Choosing Personal Item bag for flights

[BrendaH]

I’ve been a TB fan and accumulator and realize I’ve got to de stash some items. I need to decide on bags for plane flights and have checked forum posts for insights but am mostly confused about making choices.

Western Flyer vs Smart Alec - which is likely to be a seen as a personal item if paired with a. Small roller

Pilot vs Parental Unit as personal item and EDC on trip - which is more versatile

Test packing and modeling all in front of a mirror hasn’t made the choice clear to me. Would like to keep one of each.

Thanks for any thoughts.

[Kaadk]

Pairing with a roller, a backpack like bag (i.e. the SA) is probably going to pass more as your personal item than the WF. While the WF works as briefcase/laptop bag, it doesn't pass off as a briefcase/laptop bag as easily as say, the Pilot. The WF is great as a one-bag bag, but as a second personal item bag, it might get second glances. It'll fit, so it's all good, but you might get the glances.

Pilot vs PU, every one on here who knows my posts, knows I'm a big fan of my Pilot. It would be the 'one' TB bag I owned if I had to reduce to only one bag, due to it's versatility.... for me. Travel for work, it's perfect for my laptop, and everything else I bring. Travel for leisure, it's the perfect bag for holding our family's various iPads, Switches, Kobos, etc, while our standard luggage rides down in the hold.

That being said, just because it works for me, doesn't mean it works for you. If you need to bring different kinds of things, it's going to depend on which bag fits your stuff better.

[Go Navy]

I do air travel almost always with my Co-Pilot. My Macbook 12 fits in it, although I don't take the Macbook on every trip. The Co-Pilot rides on my roll-on, and it is great if you like a lot of organization, which I do. Our kids are grown, up, and out, so I don't carry "stuff" for others. My iPad always rides in it along with noise suppressing ear phones.

[twosandalz]

It sounds like they are equally useful to you, so it wouldn't matter which you kept. You might choose based on color, or which might fetch a higher selling price. Another tactic is to travel with each combo and then decide, if you can wait that long to destash.