Very Light Hardshell Suitcases

July 29th, 2025
jammer, travel
I fly to a lot of gigs, and I check a bag with my pedalboard. Airlines generally limit checked bags to 50lb, and I'd like to be able to get as much stuff as possible into that 50lb; how light can a suitcase be?

I'm currently using an old Samsonite clamshell that I found on the side of the road. I like how sturdy it is, but it weighs 12.2lb. That's almost a quarter of my 50lb budget allocated to the case!

It looks like a cheap modern hardshell would be 9lb ($70), saving 3.2lb. That's pretty good, but can we do better?

I did some looking for light options, and as far as I can tell Samsonite is the company making the lightest options by a good margin. They're also very expensive, with current-generation options going for $600 at full price. Here are the options I see under 7lb that would fit my 23.5" x 17.5" pedalboard:

  • Samsonite Lite-Shock 75cm, 5.5lb ($403)

  • Samsonite Cosmolite 3.0 Large Spinner, 5.8lb ($330)

  • Samsonite C-Lite Large 28", 6.3lb ($355)

  • Samsonite Firelite 28" Spinner, 6.7lb (discontinued)

  • Samsonite Proxis Medium Spinner, 6.8lb ($439)

These are all pretty expensive, but I'm going to keep an eye out for used ones. Any other models I should be checking for? Should I be worrying that these suitcases are giving up durability for weight?

Referenced in: Sturdier and Lighter Pedalboard

Comment via: facebook, lesswrong, mastodon, bluesky

Recent posts on blogs I like:

Facts I Learned From Maoism: A Global History (Part Two)

As I read Maoism: A Global History, I came to the conclusion that Maoism is a cognitohazard.

via Thing of Things August 18, 2025

The anti-fragile culture

I wrote a post about organizational culture!.

via Home August 6, 2025

Retrospective on life tracking and effectiveness systems

I’ve been doing life tracking for around 10 years, and this post is looking back at some things I learned from the data (since my previous retrospective in 2017). Highlights include what I get out of the Oura ring, correlations between sleep and deep work…

via Victoria Krakovna July 4, 2025

more     (via openring)