carry on luggage weight problem

For what it is worth, as I suspect it depends on the local check in staff, I flew Lufthansa last week from Malaga to Frankfurt and no one even bothered to look at my carry on luggage. I suspect it weighed more than 8kg. My checked luggage was 1 kilo over and no comment was made either on that. In my experience, the mainstream carriers are not especially pedantic about this carry on weight, unlike the budget carriers, but I think some airlines are trying to restrict the numbers of people who wish to carry on quite large suitcases and bags, which clog the space, people find difficult to lift etc. I will admit to not being a carry on convert, for anything other than a short trip and then I would have difficulty keeping it below about 11 - 12 kgs.

I think it varies so much that it is impossible to give a definite answer beyond it depends. We frequently use Lufthansa and have stood in several check-in lines where every carry on piece was placed in a sizing box but no weighting. I would guess that Lufthansa is more concerned about size than weight. We just completed a six legged trip with Delta in the US and on the fourth leg just at the gate my wife was asked to put her wheeled carry on in the sizing box. If failed because it was too fat. She had stuffed in a couple items that made it budge a hit OK after transferring those items to my bag. But the same bag had rolled pass three other gates with no problems but that they were being very strict as others were being singled out also. If you are carrying 40 lb it is too much. If you get closer to 10 to 25 you should be OK.

What do I do? I pack light. I have a non-wheeled convertible bag that weighs 1¾ lb, and I pack it with about 9 lb of only essential things. Bottom line, less than 11 lb. I've never had to put my bag in the sizing box, but I have had my bag weighed, twice. If I can stay below 11 lb, you can stay below 18.

IMO - 40 lbs is pretty heavy. How do you get around with that much weight? Check out Rick's packing list for advice. I find that on subsequent trips - I pack less and less. I don't want to check my luggage. The last thing I want is to have arrived in Europe without my stuff. I do bring a travel tote bag. On the trip back, I check my bag and the extra stuff is put in the tote bag for carry-on. Usually souvenirs, etc.

thanks for the help.
I should have also mentioned that I have to pack a CPAP machine which eats up several pounds of my carryon.

Camille beat me to the punch regarding so much weight, but I understand with the machine adding quite a bit of weight. My question is what is the size of your carry on, that will be one of the determining factors, if not the determining factor of allowing you to bring into the cabin and not check it, just using my imagination a 40 lb seems like it will be too big for a carry on. I've taken much less and my bag had to be checked, for example a backpack weighing 21 lbs.

Lynn- It is my understanding that the CPAP (if carried in it's own seperate bag) will not count as part of your carry on allowance. CHECK WITH THE AIRLINE and if possible get written permission (have them email or fax it to you and print it out). I sometimes have to carry a nebulizer and it has always been "allowed" as a serpate item and did not count as part of my weight or # of bags allowance. Just put the CPAP in it's own small bag (its safer that way anyway). You will need to tell TSA that you have it- they MAY want to inspect it.

There are tricks to making a carry-on lighter for the weigh-in (if there even is a weigh-in - you'll never know until you're there). They don't weigh your "personal item" aka purse or daypack, so put your heaviest items in there. Also, they don't weigh your person, so some people take those travel vests with tons of pockets and put their heavy stuff in there. Once past the weigh-in, you can put it all back in the carry-on. FWIW, we flew Alitalia this past May and their website says they have an 8 kg limit. However at JFK, the woman at the check-in said it was a 10 kg limit. She weighed our 2 carry-on bags and they came in at about 12 kg. She told us that was "a little bit over" the allowed 10 kg. We told her we could shift some things around, meaning put them in our "personal item" bag. She just smiled and handed us our boarding passes. We didn't have to do anything. So at least with Alitalia, there's an inconsistency with their policy and depending on the person you end up in front of. Then on our return flight we flew Air France. We walked right through the "carry on weighing station" rolling our bags behind us and they just waved us on through.

Hi- I would recommend checking your bag so you do not have to worry about if your carry on is within the limit. Then just bring your CPap in a carry on with a few essentials. I have been to Europe many times and have not had a problem with luggage being lost. Including USA to Europe and connecting flights within Europe. Also-you have to be able to lift/stow and retrieve your carry on by yourself. There has to be more consideration for fellow passengers! With all these bulky carry on suitcases like the 21" cases-it holds up others being able to exit the plane more quickly when you have to wait for people to pull down all their carry ons. Quite annoying ! And then you have to allow space as they are dragged behind them and often you get bumped by their luggage..
Oh and the stow away hogs with the 21" suitcase and a second carry on !