BC Dub

As mentioned above, if your bike has provisions for a rear rack, you can most likely go that route. The only other thing to hold you back would be frame geometry making for a lack of clearance as your feet come around.

frail1

Just wanted to say thanks for the advice. Got a set of panniers, and on the hottest day of the year, no sweaty back!

The weight off the back and the low center of gravity takes some getting used to.

Also, I wish I'd invented zip ties...wonderful to cinch everything nice and snug.

spokenword

which ones did you wind up getting?

I got to this thread late, but just for additional info, I own a pair of the Aqua-Not 46L waterproof panniers from MEC, and I can say that they've been definitely worth every penny when it comes to winter commuting. I have a ~25km commute, and even in the midst of a full on thunderstorm, all of my gear stays bone dry when I get to the office or get home.

You can wrap stuff in plastic bags or ziplocs, but the bags eventually tear, and it's a hassle to gamble about when certain bags will rip or not on a given day's commute.

The curved front is also nice for minimizing heel strike on bikes with a shorter wheelbase.

frail1

Was looking for the tip about using wire connectors to attach the rack to the frame when I saw this. I also bought the mec aqua-not. I agree, they seem perfect for the job except the connecting hardware is a little weak. I used zip ties for the connection at the top point and the bottom point of contact I will have to modify as the included pieces have loosened. Are your connecting points solid? Thanks.

tacojohn

If I have to ride with my laptop on a rainy day (and that day is coming soon), I will probably put the laptop in a waterproof bag, in a waterproof backpack/pannier (not sure which yet), and if it's pooring, wrap a trash bag around that.

ollo_ollo

Just noticed this thread: These are the best cheap bike panniers I ever found. You do need to supplement their water proofing by adding a std grocery plastic bag inside but @ 5 for $10 you can't beat them. go to https://www.sportsmansguide.com/cb/cb.asp?a=71235

So Cal commuter

What kind of messenger bag? I have a chrome and have it loaded heavy most days...cinch it up so it's against your back snug, and if you have a stablizer strap, use it. Best advice is a snug fit. The only prob. I ever had with the messenger bag(other than my back drenched after 12.5 mi one way) was that my back had do get used to the weight and how the weight was distributed....not for balance, just for muscles tightening under heavy loads...Now I throw a 12 pack in there and ride 10 more miles home with nothing but beer ready for me.

OK, here's the advice...go light for a week, get used to the way the bag feels, and make it fit better. If you cant go light for some reason, just get comfortable with a heavier load on short trips and around the area on a weekend when you can fiddle with it a little more.

Merriwether

Good comments. Panniers are much better than a backpack. The MEC would probably be fine, and as Joe Dog mentioned Lone Peak are a good, cheap option. I have to say, though, that panniers aren't just sacks, and it is definitely worth the money for a good set.

I'm going to digress for a moment and say a few things about my Arkel panniers. I have had Arkel for both front and rear for four years. I love these things. Even though they were expensive they are among the best purchases of bike gear I have ever made. I use them pretty much every day for shopping and errands, and, of course, have gone touring with them. They've been out in the rain, sun, and have pushed through high water that came above the bottom. Goods inside have never been wet. I do have the rain covers, but even without those the bags will resist heavy rains on their own for several hours.

The zippers are all like new, and they're heavy enough that you can cram stuff in the bags and still zip up easily. Stuffing the bags will *not* damage the zipper. You just don't get zippers that are nearly as good on cheaper bags. This is a crucial, and underappreciated fact, since if the zipper goes your bag is useless.

The mounting hardware is great, and easy to use. (If you get other panniers, I'd recommend buying the Arkel hardware and installing it. Arkel sells this separately.)

I've used some of the cheaper bags, like Lone Peak, and they do the job for a while. Panniers are like many other things, though, in that you get what you pay for. Bags like the Arkel have heavier cordura, and better stitching, so you can put heavier, sharper items in them. Their zippers are better. The large Arkel have a thick, hard plastic bottom, and an aluminum frame, so even heavy, misshapen things will not distort the bag shape. The strong frames and zippers make side loading practical, which makes using the panniers much easier.

The panniers are expensive. If you add in the rain covers (which I recommend) they're more expensive still. The day-to-day convenience of using these bags, and the fact that they work now as well as when they came out of the box, makes them worth it.

I would *not* recommend waterproof panniers, by the way, because if you put anything wet in them they will not easily dry. I like water-resistant bags with covers, myself. They'll keep things dry, but if you put wet items in the bag the bag will dry out in the sun.

As far as non-pannier items go, one thing I *strongly* recommend is that you not try to save money on a rear rack. You will regret it. You should get something that is strong enough not to wobble even if you have some weight on the back. More importantly, you should buy a rack that protects the lower, rear corner.

To see an example of the shape I have in mind-- there are others, but here's one-- look at the Expedition rear rack here: https://www.jandd.com/

If you notice, the rear bar strut is parallel to the ground and to the rack top for several inches, then connects up to the rack top. Something like this is crucial. If you have a typical strut that connects in a straight line from the intersection of the other strut to the top of the rack, there is nothing to prevent the rear corner of your panniers from touching the spokes. With any weight in the panniers, this *will* happen sooner or later. When it does, the spokes will bend the pannier back. Then, the pannier will point toward the wheel all the time. You'll try to bend it back, and you'll try other fixes, but it will never be the same. Once that happens, the pannier will try to get in the spokes every time you stand and swing the bike back and forth. You will come to loathe the very thought of your bike, panniers and rack. So infuriating is this problem that I don't understand why anyone still makes, sells, or buys, racks that don't protect the rear corner. They do, though, which means you have to avoid such racks.

A rack like the Expedition is a good idea for another reason. Most road bikes don't have rear stays long enough to provide lots of clearance between your heel and the bag. So, with an ordinary rack, you will have to move the bags back, perhaps as far as they will go. The bungy on the pannier will pull the bags back toward your heel, though. Then you have a whole new set of problems to deal with continually. A long rack makes it easy for you to keep the bags in their proper place, and forget about them.

As you can see, then, there is more planning that goes into panniers and racks than it may seem at first. Trust me. Do it right the first time you spend money, otherwise you'll just have to spend the money when you set it up right the next time.

Good luck.

bragi

You should check out Ortlieb. They're totally waterproof, fit most racks, and go on and off in literally 3 seconds or less. And they're indestructable. Kind of expensive, but worth every penny. And if you live in the PNW, get totally waterproof ones, especially if you carry papers as well as clothes. Trust me on this one. But I totally agree about buying a good rack; get a high-end Jandd, or something similar, sturdy and longer, and you'll be much happier in the long run.