Kalamae

Hi I just purchsed a nice Pegout roadie. It's earlly ninties but rides like a charm and is decked out with shimano 600 parts and mavic wheels! Plus it's super light. I'm pretty stoked with it. I'm debating on which bags I want to buy, but damn are they ever expensive (maybe because I live in Canada). Some bags cost about as much as my bike and that really stings a students wallet.

I plan to commute to school mainly. I got some pretty heavy books. But thats about all I'll ever need to carry. What size and qaulity bags would you recommend? A guy at the LBS was trying to sell me these waterproof ones, but they were very pricy like $120 US with tax. Do I need something waterprof? I mean my backpack isn't water-proof and my books have never got wet even in heavy rain. But I guess riding a bike is different. Anyway I'd just like to get your 2 cents on bags.

xyz

Don't get married untill you have to. Oh, the other kind of bag...

Cyclist0383

If you are going to use your bag every day and use it hard, you might consider a higher quality pannier. The Benifits are in the mounting system, design, and materials. I like panniers from the Canadian firm Arkel. They are made in Canada and they are made to last. Arkel has an excellent mounting system and great design to their panniers. Their customer service is the best I've ever encountered from any company in any industry. They are also not cheap. I use the backpack/pannier combo called The Bug. It's an expensive, excellent product. I'd buy it again without a second thought.

dbg

You'll get some messenger bag VS backpack answers to that question as well. I just don't get the messenger bag thing. I much prefer a backpack with a waist strap and maybe a strap connecting the shoulder straps. It doesn't bounce around and distributes weight very evenly on by back. And they are relatively cheap and plentiful.

BeTheChange

What distance is your commute? If it is less than a few miles a backpack won't kill you (or your wallet because you can use the current pack you have). If it's much further I'd second the Arkel stuff. Especially if you are just starting college because it will last all through your college years and beyond I'd imagine. I have a Bug and the grocery pannier. The bug really is built well. This is one of those instances where you really get what you pay for with the brand name. The bug also has a rain cover you can buy seperately if you really want to (which I have and works well) but you could just as easily keep a small trash bag in one of the pockets to protect the corners of your books from getting wet. I don't know much about the cheaper panniers but I've never had a problem with my bags. Hope that helped.

dragonfoxmem

I would get standard backpack with stuff bagged inside. I used to collect "newspaper bags" from LA Times. They are good bags, they has double-layer bags.

If you would be not able to get this bags, you can get store bags, but you have to double them to be safe.

I am not worrying about backpack being wet because it will be wet anyway.

CBBaron

A good quality messenger bag like a Chrome will be comfortable, waterproof and durable. It should work well for your college carreer and beyond. However a much less expensive backpack with some cheap plastic bags for when it rains will do the job. I spent nearly as much on my Chrome as my bike but I have an income so the expense was not that big of deal, I just wanted something that would work without any worries on my part.
Craig