Thorn Cycles Forum
Technical => Luggage => Topic started by: alcyst on June 19, 2016, 07:51:58 pm
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Looking for advice on carrying modest amounts of luggage.
I used to commute, and could get by bringing a large messenger bag in and out once a week. Now I have a changed routine and need to carry 2 locks most times I go out. I put them in a rucksack. The rucksack can also carry light shopping. Rucksacks lead to too-warm backs, can carry light shopping, and can be detached easily from the bike for security. They also block out my choice of jersey or jacket. There are some jerseys that deserve not to be covered: http://cyclingtips.com/2015/03/whats-cool-in-cycling-kits-in-2015/
Panniers need a rear rack, and add weight to the back of my already rear-heavy Mercury? Frame bags might rub off paint and would have to stay on the bike?
Which have people had experience with?
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I posted this link to some new rear rack design that might work for you
https://www.tailfin.cc/
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Which have people had experience with?
Hmm.
Maybe a Carradice saddlebag riding on a Bagman frame with q/r mount? It would hold the bag clear of both thighs and paintwork and obviates the need for a dedicated rear rack, though it has a ~10kg weight limit as I recall and the Bagman does weigh something -- 402g for a Bagman Sport.
I offer this suggestion coming recently myself to consider a Carradice Camper Longflap as a means to carry a lightweight camping outfit for overnights between long day rides. Carradices come in a variety of sizes and it seems to me not a lot of space would be needed for two locks and some light shopping.
Almost any other alternative (bar Ian's very helpful suggestion) would risk paint or require a separate rear rack.
That said, if you do go for a rear rack then you have a number of options to fit your needs. You could fit a rack-top pack (rack pack) or carry one or two smallish panniers (I go with two, as riding with one takes a toll on my back after awhile). A rack could also support a saddlebag, eliminating the need for a Carradice Bagman support. For such a minimal load, a lightweight rack alone would not add much to your rearward weight bias. A Tubus Airy weighs only 230g., half of a Bagman Sport Adding cargo to it, however, could make a noticeable difference.
Best,
Dan.
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I use a traditional Carradice saddlebag on my lightweight 700C bike, for me its enough for two locks, clothing, food, etc. on day rides.
One of the bigger "modern" under-saddle packs might work, I have no experience of these. Or a large handlebar bag, but I don't like them myself.
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I use the carradice saddlebags and bagman QR clamp with the thorn rear rack on my club tour and the bagman support on my commuter and never notice the weight.
If you don't want to fit a traditional rear rack then you could try the Nitto R10 rear rack (link below), coupled with a rack pack, can't comment on how effective this would be as I've no experience with this combination, but it was one I was looking at before settling on the carradice setup
https://www.velovitality.co.uk/products/nitto-r10-rear-bag-support (https://www.velovitality.co.uk/products/nitto-r10-rear-bag-support)
Carlos
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i bought one of these to use instead of a rack or saddlebag support
(http://static.testbike.hu/images/rvattpic/Trelock-LL400-2011-lakat-LA.jpg?2012-09-25%2020:08:00)
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Trelock-LL-400-106-260-Lock/dp/B000K2TQRQ (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Trelock-LL-400-106-260-Lock/dp/B000K2TQRQ)
two/three birds one stone 8) , rack and d lock and mudguard combined (if you use the supplied cover)
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thanks for the ideas
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I've got two "bum bags" by Carradice. I have the Nelson longflap Lowsadle and the Super C Audax. Both are nice but both miss the mark for me. The Audax is really just for Audax - at 9 litters it does not hold enough for me to ever actually take it and the Longflap is more right size wise but I still would go for a larger bag, just by a bit, and I really get annoyed with the day-to-day operation of the old style leather flaps. So now with what I've learned from spending too much money is that I should have gotten the "Supper C Saddlebag" ( http://www.carradice.co.uk/index.php?page_id=product&under=range&product_id=33 ) not only is it large but something about the shape of the lowsadle Longflap makes it hard to fit things in, I find.
I'm completely enamored of the quality of build and the whole approach to cycling gear that Carradice exhibits. Love their stuff, and there is something for everyones tastes, pretty much. But the road to finding what tastes "best" be a long and expensive one.
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When this was initially posted I was out of town, thus did not comment earlier.
I often use a quick release rack that clamps on to my seatpost on my foldup bike. Have a rack top bag on that rack. When I lock up the bike, I take the rack and rack top bag off as one unit.
I have a frame bag that I occasionally use on my Nomad. I cut some rubber inner tube strips and wrap those around the frame (I put some tension on the rubber while doing this to make it grip tighter), then wrap double sided velcro over that to hold the inner tube rubber in place. That is to protect the paint. The frame bag straps go on top of that. This way I get no paint abrasion.
I did try wrapping some electrical tape over the paint, but when I took that off the clear coat stayed on the tape. Unfortunately, the adhesion of the paint was weaker than the adhesive bond of the tape. So, DO NOT use electrical tape on a yellow Nomad frame. I however previously did this on a black Sherpa and the paint stayed on the frame like it should.
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Like George, I'm coming to this thread a bit late--I was touring in the Western Mountains in June/July.
Arkel has a range of lightweight bags, here: http://www.arkel-od.com/en/randonneur-series.html (http://www.arkel-od.com/en/randonneur-series.html)
I have some experience with a Revelate frame bag (the Tangle, it's called, fits below the top tube, anchored at both ends and across the top tube). This is very handy--I use it for my rain gear, click-Stand, and such--and is well-made and durable. Not cheap, but high quality. No problems at all with the straps marring the matte black paint on my Raven.
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If you have a rack already, I've found the most convenient thing in everyday use to be Basil Cardiff pannier basket. It's open at the top and wire netting at the sides, but that's easily fixed by putting a cloth shopping bag into it. It fixes onto the rack side rail or pannier rail by wire hooks and I run a canvas belt same colour as my bike behind the seatstays and across the bottom of the basket to stop it banging, so it is quick to take off but I rarely take it off. You can use two but I just use one, because that's plenty of space for my needs. I just chuck whatever I want to carry -- pochade box or easel and other painting gear, jacket, rain gear, shopping, book to read under a tree in a field -- into the bag in the basket and if I stop in my low-crime town I fold the top of the bag over whatever is in the basket or take the bag with me. The whole setup is much more convenient than panniers and much more spacious than a rack top bag.
(https://static.bike24.com/i/p/5/6/16965_00_c.jpg)
Basil's Cardiff Pannier Basket
(http://coolmainpress.com/miscimage/pedelec/338_rear_60_metres_zoomed.jpg)
One of my bikes, with luggage that proved inadequate to the photographic gear I wanted to carry, so I fitted the pannier basket. On this occasion I was riding at night, so I used a high-viz strap. These days I leave off the fancy leather luggage and keep the basket on the bike permanently, though with a less garish bike-colour strap.
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What happens when it rains, Andre? Do you pile the lot of your possessions into a dry sack before dropping it into the basket(s)?
Just curious. Any rain would surely drain through the mesh sides quickly enough, so none to speak of left behind...just wondering how you keep it out and things dry.
All the best,
Dan.
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What happens when it rains, Andre? Do you pile the lot of your possessions into a dry sack before dropping it into the basket(s)?
The pannier basket is rarely used bare. There is always a bag of some kind standing in it, and the top can be folded over contents. That jute bag in the photo above is waterproof to an hour of heavy rain, and I also have one of those sprayed with Nikwax (stuff for waterproofing goretex mountain jackets and boots) which will shrug off the deluge for an unlimited time. Also, the local supermarkets sell plasticized canvas shopping bags of the same sort, and a local deli gives their own branded one away, so I have a choice of browns and greens to match the bike. Also, permanently on my bike is a very fine crepe de chine (you dirty boys!) bag that folds up tiny and is waterproof, for emergencies when I'm caught without a sturdy bag in the basket. Finally, if I'm in a desperate downpour, I can buy a sturdy plastic shopping bag at any foodstore I pass, or a huge frozen food carrier with a sealable, waterproof top (dunno what it costs -- always took one from home when the occasion called for it). Basil's Cardiff pannier basket is shaped and dimensioned to take the common European shopping plastics, or the big brown paper bag you can still see sometimes at rural American stores.
I'm not talking about touring, you know, just about keeping your stuff dry for an hour or two without the wretched inconvenience of unrolling those Ortlieb rolltops or unstrapping British panniers or saddlebags, which gets your hands wet and cold. With my arrangements I never take off my leather dress gloves.
Horses for courses: the carthorse from Basil over a lot of tracks is faster than the speediest thoroughbred from Ortlieb. In my town, at any of the supermarkets, by the time you've unstrapped a Nelson Longflap while you stuff gets rained on, I've chucked my stuff in the bag in the basket, flipped the bag top over to keep it dry, and am home, my bike dried off, and looking out of the door, saying, "Oh, those poor cyclists in their lycra, with their smart cycling-specific luggage, suffering under a little rain."
Far too much bicycle gear is far too specialized, far too pricey, totally useless and counterproductive in all but the very narrowest of circumstances. I probably own, or have owned and sold or gave away, a couple of grand's worth of panniers and saddlebags and other bike luggage, and that Basil Cardiff Pannier Basket is by far the most useful, most versatile, and longest-lasting bike luggage I've ever owned. I bought a pair and in September will retire the one which has given a dozen years' service and replace it with the unused one, and buy another to keep as a spare or for the extremely rare occasions when I need two. It still works but is starting to show a spot of rust here and there.
If you don't like the Cardiff style of fixed smart basket, there is an American collapsible type available that sits flush to the rear triangle until required, then is released and self-assembles, being held in position by the gear on the hinge in the bottom of the basket.
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I'm not talking about touring, you know, just about keeping your stuff dry for an hour or two...
Gotcha, Andre; thanks! :)
All the best,
Dan.