What To Look For In A Carry-on Suitcase - And Its Wheels

Problem
I have suitcases on four wheels but they tip over and people helping me drag them along on two wheels. What should I look for in a new suitcase? Is paying extra buying me anything better?

Answers
Two Wheels - Or Four?
Two wheel suitcases often have larger wheels. A two-wheel suitcase is often cheaper.

Direction
Many two wheel suitcases have wheels which face one direction and it's hard to steer around corners. You might also want to drag the suitcase behind you. However, this takes up space and trips up other people. Sometimes you might want to push a suitcase in front of you.

Four Wheel Suitcases
Toddlers' suitcases can be designed like small buses, trains or other vehicles. This looks amusing so children are keen to push their suitcase which acts as a toy. Children can ride on them. It keeps your child in one place, rather than running off.

Wheels - big or small?
I prefer larger wheels. I have a suitcase with low wheels. When helpers take my four-wheel suitcase they drag it along on two wheels. This wears out one pair of wheels faster than the others.

The suitcase tips forward and the wheels are so low that the diagonal means that the front of the case drags on the ground. You can sometimes hear the case scraping along the ground! This action makes the case dirty. Worse still, scraping the fabric creates a hole or a tear along the piping strip.

Some four-wheel suitcases have double wheels, making eight in all.

I looked at several suitcases in the kiosks in th forecourt at ground level in Toa Payoh MRT station in Singapore. I was hoping for a bargain. But the suitcases seemed to be high prices. Why? Sometimes the kiosk in a mall is not a small shop owner with cheap prices but a pricier department store nearby.

In Singapore when I am setting out for a suitcase I go to the giant department store, Mohammed Mustafa's.

Useful Websites
Mustafa's nearest stop is Farrer Park (purple north esast oine on your MRT train line map) which is one stop from Little India (Downtown line which is blue). Parts of Mustafa's are open 24 hours. Avoid Sunday which is the busiest day because all the Indians have a day off and rush here. The narrow aisles get crowded. You are jostled.

Mustafa Centre, 145 Syed Alwi Road
Singapore - 207704

TELEPHONE:

+65-62955855

FAX:

+65-62955866

Author
Angela Lansbury