[QUOTE=KC8QVO;22253621] 1.They are not as strong as the axle. I can see where mounting an accessory to the outside of the dropout would mean the skewer would have to take the load of the accessory, but with as large of a load as you can fit on that huge front rack I would be worried about the skewers.[QUOTE]
I do not fit large loads on the "huge" front rack. These are generally grocery shopping accessories.


[QUOTE=KC8QVO;22253621] 2. The bottom support (skewer) isn't the only load bearing point. It may take the most, but the upper supports should not be neglected. The reason being is your load will have a lot of inertia when moving. Two examples of where this inertia will be at play are A. when you turn the bars/wheel at slow speed rapidly to try to maintain balance, B. if you have to stop fast and jam on the brakes.[QUOTE]
No worries, my cadence is 50-max, I stay in climbing gears (22T/28T-40T). Not fast, but I get my grocery shopping done.


[QUOTE=KC8QVO;22253621]I have not tried to put my rear panniers on my front rack. I forget what rack I have. Both front/rear are made by tubus and the front is low - 2 piece. It does not go up and over the front wheel. [Quote]
Keep it light, my small bags limit my weight, as I keep each bags content to less that 3-4lbs at all time.

The ultralight backpacking community have easily obtainable pack weights of 15-lbs including the backpack itself.

One concept that has always intrigued me is to get a designer to plot out a way to do a single cut-out of coroplast 10-mm. One could simply cut-out the template, do some folds and secure with Tie-Raps and then hot-glue the one-side which needs joining and the bottom (with flaps on three sides) to create a waterproof lightweight/replaceable pannier on the road.

7th paragraph down in article...
Cardboard Panniers (no longer made)