Touring - Ortlieb product

Hello everyone,
I was curious if anyone was familiar with Ortlieb panniers? I like the idea of a complete waterproof bag, but how do they hold up in other areas such as durability and organization. I currently live in a high altitude desert, i.e. Colorado, so rain is not a problem here, but I do plan to travel to greener pasture where rain is an issue. Are rain covers on other panniers as efficiant as they claim to be? Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
Cheers!
Lee

Waterproof bags are a bit of a problem. Not only do they keep water out, but they keep water in, as well.

Hi,
I looked at the Ortlieb Panniers but they are basically just one thick bag...no internal pockets or anything. (no seams as that is where the water gets in) great if you will be riding in deep water but not for me. They get top marks for durability...zero for organisation.

I have the Deuter Ruck Pak II panniers and they have not leaked for me yet. To be sure maybe rub some seam sealer gel on the seams. They come with bright coloured rain covers which make them really waterproof. I only suggest making a small hole in the rain cover at the bottom as water does gather there. (It cant get in the pannier though)

I have Ortlieb panniers and like them very much. Commute to work, usually a pannier on one side and an office bag on the other, lunch I carry in the handlebar bag. These are all quite durable. There are two types of panniers, one, which will keep the rain out while right-side-up, another, the roller bag, which can be thrown into water and stay water tight. I am in southern California, so we don't have much rain here, but my office bag is the roller type, so that my PC stays protected. I don't want water to get into my papers or PC even once. I carry my clothes, etc. in the pannier, which is just a tie-type, not a roller. All works just great. Easy to put on/off the bike, strong, reliable and very clever design. They are purposely avoiding zippers, since those can be unreliable at the worst time, and have very many other, subtle clever features. The bags are really plain on the inside. I prefer to have an internal flexibility, rather than being constrained by internal pocket sizes, but it does sometimes require some smaller bags or something to keep your load logically organized, but I never really felt that there should be internal compartments, because these are invariably just a little too small for some items. Packing the panniers really isn't all that different from packing an empty suitcase. If I were to shop for more bike bags and panniers, I would definitely go for Ortlieb again.

I have a friend that has Ortlieb panniers and loves them...said they were good on the boat, too.

He told me that he met up with some Germans cycling cross country. At the campground at the end of the day they filled an Ortlieb with ice to keep their beer cold. They also would fill one with water, soap and dirty laundry, ride a while, then rinse.

Seems like a pretty verstile piece of equipment!