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Ezine Ready

A Smart Travelers' Bag

This bag is for travelers. Sure, a once in a great while visitor to the great aunt in Cleveland can use this bag, but you may not want to spend that much money. The fact is, however, that even for that kind of visit it might not be a bad idea, especially if you and the aunt live long enough.

I'm talking about a travel bag from the Briggs & Riley Baseline Collection. Yes, it does sound a bit expensive when you compare it to prices at the discount stores. But, then you may want to consider some of the facts. Besides, at the end of this review I may tell you how to save enough money to pay for it.

First of all let me tell you about my experience with the U-21NX-7 or perhaps better understood as the 21" Expandable Upright Carry-on. I have been lugging this bag around for more than two years. The way I travel that's almost a lifetime of travel for a lot of folks. Because I'm a travel writer I add on a lot of frequent flyer miles every year. And my bags get a real workout. I've dragged it over miles of cobblestone streets, rain-soaked sidewalks and a few mud holes where there was no pavement at all.

I started using this carry-on as a carry-on. Makes sense, right? But, then the rules changed. There was a lot of stuff you could no longer carry on the plane that had to go into checked luggage. For a while I checked this little bag through to my destination. Well, you know what happens to checked luggage don't you? If you don't want to know, just close your eyes now and skip down to the next paragraph. With nothing else to do while waiting for my flight to get in gear I sometimes watch the baggage handlers loading the plane. Do you remember the old TV commercials that showed gorillas jumping up and down on and otherwise mistreating luggage? Don't we just wish that your bags received such gentle treatment? I've seen our bags get thrown over the baggage cart and land on the ground. I've seen giant oversize missiles land on top of cute little bags that go crush in the night. It's not always a pretty sight, so maybe it's best you don't watch.

To give you an idea of what to expect when you check your bags, not too long ago I had a large bag of some strange make get badly crushed on a flight. I can't remember the airlines at the moment, but I was impressed by the way they handled the situation. When I picked up my bag from the baggage claim area and dragged it on its last legs (wheels) to the airline baggage office, they looked it up on a chart, went into a back room and wheeled out a brand new bag of approximately similar dimensions to mine and handed it to me. Fast and efficient – for them. I still had to unpack the old bag and repack the new one. The point is, they obviously know they're going to destroy a few bags, so they have a supply room full of new ones to replace the dead ones. Thoughtful? – maybe. But, the reality is, they know many bags just can't stand up to the everyday handling they are going to give your luggage.

But, back to my trusty U-21NX-7 Briggs & Riley carry-on. I'm back to the point where I rarely have to check it both ways. I can usually begin my trip using it as a carry-on, then when I load up with stuff on the way home I use the ultra-convenient push button expandable feature to give me lots more space - and without a zipper! There are a couple of zipper compartments on board this bag, but they're the heavy-duty YKK self-repairing type and the main compartments are even lockable.

I especially like the really tough 2520-denier ballistic nylon fabric construction. It does repel water, resists dirt and abrasions and is holding up great. Mine has gotten a bit dirty and I haven't taken time to try to clean it. From a little distance it still looks great and there are no apparent scuff marks.

One of the things I really like about this little bag is the outside handle system. Many bags have the handle on the inside and you have to pack around it so you can arrange a flat surface to pack your nicely pressed items. One of the reasons the handles are on the inside is probably because the airlines don't assume responsibility for broken or damaged handles. But that's not a problem with little U-21NX-7 because Briggs & Riley bags come with a lifetime warranty. It says, quite simply: If your luggage is ever damaged, even it was caused by the airlines, we'll fix it, free of charge. All you have to do is call their toll free number and they'll tell you how to return it or direct you to one of their nationwide authorized repair centers. Simple as that.

I almost forgot to mention, it also comes with a removable anti-wrinkle garment carrier as well as a waterproof pocket to keep the swimwear you used for that last early morning dip you took in the pool before catching your plane.

I think I should warn you. You probably won't find my cute and cuddly little U-21NX-7 on the Briggs & Riley website. Those few bags that "they" have managed to mangle badly enough to require a return have given the B & R research team experience and incentive to find improvements – you'll just have to settle for a model even better than mine!

O.K., I did make sort of a promise at the beginning of this story. I review a lot of different products that help me (and you) when I travel. Right now I'm testing an unbelievable phone system that will let you call anywhere in the U.S. and Canada for about twenty bucks a year – and completely eliminate your home land line. If you want advance info go ahead and send me an email. You can even use it to call home from almost anywhere in the world.

This bag is for travelers. Sure, a once in a great while visitor to the great aunt in Cleveland can use this bag, but you may not want to spend that much money. The fact is, however, that even for that kind of visit it might not be a bad idea, especially if you and the aunt live long enough.

I'm talking about a travel bag from the Briggs & Riley Baseline Collection. Yes, it does sound a bit expensive when you compare it to prices at the discount stores. But, then you may want to consider some of the facts. Besides, at the end of this review I may tell you how to save enough money to pay for it.

First of all let me tell you about my experience with the U-21NX-7 or perhaps better understood as the 21" Expandable Upright Carry-on. I have been lugging this bag around for more than two years. The way I travel that's almost a lifetime of travel for a lot of folks. Because I'm a travel writer I add on a lot of frequent flyer miles every year. And my bags get a real workout. I've dragged it over miles of cobblestone streets, rain-soaked sidewalks and a few mud holes where there was no pavement at all.

I started using this carry-on as a carry-on. Makes sense, right? But, then the rules changed. There was a lot of stuff you could no longer carry on the plane that had to go into checked luggage. For a while I checked this little bag through to my destination. Well, you know what happens to checked luggage don't you? If you don't want to know, just close your eyes now and skip down to the next paragraph. With nothing else to do while waiting for my flight to get in gear I sometimes watch the baggage handlers loading the plane. Do you remember the old TV commercials that showed gorillas jumping up and down on and otherwise mistreating luggage? Don't we just wish that your bags received such gentle treatment? I've seen our bags get thrown over the baggage cart and land on the ground. I've seen giant oversize missiles land on top of cute little bags that go crush in the night. It's not always a pretty sight, so maybe it's best you don't watch.

To give you an idea of what to expect when you check your bags, not too long ago I had a large bag of some strange make get badly crushed on a flight. I can't remember the airlines at the moment, but I was impressed by the way they handled the situation. When I picked up my bag from the baggage claim area and dragged it on its last legs (wheels) to the airline baggage office, they looked it up on a chart, went into a back room and wheeled out a brand new bag of approximately similar dimensions to mine and handed it to me. Fast and efficient – for them. I still had to unpack the old bag and repack the new one. The point is, they obviously know they're going to destroy a few bags, so they have a supply room full of new ones to replace the dead ones. Thoughtful? – maybe. But, the reality is, they know many bags just can't stand up to the everyday handling they are going to give your luggage.

But, back to my trusty U-21NX-7 Briggs & Riley carry-on. I'm back to the point where I rarely have to check it both ways. I can usually begin my trip using it as a carry-on, then when I load up with stuff on the way home I use the ultra-convenient push button expandable feature to give me lots more space - and without a zipper! There are a couple of zipper compartments on board this bag, but they're the heavy-duty YKK self-repairing type and the main compartments are even lockable.

I especially like the really tough 2520-denier ballistic nylon fabric construction. It does repel water, resists dirt and abrasions and is holding up great. Mine has gotten a bit dirty and I haven't taken time to try to clean it. From a little distance it still looks great and there are no apparent scuff marks.

One of the things I really like about this little bag is the outside handle system. Many bags have the handle on the inside and you have to pack around it so you can arrange a flat surface to pack your nicely pressed items. One of the reasons the handles are on the inside is probably because the airlines don't assume responsibility for broken or damaged handles. But that's not a problem with little U-21NX-7 because Briggs & Riley bags come with a lifetime warranty. It says, quite simply: If your luggage is ever damaged, even it was caused by the airlines, we'll fix it, free of charge. All you have to do is call their toll free number and they'll tell you how to return it or direct you to one of their nationwide authorized repair centers. Simple as that.

I almost forgot to mention, it also comes with a removable anti-wrinkle garment carrier as well as a waterproof pocket to keep the swimwear you used for that last early morning dip you took in the pool before catching your plane.

I think I should warn you. You probably won't find my cute and cuddly little U-21NX-7 on the Briggs & Riley website. Those few bags that "they" have managed to mangle badly enough to require a return have given the B & R research team experience and incentive to find improvements – you'll just have to settle for a model even better than mine!

O.K., I did make sort of a promise at the beginning of this story. I review a lot of different products that help me (and you) when I travel. Right now I'm testing an unbelievable phone system that will let you call anywhere in the U.S. and Canada for about twenty bucks a year – and completely eliminate your home land line. If you want advance info go ahead and send me an email. You can even use it to call home from almost anywhere in the world.

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