My Tumi has Ears!

One of the reasons I chose the Tumi T3 is the futuristic design and superb fit and finish of the piece. In a world of drab hotel rooms, Dodge Cavaliers and Appleby's, it's nice to have something to remind me of the world I've left at home. Design. Quality. A loving family who sneak in treats or pictures into my luggage before a trip.




As I was setting up the luggage in my beige box hotel room to photograph the dichotomy of my two worlds, I was struck by the my bags 'ears' -- the straps of the computer bag flopping about over the edges of the T3 like Dumbo's flying ears. And I was reminded of how, like on Prince Charles, protruding ears are not a pretty sight. And worse, it's not just aesthetics, it's a practical problem too. As I boarded the plane earlier this afternoon in the mad rush down the hallway and secure storage space in the shared overhead bins, my bags ears were sticking out and catching on the armrests of the seats. Not just once. Twice. The sudden deceleration, fumbling, getting an entire line of people to back up while I detangle the bag. At least this time I was lucky. Both seats were unoccupied. It's worse when the ears have pinned someome's arm to armrest of have whisked out the inflight into the aisle. There needs to be a way to pin back the ears on the brief keeping the whole set built for speed. If anyone's listening and has any ideas, it would be good to know...

Can you handle this?

Boston bound

Today was a good day for Tumi T3 spotters in the San Francisco International airport. I happened to be in line behind an unlikely owner of a T3. Typically the T3 is the favorite of those favoring high design and a willingness to pay for those beliefs. This person on the other hand was not a typicak T3 totaing fashion statement, and along side a newly mintedT3 she was carrying a tattered, overstuffed backpack. However, the mismatch wasn't what caught my eye. This did.


Her handle was in the free swivel mode. Seeing as how she was right in front me me, asked her if she wanted her handle to lock in the right hand position and she declined, citing that it was much more comfortable for her to pull her bag with the handle in the swivel position. I'd never thought of that and was wondering if the Tumi folks had either since in the midst of this stunning bag, the exposed innerworkings of the handle seemed unfinished and raw. Her credibility was low and I chalked it up to a T3 newbie taking a bug and turning it into a feature. (common in the software world)

About 10 minutes later I passed another T3. Again, this time, the typical 40 year old nattily suited male was pulling it with a briefcase sitting on top. Double take. He was puling his with the handle swiveling too! Is this one of those 'discoveries' that T3 owners have to come up with on their own?

In my risk averse state, (remember, I chose black) I have yet to embrace the swivel. But 2 of 2 today have claimed this was the way to go!

Catching up

What I received
I've had the bag for two weeks so far and have taken it with me to Budapest and Boston. Here's my initial reaction to the bag and my usage model. I will post pictures in the future of the bag and usage situations using my cameraphone.

I was sent a 22" Tumi T3 expandable wheeled packing case with suiter. In black. I immediately unzipped the suiter insert and tossed it into the closet most likely never to surface again. (If I bring a suit jacket I wear it on the plane.) I slipped my business card into the hidden side slot. (Will anyone ever find that slot if the bag is goes missing?)


My first observations
My first thought is that this seems deeper than the 22" non-expandable T3 that I returned previously. (How do I even know whether I've been sent a 22" suitcase? Is there a 22" suiter?) This bag is to have an improved handle design that won't break. I'm doubtful since i've had so many of then break in the past... The bag is beautiful. I wonder whether I should have tried out a new yellow color.

There's not much to say on packing for the first time. I am relieved at the zipped expandable option however I am concerned whether this has added any appreciable height to the bag making it harder to stow in the overhead... Time will soon tell.

I use the bag with my Tumi Gen 4.4 Expandable flap computer brief. I am a true believer in the Tumi stacking solution and even appreciate the small flap that flips up to keep the brief balanced on the T3.

Budapest
Three legs. Traveled first class to Budapest. The bag was a dream. Only two comments from the entire trip.

1. On a London to Budapest flight the overheads were very small. My wife has an older model 22" Tumi and it slid in without much difficulty. Mine on the other hand was far more challenging. In the end, after some careful squeezing, it made it into the space.
2. The handle started squeaking after the third leg of the trip. Not much. But hopefully it won't get worse. There's nothing worse than a bag that squeaks with every step.

Boston

This current trip, I've planned to be gone for two weeks. It's a tight squeeze in the bag but it all fits. Commentary.

1. The squeak stopped!
2. The handle started roatating at random intervals while I was pulling it. The ability to switch the handle from right handed to left handed is nice, however when it decided to change on it own, it's frustrating. It is causes because the ring that holds the handle in place is somewhat loose. Given that most people will never switch the position (and those that do will only do it once), i'd make the fitting significantly firmer to prevent this unintended slipping of the collar and unwanted handle spinning.

More later as there is news or observations to report.

Inspiration for the Tumi Blog

I am a road warrior. I live in my 22" Tumi T3 every week. After my Tumi broke for the 4th time I was at the point where I was about to give up my long time Tumi addiction and find a bag that wouldn't let me down again. But I wasn't ready to quit. I love the styling and performance of the bag when it's working but at the same time don't want to be stuck again holding a broken handle somewhere thousands of miles from home. So I wrote the President of Tumi to plead my case.

He responded. Twice. And offered to let me wear test some of the newer models and put them through the rigors of international business travel.

Rather than try to remember six months of business travel when I return the bag back to Tumi, I thought I'd document the trials and tribulations of the Tumi Bag in a blog. I'll do what I can to track feedback and situations where the bag has worked and where it hasn't.

Tumi is a world class company. I am excited to help Tumi continue to produce world class products. This blog is for anyone at Tumi who is looking for real world information and scenarios for how their products are used...

Thanks,

Mark