A Tri-Star in Black 1050 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Black 525 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Steel (medium grey) 1050 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Steel (medium grey) 1050 Ballistic with an Fjord (dark blue with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Steel (medium grey) 1050 Ballistic with an Island (blue with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Steel (medium grey) 1050 Ballistic with an Northwest Sky (light grey with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Verde (green) 1050 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Verde (green) 1050 Ballistic with an Northwest Sky (light grey with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Navy (blue) 1050 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Black 1050 Ballistic with an Taiga (olive green with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Black 1050 Ballistic with an Northwest Sky (light grey with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Coyote (brown) 1050 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Aubergine 1050 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Coyote (brown) 1050 Ballistic with an Northwest Sky (light grey with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Coyote (brown) 1050 Ballistic with an Moab (brick red with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Burnt Orange 1050 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Burnt Orange 1050 Ballistic with an Tidal (pale blue with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Burnt Orange 1050 Ballistic with an Tidal (pale blue with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Black (black with grey grid) 400 Halcyon. A Tri-Star in Black (black with grey grid) 400 Halcyon with an Island (blue with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Black 525 Ballistic with an Fjord (dark blue with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Original (black with white grid) 400 Halcyon. A Tri-Star in Mars Red 525 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Mars Red 525 Ballistic with an Northwest Sky (light grey with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Black 525 Ballistic with an Northwest Sky (light grey with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Deep Blue (dark blue) 525 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Black 525 Ballistic with an Island (blue with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Deep Blue (dark blue) Ballistic with an Taiga (olive green with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Deep Blue (dark blue) 525 Ballistic with an Northwest Sky (light grey with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior. A Tri-Star in Nebulous Grey (Medium grey) 525 Ballistic. A Tri-Star in Nebulous Grey (Medium grey) 525 Ballistic with an Island (blue with white grid) 200 Halcyon interior.
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$371.00


Color: Burnt Orange 1050 Ballistic/Northwest Sky 200 Halcyon

In Stock

Available Color options

Three-compartment travel bag designed to rule the world (or at least the skies).

33 liters / 2000 cu. in.



TLDR

The Tri-Star is a three-way carry travel bag designed with the super organized, minimalist business traveler in mind. It is part of our main carry-on travel bag options along with the Western Flyer, Aeronaut, and Techonaut

  • 3 main compartments of equal size and 9 O-rings
  • 4 exterior pockets in the front panel
  • Carry as a briefcase, backpack, or shoulder bag
  • Personal item carry-on friendly for most airlines

Full Description

Three Main Compartments

The Tri-Star has three main compartments of equal size. The front compartment has 2 O-rings and a vertical divider that zips out of the way if it's not wanted. We recommend storing your clothes in a Tri-Star Packing Cube which is designed to fit in these compartments. Either half of the divided front compartment can fit a pair of shoes in a Packing Cube Shoulder Bag

With room for most sizes of our Cache laptop sleeve, the center compartment of the Tri-Star provides a secure and protected place for your laptop. Simply attach the Cache onto the two unobtrusive webbing loops and you're good to go. If you want to store a notebook, pens, and/or a small tablet, the Freudian Slip is a great organizational addition to the Tri-Star. There are also 2 O-rings in this compartment.

The back compartment is full of open space and is ready to accept a Large Tri-Star Packing Cube, a Small and a Medium Tri-Star Packing Cube, or your clothes just on their own. It also features two compression/tie-down straps to help keep your clothing in place and wrinkle-free. They're an alternative to the Packing Cubes. The compression/tie-down straps are removable (via Gatekeepers) so if you don't want or need to use them, you can leave them behind. 

4 Front Exterior Organizational Pockets

On the left are three horizontal zippered pockets with an O-ring in each. One of the O-rings includes an 8" Key Strap, which is useful for tethering and keeping track of your keys or your AirPods. On the other O-ring, you can attach our Mystery Organizer Pouches or Ghost Whale Organizer Pouches. The top zippered pocket spans the full height of the bag and the bottom pocket goes about halfway.

On the right is a curved zippered pocket that is useful for storing a boarding pass when unzipped partially. Unzip it entirely, it's an expandable water bottle pocket. The bellows that make the pocket expandable can be snapped up so your water bottle doesn't fall out, or unsnapped to allow greater access to the pocket. 

Ways to Carry the Tri-Star

Backpack

Want to carry the Tri-Star like a backpack? Untuck the hideaway backpack straps (same as those on our Aeronaut and Western Flyer) from the back compartment and snap on the bottom of the straps. They're our Edgeless Shoulder Straps and feature a 3/4" removable sternum strap and an optional (not included with this bag) 1" removable gatekeeper waist strap. Both the sternum and waist straps are simple webbing straps designed to help distribute weight and stabilize the bag to your body. 

Shoulder Bag

The attachment points for an optional shoulder strap are offset on the Tri-Star to provide the best balance and comfort, should you carry the bag with a shoulder strap. We recommend using the Absolute Shoulder Strap with the Tri-Star if comfort is your primary concern. You also have the option of using any shoulder strap you already have that attaches to D-rings. 

Briefcase

Two comfortable, padded handles made from PORON® foam sit directly above the center of gravity for maximum comfort, stability, and balance.

What's Included

8" Snaphook/Snaphook Key Strap

As with most of our bags, we've included a key strap. 8" long from tip-to-tip, a snaphook on either end. Good for attaching your keys to.

A Set of Black Zipper Pulls

A set of pulls to extend or replace your metal pulls. 

What's Optional

Absolute Shoulder Strap

If you plan to carry the Tri-Star as a shoulder bag, the Absolute Shoulder Strap is the only strap you'll ever need. 

Tri-Star Packing Cube

We recommend organizing your clothes and shoes in a Tri-Star Packing Cube. Cinch it down with the included tie-down straps for extra security. 

Packing Cube Shoulder Bag

You can also store your shoes in a Packing Cube Shoulder Bag and store it on either half of the divided compartment. The Packing Cube Shoulder Bag will fit up to a size 12 in men's. 

Freudian Slip

Love organizing and want even more pockets? The Tri-Star/Western Flyer Freudian Slip adds an additional eleven organizational pockets to your bag. One side of the Freudian Slip has two folder pockets that can fit folders/papers horizontally or vertically. The other side has two flat zippered pockets, four pen slots, two pockets sized for your wallet or phone, and a credit card slot. 

Cache

The Tri-Star can accommodate a wide range of devices. If you want a little bit of extra padding for your laptop, we recommend adding a Cache.

The Tri-Star has three main compartments of equal size. The front compartment has 2 O-rings and a vertical divider that zips out of the way if it's not wanted. We recommend storing your clothes in a Tri-Star Packing Cube which is designed to fit in these compartments. Either half of the divided front compartment can fit a pair of shoes in a Packing Cube Shoulder Bag

With room for most sizes of our Cache laptop sleeve, the center compartment of the Tri-Star provides a secure and protected place for your laptop. Simply attach the Cache onto the two unobtrusive webbing loops and you're good to go. If you want to store a notebook, pens, and/or a small tablet, the Freudian Slip is a great organizational addition to the Tri-Star. There are also 2 O-rings in this compartment.

The back compartment is full of open space and is ready to accept a Large Tri-Star Packing Cube, a Small and a Medium Tri-Star Packing Cube, or your clothes just on their own. It also features two compression/tie-down straps to help keep your clothing in place and wrinkle-free. They're an alternative to the Packing Cubes. The compression/tie-down straps are removable (via Gatekeepers) so if you don't want or need to use them, you can leave them behind. 

On the left are three horizontal zippered pockets with an O-ring in each. One of the O-rings includes an 8" Key Strap, which is useful for tethering and keeping track of your keys or your AirPods. On the other O-ring, you can attach our Mystery Organizer Pouches or Ghost Whale Organizer Pouches. The top zippered pocket spans the full height of the bag and the bottom pocket goes about halfway.

On the right is a curved zippered pocket that is useful for storing a boarding pass when unzipped partially. Unzip it entirely, it's an expandable water bottle pocket. The bellows that make the pocket expandable can be snapped up so your water bottle doesn't fall out, or unsnapped to allow greater access to the pocket. 

Backpack

Want to carry the Tri-Star like a backpack? Untuck the hideaway backpack straps (same as those on our Aeronaut and Western Flyer) from the back compartment and snap on the bottom of the straps. They're our Edgeless Shoulder Straps and feature a 3/4" removable sternum strap and an optional (not included with this bag) 1" removable gatekeeper waist strap. Both the sternum and waist straps are simple webbing straps designed to help distribute weight and stabilize the bag to your body. 

Shoulder Bag

The attachment points for an optional shoulder strap are offset on the Tri-Star to provide the best balance and comfort, should you carry the bag with a shoulder strap. We recommend using the Absolute Shoulder Strap with the Tri-Star if comfort is your primary concern. You also have the option of using any shoulder strap you already have that attaches to D-rings. 

Briefcase

Two comfortable, padded handles made from PORON® foam sit directly above the center of gravity for maximum comfort, stability, and balance.

8" Snaphook/Snaphook Key Strap

As with most of our bags, we've included a key strap. 8" long from tip-to-tip, a snaphook on either end. Good for attaching your keys to.

A Set of Black Zipper Pulls

A set of pulls to extend or replace your metal pulls. 

Absolute Shoulder Strap

If you plan to carry the Tri-Star as a shoulder bag, the Absolute Shoulder Strap is the only strap you'll ever need. 

Tri-Star Packing Cube

We recommend organizing your clothes and shoes in a Tri-Star Packing Cube. Cinch it down with the included tie-down straps for extra security. 

Packing Cube Shoulder Bag

You can also store your shoes in a Packing Cube Shoulder Bag and store it on either half of the divided compartment. The Packing Cube Shoulder Bag will fit up to a size 12 in men's. 

Freudian Slip

Love organizing and want even more pockets? The Tri-Star/Western Flyer Freudian Slip adds an additional eleven organizational pockets to your bag. One side of the Freudian Slip has two folder pockets that can fit folders/papers horizontally or vertically. The other side has two flat zippered pockets, four pen slots, two pockets sized for your wallet or phone, and a credit card slot. 

Cache

The Tri-Star can accommodate a wide range of devices. If you want a little bit of extra padding for your laptop, we recommend adding a Cache.

Materials

Zippers

#10 YKK Racquet-Coil water-repellent coil zipper on main compartments
#8 YKK Racquet-Coil water-repellent coil zippers on all other pockets

Shoulder Straps

Edgeless EV50 1/2” / 12mm shoulder straps (EVAZOTE® OEKO-TEX® foam)

Handle

PORON® foam handle

Other Components

Tough Duraflex®, Nexus, and Woojin buckles and related components

Specs

Dimensions

18.9" (w) x 13" (h) x 8.1" (d) / 480 (w) x 330 (h) x 205 (d) mm

Weight

1050d high tenacity ballistic nylon: 3 lb 6 oz / 1525 grams
525d high tenacity ballistic nylon: 3 lb 2.5 oz / 1433 grams
400d Halcyon®/420d nylon ripstop: 2 lb 12 oz / 1255 grams

Volume

33 Liters / 2000 cu. in. (ASTM Standard Measure)

Total O-Rings

10 (2 in the front main compartment, 2 in the center main compartment, 3 in the back main compartment, 1 in the top front zippered pocket, 1 in the middle front zippered pocket, 1 in the bottom front zippered pocket)

4.8
Rated 4.8 out of 5 stars
Based on 53 reviews
91%would recommend this product
53 reviews
  • Mark
    3 years ago
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Voice of experience: It's an outstanding bag that will last for decades.

    I’m twice as old as people in TB’s marketing photo. I like the Tri-Star more than any bag I’ve had. 5 years of frequent use and my Steel Tri-Star looks new. It’s stylish but low-key, functional, and durable. I use it for month-long (or longer) trips for work and/or fun with lots of moving/packing/unpacking. I can easily see living out of this thing for a year.

    High notes:

    --underpacking makes it look smaller. Sometimes I use it as checked baggage if I’m lazy, but as a carry-on I’ve never had to gate-check it.

    --love the end handles. Sling it into an airplane bin in 3 seconds, waste no space, and retrieve just as fast at the end. FAs appreciate that, and so do I. Why waste my life trying to handle luggage?

    --the slide-out laptop sleeve and the internal rings to strap a clear 3-1-1 bag are brilliant. Airport security is easy, and the agents think those things are cool.

    --concealed backpack strap connectors on the corners are elegantly subtle.

    It looks serious but not ostentatious and the steel gray hides dirt. It holds its shape and isn’t floppy.

    The zippers are excellent. I hated the noisy metal pulls and replaced them with paracord. TB’s plastic ends for the paracord are high quality plastic, look good, stay together, and are easy to disassemble.

  • Michael H.
    Verified Reviewer
    Bought For Myself
    1 year ago
    Bought For Myself
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    100s of trips and still like new

    One of the best things I've ever purchased. Not just best bags. I fly tons of small regional planes (CRJ700) and it always fits in the overhead. In a pinch, it will fit under the seat on a small plane, but your legroom will be lacking. I usually just put it in the overheads. On larger planes you won't have any problems. I take this for 2-3 day trips every couple of weeks. You can also hide the backpack straps and hand carrry if that matters to you. It fits everything I need including my portable CPAP. It still looks like new. Simply amazing.

  • Glenn Jenkins J.
    Verified Buyer
    Bought For Myself
    Product Standouts Comfortable, High Quality Craftsmanship, Good Storage Size, High Quality Finishings, Thoughtful Design
    1 year ago
    Bought For Myself
    Product Standouts Comfortable, High Quality Craftsmanship, Good Storage Size, High Quality Finishings, Thoughtful Design
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Finally Did It!

    Let me get this out of the way first…I’m a HUGE Tom Bihn fan. I have a little bit of of an obsession, but we will save that for another day. Now for the Tri-Star…This bag is just amazing. I ordered it for a 3 day trip to Naples, FL and it was the perfect companion to my Tom Bihn Brain Bag. It fit all of my clothes, toiletries and my laptop (in a Tom Bihn Cache😀). I also have the Absolute Shoulder Strap which was awesome as I had to hustle through the Atlanta airport. I had wanted a Tri-Star for a very long time and finally pulled the trigger. Like all Tom Bihn products, the quality and craftsmanship is top notch. Great bag for a 3-4 day get away.

  • RC
    Verified Buyer
    Bought For Myself
    Product Standouts Thoughtful Design, High Quality Craftsmanship, Durable, Compact, Versatile
    1 year ago
    Bought For Myself
    Product Standouts Thoughtful Design, High Quality Craftsmanship, Durable, Compact, Versatile
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Form and Function - an awesome work travel bag

    I’ve been travelling on and off for work for 10 years now with a Tristar. It really nails the perfect work bag with function for clothes and work gear. I’ve travelled for up to a week in the bag although it can be heavy if you overload it (my problem, not the bag’s).

    I like the boxy nature of it as it stands up by itself, never falling over. And each pocket serves a purpose well. I’ve tried many others over the year, but this is the one I keep coming back to. Nothing is perfect, but this bag is a close to it for your travelling worker as it will ever get.

  • Juli Z.
    Verified Buyer
    Bought For Myself
    Product Standouts Thoughtful Design, High Quality Craftsmanship, Sewn in USA, Versatile, Durable
    1 year ago
    Bought For Myself
    Product Standouts Thoughtful Design, High Quality Craftsmanship, Sewn in USA, Versatile, Durable
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    The perfect travel bag

    I’ve been looking for the perfect travel bag for my professional needs for years now. I had many requirements and this is the only one that I have found that checks all the boxes. I needed a side opening bag with several compartments, but it had to be convertible to a backpack with straps that tuck away. That is the Tri-star to a T! The zippers are rugged and durable, it has just the right number of pockets. Add a Freudian slip and a cache, and it’s the most organized bag out there as well. I’ve been waiting a long time to get this, but the wait was so worth it. My new favorite travel bag!

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Sewn in Seattle

Our bags are designed and sewn right here in Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.

That allows us to be control freaks in the best way possible; we have direct control and oversight of the quality of our materials, our products, and the jobs and working environment that we help create. It also offers us a unique spontaneity: when we have an idea for a new product or accessory, we can design it, figure out how to build it, add it to our website and be ready to ship it out our front door all within just a few weeks. How cool is that?

Intrigued? You can find out more about the unusual way we do business on our Company Philosophy page.

THE BIHN Guarantee

Everything you buy from us here at TOM BIHN is satisfaction guaranteed. We’ve been in business since 1972 and we stand behind what we make.

If something goes wrong and it's our fault, we'll fix it for free. Repairs due to normal wear and tear or due to other things that are not our fault will be performed, when possible, at a reasonable charge right here in our Seattle factory where your bag was made. Defects in materials or workmanship are uncommon and almost always evident while the product is still new. Keep in mind that bags and packs are often subject to extreme wear in everyday use: do not expect them to last forever. Only true love lasts forever! You can expect a TOM BIHN product to give years and years of hard service.

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