First impressions of a Brooks Millbrook
 

I'm not as happy as I expected. I had the dimensions when I ordered, but it sure looks bigger than it measures. Oh well. Sometimes big is what you want. First time I tried to mount up, though, I fell over. My right leg hung up on the left side of the bag, and over I went. Like clipless pedals, I guess there's a learning curve.

A more serious problem; it's not totally compatable with the Brooks Champion Flyer. It mounts to the rear of the seat as expected, but the Champion Flyer has springs that keep it from strapping to the seatpost. Fortunately, all three straps are easily replaceable, so the seatpost strap will get replaced, either with velcro, or maybe a narrow Fastex strap. Unfortunately, the bag rubs the bottom of the springs, even without being strapped to the post. This is going to require some sort of wearstrip, and dangit, I just hate putting black electrical tape, or something, on a brand new bag. I also had to move the blinkie from the seatpost to the seat stay. Bless Planetbike for including a small clamp for this.

Anyway, if you have a sprung Brooks, this is something you might want to give some thought to. And hey, the bag, which is okay, cost more that the saddle, which is great.

Rog,

The bottom strap is to secure it to your handle bar stem if you want to mount it there.
It is larger than you would think. The Glenbrook must be huge.
{the cats let you live down flopping over in their presence yet?}

--A

Not yet, and cats have a very droll sense of humor.

The handle bar stem! Thanks for putting my mind at ease, Allen. I do think I'll leave it on the seat, but I dunno. . . . I'll give that some thought. Yah, I'm sure glad I didn't order the Glenbrook. I'd need to stand on a pile of bricks just to get on the bike.

I don't get it. Why buy something made from Leatherette? This is hardly a hard-wearing material and one that was only ever a cheap option in the past which was the reason it was supplanted.
At this time Brooks are mounting a very successful campaign which uses nostalgia in order to sell its products. No seasoned cycle tourist looking for a traditional product, would ever choose Leatherette, over the stout and durable duck cotton used in Carradice saddle-bags.
"Image" is winning out over good sense in my opinion.

Yeah, but those Carradice bags are big. I mean really big. Honest, I tried to find something in nylon that would mount on the slots in the Brooks. No go. And other designs didn't work at all, or just worked poorly. With an unsprung mode, about any old bag would have worked as well. So, I was looking for something with at least a minimum cargo space, and to heck with tradition.

As to Leatherette (plastic), it probably won't wear as well as leather, and nylon cordura would probably out last them all. Really, leather is a good saddle top, but is heavy and less weather resistant than other choices in a bag.

I mount mine off the handle bars and it's held up well on my bike for the last 8 months or so. It's seen rain on many occasions, more than it's share of road grime (live on a dirt road) and now freezing weather. It's kept its contents dry and has no cracks in its skin. So far so good.

--A

The large bags are designed to use this: http://cgi.ebay.com/NITTO-R-10-BICYC...QQcmdZViewItem

It supports the bag from underneath and will keep it from rubbing on the springs or the back of your legs. Good luck.

Tim

Thanks for the lead. I may still re-engineer the thing for handlebars, but that's a good solution.

SNIP< Yeah, but those Carradice bags are big. >

Not really. Try this one.

http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/product-C...city-10482.htm

I agree with you regarding the Flyer. I have a Brooks Champion Flyer and I love it. However, it does make it pretty physically impossible to strap a bag underneath it because of the springs. And I'm not about to swap my Flyer for another saddle just because of this problem.

Anybody has a way around this?

A motorcycle tool roll or fork bag will mount to the champion flyer loops, and looks good if you hunt around for one that isn't too wide. They can be found for between 20 and 40 dollars.

That's a thought or two....a tool roll or a fork bag. Let me check those out. But would that mean that I will be strapping on the bag horizontally. If that is the case, then I should look for one that is not too wide. Or do I push the bag in between the springs of the saddle and strap it in the same plane as the bike frame?

Not true at all. I have a Flyer. If you use the mini rack I mentioned in the above post:
http://cgi.ebay.com/NITTO-R-10-BICYC...QQcmdZViewItem The bag attaches to the back of the seat. The bag stays mounted behind not underneath it. The saddle bag is supported by the rack. The tabs on the seat are there only to keep the bag in place, they provide no support all.The rack is actually quite small and when the bag is sitting on top you can barely see it.

Tim

Now you tell me.

Hope you can take a photo to post on this thread once you own it officially.

I will. Should be getting a camera too.

Camera? Tool roll? Hang on to that wife, ya hear me?

How has the vinyl of your Millbrook held up?

Are the leather straps easy to take on and off? Would either the Millbrook or the Glenbrook work on a rack (where the straps attach to the top part instead of the saddle loops?

I have had my Millbrook on my bike for about 10k miles, and it's holding up fine, no cracks or rips.

The straps are easy to take on and off, they just thread through loops on the back of the bag.
Attaching it to a rack may be difficult.

Good close-up images of it may be found here

Thanks, those are nice photos. What would make it difficult to attach to a rack's top bar?

Also, do the Brooks holdalls convert to bags that can be carried over the shoulder? What about carrying it around when it's off the bicycle? I don't see a handle...

Here's what I was thinking of doing with the bags:

I did not think about attaching it to the side of the rack, that would work fine. Placing it on top would mean holding it on with a bungee or strap.

They have no handle, or place to attach a shoulder strap. I think they are intended to be primarily left attached to the frame.
Ortllieb's handlebar and rack-top bags do come with shoulder straps and quick releases. Not as pretty to me but they are very high quality and defiantly water proof.

I swear I'm going to try tha bag on the new B-17. No springs so it ought to work like a champ.

As soon as I can get my leg over the top tube without a ladder.

Darn.

The Glenbrook looks good and has just the right amount of space. But I'd want to take it on and off from the bike rack to the office, etc. and have a strap or at least a handle so that I could carry it more easily.

Rick, my little experience with the Millbrook tells me that those little buckles don't make for a slick and easy removal. I might consider switching to a quick release Fastex buckle on nylon straps. If nothing else, it would be infinately adjustable. Sometimes, the new ways really are better.