Groceries and Textbooks
 

I'm on the hunt for a set of panniers that can handle the bulkiness of groceries and the weight of 4+ college textbooks, without spending loads of cash. Advice?

I just use a back pack for groceries. Cheap!

My advice is to bite the bullet and get an Arkel BUG. Nothing else is going to let you carry around the text books once you get to campus like this will.

Yeah..um..it's been 90+ for a few months here in West Texas. Riding in 100+ weather with something on my back is totally not an option. Plus, I've already got a rack, and I should put it to use.

Tabor, I've looked at that one, but I don't really need an extra backpack since I already have a decent messenger bag. I just need to shove the messenger bag into the pannier and lift it out when I get there. My concern is it holding up under the weight of the books. Plus, way way too pricey for me since I need two to accommodate groceries (which might mean riding with the messenger bag on me for that 1 mile stretch, we'll see).

lol the Arkel BUG colors look like it's made for preschoolers.

I agree, it's not really my look either. Not that looks are my primary concern, but if I have a few good options and one looks like this...

You could always get a Cetma rack, or wear an undershirt while biking and change when you get there and keep using a backpack.

Whats wrong with a cheapy rack and a stolen milk crate?

Hmmm....I just stumbled on this thread, and I like the setup with the basket. I could do groceries in the pannier and put the messenger bag in the basket. Interesting....

Do you really need to take all the textbooks with you everyday? In most of my classes I don't need the textbook for lecture time. It stayed home for homework.

Can you take part of the text book at a time? If you are not planning on selling the books back, how about some home surgery on those books? I have a Calculus text book that is used in my college for 3 classes: Calc I, Calc II and Calc III. I cut mine apart, into 3 sections, at the chapters that are used for each class. I used some mylar for new covers and some packing tape to cover the glued binding, and just took a thin part of the textbook to class each day. Other students asked me where I got the thin textbook!

Also, for binders I use the 1 inch ring ones with thin flexible heavy plastic covers, instead of the big ones with the thick covers. Takes up less space in my pack. I can add and delete notes as time goes by and keep my commuting load light. I use a separate binder for each class. Some of them are left home on some days.

I bought a couple of athletic "moisture-wicking" tank tops and shorts today. I plan to wear those to ride, and then throw on a light wrap-around skirt and switch to sandals once I get there. The straps against my skin would be irritating, and my shoulders aren't so good anymore, that's why I haven't used backpacks in years.

I've never had a nice looking car, so I bought a pretty nice looking bike to replace it. I would hate to ruin the look by attaching a milk crate. Besides, milk crates are for bookshelves. Duh.

I really like your idea of surgically altering textbooks. No, I probably won't have to have the textbooks for class every day, but I don't want to plan that way and then one day all my profs become hard-core. I've had a few. I will probably do most of my studying at the library instead of home, because it forces me to do things ahead of time instead of starting midnight before its due, bad habit. It was nice last semester because the big Calculus book was available to checkout at the library, but I'm done with Cal3 now. I bought flexible binders for my upcoming classes, those thick ones fell apart on me anyway.

Get some grocery panniers. Sunlite offers (relatively) inexpensive panniers that have a nice reflective surface, and has a little pocket on the outside perfect for keys. co2 inflator, body spray...

My biggest concern was my school stuff breaking the grocery pannier, but I guess a rear basket will fix that. Hopefully the basket won't be in the way of attaching and removing the bags. The Sunlite looks good, and if they end up being Too Cheap to be True, I can always wait for something better to come on sale.

Stuff that works:

Regular panniers tend to be easy-ish to carry off the bike, make good grocery bags, and can handle a good bit of weight. REI and most LBSes will have something inexpensive, small and reasonably sturdy. 30L will handle groceries for 2 people for an average week. (mine cry at the idea of 25lbs of rice tho) Most grocery panniers that I've looked at are not well made and would not hold up under a real world grocery load.

Bike baskets are *good*. They are sturdy and no one in their right mind will steal them because they're so cheap. Wald makes folding rear baskets meant for groceries that might be exactly right for you. It is hard to overload a rear basket. Front baskets often have a goofy design and can't handle much weight on a stock mount, so they might not work well for you... I am very fond of mine, but I often have light but bulky stuff wasting space in my panniers. Stick the light and bulky in the basket, and then there is space in the panniers for the dense stuff.

If your rear rack has a platform, get a cargo net. They're cheap, and they make it easy to carry weird stuff that won't fit.

I love my wald folding basket on the back. Works pretty well for the commute to work holding the backpack and keeping it off my back. Also did a couple grocery runs with it and it held up pretty well.

I just saw this pannier yesterday.

Avenir Metro 2.0 Shopping Pannier

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...IL._SS500_.jpg
They were 29.99 each at Sports Chalet. They are very rigid, yet they will fold up when you are not using them. They have a small inside zippered compartment, and a reflective stripe on the outside as well.

It seems like the idea behind the grocery panniers is that you will buy exactly two paper grocery bags full of food and then slip them in. I will be using regular canvas grocery bags, or the pannier itself without any grocery bags, so I'm still looking at other options. Would you say 30L total, or per bag?

Grocery panniers are strong. I throw 12 packs of beer and gallons of milk into mine all the time. No problems.

Good to hear. Which ones do you have?

I'll have to check -- at this exact moment, I am 100 miles from my bike. However, they were just some that I bought on sale.

i'm interested in these

http://store.curbside.on.ca/index.ph...roducts_id=455

Those look good, but it is annoying how not all listings say whether it is priced as a pair or singly.

Anyway, you were all waiting with bated breath to find out what I picked, right? Uh-huh.

I chose a pair that probably don't have any quick way to remove or fold flat, but they are 35L and $42 for the set which is cheaper than most of the fugly black and grey things I've looked at. Yup, I went with looks and price and got an pink/orange Basil Blossom set. It is the first accessory I've seen in a decent orange to go with my bike. If they don't work out, I didn't waste much money.

i think the thing i linked is a single unit covering both sides. i want it like sex.

It looks like Basil makes some nice stuff:
http://www.basil.nl/gb/home/
Seattle Bike Supply is their US distributor (which doesn't sell to end-users it appears) but they don't carry the KAVAN XL bag. Curbside Cycle looks like a nice shop.