Good, inexpensive luggage?

[scubadada]

If you're willing to deal with all your luggage failures, this is just great. I'm not that interested in spending the time and energy for repairs. I will trade for longevity and reliability. We all have time to spend as we please.

 

[outofofficebrb]

Grey? I claim that shade of grey is pretty much black and white. They clearly exclude normal wear and tear as well as abuse. If you are refused you should not be surprised.

The warranty is black and white. I said what’s grey is the person in warranty you happen to be working with that can sway differently even if it is clearly wear and tear. I know this because I have been on the customer end of it as well as the warranty side of it. Yes, no surprise should be present if it’s wear and tear and they say no. But sometimes, and often times in my experience, they usually say yes.

 

[RogueClimber]

I'm a big fan of Osprey.

The Shuttle series has padded soft sides and compression for protection and great wheels for rough roads

Osprey Shuttle 100L

And an amazing guarantee:

OSPREY'S ALL MIGHTY GUARANTEE

Osprey will repair any damage or defect for any reason free of charge – whether it was purchased in 1974 or yesterday. If we are unable to perform a functional repair on your pack, we will happily replace it. We proudly stand behind this guarantee, so much so that it bears the signature of company founder and head designer, Mike Pfotenhauer.​

 

[Skulmoski]

Might I recommend Tumi, hard sided luggage! LOL. Perhaps if you can find it on sale, then, the sale price might approach that of a moderate piece of luggage. I have a hard sided Tumi and a soft sided Victorinox checked bags for my dive gear; one of each (soft and hard) gives great flexibility.

I was resistant to pay Tumi prices, but I picked up this piece for about 33% off the full retail price. This piece of luggage will last me at least a decade and in the long run, this purchase will provide good value.

GJS

 

[chillyinCanada]

Wow, 3-4 sets would be extremely heavy, I know that two sets weighs 60 pounds or so. Even business class has a free limit of 70 pounds

Wow, you've got some seriously heavy gear there

 

[chillyinCanada]

All of the damage to any of my luggage has been caused by airport equipment and/or loading personnel. The airline refused to be responsible.

Oh, I did have a hardside Delsey once upon a time that I also really liked but one day, it's shell cracked, a huge angled crack right in the middle of one side. I later read that it was a problem with that kind of shepl material. That's when I switched to the lightweight but highend Samsonites (on sale) and have never looked back.

I am not convinced that I'd be any happier with a Tumi or Riley and Briggs or some such. If one of those bags became damaged I'd be quite unhappy and then have to go through all the rigmarole of getting it fixed under warranty. Heck the Samsonites have similar warranties for 5-10 years, though for some reason I doubt the reliance on same.

Further, when my eyes became too bad to recognize my luggage coming off of the belt, I plastered it with neon pink stick-on shapes. Can't imagine that I'd be so inclined with an ever so much more expensive bag.

 

[Hoag]

@Kimela one of your concerns is protecting your BCD. If it is any help at all, I tend to travel using a roller duffel (with a hard bottom). I protect my BCD by putting it inside my wetsuit & rolling the arms & legs around to cover the BCD's bladder. I then put the BCD/wetsuit into my mesh "boat bag" with my fins literally providing an additional layer of protection. For anything to damage my BCD, it has to go through either the hard bottom of the duffel or my fins, my boat bag (OK that is minimal protection but it keeps everything in place), and my wetsuit.

Is it "bullet proof"? No. It is, however giving my BCD a degree of protection that I am comfortable with.

 

[Kimela]

@Hoag - this sounds great. Because I'm short I might be able to smush my BC into a dry bag and then put my fins on the top of those - so protection from the hard side of the duffel and fins on the other side.

 

[RyanT]

I've had really good luck with Skyway luggage. I'm getting ready to replace set that have travelled with me annually to Panama and elsewhere abroad. They are 15 years old and are just now biting the dust. All told, these bags have probably made over 100 flights with 25-30 of those international trips. I should also note that during my Panama trips, these bags lived for months at a time in the tropical heat/moisture where mold tends to eat things. For the price they have really held up. They're not that expensive, so I'm really hoping my new set turns out to be as durable as the last.

Skyway Luggage | Traveling the World Since 1910

 

[chillyinCanada]

I've had really good luck with Skyway luggage. I'm getting ready to replace set that have travelled with me annually to Panama and elsewhere abroad. They are 15 years old and are just now biting the dust. All told, these bags have probably made over 100 flights with 25-30 of those international trips. I should also note that during my Panama trips, these bags lived for months at a time in the tropical heat/moisture where mold tends to eat things. For the price they have really held up. They're not that expensive, so I'm really hoping my new set turns out to be as durable as the last.

Skyway Luggage | Traveling the World Since 1910

My first set of luggage, received as a gift at 18 years old (a very very long time ago) is still in incredible shape, however, all these many years later, too heavy, no wheels, etc. Regardless , probably the best luggage that I've ever had and those pieces have certainly been through some travel wars.

Assuming that Skyway still has the same standards but with today's features, then I will agree, very good choice.