Sterling Pacific 40L Aluminum Cabin Journey Case Assessment

Way back in the plane, I was the last to walk out of coach. I landed in Osaka, Japan, running from the rising sun for the last 12 hours. “Now that’s a nice carry-on!” the flight attendant piped. “Expensive!”

I chuckled. She wasn’t wrong. My kit for 2 weeks was packed in Sterling Pacific’s yet-to-be-released 40L Cabin Travel Case, a four-wheeled aluminum carry-on reinforced with aluminum panels — and it cost over $2,000.

To salvage some GJ reader respect, I’m a dirtbag. Or I once was. I’ve bivvyed in an outhouse, eaten crumbs out of the floor of my pack, and worn underwear for more than a week straight. I’ve even been crippled by drinking contaminated snowmelt in the mountains — sick, brah!

I’m also about to send my first child to college. So, investing in high-end luggage is low on my list of priorities. But Sterling Pacific reached out about testing, and I’ve got a champagne taste — albeit on a macro-beer budget.

In short: Sterling Pacific’s 40L Cabin Travel Case sets the high bar for luxury luggage. The attention to detail virtually dethrones the competition in the rare air of opulent attachés. And with Sterling Pacific’s robust lifetime warranty, buyers get what they expect in terms of service. But it comes at a price, a very expensive one at that.

Sterling Pacific 40L Cabin Travel Case Review

Competing with Zero Halliburton, Tumi, and the nostalgia silver bullet Rimowa, Sterling Pacific is new to the market and a touch pricier. It uses high-quality materials like “Italian leather and A380 aluminum.”

Unsure what “A380” was, I called my brother-in-law. He runs a machine shop and traffics in milled aluminum.

“A380? It’s a die-cast grade aluminum, as opposed to extruded bar or rolled sheet or plate,” he educated me. “It’s extremely expensive to make” (if you’re counting, that’s two votes for expensive with this case).

“Looks like the main body is stamped out of 5052 sheet metal aluminum. The corner brackets and housing are the casted A380,” he continued poetically about the alloy. “Looks like you are all set for some espionage!”

Indeed, Seattle Pacific’s aluminum clamshell looks ready for Danial Craig’s replacement. Clean as an Aston Martin, it had me asking myself, “Would James Bond really use Seattle Pacific’s carry-on?”

Looks

Without a doubt, the Cabin Travel Case is a looker, sharp enough for a high-rolling week at the Casino Royal. To me, the lines are cleaner than Rimowa, which has been the high bar for aluminum luggage since the Rimowa factory burned down in the 1930s and they first rolled grooved alloy onto the tarmacs.

The metal is joined using flat-head, stainless steel rivets that add an aeronautical aesthetic. The leather handles are wrapped in Italian leather and ergonomically formed to fit a gripped hand. The complete package is clean and crisp, a modern interpretation of a bygone era of luggage.

So Bond, yes. CIA, likely not. It’s too … “blingy.” The aluminum is brushed (cutting some glare), but the metal body draws significant attention. Unless you are catching a flight out of Singapore or Dubai, the bag — and you — will pull in eyes.

Outside of the flight attendant, the pilot gave it a nod, boarding passengers inquired, and fellow travelers took note. If you like to stand out, the case is a stalwart wingman.

But if you prefer to bury your nose in a book and go unnoticed, this isn’t the carry-on for you.

Packability

At 40 L, the size is ideal for a week or two with a full plate of travel. The entire inside is lined with twill and separated with a zipped divider. A mesh pocket zips small, loose items into the dividing wall, which I used to keep my passport protected and easily accessible. A harness system buckles in shirts or a jacket to keep squared up for business.

Depending on what Bond is up to, we can assume Q set him up light enough to carry his covert shenanigan essentials in half the case. The 40L volume can easily swallow a week or two of activities. I had no trouble packing street clothes in one half and my cycling kit in the other.

Durability

Fear not: I did not let the sticker shock get in the way of serious testing. I freely rolled it over curbs and allowed my handlers to stack the case wherever their Tetris packing whims inspired them.

When the gate called for luggage because they were booked to capacity, I took them up on it and let the ground crew have their way with the case. And boy, did they rise to the challenge! My new luggage rolled out of baggage claim looking less new, racking its first blemish — a 1-inch crease that buckled one of the A380 corner panels. Good work, LAX.

Aluminum is strong, but being a softer metal, it is malleable by nature. After two trips with four connections, the carry-on showed some — let’s call it, character. I can only assume it will continue to collect dings and blemishes. This hasn’t affected its functionality. The hinges and latches still register true and snap shut in alignment.

Warranty

This is a good time to share that Sterling Pacific offers a lifetime warranty and service on its luggage for manufactured defects. The brand will send you complimentary handles and spare parts for DIY home repairs. And for bigger dings, like mine, it’s a good reminder to place a claim with the airline so you can send it back to Sterling Pacific for an in-house repair.

Q would love this case because he could have it serviced and back in the field without skipping a beat. Replacement wheels? Done. Crushed a corner panel? That’s under warranty; send it back. Martini bar in the zippered compartment? Well … sure, but you’ll have to DIY that at home.

Sterling Pacific sends every case with a cloth cover. I did see travelers using luggage covers in Japan, hiding their high-end luggage from potential scratches. To me, it’s like wrapping your new furniture in clear plastic wrap. It works, but good grief. Live outside the lines a little, folks. The water is great.

Utility

The clamshell design opens flat, and snaps securely shut with a pair of TSA-approved latching combination locks. It’s an unforgiving, strict 40L capacity, though. Being aluminum, flexibility is compromised. You can sit on it to close overflowing contents, but overpacking adds stress to the latches.

That said, it feels more secure to overpack aluminum luggage than to zip a bloated duffel. There are no zippers to blow. Many over-packers wrap a nylon belt around their hard-case luggage to secure the contents and prevent latches from blowing out. Yet another use for your NRS tie-down webbing!

The four wheels are an upgrade from Sterling Pacific’s first stab at a carry-on. This allows the case to move swiftly by your side while rushing through the terminal.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t track as well as other luggage I’ve tested (TravelPro’s Elite takes the win here). I also found the trolley housing a little rattly. It has some play. Ideally, I’d love to see this cleaned up. Sterling Pacific said it’s aware of these issues and is working to resolve them.

All this armor comes at another price. The Cabin Travel Case weighs in at a stout 12 pounds — empty! This gets in the way of the overall versatility. Fully packed, it’s heavy and not as manageable as a synthetic case. It requires two hands to pull the case out of the overhead, and some airlines may have a weight limit.

If he’s driving the Aston Martin DB5, Bond’s trunk has 10 cubic feet of luggage space. The Cabin Travel Case will fit swimmingly. But given the weight of the bag, it will prove too cumbersome to keep up with his nimble, evasive driving maneuvers.

The four-wheel chassis moves much easier than the two-wheel counterparts, but it’s heavy and requires careful handling when stowing it in the overhead with heads below. You wouldn’t want to drop it on anyone!

Construction

Hooboy, Sterling Pacific has solid construction in riveted spades. Made in America out of its Reno, Nev., warehouse, Sterling Pacific builds its carry-on with significant attention to detail.

All attaching latches, the handle, and hinge housing are milled to mount flush against the corrugated body panels. The thru-axel wheels nestle inside diecast A380, which is often polycarbonate (plastic) on comparable brands.

Sterling Pacific makes the handles from Italian leather, while larger aluminum housing stores the retractable trolley. The entire case is riveted together with stout steel flat-head rivets.

A rubber gasket seals the two sides together, keeping the contents “waterproof enough.” Even the clothing harness clasps together with metal buckles. Only the outside runner pads are plastic — and that’s simply to protect other objects from getting scuffed by the aluminum sidewalls.

That’s a lot of high-end, which means a lot of durability (and price). Bond would approve, and this carry-on will outlast a lifetime of missions you might find yourself tackling. It’s the kind of luggage you will pass on to your kids — heritage luggage. And why not — a carry-on that costs over $2,000 should outlast all your luggage needs.

Bottom Line: Should You Buy?

Overall, the 40L Cabin Travel Case is a top-shelf carry-on — perhaps the very best of the best. At least, it’s better than Rimowa, which has traditionally been the shield in front of the crown of high-end carry-ons. But Ramona’s handles aren’t as ergonomic. The wheels and corners are housed with plastic bits, and the handle is synthetic leather. And it’s still a $1,500 carry-on.

Would a spy really lug a $2,000 carry-on that captures the flight attendant’s (and everyone else’s) eye? No way. It draws too much attention.

A true case agent would tote a black or blue canvas duffel — something big enough to carry a versatile kit but slinks inconspicuously through the crowds, be it Mogadishu, Warsaw, or Dubai.

Rimowa may have won the 007 contract of the 1960s, like Sean Connery’s Rolex Submariner watch. But today’s Bond wears Omega. And if he was casing Stateside, he’d likely reach for Sterling Pacific.

Is it worth picking one up for yourself? That depends on your budget. If the card can float the bill, and you don’t mind the attention, Sterling Pacific’s Cabin Travel Case is about as good as you can get.

For the rest of us, we’ve shared our best picks for more reasonably priced carry-on luggage.