Touring - Pannier Volume

What sort of range in volumes are there for panniers over the rear wheel? I'd like to get an idea. I have seen 40 and 50 liter sizes. Is this the norm? It seems to me that it shouldb't be too hard to get all ones stuff in a 50 liters worth of space. Thats the equivalent for a fair sized backpack.

Spire:
I've got the panniers from Mountain Equipment Coop. They are listed at 43 L for the pair? (What does that mean?)
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=14075&bmUID=1044827862480

It's kind of hard to judge how big they are without seeing them since no one I know thinks in litres...I think metric, but litres doesn't make me think height, depth, width.
I've toured with them for a couple of years, including trips to Europe. I am a credit card tourer, so I don't require the extra capacity. They were more than adequate enough, and I also use one for everyday winter and summer use.
That said, I'm a careful packer and I also compress things in those travelling baggies to save space.

I hope this helps.

The last time my pannier fell of my rack, I could hardly even hear it. They must be low-volume panniers, then..................

So that's why my hi-volume bags are so damn loud!!
LOL
The bags I got from performance

http://www.performancebike.com/product_images/400/20_0421.jpg

are 2878 Cubic inches and that equals 47.162 Liters. That said they do seem kind of small to me.... less stuff equals less weight though.
Doug

Big? you want big? Arkel TT-82....yep 82 liters! We use a pair on our Screamer, with two smaller bags under the stokers seat. See
http://www.arkel-od.com/ for more info on the Arkel bags. Great stuff, well made.

Thanks guys. I do have an addition quesiton. Are pannier volumes typically expessed in size per pair or size each?

BTW : I do think in volume because I know how much stuff I can fit into a dm^3 (decimeter cubed or 1 litre). Independant of pack shape.

opps 84 liters

Panniers are measured individually. I have toured with 90 litres on the back and about 36 on the front and find this to be a good balance. I also add a daypack with all the extras like shoes, lock etc. on top of the back ones and have a handlebar bag for camera, money, maps etc. up front. I find that the more space you have the more the kilos add up. I found that with just rear panniers my bike was rear heavy and difficult to handle at times, mostly when moving through tight spaces and while walking the bike. After spending a pile of money on bags I really think a trailer would be more practical, although I have never tried one. Some panniers come with lots of pockets, which I found annoying when you have to find something fast. Better to have things like tools, for example in one small bag that is say red and socks in another small one that is green. This is also helpful when you are trying to ballance the bike.
Gordon P

Most (all?) panniers are sized per set (i.e. the right and left pair).

You compare panniers with backpacks. My backpacking experience is 20-25 years old, but there are a few differences between backpacking and bike packing:

- Even self-contained touring (also called loaded touring) is done much closer to civilisation than backpacking. It's hard to be away from everything for more than 2-3 days. Of course, if you plan a ride alongst the Dempster highway (NWT) or if you use the bike to go camping for 3 weeks in a forest North of La Tuque, that's a different situation.

- Unless your load is limited -- for credit-card touring, for example -- your bike will handle much better if your load is split between front and rear. There isn't a perfect concensus, but 40% rear - 60% front (or the opposite) gives you good handling. If you take Arkel's offerings <http://www.panniers.com>, the rear GT-54 goes with the front GT-30, for a total of 84 L.
I use a set of GT-54, but place T-42 in front; I usually place heavy stuff like tools and food in front, and clothing in the rear.

- It's easy to strap things on the rear rack. While some frown at the idea (especially pannier makers), the rack is a good place to tie a bulky item like tent, sleeping bag and mattress, etc. This unofficial sorage might be worth 30 L. I also sometimes tie food items that will be eaten shortly thereafter.

-

I have done fully loaded touring (tent, sleeping bag, stove, clothing for two weeks and a day or two's food ) using a pair of Ortelieb rear panniers of about 20L each, plus an Ortelieb 30L stuff sack half full on the rear rack and a 6 liter bar bag - So about 70 Liters in total, which is the same capacity as a large backpacking rucksack.

If more space is needed for say food or other small but heavy items, then a pair if 15 liter (each) panniers could be fitted to the front fork/wheel

I have manged in the past to travel for upto 3 months with the contents of a 70 liter rucksack.

I notice a lot of people seem to want the BOB trailers. Frankly unless you have a non-conventional bike ie full suspension, or a tandem or a 'bent, (or do the weekly shopping on a bike) I can't really see the need for such things with a converntional touring bike on a conventional two day or two week tour.

Remember you are carrying it, so pack and repack until you can fit all you need in less than 70 liters

Panniers are measured individually. I have toured with 90 litres on the back and about 36 on the front and find this to be a good balance.
:confused:
Sorry I am confused! They are measured as a pair. This makes more sense when I consider that my backpack is 60 litres and I certainly don't carry 126 plus litres of gear!
My apologies.
Gordon p

I just recently purchased a set of Schwinn Traverse panniers on clearance. I think they have a capacity of just over 40L each.

I am going to try a little weekend touring this summer and this is why I purchased the panniers.

Reading up on ultralight backpacking and bicycle touring, I get the idea that they are very similar.

Ken Kiefer (http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/touring/index.htm) has some excellent pages on the subject; however he travels like a sultan (50lb worth of gear) compared to ultralight hikers on 2-3 day trips with food (20-30lbs of gear).

My goal is to come in at about 20-30lbs split between 2 panniers for a weekend pedal-camp-pedal getaway.

regards
Dan

Originally posted by Gordon P
I find that the more space you have the more the kilos add up.

Exactly. I once took 30mins or so to check out each individual item in my panniers after a week's loaded tour. I wanted to see what had been useful and what had not. Also why.

I was amazed to see the amount of useless junk I had hauled with me. After that I've tried to come down to 50-60 litres, but I definitely want to split the load between front / rear. Both sets of panniers combined I have something like 70+ litres of capacity, not counting handlebar bag and racktop. I try very hard not to fill it all.

--J

I have two side bags rated at 72 liter total, a rear rack rated at 40 liter, and a rear BOB trailer bag rated at 150 liter. I carry way too much stuff when I tour, but I always seem to use every piece I take.:(