Carry on luggage for a road warrior.

Guys, about 20 minutes before Mrs. Grouse had to leave for the airport she summons me to look at her carry on bag because one of the little spinner wheels is jammed and broken. AGAIN. This is a Samsonite and after a brief autopsy in my shop, it’s game over. Carry on #142 bites the dust.

Mrs. Grouse is a gold flyer, so basically, this means she trashes a carry on about every 18 months. She only likes the ultralight hard side models because they slide in/out of the overhead bins easily and don’t have all those zippers and pockets that just get ripped off. The current Samsonite has been good, but the wheel bearings get jammed with carpet fibers and hair and then they jam and cut into the axels, trashing the whole wheel. It also looks like salt from sidewalks has eaten the bearings on the swivel for each wheel very badly.

I’m getting tired of throwing $200 to 300 in the trash every 18 months.

Yeah, I know, get a Tumi you say. Problem is these currently get ripped off with alarming frequency. Mrs. Grouse has 2 people on her sales team that got their Tumis stolen the same week this past year. Seems like they are now a huge target, so the MG says “no” to the Tumi unless there is no possible other option that is lower profile.

Is there any heavy duty alternative to the Tumi? Remember, must be ultra light, hard side, spinner, preferably with BIG wheels.

Please, no offense, but if you’re not at least a silver flyer, you probably don’t fly enough to know what’s good and what isn’t. Only interested is stuff that can withstand tens of thousands of trip miles per year.

Grouse

I’m offended.

Check out the travelpro, that is what I have. I know a lot of flight crews use them.

I guess I’ve never looked close at how the wheels are attached to suitcase. Would it be possible to replace the wheel when needed? Just have spares sitting aside?

hottoddytipup is correct on the Travelpro. About everyone that I know that works at Frontier and United (yes, hate to admit it but friends do work there – LOL) has Travelpro Elite and that is all they recommend. After dumping $275 x X amount of bags, I said enough of the BS. I just went to my tactical bag and have saved a ton of money. Get her a 5-day tactical back-pack and tell her to live with it. She may be a frequent flyer, but I’m the gates of HELL. I can beat the crap out of anything and abuse the pee out of it. I quit on all the mini-luggage bags, they’re WORTHLESS.
I’ve had the best longevity with my ATI 5 day pack. The shoulder straps are showing some wear. But for the 100’s of miles packed in the mountains, ATV rides, packing elk, all the trade shows, and all the personal use – can’t beat it!!

I’m thinking this is a job for a Yeti cooler! Multiple sizes, wheels, color choices…..

I can guarantee virtually nobody flies more than I do, unless you also fly for a very large airline like me. My luggage is used week in and week out. I’ve used the same luggage for 10+ years and have only replaced one set of worn out wheels. It’s as close as bulletproof as it gets. Search for Luggage Works. You’ve got options for size, and as long as you like black, they have your color. It is not hard sided, but it has a sturdy metal frame encasing it. FYI – if you can damage it, it is rebuildable.
Yes, some crew members do have travel pro, but I can attest that it will not stand up like the luggage works. Virtually every one of the pilots at my airline use only 1 brand because that’s the one that holds up.

I did a quick check on Amazon, they sell wheels not sure of your item.

I can’t attest to the luggage myself, but Pelican makes the best cases in the world. Might be worth a look.

https://www.pelican.com/us/en/products/travel/luggage

Jim Stoeckel wrote:

I can guarantee virtually nobody flies more than I do, unless you also fly for a very large airline like me. My luggage is used week in and week out. I’ve used the same luggage for 10+ years and have only replaced one set of worn out wheels. It’s as close as bulletproof as it gets. Search for Luggage Works. You’ve got options for size, and as long as you like black, they have your color. FYI – if you can damage it, it is rebuildable.
Yes, some crew members do have travel pro, but I can attest that it will not stand up like the luggage works. 99% of the pilots use only 1 brand because that’s the one that holds up.

I may have been mistaken, but I thought luggage works is a branded product of travel pro

Disregard – I see that they are different brands offered through Crew Outfitters

I’m not sure who makes it. I just know it works.

https://luggageworks.com/

I travel a lot and have gone away from hard sided (I’m a platinum delta guy). Planes are getting smaller and smaller so hard sided bags sometimes don’t fit.

Get a Thule soft sided bag and a Tumi garment carrier. You jam them anywhere and wear them like a backpack if needed. With a good garment carrier you don’t get wrinkles.

I’m typing this from the Pittsburgh airport….

Francis K wrote:

I guess I’ve never looked close at how the wheels are attached to suitcase. Would it be possible to replace the wheel when needed?

catmando wrote:

I did a quick check on Amazon, they sell wheels not sure of your item.

I looked at replacing, but the axle of each little wheel is actually a long rivet that has a head on one side and a rivet end on the other. To remove the wheel, the only way I could see to do it is to take a die grinder and grind off the rivet head and then punch the axel out. Which by the looks of it, will destroy the swivel wheel bracket which, in turn, looks to be highly brand/design specific AND is also riveted to the frame of the suitcase.

Per Catmando’s suggestion, I see Amazon sells both wheels and replacement axles that have a threaded cap to replace the rivet. Now if I can just sort through the 11,000 different wheel sizes and axle length combinations, this might be an option. Assuming, of course, I can remove each of the riveted in axels without trashing the bracket…

This bag also is looking a little long in the tooth. Lots of battle scars, one long mark that appears to be a rubber tire mark (!), and interestingly what looks to be one set of bite marks from a member of the canine species??? Perhaps an encounter with some kind of rabid sales manager in an airport lounge? Must ask Mrs. Grouse about this.

Jim Stoeckel wrote:

Yes, some crew members do have travel pro, but I can attest that it will not stand up like the luggage works. Virtually every one of the pilots at my airline use only 1 brand because that’s the one that holds up.

Wow. We have a winner there, esentially the M1A1 Tank of rolling luggage. I see a swivel gun turret is available on the “accessories” page of their website. However…

Mrs. Grouse is a girl, and I have a feeling a black rolling battle tank isn’t going to cut it on the fashion end. But wow, I’m impressed!

So great suggestions re Luggage Works. That looks a possible option.

Technically, Samsonite has a warranty, but it looks like it varies by model, it has to be sent to them to determine replacement and from what I see online there may also be a fee. Looks like a lot of hassle and time, I think the fix route or replacement would be a better value.

Thanks for all the very helpful suggestions!

Grouse

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

This bag also is looking a little long in the tooth. Lots of battle scars, one long mark that appears to be a rubber tire mark (!), and interestingly what looks to be one set of bite marks from a member of the canine species??? Perhaps an encounter with some kind of rabid sales manager in an airport lounge? Must ask Mrs. Grouse about this.

We checked our carseats one time, and when we landed, it appeared that one had been dragged across the tarmac for quite a ways.

Grouse, I assume the Mrs flies out of MSP the most. Something to consider if you buy her a new bag.

I still think you need to adjust her fashion sense to accept a tactical bag

Crew Outfitters

Ralph Wiggum wrote:

We checked our carseats one time, and when we landed, it appeared that one had been dragged across the tarmac for quite a ways.

In the 1970s, my father was waiting for his Samsonite 3 Suiter at the Republic baggage claim and it never arrived. Fearing it had been lost, he approached a Republic agent and before he said anything, she said, “You must be Mr. Grouse. I’m so sorry.” and she handed him two large clear plastic bags that contained most of the contents of his suitcase.

He stood there for a while, mind reeling at what could have happened and the Republic agent took that as her cue and explained, “I’m sorry, there’s been a rather unfortunate incident. Republic, will, of course, pay to replace your suitcase.”

When he got home and unpacked–or rather “unbagged”–he immediately noticed some of his clothes had burn marks and smelled of kerosene and smoke. The mind absolutely boggles at what might have happened to his luggage, but obviously it had at some point been on fire (!). Mom’s only comment was that this confirmed what she had long suspected about what goes on at these “conferences” he attended and always claimed to be very boring.

Grouse

But black is never out of style…
Randy is correct. There is a store underneath F7 at MSP airport. But without an escort or an airline ID, she can’t go down there. Have MG look at what the flight crew uses for bags. Some airlines have in the past purchased luggage for flight crews as part of a contract, but I’m not sure if that’s still status quo.

Good Luck!

I am a 10 year platinum on Delta. Travel pro is good depending on which model you buy. Be careful there. Some are junk.
After my travel pro died I switched to Briggs and Riley based on recommendations of the luggage repair shop. They have 100% replacement guarantee no questions asked, even if airline damages it.

Buckeye1 wrote:

After my travel pro died I switched to Briggs and Riley based on recommendations of the luggage repair shop. They have 100% replacement guarantee no questions asked, even if airline damages it.

Ding, Ding, Ding!!! we have a winner, someone used the word “repair”!!!

Good Luck Grouse!!!

X2 on Briggs & Riley. Purchased from Luggage World in St Louis Park. I traveled extensively for business for 20 years. Had an issue with my roller bag after about 15 years and took it back to Luggage World and it was repaired good as new at no cost! Great product and great service.

Good stuff. Add Briggs & Riley to the list.

I had some time last night to really dive in to see if Mrs. Grouse’s existing Samsonite could be fixed. I got in in the shop on the operating table and here’s what I found. This is a bush fix to be sure, but I had to try.

I took a die grinder and a carbide burr to the wheel axle and ground off the rivet head. After punching out the axel, look at the crap I found wrapped around the axle (see first pic). No wonder the wheels either wouldn’t turn or barely turned.

So I decided in for a penny in for a pound. I punched out all 4 axels after a good amount of grinder work. Cleaned out the hairballs around each axle, then I had to figure out how to get the axles back in place. So I went with everybody’s favorite epoxy, JB Weld. Filled in the back of the axel where the rivet head used to be.

The wheels now turn like they are new. We’ll see if my bush fix lasts. It was worth a shot to see if Mrs. Grouse can at least get another 6 months out of this bag to give her time to shop for something that has some quality and a good warranty.

Grouse

Attachments:

1. 

   20190204_164036.jpg
   

2. 

   20190204_164049.jpg
   

So the axles themselves were okay? Just a bunch of crap jamming then up?

Pulling those hair balls out would make me barf a little bit. You should get some husband of the year points for that.

Ralph Wiggum wrote:

So the axles themselves were okay? Just a bunch of crap jamming then up?

One of them had a groove cut in the axle from something really abrasive that got in there and I had to polish that out with a Dremel, but the other 3 were fine.

Biggest issue was that with the axles being riveted in, to remove the axle I had to grind off the head of the rivet, so then how to re-secure the axle in place? Hope my JB Weld fix works.

Grouse

Matt Moen wrote:

Pulling those hair balls out would make me barf a little bit. You should get some husband of the year points for that.

Well, it wasn’t really that gross. I mean they were really a 50-50 blend of hair and fibers from hotel room carpets…

Wait. Thanks. Now I DO want to barf…

Grouse

I’d take that over what I pulled out of the shower drain in our master bathroom the other day!

Ralph Wiggum wrote:

I’d take that over what I pulled out of the shower drain in our master bathroom the other day!

At least you know who’s hair that is….

Can you drill out the rivet into the axle and replace with rivet or screw for future repair?

Matt Moen wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Ralph Wiggum wrote:</div>
I’d take that over what I pulled out of the shower drain in our master bathroom the other day!

At least you know who’s hair that is….

“I DO” so really hope that he does!

I fly just about every week. For years I would always keep my eyes open for good deals of a bag that looked good. When I found a deal I would buy 3 and just throw them out when they were done. Keep in mind I was looking for a few features, but mostly quality construction. Still they rarely lasted a year.

About 5 years ago, I got a TravelPro from their Crew 9 series (unfortunately no longer available) it is still going strong and looks like new.