Commuting - Has anyone tried Basil Panniers?

Guys,
my LBS now carries this brand of Panniers and bags. The clerk said they are from The Netherlands, checked the website but no reviews. Has anyone used them? Are they good?

I'd appreciate any comments.

Ricardo

PS: BTW, the website is www.basil.nl

As far as I am aware, no one carries them in the U.S. I've seen them before - they sure are attractive. You'll have to be our tester. :)

Reminds me of the Rivendell bags. Are yours waterproof?

This, however, seems like a bad idea :D

From the Basil website:

http://www.basil.nl/img/plu02.jpg

Well, mine seem waterproof... right now I am out of town but I will keep you guys posted as soon as I try them out.

Cheers,

Ricardo

I've been wondering about them for a while now as well.
Which set did you get?

I got the Basil Tour XL. 41 liters of cargo capacity.

Ricardo

Those are very neat-looking. Do you commute to work with them? They are the sort of pannier that one could bring into a meeting in a business casual workplace and you wouldn't stick out too badly. Nice. :)

(I want a pair of the pretty, girly ones for the fun of it. :D )

I wouldn't be too sure of their "corporate" look, but luckily they are large enough to hold everything I need.

Ricardo.

I'm very close to buying the laptop or office bag, but I need some kind of affirmation that they hold up and have a decent and convenient attachment system

Clever Cycles in Portland carries them. They are very cool. They have a lot of feminine style bags, a laptop bag, and some nice grocery bags. One drawback is the double panniers are designed for Netherland width racks which are bigger than your standard US rack so the double panniers may sag slightly. Also many of their double panniers are designed to stay on the bike which I wasn't comfortable with.

They are amazing! I want that one:
http://www.basil.nl/producten/17018L.jpg

They have an excellent reputation amongst the Dutch and Danish commuters. I have been looking at the Karavan 2 (http://velo-orange.com/baka2pa.html) for my utility bike.

Aaron:)

http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/yhst-84224226242177_2004_8005455

This, however, seems like a bad idea :D

From the Basil website:

http://www.basil.nl/img/plu02.jpg

Actually I kind of like that concept...keeps me from having to hold it in my hand:eek:

Aaron:)

Actually I kind of like that concept...keeps me from having to hold it in my hand:eek:

Aaron:)

You would hope it would work like a spinnaker with a tailwind, but I kind of think not.

As far as I am aware, no one carries them in the U.S. I've seen them before - they sure are attractive. You'll have to be our tester. :)

Here's a couple
http://www.velo-orange.com/bapaandba.html

Yea, they're actually fairly common now - but this thread was originally from a year ago.

Glad I read the comment about rack width. I was considering getting a set of the Blossoms for my wife but her rack certainly isn't dutch-width.

You would hope it would work like a spinnaker with a tailwind, but I kind of think not.

Did it not work for Mary Poppins?:thumb:

Aaron

Another US supplier:

Bags/panniers: http://www.niagaracycle.com/index.php?cPath=202_275

Front baskets: http://www.niagaracycle.com/index.php?cPath=90_176

I bought my wife the Basimply II from these guys after we returned from a touring trip of the Netherlands.

http://www.niagaracycle.com/images/sbsimages/140466md.jpg

So far, it seems bombproof. We saw a lot of the Basil panniers over there -- they have a very good reputation.

These could get my wife to run errands on her bike:
http://www.niagaracycle.com/images/sbsimages/140492.jpg
$42???

These make me want to build a whole new bike around them:
http://www.niagaracycle.com/images/sbsimages/140522.jpg

Here's a set on my new bike. I haven't had them long enough to know how they'll hold up, but I leave them on the bike all the time. They are supposed to be water resistent but I think that water will get inside if you're caught in a storm due to the closure flap. It doesn't overlap the sides at all. But it's perfect for picking up some groceries on the way home. I've had no problem putting them on the North-American size rack. They're quite roomy, and you can't beat the look of them! ;) (For whatever reason I couldn't get the pic to show up so here's a link to it)

http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=78281&d=1218212051

You link still doesn't work btw.

Here's a set on my new bike. I haven't had them long enough to know how they'll hold up, but I leave them on the bike all the time. They are supposed to be water resistent but I think that water will get inside if you're caught in a storm due to the closure flap. It doesn't overlap the sides at all. But it's perfect for picking up some groceries on the way home. I've had no problem putting them on the North-American size rack. They're quite roomy, and you can't beat the look of them! ;) (For whatever reason I couldn't get the pic to show up so here's a link to it)

http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=78281&d=1218212051

Thanks JeffS; got the pic working.

No, you didn't.
Looks like you are trying to link to a bikeforums.net url.

No, you didn't.
Looks like you are trying to link to a bikeforums.net url.

Really! Hmmm. It's showing up on my screen. Here; I'll try and attach it as a file.

Ah, there ya go.
Cute ride.

usa - seattle bike supply has them listed on its website. bikethreads.com sells online. to add to dealer possibilities.

i still haven't gotten a feel for how durable the material and hooks are relative to arkel and ortlieb?

the bags are beautiful