Do you know the difference between Cordura and ballistic nylon? What’s “denier”? This thread from the Tom Bihn forum is very helpful in explaining the mystery of common luggage fabrics. One point is made that I can back up from personal experience: Don’t just buy by the numbers. Good American-made 1050 ballistic nylon is much better than the supposedly heavier Asian “1680” stuff. One of my co-workers bought a 1680-weight laptop bag from Amazon and it was frayed in only a few months.
Article originally appeared on One-bag, carry-on, light travel tips, techniques, and gear (http://www.1bag1world.com/).
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