, but for me, soft-sided bags work best and they have improved so much with regard to materials (they are more waterproof, more slash-proof than a decade ago, as well as lighter).  

 

Edited March 3, 2023 by cruisemom42

[ldubs]

4 hours ago, slidergirl said:

Sounds like you had an Allpa zipper fail...  If the zipper fails and the bag opens, nothing falls out because it is contained in the internal zippered compartments.  Same with zippers on any other luggage.   That said, it wouldn't be a big deal to go a store and get 2 straps to put around a bag.  Not a game ender.  I will say in my years with my Osprey, Eagle Creek, eBags and now my Cotopaxi bags, I haven't had a zipper failure.  Maybe I'm just lucky,  

 

We put bright orange straps with our names written on them on our luggage.  Not so much worried about zippers as I am about someone walking off with my bag by mistake.  Also we can see it on the carousel a mile away.  

[ldubs]

On 3/1/2023 at 3:14 PM, Hllb said:

Soft sided get dirty super easy and that annoys me. I have hard sided and love them. The only thing I don’t like is that luggage stands are fairly useless for them since you can’t just flip up a lid as it’s filled with stuff. 

 

Doesn't annoy me so much, but it annoys Mrs Ldubs.    My job after every trip is to clean the outside of the luggage.   So far they are still looking good.  

[cruiseaholic78]

Maybe too late but whatever you (and anyone else) decide do choose a different color than black. So many black bags at airport or cruise terminal, we have turquoise ones that we can see at a distance, just in “case” we also put a luggage band around them.

Rosalyn

[6rugrats]

I work in the baggage office of a major US carrier.  Most damage claims are from hard shells.  Spinners break off easily and often take the bottom piece of the bag with them.  I stick to soft sided.  

I’d just add, please put a sturdy name tag on your bag with your correct contact information, and add this someplace inside the bag.  

[slidergirl]

9 hours ago, cruiseaholic78 said:

Maybe too late but whatever you (and anyone else) decide do choose a different color than black. So many black bags at airport or cruise terminal, we have turquoise ones that we can see at a distance, just in “case” we also put a luggage band around them.

Rosalyn

Sometimes I'll check my Cotopaxi Allpa because I do't feel like doing the "put your bag in the overhead scrum" on the plane.  My bag definitely stands out on the carousel!  One thing I added to the bag was a carry strap, it makes it the perfect 3-way carry bag.  Oh - the bag comes with a rain cover I can put around the bag if needed.

But, again, to each his own...

Edited March 3, 2023 by slidergirl

[pdmlynek]

21 hours ago, slidergirl said:

Sounds like you had an Allpa zipper fail...  If the zipper fails and the bag opens, nothing falls out because it is contained in the internal zippered compartments.  Same with zippers on any other luggage.   That said, it wouldn't be a big deal to go a store and get 2 straps to put around a bag.  Not a game ender.  I will say in my years with my Osprey, Eagle Creek, eBags and now my Cotopaxi bags, I haven't had a zipper failure.  Maybe I'm just lucky,  

No, I did not have Allpa zipper fail, or any other luggage zipper fail on me, at least recently.  The reason is that I ask a zipper do do its job, which is to act as a closure device.  Zippers are more likely to fail when they are asked to do more, such as hold a luggage together.  If you pull a bag tight, and then you throw it, it'll rip the zipper.  Nothing against zipper; they are just not designed for that.

 

Yes, I have no problem dealing with an exploded luggage by going to find a store that sells luggage supplies, and buying a couple of straps.  Except bags fall apart at the most inopportune moments: on a tarmac being thrown onto the plane, at a mountain village in Asia when thrown on top of a bus, when rushing to catch a train, or a midnight before disembarkation day on a cruiseship when you are leaving your bag in front of your door.  In each of those instances, lugguage stores are far away, both in distance and time.  Having a bag fall apart is a hassle and is needlessly time-consuming headache.

 

[navybankerteacher]

On 3/2/2023 at 10:18 AM, ldubs said:

 

Fair question.  Because most all of the time, and especially with cruises,  a large luggage loaded with 50 pounds of stuff is just easier to move around with 4 wheels.  Space isn't an issue.  I run out of weight allowance before I run out of room in the luggage.   

 

It occurs to me you may be talking about carry-on luggage and I'm talking about large checked baggage.  

The problem with the four wheel spinners is that they are terrible on rough surfaces -- if you never hit a cracked sidewalk, carpeting, or any other non-smooth surface, you are OK, but they are very surface-sensitive ---- and much more subject to having a wheel break off.

[ldubs]

15 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

The problem with the four wheel spinners is that they are terrible on rough surfaces -- if you never hit a cracked sidewalk, carpeting, or any other non-smooth surface, you are OK, but they are very surface-sensitive ---- and much more subject to having a wheel break off.

 

Yep, I have to admit that rough surfaces and especially cobbles is potential problem.  That is when I manually covert the bag to a 2-wheeler.   Fortunately, after years using large 4-wheel spinners, have yet to lose a wheel.   Admittedly, I'm not taking the luggage "off-roading" too much.   All about tradeoffs I guess.   

[Philob]

On 3/2/2023 at 9:34 PM, ldubs said:

 

We put bright orange straps with our names written on them on our luggage.  Not so much worried about zippers as I am about someone walking off with my bag by mistake.  Also we can see it on the carousel a mile away.  

We have neon colored straps with matching handle wraps.

 

Had a hard side blow out many years ago and purchased a Samsonite Oyster from the hotel shop at 150% of what they sold it for in the states at the time. Best suitcase ever, bulletproof, that is until the TSA began prying open suitcases in their early days. 

 

One of our soft sided lasted many trips until it got run over by something (wheel marks) and if it wasn't for the luggage straps our stuff probably would have been all over the tarmac or cargo hold.

 

Our newest suitcases are hard sided and lime green.🤮

Edited March 4, 2023 by Philob

[pdmlynek]

3 hours ago, Philob said:

...Best suitcase ever, bulletproof, that is until the TSA began prying open suitcases in their early days. ...

What does TSA do now? Do they not open luggages as needed?

[Charles4515]

2 hours ago, pdmlynek said:

What does TSA do now? Do they not open luggages as needed?

They have keys to TSA locks.  I had the same luggage. It predated TSA locks. If the luggage was not left unlocked TSA would pry it open.

[Philob]

5 hours ago, pdmlynek said:

What does TSA do now? Do they not open luggages as needed?

My Oyster was pre 9/11, pre-TSA, so no TSA "keyhole".  It had pretty sturdy locks and TSA had to pry it open ruining the lock and suitcase in the process. 

 

Would be easier to teach a rock to swim than filing a claim against the TSA back then.

 

Edited March 5, 2023 by Philob

[luvs2beachit]

Thanks everyone for sharing your personal experiences and  suggestions.  Now at least I have some information about what to 

consider when making my decision about what to buy.  I am leaning toward soft sided because of some of the comments about weight and damage as well my familiarity with that kind of luggage.

To those of you who took the time to share your experiences with carry-on bags as well as some of your packing strategies, thank you.

I do have two Samsonite 18 inch rolling duffel bags, which hold a lot, but because my upcoming b2b cruises encompass two different weather extremes (Panama Canal and Alaska) I wouldn't be able to fit what I would need to take.  I don't think I could get away with declaring one of the duffel bags as my "personal item".  Besides I am not opposed to checking a bag in order to ensure that I have what I need and want to take with me.

Again, thank you everybody.

[slidergirl]

On 3/2/2023 at 10:42 PM, ldubs said:

 

Doesn't annoy me so much, but it annoys Mrs Ldubs.    My job after every trip is to clean the outside of the luggage.   So far they are still looking good.  

Sorry, but the first thing that popped into my head was the insurance commercial where the guy is washing his trash cans...