Hard or soft?
“Don’t get soft luggage!” we were told, “Thieves will cut right though them!” folks warned us, “They’ll be torn to shreds before you get to Colombia!”. Guess what? We went with soft luggage and boy, aren’t we glad we did!
Our friends will tell you it is just because we are stubborn and contradictory. The truth is elsewhere, let’s examine the reasons behind our choice and how it worked out.
Soft is lighter young grasshopper
Here are the key reasons why we went for soft luggage:
- Weight: the popular Pelican iM2600 has a 35 liters capacity and weigths 3.8kgs/each
The aluminum Happy Trails Teton 7.5′ panniers hold 33l and weight 3.8kgs/each as well.
By contrast the ATG Overlander saddle bags weight 3kgs for a max. 32l capacity.