I thought I would share my experiences on using one bag for a transatlantic 5-day business trip.

I typically do the one bag thing for casual trips but for my business trips (usually 5 days in duration), I typically go with a checked rolling garment bag plus a largish Tumi ballistic computer brief. The upside is that the rolling garment bag keeps my shirts and pants and one or two sport coats looking very crisp esp. if I leave them in the drycleaning bags. The downside is that the checked baggage often does not make it on to my connecting flight (usually tightly timed at the connecting airport). Secondly, the large size of the garment bag dissuades me from taking public transport and forces me into expensive taxis which won't take my corporate amex (and I don't like to carry too much foreign currency as a general rule).

For my first foray into one bag business travel, I used my only suitable bag: a canvas and leather Filson large carry-on bag (no wheels, opens like a suitcase; 18x14x9 inches). Not a red oxx or tom bihn by any means, but still not an ineffective design for a max carry-on except that the empty bag alone weights at least 5 or 6lbs (more about the weight later).

I used one large eagle creek cube and one small eagle creek folder to carry 2 pants, 4 shirts, undergarments, socks, exercise wear, toiletries, power cords, dress shoes. I wore my light sweater, pants, running shoes and my sportcoat. I kept my laptop in a sleeve which I tucked in one of the open external pockets on the carry-on (and removed at security checkpoints)

Positives:
- Everything fit quite compactly into what looks like really an overgrown briefcase or satchel.
- I had no trouble putting the bag in either the smaller regional double prop airplane's overhead bins (removed the computer sleeve) or in the much larger bins of the transatlantic 747 bins (computer stayed in the bag)
- I barely made my connection in Munich so I would have certainly had my checked luggage delayed on the trip.
- I was very mobile and could easily take public transportation and sit in a crowded bus with the bag on my lap.
- Out of the airport, the bag was great as it's more maneuverable than a roller and it can sit on my lap easily without bothering the person next to me. It was also easier to throw in the back floor of the hired car that took me to my initial departing flight.
- I could have easily put probably 50% more in my bag if I wanted to do so. The capacity of this bag was clearly much greater than my well worn 22inch Travelpro rollerboard despite overall smaller dimensions.
- The clothes came out of my bag acceptable to wear for my meetings.

Negatives:
- Particularly loaded with the laptop, it makes for quite a heavy bag. I am in pretty good shape for a desk jockey, but walk-running for 10 minutes to catch my connecting flight within the considering terminal bordered on being considered an actual workout. If I removed the laptop and carried in my other hand, it made the bag less bulky and significantly lighter.
- Not convinced it was the superior choice for intra-airport transit: in watching my counterparts effortlessly pulling their rollers with laptops bags piggybacking on top through the terminals (except at stairs). Certainly, it took them less effort to roll than for me to carry.
- the one time I had to open my bag at the security checkpoint, it was a bit time consuming to put everything back in place and seal it up again since it opens like a clamshell.
- The bag filled to max. capacity would be extremely heavy even if met the carry-on dimensions.
- The clothes came out of the bag less pressed and neat than in my garment bag.

Overall, for a business casual trip I would do it again just because I liked the security having all my stuff with me and there's something pleasurably anachronistic about carrying everything in this particular canvas and leather bag in the sea of black ballistic nylon. For a leisure trip, it's a no brainer to go with one bag and I imagine I could live out of it indefinitely.

Does the Filson bag have backpack straps? I would imagine backpack style would make that 10 minute track alot more manageable than carrying the bag with a shoulder strap.

No, unfortunately it doesn't. Filson is low-tech in their approach and unfortunately if it did have straps, they would likely not be stowaway.