Has anyone that owns this bag had any issues with it's size for a carry-on?
I purchased this bag last year and love it. However, I have a trip coming up and I'm not sure if they will make me gate check it due to it's slightly oversize measurements.
External size of bag is listed as
10.2 x 13.8 x 22.4
Delta carry-on size is
9 x 14 x 22
We'll be flying Boeing 717-200 & Airbus A320 on this trip.
I have purchased upgraded seating with dedicated overhead bin space so I don't have to worry about lack of bin space preventing me from getting on without having to gate checking my bag.
I have read a few reviews where people seem to use it for a carry-on without issue, but I'm paranoid as I've never flown with camera gear like this before and have never pushed to limits with carry-on size.
Will I have any issues getting on with this backpack?
You should be fine. My F-Stop bags are larger and never had an issue. Actually I have not seen any back pack have many issues, the roller bags have issues now and then. Paying extra does help
You shouldn't have issues on most domestic flights, particularly with upgraded seating/priority for the overhead bins. It definitely is a pita with passengers bringing 2x the amount of carry-ons to avoid checked baggage fees---I blame the airlines for nickle and diming passengers and basically making travel inconvenient and less comfortable.
I bought the 26L Mindshift specifically to allow me to stow the bag under the seat---for those times when others have taken up all the overhead bin space. The Mindshift series of backpacks hold a surprising amount of gear. I absolutely cannot gate check my gear.
kdphotography wrote:
You shouldn't have issues on most domestic flights, particularly with upgraded seating/priority for the overhead bins. It definitely is a pita with passengers bringing 2x the amount of carry-ons to avoid checked baggage fees---I blame the airlines for nickle and diming passengers and basically making travel inconvenient and less comfortable.
I bought the 26L Mindshift specifically to allow me to stow the bag under the seat---for those times when others have taken up all the overhead bin space. The Mindshift series of backpacks hold a surprising amount of gear. I absolutely cannot gate check my gear.
ken
The nickle and diming started when cheap fare airlines came on board and tried to undercut the established airlines. Since we consumers seem to gravitate to the cheap, the airlines figured out a way to advertise cheap airfares...yet make up the lost revenue in reduced service and extra fees.
We can't have it both ways and the airlines will make their revenues either upfront on ticket prices or in the end on fees...but don't blame the airlines when it's the public that wants the cheap airfares. Very much like Walmart...no one wants them in their town...but once it arrives, the parking lot is always packed.
OP, the only time I had issues with carryon size was flying domestic airlines in Europe, Asia and India. They quite often enforce their 7kg carryon limits.
Yes, they pretty much rape you on the cost of upgraded seating. It was almost cheaper to buy and extra seat just for my camera gear and fly reg economy. But I figured the extra room would be nice on a 10+ hour flight, so they got me good. But at least I'll be able to sleep well for the next several months not worrying about having to gate check my gear.
I'd look pretty silly with a 500mm lens shoved down my pants.
You may have misread some of the comments. In the US you should have no problems but with a 10.5 hour flight you seem to be going out of the country. Many international airports are much more difficult. I had a bag I had to check this past year that was Ok on the way out but was checked on the return from London even though neither the size or weight was any different on the return. In that case it was apparently a few pounds overweight by London standards.
If flying to Europe there is a huge disparity amongst airlines. However it's easy to check their regulations online (and I always copy these and keep them on my phone incase of a dispute - not that I've ever needed them as I've never been challenged).
Upgrades to Priority seating are cheap too (mostly under or around £20) which I always take when available on short haul (I fly economy on most short haul and business on long haul for many reasons). And of course Priority gives you early boarding so you are sure of overhead storage space.
I've never had an issue with a backpack (even with ca. 15kgs a few times) and some airlines don't even have a maximum limit on the weight (BA on most short haul Euro routes for example).
Size has never been an issue either so long as it's not a large backpack that's stuffed to the gills, I've even taken a 60L backpack on as hand luggage - but as it was only half full then it easily met the size restrictions, which seem to apply far more to fixed dimension rollers than soft packs).
jmmaher wrote:
You may have misread some of the comments. In the US you should have no problems but with a 10.5 hour flight you seem to be going out of the country. Many international airports are much more difficult. I had a bag I had to check this past year that was Ok on the way out but was checked on the return from London even though neither the size or weight was any different on the return. In that case it was apparently a few pounds overweight by London standards.
Yes, sorry for the confusion. This is all in the US. Some of the flights are out of international airports such as ATL. It looks like the longest flight is about 8 hours not 10+, that was including the first short leg of the trip.
A lot of backpacks are slightly oversized in one dimension or the other. I just don't pack it to the gills, and the slight over-dimensions can usually squeeze in unless the internal frame itself is larger than the cow catcher. Most US flights are fine, just act like the bag is small.
If you use a domestic airline's partner airline for the out of country flight segments there is an agreement to honor the domestic airline's luggage policies.
My last trip with a 32L backpack with my telephoto lenses, two bodies, batteries, etc. the total weight was 37 lbs and I decided it would be smarter to have the weight distributed between two bags. Now I use a 32L or 26L in the overhead and also take a 18L backpack that holds my netbook and qualifies as a "personal item" with its dimensions.
The personal item size stipulations are misleading in that the airline may allow a bag up to 17" x 14" x 8" in size but that does not mean that they provide space under the seats for a bag this size. At least with American Airlines aircraft the odds are at best 50-50 that you will have this amount of space available. A 17 x 11 x 6 inch bag is much more likely to fit under the seat in front, even if you have an aisle seat.
On regional jets the bins are often only 18 inches deep and a standard size carry-on bag needs to go in lengthwise and take up 18 inches instead of 14 inches of space.
Airline ticket prices have dropped a great deal over the years. I just booked round trip tickets first class from California to Florida for $1400. In the 1990's I paid $1800 for coach tickets coast to coast. On the other hand the food in first class now is not as good as the food that was being served in coach in the past and the legroom in an economy emergency exit row is actually much better than the legroom in first class on domestic flights in the USA.
I found the Backlight 26L too small and jumped a size to upgrade to the new 45L, which I get onboard BA and regional African airlines. The flexibility to turn the lid and hipbelt of the 45L into a waistbelt can be the clincher to succeed in getting the thing [+ More] into the cabin. I travel with a Nikon 400 f2.8E and 2 FX cameras plus more stuff. It all depends on how much you plan to pack. Based on my experiences with 45L B'light you should be fine with 36L (on almost all flights)
