RLHawk

I would like to start using panniers on my commuter in order to carry my laptop. Its has been pointed out to me that putting a laptop in a pannier will eliminate the bottom taper and may cause heal clearance issues.

I commute on my old racing bike, so there are several factors working against me:
- no eyelets
- short chain stays, 410mm
- ritchey dropouts, i.e. sculpted such that quick release mounting system will not work

Working for me is the fact that it is steel, so I am confident that using a clap eyelet adapters will be ok. Also, I use clipless pedals and road racing shoes that have a slim heal cup.

Other particulars: frame size is 56, I am 5'11', shoe size 45, crank length 172.5.

I am trying to avoid use of a back pack as my commute is relatively long.

What I am considering is the
- Tubus Logo Rack: https://www.ortliebusa.com/cartgenie/...p?pid=81&cid=3
rack which claims to allow for more heal clearance, and
- Ortlib Back Roller Plus Panniers: https://www.ortliebusa.com/cartgenie/...p?pid=29&cid=2
which I have been told have a mounting system what will allow them to be set very far back on the rack.

Other options I have considered, but not look into much are the Arkel Bug or Briefcase, or Ortlib office-bag. The downside is, they are costly, particularly since they are sold in singles. I also want to make a rack and pannier purchase that will allow for some weekend trips. These options seem so specific to office commuting, I worry they will be limited for touring.

Any other suggestions? Or comments? Should I just pull the trigger on the Logo rack and Ortlib Back Roller Plus and figure out a way to make it work?

Thanks for your help,
Matt

hajime

I had a similar problem to yours. I called Wayne at the touring store www.thetouringstore.com and we went back and forth. Wayne had me send jpegs of the bike and the mounting problems I had. He also asked for chainstay length and shoe size to figure out what would work. He has all sorts of adapters for the Tubus racks. His prices are fair and his customer service is better than anything I've seen so I would try him. Good luck. He has a toll free number.

O-Town

I use Jandd small size Huricane panniers for my laptop. There not made specificly for a laptop but they work well. I use a piece of styrafoam as padding.

oboeguy

Interesting thread. On the folder with the QR rack, the fat, walkable commuter shoes heel strike is very difficult to avoid (short chainstays -- 20" wheels!). I can arrange things (barely) so that the rack is pretty far back but the rear of the panniers flap around and rub the tire when going over bumps. Bah. Fortunately, I like backpack commuting so the rack is rarely used for commuting.

rando

I have the Novara round town Panniers from REI. 55 bucks for two. they fold up and down ...I have a slightly smaller bike than you (55) and I don't get heel strike... I just position the panniers so they are as far back as they can go on the rack.

centexwoody 

I use the Arkel Commuter bag on an OMM Cold Spring rear rack. The Commuter bag has a laptop cushioned section in it. I'm 6'5", ride a 62 cm Surly LHT with 180 MM cranks and wear size 16 shoes. The Arkel bag was hitting my heels until I put a small nut&bolt onto the rear rack so that I could slide the Arkel onto it and keep it very far back, farther than it would 'normally' ride on the rack. I ride with PowerGrips and regular shoes and haven't had any heel strike since.

One of the OMM (Old Man Mountain) racks (I think it is the Cold Spring) has a different geometry to its stays and, at least from reading about every rack I could, seems to offer about as much heel clearance as one can get. I've been very happy with my setup.

WickerParkRider

I use a backpack to carry the laptop in the winter and the Breezer Biz Pannier in the summer (my back gets too sweaty with a backpack in the summer). When I bought the pannier a couple of years ago I had to switch racks b/c of heel clearance issues. The Jandd Expedition rack runs about 3 inches longer than most and solved the problem. It's also nice and sturdy for pet food, cat litter, beer, etc.

RLHawk

Funny you should suggest it. Wayne is who pointed the particular issues with carrying a laptop and the shape of my drop outs. Maybe I will give him another call

Thanks,
Matt

RLHawk

My ride is fairly long ~1:15 - 1:45 depending on wind and how my legs feel that day. At least for me, thats a fairly long way to go with a backpack.

donnamb 

I have the Carradice Bike Bureau. The hooks and catches are at an angle, so as to prevent heel strike altogether. It looks office-y, but it also holds a ton of stuff, so you can use it for non-work endeavors. I actually take it into meetings at work. It's completely waterproof, but it also breathes, so no mustiness. I reviewed it in greater detail here. Here's what it looks like on the bike:

RLHawk

Looks good on your bike, but I am still dealing with a road bike (racing geometry) that has very short chain stays. I have been playing around with hold a bag and shoes up to my bike to get a better idea on what I am dealing with. Looks like any pannier what extends forward of the seatstay will clip my heal.

Jinks

I'm also commuting on an old steel race bike with short chainstays. I use the Delta Mega Rack Sport, which comes with the hardware to mount directly onto the frame without eyelets (at least for the bottom of the rack). For the front of the rack, I just use the supplied adapter to attach it to the rear brake bolt. Then I use the Novara Commuter Pannier, which allows me to adjust my heel clearance by adjusting the sliding rear bottom clamp to tilt the pannier to be out of the way. There is a laptop sleeve made to fit in the pannier that hangs the laptop rather than having it rest on the bottom of the bag. I haven't tried the sleeve yet, since I don't normally bring my laptop with me. I've been really happy with this setup. The rack is really cost effective, and the pannier isn't too pricey, and it works great! I had an alternate plan that if this setup didn't work, I'd get a longer rack, so that I could mount it even further back to help with heel clearance. But really, the only way to know is put it all on and see if it works.

RLHawk

Much agreed.

When I started looking into panniers I went to REI, but got side tracked by cool looking Nitto and Tubus racks. Maybe I will go back to REI and just go with the economical solution. If it doesn't work, at least I won't be out a ton of cash, and I will be able to at least hold the rack and panniers to my bike before buying.

-Matt

hajime

RLHawk -- while REI is not cheap you can return anything at any time so it's the best place to experiment. Start cheap then if you are still unsatisfied, you can then go to the expensive Tubus stuff. I finally settled on the Tubus rack with adapters after trying a number of things and I'm really happy with it but it was really expensive.

DogBoy

Have you thought about putting a front rack (supported by the axle) on your bike? That would solve the heel clearence issue completely.

velo2000

I used one of these to carry my panniers while commuting on my road bike last summer:

For only $15, it's a cheap solution. It mounts a bit higher than a usual rear rack, so heel clearance isn't an issue for me. Nashbar doesn't list a weight limit for the rack, but I believe I read someplace that it was 20 lbs. And since it's quick release, you can take the rack off easily. They make non quick release versions too.

Allen

I have a similar situation, a Salsa La Raza, and my eyelets were obscured by the hub I use. I went with a Tubus Fly rack, it is very light and has 3 attach points, the top one being the brake bridge. I initially used P-Clamps to install it, but after breaking several I bought the Tubus clamps, the hold better and hold the rack away from the frame more, allowing for better clearance.


The bag I use for lugging my laptop is an Osprey Torque, it has simi-ridig sides, and with a few carribeaners through its lash-on loops, worked well as a pannier. Fully loaded though I would end up kicking it. I bought some replacement parts for Ortlieb panniers and mounted them, best panniers I own now.


click image for full info on the pannier.

aadhils

Get a front rack instead of a rear one...

LandLuger

+1 on a new rack. The Jandd Expedition will fit the shortwheelbase of a road bike. I use one on my Trek 1000 and it looks made for the bike.

Get a commute specific shoe and move the cleats all the way back as practical?

M_S

I fail to see how this is practical. Remember, this is a racing bike. While it presumably has a steel fork, I'm sure it won't have any eyelets. Also, even back panniers moved as far back as they can go will have a better weight balance than the same weight load on a front rack with nothing in the back. Front racks are great, but I tend to view them as something to use in addition to a rear rack, and a way to balance out a load on a fully-loaded touring bike.

Edit: I'm speaking only from my own personal experience. Certainly there are bikes that use just front racks, but I am leary of them. If you do go with a front rack, it would have to be balanced relatively low, I think.

BikeManDan

I just bought some Axiom Champlains and I really like that they use a rubberized hook system to mount to the rack. That means you can position them as far back or as far forward as you want. With most racks you shouldn't have a problem putting them far enough back to avoid heel strike

DogBoy

I recommended this too, but only because there are a large number of front racks out there that are not dependant on eyelets. I would be cautious about balancing too, but if nothing works in the rear, the front would definately eliminate heel-strike....might come up with a new problem though. OP asked for options. This IS an option.

aadhils

I too am speaking from personal experience. A majority of front racks are designed to have panniers very low. I had only a front rack for commuting for over a year with great success...

Here's a pic:



p.s. Most racks have adapters for forks without eyelets...

RLHawk

I'm going to give my messenger bag a go for a few rides to see how it is. If I can minimize when I have to carry my laptop (at least Monday morning and Friday evening), it may be good enough. Its a bit of a ride (~48 miles round trip) for a bag, but well see.

My bike does have a carbon fork, so front rack is out.

drroebuck

+1. I just bought a Tubus cargo from Wayne and he was awesome. One of the best shopping experiences I can remember.

Another thought, I've strapped my backpack onto the top of the rack using a Delta cargo net I bought at REI. This wouldn't work with the racks with the smaller top surface, such as the Luna, but it's worked fantastically with my Topeak (the rack I had before I bought the Cargo, and with similar width).