Road Test | Timbuk2 Copilot Roller

A couple of months ago we gave our initial impressions of the medium sized Timbuk2 Copilot wheeled bag. Since then, one of our resident bag designers Hadrien has had a chance to haul it through various parts of India on business. Here are his more considered thoughts…

Initial impressions:

I’ve just returned from a business trip to India. It was only a 5 day trip, and so the Copilot could easily accomodate my stuff. It was perhaps a touch large for just 5 days, but I was quite excited to test the trolley concept and see how the aluminium tube would cope.

Highlights:

Look:

The base of the bag and its aluminium telescopic structure is the most obviously attractive part of the bag (more shots in our Drive By review). The lining texture and color was also a very nice touch.

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Durability:

The best part of using nylon is its lightness and durability when used with the right weave and thickness. The main outer fabric uses about a 2 times coated PU (Polyurethane) backing. This is better than a thicker PVC, as the nylon is already reasonably water-resistant in itself and so this light backing keeps the weight down (and is better than PVC backing for health and the planet).

Big rounded corners and robust parts team with the fabric to make for a pretty durable bag.

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Construction:

It’s surprising how many soft shell travel bags still fail to stand upright when loaded (an issue that needs clever work arounds when designing sandwich construction luggage). Thankfully the Copilot does this well.

The molded base gives good structure and is not too overwhelming or big. You have to love these molded bases over the cheaper fabricated flat sheets of PE creating sharp angles that tear. The internal compartments are large and the sandwich construction make sense for the medium size of the Copilot. It is a great way to divide a travel bag.I used the internal mesh pocket a fair bit for extra paper and small stuff, as they limit the random movement of your stuff around the bag.

Personally I loved the shoe compartment. Even though I didn’t have extra footwear, I loved having a separate compartment for socks and underwear. You can access it from the inside when the bag is open, or you can collapse it if you need more room. The versatility is a win.

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Wheels & Handle:

The wheels and telescopic handle were by far my favourite features. Very silent and smooth to roll around, so I wasn’t getting tired using it. I wished I had it during my stop over instead of lugging my messenger everywhere.

The aluminium telescopic handle was fantastic. Usually telescopic handles quickly develop some play and wobble after their first trip. Not this one. The trolley structure didn’t show any dints or damage, which is quite the achievement when travelling through India.

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Water-resistance:

Sorry, I went to India, and didn’t get a drop of rain.

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Lowlights:

Look:

The Fabric is good enough, however it lacks a little in the charm department. While not enamoured with the colors, the benefit to having a grey and purple bag is that I was able to spot the travel companion miles away on the carrousel.

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Construction:

The design uses a lot of foam padding to control the front shape of the bag. The downfall of this is weight. There is not really a right or wrong, just a choice between look and pure efficiency. My take on this is that if the pre-shaped look is important then the size and weight of the bag needs to counterbalance the added amount of foam in the product.

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Unresolved Front Pockets:

The front pocket didn’t work for me. It looks and feels a little awkward to use. As a single carry on bag I wouldn’t be able to fit a 15” laptop. And I wasn’t sure how to use it. Either there is not enough pocketing for small stuff that needs quick access, or not enough for bigger stuff like a laptop. When I put in my headphones, note books and toiletry clear bag, the pocket bulged out and was hard to close.

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Weight:

I had the medium sized Copilot, which on most airlines just fits the dimensions required to be a carry-on bag. However even when only half filled, the weight was already over the 7 kg maximum for Australian airlines.

The bag itself weight around 3 kg. So by the time I wanted to take around I only had 4 kg for my stuff which unfortunately wasn’t enough as I had about 9kg total without the laptop. The bag suits better the American airlines as we can take on board much heavier bags.

So I haven’t had a chance to see if moving the bag through the aisle of the plane is comfortable or not. My feeling was when I looked at it that it is a fraction too big for a carry on. Its little brother would have been better for me.

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Best suited to:

US market, as the airline would allow the weight of the bag as a Carry-on when full, or as a check-in bag. Great bag if you are looking for compact bag with some character.

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Not suited to:

Frequent traveller that only use one bag around in other countries. A secondary laptop bag would be necessary.

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And breakages/issues?

I would have loved to see more classic/elegant colour combo from the Fixies Bike world inspiration. Personally I can see the idea behind some of the design features but I’d love to see the evolution of the front pocket design to be more elegant and efficient.

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Conclusion:

Overall the Copillot is a good travel bag. Lacking a little charm and elegance, it still shine by the aluminium telescopic handles and base structure. It will get you some attention for sure. As a check in bag the Copilot is a very compact efficient bag, extremely nice to roll around. However if you aren’t in the USA and looking for a single carry-on bag may be check the small version of the Copilot.

Related posts:

1. Drive By | Timbuk2 Copilot Roller
2. Road Test: Burton Wheelie Flight Deck
3. Road Test | Timbuk2 Snoop Camera Messenger

Drive By | Timbuk2 Copilot Roller

We give a quick once over to this fairly large cabin wheelie…

In the world of maximizing your carry-on, personality is hard to come by. Black and square dominates, which can leave you feeling like just another one of the sheep being herded.

Timbuk2 try hard to inject a little personality back into this space. They play on the whole bikes and San Fran thing, bringing a bit of the messenger vibe into airports of the world. They recently sent us one of their carry-ons to have a look, and so before we start hauling it through dodgy third world airports, we figured we’d share a few initial impressions…

The back

While we normally start a review looking at the front of a carry piece, it’s the back we’re digging most with the Copilot. There’s some pretty trick hardware that’s on full display, sporting fancy anodised tubing and some industrial allen-head bolts. It definitely has the feel of a fancy mountain bike.

The back’s secret ingredient

Externally mounted telescoping handles can be a nightmare on luggage. If they get a ding, the mechanism jams up and the handle won’t extend. The Timbuk2 folks have got around this by using extrusion with a little rib running down it, something which should radically improve resistance to dents. This lets the handles stay outside (for space and base integrity), which is otherwise a good thing.

They’ve also spec’d some pretty soft skate wheels, which quiet the ride, jump more easily over bumps, and reduce scratching of nice floors (when a pebble jams under harder wheels).

External pocketing

A good carry-on can’t just be about internal space. Because it often serves as your only bag, it needs some nice external pocketing for work bits, food bits, and travel related bits. The Copilot deals pretty well with these, even adding an externally accessed shoe pocket at the base*. For the general vibe of the bag, we thought it might have a water bottle pocket, but there is a front pocket that can be hijacked into that if need be.

*Ed’s note: Shoe pockets are a weird one. They are always designed at the base of bags (because shoes are ‘dirty’ and belong low down). But if you’re not using the shoe pocket, all the contents inside slip down and squash the pocket flat. So while they really should be designed higher up, we think it would wig crew out, so we understand why they are low down. Wow, did I just confuse you like I did myself?

The insides

Not much to report here, other than they’ve followed all the good conventions (mesh with neoprene expansion bits), and avoided most of the bad (loads of useless contraptions that just add weight). They could probably do with an elastic for holding down your shirts/suits, but it’s pretty solid overall.

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Size and weight

We have the smallest of the Copilot series (20″ vs the 22″ or 27″). At just over 3 kgs (almost 7 lbs) this is still not a lightweight bag. If you live in Australia, Europe, or any of the countries that have pretty restrictive carry-on limits, you’ll only just be scraping through with this one. However if most of your flying is done around North America, you’ll be laughing.

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Looks

The looks of this are not going to suit everyone. But if you’re into your ultra cool carry craft, you won’t have bothered reading beyond the first image, so we can ignore you. For everyone else, what you see is what you get. It’s unapologetically borrowing from bikes, it’s using contrast colors to make a statement, and it generally goes for function over beauty. In other words it’s pretty classic Timbuk2, which has a very loyal following.

Overall

This is a solid carry-on that will find an appreciative audience. It’s size and weight shows its North American roots, but it then adds some big doses of fun in their approach to the hardware.

The Copilot feels fairly well made, with key wear areas getting the rounded treatment and everything spec’d pretty thick and solid (and Timbuk2 have a pretty reasonable warranty if things do go wrong). If anything, the whole bag feels a little chunky, but that’s the way lots of people like to roll.

Now, back to planning our next trip where we can really try it out…

Related posts:

1. Road Test | Timbuk2 Copilot Roller
2. Drive By | Caseable
3. Drive By | KILLSPENCER Weekender 2.0

The Carry On bag has become one of the new battle fields of travel. As baggage charges seem to be constantly increasing, more and more people are trying to squeeze that little bit extra into their allocated Carry On bag.

Whilst the “checked baggage” rules appear to be very black and white, and the majority of check in attendants have some dark pleasure in charging you excess, Carry On luggage seems to be a little bit of a grey area. While weight allowances are on each airline’s website, and all airports have the metal cage to act as a guide, you only have to step onto any boarding flight to see that almost anything goes when it comes to Carry On.

So with this in mind, we welcome a new contributor Paul to test out the latest wheelie Carry On size bag from Burton Snowboards, The Wheelie Flight Deck. Our goal was to see if it was possible to fit enough gear in the bag for a weekend of riding, minus the snowboard (just hire or borrow that)…

The Wheelie flight Deck has been in the Burton luggage line for a number of years. This year it has gone through a bit of a redesign to not only update the look, but also allow it to squeeze into the ever shrinking Carry On allowances.

The new sleeker look has done away with the traditional 50/50 split design and now incorporates a 70/30 approach to how the bag is separated. This allows for a deeper main compartment to fit bulkier items, like snowboard boots. Both the top and bottom compartments feature CRAM, which is a neoprene edge to the zipper that allows you to really stuff the compartments and get it shut, without destroying the zipper.

The bag includes a separate laptop case, perfect for sliding out just before boarding to keep you entertained. This case, as well as any magazine or books, slip nicely into the large front pocket. The top pocket is then the perfect size for a medium sized camera and cables or a small toiletry bag if you need a freshen up during that stop over.

The Wheelie Flight Deck also includes what Burton calls the SnakeStack. This is an extra strap and attachment on the bag that allows you to connect other wheelie bags such as a wheelie snowboard bag, eliminating the need for a trolley and creating your own bag conga line at the same time.

We managed to fit the following into the Wheelie Flight Deck.

1 pair of snowboard boots size 10US
2 pairs of snowboard socks
1 Outerwear jacket
1 Pair of outerwear pants
1 Set of thermals
1 Pair of goggles with a spare lens
1 Beanie
1 Neck warmer
1 Pair of gloves
1 Laptop, ipod and cables
1 Pair of boardshorts (For après hot tub sessions)
3 T-shirts
1 Hoodie
Enough Socks and Undies
1 Passport
1 Camera
1 Snowboard tool
1 Rub down wax (not what you’re thinking)
1 Toothbrush and basic toiletries.

The bag was jam packed, however everything did fit and the bag zipped shut without requiring too much force. If you’re just going snowboarding then great, you’ll fit everything. If you are planning on snowboarding then hitting the apres scene, then you’ll be doing it in your outerwear as there’s no room for luxury.

The gross weight (loaded) came in at 12kg. It was a little over the 7kg limit that most airlines allow for Carry On, but if they give you grief, you just start removing things and pretending you’re going to wear your boots and gear onto the plane, with underpants as a hat, and they soon let up on you.

Now given that you can fit enough in for a weekend of snowboarding, The Wheelie Flight Deck would be perfect for that week surf trip to Bali, or weekend of golf where your allocated check in bag is taken up by your surfboard or clubs.

The Wheelie Flight Deck is RRP $299.95 AUD (or US$219) and is available now from any authorized Burton Snowboards dealer. There are some rad colors available, but we suggest playing it a little safe if you don’t want to feel silly next season.

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This article was a guest post by Paul Colby who is a snow fanatic.

Related posts:

1. Road Test | Timbuk2 Copilot Roller
2. Road Test | Osprey Kode 22 | Part 1
3. Burton Likes to Carry…

Scottevest has been around for a decade now, but we’d never really thought to post about them. Then an article from Core77, pinged to us from Aaron at Knog, and we figure it’s time to share this special kind of weirdness…

I have to start by saying The Woz is a board member of Scottevest. For anyone that knows Apple, you’ll know that Steve Wozniak was the geek half of Apple, the one that made all the tech dreams a reality. When you know that The Woz is involved, you can probably figure that this stuff is all about functionality, and perhaps not so much about latte’s in Milan.

Scott Jordan was the catalyst for the brand, as he sought to loose the Man Bag and yet still have access to all his modern day tech and gadgets. The result is a full range of clothing that lists the number of pockets each item has as a key performance indicator (28 was the best I found).

In recent times they have shifted their focus more to travellers, but it’s still the same feel and flavor… MacGyver inspired clothing for tech toting boy scouts (of the grown up variety). Check out the Core77 article for more.

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Bonus section: And yet, there is always someone more extreme. In carry clothing, that someone is Eric Le Fou, a man with a true obsession. He keeps 1300 items in his everyday jacket, and has the record to prove it.

(via @CreativityBoost)

No related posts.

Weekender bags

Steve McQueen. God bless him. Apart from having nothing to do with Carryology, unless you count carrying style – boom tish*, a great joke people. Embrace it. Anyway, back to McQueen, nothing to do with carryology. But the image above invokes ideas of getting away for the weekend, packing the car up and bailing…. Good times abound for sure.

So to help you with your spontaneous weekend plans, we have devised a list of weekender styled bags. Bags that won’t look out of place in Monaco, St Tropez or the Great Ocean Road (or Dubbo if you’re that way inclined). Bags that are good for a weekend. A casual weekend…

If you’re hitting the road, wheeled bags, backpacks, briefcases or any sort of work bag bite, unless of course your weekend getaway involves spreadsheets, emails and a PC. No one wants to roll a bag down to their car and fit something that is so formal and bounded by shape. Time to let your hair down Sally and get in your Mustang…

Quick side note….
Do you call them a weekender bag? Or a duffel? I like duffel, but have gone with weekender for ease…

Anyway, a good weekender still needs pocketing for your toiletries, reading material, and holiday artifacts. But it doesn’t need as much carry emphasis – you want that casual feeling, a feeling of carefree and youthfulness. Basically you want to look like your from one of those Peter Jackson ads from yesteryear and wheels or backpack straps aren’t cutting it in this picture.

Because it’s less about being ‘optimized’, classic forms and materials generally look better, with coated canvas duffels the pinnacle.

This Tommy Work Bag by Property Of is a classic weekender. Casual yet practical, it would look awesome in the back seat of that Jag you always wanted.

Kill Spencer is based in LA, doing a kind of new military chic that can slide between work and play. He uses great componentry, durable fabrics, and practical designs. His Weekender is neat.

If you read our recent post on Carry-on bags, you’ll know we formulated all sorts of rules about what a Carry-on is compared to a Weekender. Then along comes Lexdray, and kinda throws all those definitions out of whack. This is their Tahoe Duffle, a bag that mixes ballistic nylon with neoprene, to create something you can imagine a navy seal using on R&R.

Ahhh, Porter. The mainstay of the Japanese businessman, yet still with a street cred that Samsonite would dream of. We love Porter, we love that they are a bugger to find in the west, and we love that they continue to create wonderful bags and carry goods. Enough loving, here’s the Smoky Overnighter, from Seattle based Blackbird.

With every post, we hope there will be at least a little surprise for you guys. This one comes courtesy of the Best American Duffel crew, otherwise known as BAD. They are specialists in the way few brands are these days, churning out bomb-proof duffels in every size you could want. While we’ve shown the #3 SP, our favorite colorway is actually a Japan special (there’s a surprise), but you’ll have to nip over to MAPS online to check it (the Google translations for this are all time).

Related posts:

1. Carry-On Bags
2. Road Test | Qwstion Weekender
3. Drive By | KILLSPENCER Weekender 2.0

To view the full sized version of the poster, click [HERE]

OK, it’s time to scope a few Carry-On bags. These are the workhorses of the frequent traveler, and can make or break a trip through the smallest detail.

But first, a little about cabin legal bags…

If my trip is less than a week and if I can avoid it, I never check in luggage. Many airlines charge for checking in a bag and I just prefer to have everything with me when I travel. There’s that, and they still tend to lose bags a bit too often.

What makes a good carry-on bag?

DIMENSIONS: First of all, it has to meet airline guidelines and in the States, at least, that’s a maximum of 45 linear inches (all sides added).

WEIGHT: While some US airlines let you carry on the kitchen sink, most international airlines are now limiting bag weight to around 18 lbs (8 kgs). That’s not much, so your bag should weigh less than 7 lbs (3kg) if you want to take much more than underwear.

Note: For one of the most comprehensive Cabin Allowance lists we’ve seen, head over to the Telegraph UK. It lists most UK, European, and major international airline allowances for weight and dimensions. The scary thing is that more European carriers are restricting cabin baggage to 5kg (11 lbs) limits.

POCKETING: Next, it should have a number of easy to access external pockets to reach toiletries, earphones, cell charger, etc. Hard cases don’t do this, and it’s one of the reasons we’re not big fans.

LAPTOP: Then there’s the laptop compatible thing. A padded section is a must, but a good bonus is a dedicated padded laptop pouch which eases concerns while going through those dreaded security lines.

CARRYING: It should generally have at least two carry options – padded shoulder strap and top grip are popular but backpack straps or wheels have their place. If it has wheels, think about how well it will carry up or down stairs.

DURABILITY: There’s still times when you end up checking the bag anyway, so it needs to stand up to handler’s frustrations. Zips, wheels and seams are the usual failure points, so look for a durable fabric without any sharp corners that might start a tear. Replaceable wheels are a bonus, because even some good brands have been known to put shoddy bearings in.

THE LOOK: If you need to meet with a client or give a presentation, you kinda want to avoid the camo or rainbow colourways. The industry is built on black, for a reason. But that might also a reason to not go black.

Here are some Carry-On bags that we think fit the bill…

Wheels

Wheeled bags suit heavier loads and longer distances to travel. If you are a big public transport user, or travel away from cities, you should opt for something you can shoulder instead. Oh, and make sure the thing stands when loaded. If you’ve ever had a tip-prone wheeled bag, you know what frustration truly is…

The Gravis Jetway rolling bag is on the larger size for Cabin baggage, but sneaks in to most airlines. There’s loads of organizing features, replaceable wheels, nice componentry, and a reasonable price. It is on the heavier side at almost 8lbs, but it is larger than average, so we almost forgive it. There’s some pretty radical color options, and a similar bag from sister brand Burton (which is heavier and IMHO not quite as good).

The Merrell Escape is a well priced, medium of the road bag. A longer than usual telescoping handle is a treat, but other than that, you just get a solid performer at a good price. Not the street cred of the Gravis, but not everyone is chasing that…

Hybrids

Hybrid bags offer the benefits of wheels while on smooth ground, then add backpack straps for when stairs or unsealed paths take over. Some hybrids are crazy heavy, but these 2 only have a small weight penalty, while adding huge flexibility.

Mandarina Duck was like a breath of fresh air when they first appeared on the luggage scene. They are by no means cheap, but they are really interesting, well performing bags that set you a little apart from the crowds. The Mandarina Duck Isi 40L Cabin Luggage has a great layout, reasonable weight (6.3lbs), and a unique look.

Caution: this is the Isi trolley B7V33. There is an Isi trolley B7V30 that looks similar, but does not have the backpack straps option (saving 1 lb). Yep, that’s confusing.

We have a sweet spot for the Rip Curl Search Cabin, having hauled it through some amazing ‘work’ trips (which might have included some pretty epic waves tacked on to the end). It’s a feature rich bag, dealing with your laptop, all your tech, toiletries, clothing and work gear. Ahhh, the memories…

Straps

If you subscribe to the Onebag or OBOW approach, these bags are the only way to go. They are the lightest format (skipping all the heavy structure), and let you pack more in to them. We’ve tried to pick some of the more work focused ones out there…

If all of those bags are a little too work focused for you, stay tuned for an upcoming post on Weekender bags. These will be more casual and duffle like, better suiting road trips than airport skips.

As always, if you have any thoughts, feedback, experiences or suggestions for Cabin bags, we’d love you to share it in the comments.

Related posts:

1. Weekender bags
2. Snowboard Bags 2012/13
3. Industry Insights | A giant in the bags world

That’s all you need right? One bag? Jack of all, ace on none type of bag – does everything, excels at nothing.  Kinda sounds like me, damn it.. But this isn’t about me, its about One Bag. OneBag.com to be exact.

OneBag.com is one of those sites that you stumble upon and just go “yessssssss!!, I can’t believe I hadn’t found this earlier”. It’s a site that lives on the borderline edge of passionate vs OCD. Luckily for us – and you – OneBag’s obsession is luggage, and how to reduce your luggage weight before traveling.

Sooo, OneBag is run by a dude who gave himself the name of the ‘Go Light Guru‘ – but his mum knows him as Doug Dyment. Doug obsesses over ways to reduce the weight, bulk and hustle of luggage when traveling, he has come with ways of folding to avoid creases (aka, the bundle fold), segmented packing checklists, substitution ideas for liquids, and a heap of resource links that are your mouse will have a field day of clicking with..

The true travel geek will love this site, think George Clooney in Up In the Air -“Bingo, Asians. They pack light, travel efficiently, and they have a thing for slip on shoes. Gotta love ‘em.”

But there’s also bit’s n piece’s in this site that cater to less frequent travelers – all in all if you are struggling to meet your baggage allowance, or sick of waiting for your checked bags, you might score a valuable tip or two about avoiding a luggage crisis next time you fly, drive, bus, train it anywhere..

The site is pretty text heavy, so don’t go there expecting an amazing graphic experience. This is utilitarian travel, with a utilitarian look.
Check the site out and be that dude who is at the front of the taxi queue, having slid straight past all the other airport suckers.

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1. Rushfaster | Liking
2. Liking | wejetset
3. Superfolk | Liking