I'm interested in hearing what people use a a core for their bundle wrapping. I'm always open to new ideas!

Right now I'm using an Eagle Creek 2 Sided cube:

Advantages
* Big enough to hold all my undies scarves, stockings socks in one place
* Double sided is nice if I'm carrying a bathing suit or want to separate scarves from intimate items
* The handle is nice if I"m using it as an extra "drawer"

Disadvantages
* Heavy (especially since it has 2 zippers)
* A bit on the small side - My shirts are larger than the cube and they "lop" over the sides so I have to tuck the extra shirt edges in
* Probably thicker than needed, giving extra bulk to my core

I use t-shirts, socks (separate, unrolled), and briefs as my core. I have experimented with various containers, but lately I have just been stacking and arranging them to fit my needs. I pack my bundle into packing cubes, and have found that important thing about the core is that it roughly match the aspect ratio of the cube, the goal being to get the completed bundle to snugly fit the cube.

What I give up in not using a tightly packed core is the ability to wrap the bundle as tightly as I think others may. This is not best for the ultimate in wrinkle prevention, but I compensate by mostly traveling with carefully selected wrinkle resistant clothes. In the end, I find I can always use an iron to touch up items as I go.

Bill

Good topic! I can't wait to see what everyone uses.

I think one of the important parts of choosing your core is fitting it to your bag, or rather to the space in your bag that the bundle will be carried in. Ie: The packing space in my Executive Overnighter is 22" x 14", so I need a core that "shapes" of "sizes" my bundle for that area.

Most of the time I use a large packing sac, one that measures 10"x 14". I fill it with soft clothing. That's where I put my socks, underwear, swim suit, and sometimes t-shirts. (I've been experimenting with including my t-shirts in my bundle). The sac starts flat, but once I fill it, it gets thicker in the middle. That gives it a shape like a pillow, tapered at the edges. I think that helps because the outside of the core doesn't have any edge to crease the clothes. For me, using a cube seemed to put in crease lines. I tried using a large zip-lock bag for my core but it was so slick on the outside that my bundle kept sliding apart while it was packed! DUH!!!!

When I use the 10"x 14" sac as my core, my bundle fits easily in the 22" x 14" section of my bag, and there's even room left over to pack items around it.

A quick suggestion: Be careful what you pack in your core! The only time I have ever had a bundle opened by the TSA was because I had put my laptop charger and a thumb drive in my core. They showed up on the X-ray screen. I've never had my bundle opened up when it held only clothing.

Ps; If you are ever looking for good packing sacs, you might take a look at Cartom Products. They sell different size packing sacs, very much like Eagle Creek's. They're really well made, and they're a lot less expensive. The large (10" x 14") sac from Eagle Creek is around $12, the same size from Cartom is $7.

Skip

I use the large Eagle Creek sac. I put socks, undies and T shirts in it. It works pretty well.

Last trip, I did a small bundle with my silk robe, PJs, underwear, socks and a couple of modal tee shirts. This formed the base to bundle wrap my larger clothes.
I tried using a zippered mesh packing bag but found it made the bundle slightly heavier and as I was going carry-on only and with a weight restriction on two of my four flights, I opted to use no packing aids at all.
It is true that you don't want to include anything else in your bundle, if you don't want to suffer the trauma of being searched thoroughly, I made that mistake returning home and wished like heck that I'd put the hardware item in my purse. The purse would've been a lot easier to search!
One tip if your bag isn't waterproof, wrap some Glad plastic food wrap or that sticky food wrap around your bundle to protect it from the damp whilst in transit....nothing like arriving with damp clothing that you then have to hang up and air out before you can wear any of it.