I need a wheeled bag that can accomodate a Canon 6D, 17-40 f/4L, 24-105 f/4L, 100 f/4L IS, 70-200 F/4L, and a 13" Macbook Air. It needs to fit in the overhead compartment on airplanes. I would like it to be as lightweight as possible. I would be grateful for any suggestions. Many thanks!
Be sure to check out the Think Tank offerings for roller bags. Their stuff is well made, and not too heavy, but I would not call them lightweight. I can not remember the model I have, but it has served me very well on a fair number of trips
+1 on the Think Tank rollers.
I don't have one of their rollers but I do have their Streetwalker HD and it's a great bag. I can imagine their rollers would be top-notch quality as well.
If you're on a budget, a fstop ICU (choose whatever size works for you) can be placed into a standard carry-on, resulting in a budget rolling camera bag with decent protection. I did this recently with a fstop Pro XL ICU and a 22" rolling carry-on I use for travelling. If I don't need to bring my gear, I can just take out the ICU and use the carry-on as a normal piece of luggage.
The ThinkTank products are really excellent and I have a bunch of them but...their roller cases are not exactly lightweight. I pretty much gave up on using rollers in airplanes over here in Europe because more and more companies insist on checking the weight of bags. Since many of the companies have a limit of 7 or 8 kg and an empty roller usually weighs between 4 and 5 kg, it's getting harder and harder.
Take a look at the Lowepro Pro Roller Lite series -- I had purchased a ThinkTank roller bag and decided it was way too heavy unloaded, and found as well the configuration options slightly limited. Am now using a Lowepro Pro Roller Lite and it is significantly lighter, and fits in the overhead even on regional jets.
rytch0 wrote:
Take a look at the Lowepro Pro Roller Lite series -- I had purchased a ThinkTank roller bag and decided it was way too heavy unloaded, and found as well the configuration options slightly limited. Am now using a Lowepro Pro Roller Lite and it is significantly lighter, and fits in the overhead even on regional jets.
This looks like a good possibility too, thanks! Do you have any idea if a 13" Macbook Air would fit in the internal laptop compartment?
Quality wise you can't go wrong with either Lowepro or Think Tank. I recently bought a TT 4-Sight roller to use as a carry-on. Small, light, has 4 wheels. I think they are offering $50.00 off on it again. Check it out on the TT site to see if it will hold all of your equipment.
I love the Think Tank products but they are very expensive and unfortunately heavy even when empty.. My cheap solution was to purchase a $50 rolling carry on bag from Walmart. I then use some of my Lowe individual pouches that I use on my Street & Field belt system or just wrap things in old t shirts. There's a front pocket that easily holds my laptop. Heck on my last trip to AK I carried my 800mm and 300mm and a bunch of other stuff as well, no problem. This is the LIGHTEST and most economical way....
I just picked up a Domke Rolling Propack 220. Normally $229 at B&H, but now on sale for $99 until 31 May. I originally had a Thing Tank Airport Navigator on order, but cancelled when I saw this Domke on sale. That price differrence was too hard to pass up.
The Domke exceeded my expectations and fits my gear perfectly. The only negative I can come up with is that the main zippers do not have the nice built-in loops for a lock like Think Tank zippers have. Not a huge problem since I can still attach a security lock, but it would be nice to have the dedicated loops on the zippers like the Think Tank.
For only $99, you get a nice quality rolling bag with enough room for your gear and dedicated compartment for your laptop. As a bonus and unknown till I got it, the bag even comes with a nice quality tripod bag and straps.
I picked this unit up for daily transport in the back of my truck. I have fixed a six foot kryptonite cable ($15) and lock, so I can secure the locked case in the vehicle or roll to a location. Any case will not ultimately stop a criminal, but this will slow them down quite a bit. I also like that it is totally sealed, so when the muddy dog steps on it, or there's a dust storm while we're camping; the photo gear is isolated and clean.
Thanks for the many good suggestions. I'm leaning towards the Think Tank Airport Navigator. The Domke looks like a great deal, but maybe a bit larger and heavier than I had in mind. Perhaps I can find somewhere local to have a look at this stuff, rather that go into NYC...
I have a LowePro Road Warrior AW for sale. It should fit the overhead bin on domestic aircraft. It also doubles as a backpack for terrain not suitable for the wheels and it comes with a day pack for light weight uses. It isn't lightweight as it is designed to be a pro bag for those that travel and need a bag to protect their equipment. The reason for sale is I bought several pelican cases this winter and for me they work better for my needs. I've got the 1660 for my Speedotron lights and frequent use items , a 1650 for my Speedlight kit, a 1550 for storing my cameras and lenses, and a 1495 for my laptop. All except the laptop have the divider setups. If interested in the Lowepro case pm me.
jamont wrote:
I need a wheeled bag that can accomodate a Canon 6D, 17-40 f/4L, 24-105 f/4L, 100 f/4L IS, 70-200 F/4L, and a 13" Macbook Air. It needs to fit in the overhead compartment on airplanes. I would like it to be as lightweight as possible. I would be grateful for any suggestions. Many thanks!
Lot's of good suggestions but I went another way. Here is the question for you: If the airline forces you to check your roller bag which one of those suggested do you want?
The answer is none of them! Pelican 1510 roll-on, hard-case fits in the overhead bin but is relatively secure when locked and it is indestructible, contents are much less likely to be damaged in transit. Not lightweight. I put my laptop in the top cover of the Pelican with velcro tape-- works fine.
