What bag ?

[MrGrumpy]

Bags. rucksacks, courier type.

I currently use a rucksack ( has pocket for camelbak ) to carry stuff into work, but a) it ain`t very water proof and I don`t get much in it. So was thinking of buying something else. Have used panniers before but feel they make the bike unbalanced. So was thinking of a courier type, are they comfy ? Do they move about much, if they do thats no good. Whats the views folks ?



Wrong forum

 

[MrGrumpy]

deleted

 

[MrGrumpy]

thanks, ive posted a similar post in the other forum after spotting my mistake here so appologies if its repeating.

 

[Maz]

How do those courier bags stay in one place? Are they velcroed to your back or is there a rubber sheet on one side or something?

 

[John the Monkey]

How do those courier bags stay in one place? Are they velcroed to your back or is there a rubber sheet on one side or something?

Crumpler use a stabilising strap - it works really well, I find (I have one of their camera bags, and it's superb). Can't speak for the other brands.

 

[MrGrumpy]

halfords have a knog courier bag for £30 so was thinking that, as I also have a £10 voucher for there.

 

[MrGrumpy]

I've merged the two threads for you.

cheers

 

[redjedi]

I use a rucksack I got from Blacks (outdoor adventure store). It's designed for hikers I think, but you can get loads of stuff in it, it has a strap which goes around your waist to hold it in place, and I was surprised to find it is completely waterproof.
And it only cost £25

 

[Danny]

Why not use some form of pannier instead. I find it a real drag to have cycle with something on my back for more than a short distance.

Ortleib, Carradice, and Altura all do briefcase style panniers in addition to the normal touring ones.

 

[Tetedelacourse]

I got a proper cycling rucksack at xmas, a Deuter one which has a rain cover etc, and it's very comfortable to wear. But expensive for a decent sized one, hence I waited til xmas for mine. Worth it though for me.

 

[domtyler]

You just cannot beat proper panniers, I just went the whole hog and bought top of the range Ortliebs, front and back. I have never noticed that my bike feels unbalanced even if one side is significantly heavier than the other. Of course for really heavy loads any kind of body mounted bag is not suitable whereas strapping it to the bike is fine.

 

[goo_mason]

I've been using a Berghaus Freeflow III 30+10 rucksack for almost two years. Good shoulder and waist straps, airflow back, bladder pocket, bags of room for clothes / breakfast / toolkit and spares, comes wih a raincover in a zipped-up pocket on the 'lid'.

For superb waterproofing and visibility, I use a Creative Reflectives reflective/hi-viz waterproof badckpack cover.

 

[Tynan]

panniers unbalance the bike?

since when, granted they do but your brain should counter that

I'm a recent convert to panniers and don't know what I did before, not carrying the world is the only thing to watch out for

 

[CotterPin]

Yep - panniers are the best bet. Why carry the load yourself when you get your bike to do it for you? And they definitely don't affect the balance of your bike - unless you're carrying house bricks.

Having said that I don't tend to use them for commuting.

I have a flashy Crumpler bag which my company bought me to carry my laptop in which I use. It has a little extra strap to hold it in place and my journey to work is not so far that the weight on my back is a problem.

Also I do quite like the fact that with the Crumpler bag when you walk away from the bike (having securely locked it!) you look less like a cyclist. Very handy when you want to merge into the background.

 

[GrahamG]

Now the panniers are getting their praises sung by the land-of-the-flat Londoners only thus far - my perspective on this is that if you have a hilly route and regularly get out the saddle to honk up these bits rather than purely using your gears then you really won't appreciate having the weight on the bike.

Don't get me wrong, for touring or for longer distances (say 8-10+ miles?) they're a no brainer but personally I'd rather have my bike nice and light and the bag on me so I can honk up hills with the bike getting thrown side to side and also carry the bike up and down stairs at stations etc. without crippling my arm thanks to the extra unbalanced weight.

Third thing to consider though is sweaty back - if you change anyway then fine but otherwise this goes in their favour.