[Disclaimer] This video is more of a quick look than a review. I have no personal connection with Tom Bihn and this bag was sent to me free of charge. I only paid import duty, but don’t let that lead you to think I haven’t been anything other than honest with my opinion.
I already have the larger Tom Bihn Aeronaut and was delighted to have the Tom Bihn Tri-Star unexpectedly sent from the Tom Bihn Factory in Seattle. I am guessing it was sent because the larger Aeronaut can be a hefty beast when fully packed and may be a little over carry-on size with some airlines. The Tri-Star looks small and compact enough to get through even the tightest carry-on baggage restrictions but at the same time is surprisingly spacious.
Although all I paid was £33 import duty on this bag, I’d be more than happy to pay full price and the obvious excitement you see in the video is my genuine feeling after my initial tests.
On the whole I’m hard pressed to find issue with it really. And I did try. I wanted to have a go at the noisy zips but Tom Bihn have a clever answer for that as you can see in the video. If I was to pick on one thing it would be the weight. At over 3lb when empty it’s not as light as other bags I have, but I am not sure I would sacrifice a pound or more in exchange for a drop in durability. In fact read their website and they talk about how important it is to them that they make equipment that lasts (almost) forever. I guess it’s too early to test the ‘forever’ bit. With terms like ‘über-durable‘, ‘overlocked‘, ‘heat fused‘ and ‘reinforced‘ used in explaining their manufacturing process, it sounds to me like they really take pride in what they are doing and strive to use the best, to be the best.
It used to be I would only carry gear around the world on long expeditions if I could fix the fastenings and straps myself. Looking at the construction of Tom Bihn gear, I’ve a feeling it is me that would wear out before they do.
Thanks to TomBihn.com for sending this for review.
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[…] been aware of Tom Bihn bags for a while, but after seeing my friend Documentally’s great review of the Tom Bihn Tri-Star I looked again at their […]