Luggage on the train

Twenty-eight inch rollers are probably big enough no one would take them any way, but cable locking them together would double your security.

One of the problems you may have is that if your cases do not fit in the luggage compartments provided is that you may be required to leave them outside the carriage or in the guards van on rush hour trains.... If at all possible try to pack lighter.

Linda, I know you're not asking this, and I hope you don't mind... But, unless you're young and really strong, traveling with that size luggage on European trains is going to be really challenging and likely to affect your pleasure in traveling. At most stops, you have a minute or two to get your luggage up or down the steps of the train, with people rushing at you from both directions. And if you're transferring, you'll commonly end up hauling your luggage downstairs and the back up again to get to the other track, sometimes at a sprint if your connection is tight. Finally, you don't mention season or locale, but all of this becomes even more challenging in high season, holidays, or weekends, when the trains are crowded. It's really quite manageable to do a month in a 22 inch, even with multiple climates. I'd suggest you look at some of the resources for packing light. You will enjoy your trip more.

Or, you could use a 22" case and a small backpack. Between the two, you'll carry as much as a large suitcase.

I have a "third way" opinion. I agree that a 28 inch suitcase, loaded, is too heavy to take on trains (unless you're a professional weightlifter, it's going to be very hard to heft around). But I sometimes find a 21 inch too small to hold my stuff. I find a 24 inch to be a good compromise; it still fits in many (but not all) overhead racks on trains, and I can still lift it to the overhead rack without strain. It does have to be checked on planes.

The bag will not be loaded at all. I know its a big bag, its been on the Heathrow Express five times and the Paris Roissy bus six. I just hate to buy and store another bag, I have looked at new bags, still looking at them but just hate to buy another! I do have a 21 inch roller but we are travelling in the late fall so with bulky items and wellies it just won't fit. And my husband will overload his 28 incher but that is his deal and his overpacking problem, not mine, although with mine cable locked to his sounds like it will be a good antitheft anchor. We've just never done train travel between countries so was not sure what to expect. I've seen several threads on bags being stolen and securing them. And threads on people just stepping on the train and grabbing a bag and then off. Don't you hate those theft threads! Thanks for the tips.

I didn't understand your comment that "The bag will not be loaded at all." How much does it weigh before you put anything in it? I suspect it weighs at least 10 pounds. That's 1/2 the weight of our "big" bags fully loaded. You might not need those big Wellies. How about a pair of Gore-Tex that would be warmer and more versatile? We went to the Netherlands and Belgium this past April. Cold, windy, rainy and damp it was. It was weird leaving from Tucson's dry heat, but we wore/carried our coats on the plane and wore our heaviest pants and shoes because we knew it would be cold and rainy when we arrived, and it was. We were gone for a month. I took my 22" Lipault spinner and Baggallini hobo tote. My husband took his RS convertible carry-on backpack, a messenger bag and his CPAP. With laundry facilities so easily available, he didn't need anything close to all the clothes as he took. Everything I took went with everything else and I did wear each garment more than 3 times. One sweater, one vest and one cardigan were plenty for layering with Tees and blouses with or without the quilted liner in my coat. A couple of warm scarves were well-used. My husband complained about cold ears, but refused to take my pink scarf when I offered it to him, so he could have used a warm hat or a manly scarf of his own. We have traveled this way for many years. Train travel is a breeze with such small and convenient luggage. I think your biggest issues will be maneuvering those big bags through train stations, on and off trains, and down and up stairs to get to another platform for your connections, not potential theft.