Does the Daylight Briefcase fit inside the Tristar?

[ursojs]

I've been looking at companion bags to my recently purchased Tristar. Does any one have experience placing and carrying the Daylight Briefcase in the center compartment of their Tristar? I am thinking that I can put my laptop in the Daylight Briefcase while transporting it in the Tristar. When I travel for business I can leave the Tristar at the hotel and simply just take the Daylight Briefcase with my laptop to the office and/or meetings. It kind of avoids bringing another bag aside from maybe a small personal and I wouldn't have bring the heavier Tristar out when not needed.

My laptop is approximately 13.3"x9"x0.7". The Daylight is listed at 14" but they only say it will fit a MacBook 13". Do you think there will be a problem to fit my laptop in the DLBC? Regarding a cache it seems the MCP 15" is the most appropriate fit but for the DLBC they don't list that as fitting it. My laptop is a 'tweener' size wise, it's an HP. Just don't want to buy it and lose out.

I've also thought about the same for a medium cafe bag (too small) and a Ristretto (too big).

Appreciate your thoughts.

[Fulton]

The DLBC fits nicely inside a Western Flyer -- and that's smaller than the Tristar. Your pair works great -- carrying the TS in travel and then carrying the DLBP to a meeting.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[moriond]

Hi @ursojs,

The Daylight Briefcase is the smallest and slimmest of the Tom Bihn attaché style briefcases that will fit in the center compartment of the Tri-Star.

I've been looking at companion bags to my recently purchased Tristar. Does any one have experience placing and carrying the Daylight Briefcase in the center compartment of their Tristar? I am thinking that I can put my laptop in the Daylight Briefcase while transporting it in the Tristar. When I travel for business I can leave the Tristar at the hotel and simply just take the Daylight Briefcase with my laptop to the office and/or meetings. It kind of avoids bringing another bag aside from maybe a small personal and I wouldn't have bring the heavier Tristar out when not needed.

The best pictures for visualizing the size of the Daylight Briefcase in the Tri-Star are probably from @milpool's Tri-Star and DLBCase thread. I'll excerpt two pictures:


This first picture shows the Daylight Briefcase against the unzipped, open front compartment. (Since the center compartment doesn't unzip all the way down, you can't otherwise see a comparison of the DLBC cross-section with the profile of the TrStar)


This is a view of the DLBC inside the center compartment of the Tri-Star as viewed from the top. There is plenty of room in terms of width.

My laptop is approximately 13.3"x9"x0.7". The Daylight is listed at 14" but they only say it will fit a MacBook 13". Do you think there will be a problem to fit my laptop in the DLBC? Regarding a cache it seems the MCP 15" is the most appropriate fit but for the DLBC they don't list that as fitting it. My laptop is a 'tweener' size wise, it's an HP. Just don't want to buy it and lose out.

I've also thought about the same for a medium cafe bag (too small) and a Ristretto (too big).

Appreciate your thoughts.

The Daylight Briefcase can hold some 14" laptops if you use a separate third party hard shell or cache. The reason that the product page describes the DLBC as holding laptops up to the size of the 13" MacBook is that the Cache with Rails design is intended to leave clearance room on either side of the laptop with cache to easily pull free of the bag along the rails. That means the drop-down menu on the product page doesn't even list the Size 6Z Horizontal Cache -- this is the size cache that fits the old 13" MacBook Pros and 13" MacBooks from 7 or 8 years ago, which are 0.25" longer than the 13" MacBook Air -- because there isn't the additional clearance space on the sides of the cache for the easy pull-out of the laptop-in-cache along the rails, while leaving the attachment to the bag.

I don't make use of the rails design with a laptop that fill the DLBC -- I might do this for an iPad or smaller laptop, but it's really more useful in larger bags. Also, I prefer the design of my older laptop and iPad caches (from about 2011 and earlier), which used a denser foam and which pre-date the current version of the cache with rails.

This still leaves you with the issue of getting a hard shell, sleeve, or third party cache to use with your laptop inside the DLBC, since there isn't a good intermediate size cache to fit your laptop. The cache for the new 15" MacBook Pro Retina 2016 is too long to fit into the DLBC. The closest fit among the TB caches might be a vertical size 6Z cache, because the top opening flap might accommodate the slightly longer laptop (13.3" vs 13.0")

I don't have a current version size 6Z cache to check, but I did a packup to show that Mini Size Yeoman Duffel could fit a 13" MacBook Laptop (and actually had a bit of extra length to fit a Side Effect beside it. I used the Size 6Z vertical cache that I bought in early 2010 for the debut of the Synapse to demonstrate this. The stated interior dimensions for the Size 6Z cache at that time were approximately 13.0 x 9.1 x 1.1 inches (330 x 232 x 28 mm) with approximate exterior dimensions of 13.6 x 9.8 x 1.7 inches (346 x 248 x 44 mm). In fact, at that time they tended to make the caches with a looser fit than in the last few years, and the denser foam may also have been slightly thicker. In any case, I used my Mid-2010 13" MacBook Pro (12.78 x 8.94 x 0.95 inches / 325 x 227 x 24 mm) in that old vertical Size 6Z cache for the packup. A check now with a ruler shows that there is 0.75" clearance between the top of that 12.78" long laptop and the inner fold line of that vertical cache -- in other words, that cache could hold at least a 13.4" long laptop (including yours, according to the dimensions you gave), and still have the same external dimensions.

As part of the laptop in Mini Yeoman Duffel packup post, I included images of the laptop in that 6Z cache inside a Daylight Briefcase, with later pictures of the whole assembly (laptop in vertical 6Z cache inside DLBC) packed into the Mini Yeoman Duffel.

Meanwhile, here's one of the pictures of that vertical 6Z cache from 2010 inside the DLBC:



I can assure you that all this fit. I'll have to edit this post to add pictures showing the 0.75" clearance inside that old 6Z Vertical Cache, because I'm composing this reply on my iPad. Current day caches run to tighter fits, and I don't have a current vertical 6Z cache to try.

@tpnl uses a Thule hard case for his 14" laptop in a DLBC, so maybe he has suggestions.

Other bags that would fit in the TriStar center compartment are the Cadet (a bit tall, but other forum users like @UK_limey have used this for larger laptop and headset), the Pilot, and the Founder's Briefcase. The Maker's Bag would also probably work here.

HTH

moriond

ETA: Pictures showing the extra ~0.75" clearance between the top of this 12.78" and the top inner fold for the flap of the (2010 version) Size 6Z Vertical have been added in the next post. This old model vertical Size 6Z cache could easily accommodate the 13.3"x9"x0.7" HP laptop in the original post, and fist into the DLBC when turned on its side. I don't know whether this would work well with current model Size 6Z vertical caches, which also come with webbing rails. (You would not be able to make use of the rail design of the DLBC in this case, since it would require a horizontal cache with rails sized for the DLBC)

[ursojs]

Moriond, thank you so much for the pictures and the detail. It's very helpful and is clearing up what I want to do. I think I'll get the DLBC, the appropriate sized cache, and a co-pilot for my travels. I can keep the laptop in the Tristar, pack the DLBC, and carry my Bose QC35 headphones and other odds and ends in the co-pilot.

[moriond]

Moriond, thank you so much for the pictures and the detail. It's very helpful and is clearing up what I want to do. I think I'll get the DLBC, the appropriate sized cache, and a co-pilot for my travels. I can keep the laptop in the Tristar, pack the DLBC, and carry my Bose QC35 headphones and other odds and ends in the co-pilot.

Hi @ursojs,

Here's the picture of my old vertical size 6Z cache (from 2010), open, and holding the mid-2010 13" MacBook Pro (12.78 x 8.94 x 0.95 inches / 325 x 227 x 24 mm).


I've inserted a ruler with the zero-point matched to the inner fold of that old size 6Z Cache. Here's a closeup of what that looks like. The longest ruler marker between the fold of the cache and the top edge of the laptop is the half-inch marker, so you can see there is about three-quarters of an inch clearance between the top of that laptop and the inner fold of the cache.


One of the ways you can tell this is an old model cache is from the grey color: there was an early period around 2009 and 2010 when both black and grey laptop caches, padded pouches, and iPad caches were available, but later on only black colors were available for the cache. The older caches with the denser foam come in both the grey and black colors. (There were even padded pouches in a lighter grey color called Platinum). This design was used up through the initial debut of the Cadet, so the horizontal cache for my 13" MacBook Air (2011) is black in that same dense foam (and has small webbing loops at the bottom, but no rails). Newer caches and padded pouches, whether with rails or without (in the case of laptop caches), have a kind of tricot knitted texture to the surface, and have much tighter fits to the laptop specs.

I'm fairly certain that a current model Size 6Z Horizontal cache with rails will be too short to fit your 13.3" long laptop, but you might be able to use the Size 6Z vertical cache turned on its side, with the closing top flap design giving you some adjustability in the length fit. However, I don't know this to be true, since I don't have a current model Size 6Z Vertical Cache to compare with.

My size 6Z vertical cache (from 2010) is definitely longer than the current horizontal caches with rails for the 13" MacBook Air and 13" Retina MacBook Pro.

Here's a picture of the cache for my 13" MacBook Air shown below a Black (Dark Grid) Halcyon Daylight Briefcase:



This was one of the pictures in The new Black (Dark Grid) Halcyon Daylight Briefcase thread. You can see that there is more clearance space between this laptop and its cache and the sides of the DLBC compared to the vertical size 6Z cache holding the mid-2010 MacBook Pro in the main DLBC compartment in my post above. Most of that extra size comes from the larger design of the old vertical size 6Z cache; it's probably 0.6"-0.7" based on looking at the outside of the two caches.

I wish I could offer more suggestions about a working size for a cache, or third party hard shell to fit in the Daylight Briefcase with your laptop.

Good luck!

moriond

[Kaadk]

Regarding sizing of the 6Z horizontal:

I was in a similar place as you last year, looking at various options. In my case, my laptop is a Lenovo T450s (13.03" x 8.9" x 0.83"). At the end of this thread Brain Cell in Western Flyer, you can find some pictures of that laptop in a 6Z horizontal in the DLBC @tpnl talked me into in place of the Brain Cell I was originally thinking of.

It's a tight fit that way, I had to pull the zippers to coax them around the corners of the Cache. Easy enough to not be an annoyance during daily use, but tight enough that I really doubt a larger laptop could work.

Edit: Just took a second look at those photos, and realized I never included one that showed the cache itself, since the DLBC is always zipped up. But if you pay attention to the very squareness of the corners, that's caused by the 6Z cache.

[ursojs]

All, thank you for your feedback. I decided to get the DLBC (Halycon Black) and a SideKick (Blue Halycon), along withe the 15" cache. I figure I can flat pack the DLBC in the tristar and keep the laptop in the cache inside the Tristar and carry some of my small stuff in the Sidekick. When I need to go to the office I'll just take the laptop w/o cache (assuming it wont fit in the DLBC) in the DLBC along with any adapters and stuff. If for some reason I need to buy a neoprene sleeve of some type for protection it will be fairy easy for me to do so. If I need something bigger I can also use my Rick Steves Messenger Bag. I did think about a co-pilot/pilot, maker's bag, and cafe bag but chose to go a smaller route for now.

[ursojs]

All,

Just to give an update. I received my order today. I can report that the my laptop fits in both the Tristar and the DLBC (w/o cache) comfortably. The 15" cache is a bit bigger than I expected relative to the dimensions on hand. The cache can squeeze into the DLBC with the computer though I am not sure that I would even bother with the cache in the DLBC. The computer along with the cords and adapter are fine on their own I think. The DLBC is super light weight and will pack nicely in the Tristar. In hindsight I might have been able to go with a smaller size cache but I am good for now.

I also picked up a Sidekick. I'll use that to carry my headphones and stuff. Probably the only mistakes I made were clear pouches. The Large one is considerably larger than I expected. It won't fit in the DLBC and even takes a lot of space in the Tristar. I bought several small ones which I anticipated to bigger than they were. Some will get used but probably others won't...not sure.

For future purchase(s), not now since shipping to Thailand is expensive I look at the DLBackpack/packing cube as a combo to the Tristar or maybe a co-pilot. I'm very impressed with the Halycon material...I wish I bought the Tristar in it but I am fine with the ballistic nonetheless.

If anyone would like pictures please let me know.