Wheeled luggage

funkey_monkey

Hi,

I have to buy some wheeled luggage - I want to get a largish one for long trips.

I've noticed that there seems to be some with very exposed wheels on the market now - these seems to be what Samsonite call 'spinners'. I am worried that these wheels might be easily broke damaged due to how baggage handlers treat luggage at the airport.

I can't afford Samsonite items, so will be opting for something a lot cheaper than that.

I guess, my questions are as follows:

1. What are the most robust type of wheels and can they be repaired/replaced now? (My current item has buckled at one wheel and cannot be repaired).
2. Are the solid (clamshell) type cases or the polyester material ones the better option?

Are there are good budget brands out there?


Finally, apologies if this is in the wrong forum - I thought this would be the best place.


Thanks.

mel.b

Do you mean the ones on wheels that you sort of push along upright? If so, i hate them. I don't have one but my mum does and it was a pain in the backside pushing along cobbled streets in Europe. Always getting stuck.

i have an Eagle creek wheeled duffle bag (hovercraft 30). They are expensive but come with a life time "no matter what" warranty and it is the best piece of luggage I have ever owned.

For me, weight of a suitcase / bag is one of the most important features. With many airlines only giving you 15 or 20kg for hold luggage, do you really want the weight of your empty suitcase taking up a quarter or more of that?

athtrasna

Make sure you get one with four wheels...you can roll them along beside you rather than drag it behind, pulling your shoulder and also creating a hazard for someone behind you to fall over.

mel.b

athtrasna wrote: »

Make sure you get one with four wheels...you can roll them along beside you rather than drag it behind, pulling your shoulder and also creating a hazard for someone behind you to fall over.

They are the ones that IMO are crap on anything other than a perfectly smooth service. Constantly getting into the cracks and getting caught between cobblestones. I won't use anything other than a two wheeled duffel and the Eagle creek ones have nice, chunky solid wheels

athtrasna

mel.b wrote: »

They are the ones that IMO are crap on anything other than a perfectly smooth service. Constantly getting into the cracks and getting caught between cobblestones. I won't use anything other than a two wheeled duffel and the Eagle creek ones have nice, chunky solid wheels

It's totally possible to roll a four wheeler on two wheels if you want. As someone who travels a lot, I suffer a lot less pain in my shoulders since I switched to a four wheeler. Have never had any issues with it getting stuck

mfceiling

Get on adverts and get a pre-loved one.

funkey_monkey

The wheels on those 4-wheelers look very vunerable to me.

Are there any recommended brands of luggage other than Samsonite?

mel.b

As mentioned above i have an Eagle Creek bag and would highly recommend it. They come with a no matter what warranty, so if you break it, it is replaced, if the airline damage it, it is replaced, for the lifetime of the product. So it might be an expensive outlay, but you have a bag for life.

Here is a review i wrote after i got my bag

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-products/1071632-review-eagle-creek-hc2-hovercraft-duffle-30-a.html

If you want something good quality, you are going to have to oay a bit for for it.

http://shop.eaglecreek.com/travel-gear-view-all/l/110

kingshankly

Trip luggage available in debenhams is quite good for the price

munchkin_utd

the wife has a large 4 wheel samsonite yoke, and great case that it is, the poxy wheels are a balls
wheeling it on 2 wheels is possible but the centre of gravity is higher than it needs to be so youre carrying more (i.e. more upward holding of the handle)
and on 4 wheels its just as useless as a concept as its all over the shop and youre constantly twisting it to keep it straight and then re-adjusting it to stop it from toppling over.

now, after taking a spin with lufthansa and using an air bridge and shuffling a few inches at a time with a normal hand luggage rolly bag, I can see the benefits of having a bag that you can nudge along without having to tip it 45degrees onto its side every 20 seconds, but for a large bag its of no benefit except maybe the fact that the wheels dont protrude into the main part of the bag.