steve-in-kville 

Okay folks... here's my issue. I've been switching between my rear twin baskets and a rack/trunk bags. All summer I've been experimenting with my commuting. I would also like to do some light touring such as over-night trips come spring.

Bottom line is, the rear baskets are not the most practical for me. I would like to go with panniers but the $100 baseline price tag is a drawback. I have a few hiking packs that I really like and I gave some thought to somehow attaching one to the side of my fear rack. Has anyone tried this?? And might you have pics to share??

Many thanks in advance!

monsterpile

I haven't made any homemade panniers yet, but I have considered doing it. One of the biggest things to consider is whether or not your heals will hit whatever is on your rear rack when you are pedaling. Thats why they tend to be triangular. Other than that there are plenty of online videos and step by step instructions on how people have made different bags into panniers.

genec

A friend of mine built very sturdy panniers out of bathroom size trash cans... I used these quite successfully on a long tour down the length of Baja... the darn things were bullet proof and cheap. I put my canned foods in them while trekking south.

I myself took some cheaper panniers and reinforced them and added some better mounting hardware and backing plates... I used these nearly daily for well over 10 years.

gerv 

This thread pops up here frequently:
https://www.bikeforums.net/touring/356379-diy-pannier-ideas.html


I think instructable.com has several projects on this too:
https://www.instructables.com/id/How-...Bike-Panniers/

no1mad 

Are you wanting to use the pannier(s) in combination with the trunk, or is that you can't fit all of your junk in the trunk?

Chris_in_Miami

This guy stopped to show me his trash can panniers a few months ago, he apparently recognized me as the type of person who would be interested in such things. He was pretty proud of them, so I took a photo...

kludgefudge

I've got a pair of giveaway beer coolers and 2 sets of pannier clips from mec I have been planning on turing into panniers, I just need the rigid plastic to make it all happen. I own a set of large panniers, and a single small pannier so I don't actually need the homemade ones, one of the reasons the project isn't complete. Bottom line is it isnt exactly rocket science. you need only 2 or 3 things :

1: some sort of bag suitable to the use

2: some sort of rigid backing material that you can cut and drill through as needed

3: the clips to attach it to your rack, available at mec or REI as repacement parts or possibly your LBS.

Grim

https://www.bikeforums.net/member.php...-mechanicalron
BEST home brew panniers ever. Search some of his posts.

531phile 

Do all cyclist in Miami ride with T-shirts cut off at the middle?

Jay D

I haven't yet but I'm planning to. I have a really nice messenger bag that works great when I ride my folding bike but not so well when I'm riding my recumbent bike for the obvious reasons. I want to custom make something where the bag can be mounted on top of my Topeak bike rack.

Chris_in_Miami

No, most of us are more casual and ride like this:

Cyclaholic

Yes...









This is my first ever sewing project. I used my mother in law's ancient black Singer sewing machine that was originally pedal powered but had an electric motor and leather drive belt retrofitted some time later.

The outer shell is 1000 denier. The inner liner is cut from a huge printed sign that I recovered from a construction site dumpster. The liner is light, tough, and waterproof. Such a waste to see it thrown it in the bin. The shoulder strap is a piece of closed cell foam, also an offcut recovered from a dumpster, as was the woven edging material.

I stenciled the biohazard symbol so belligerent cagers can't say they weren't warned. ...yes, I know, roughest stenciling job ever.

I bought the yellow seat belt material and velcro on ebay, and I recovered the buckles from a discarded back pack on big rubbish night - they work perfectly.

This bag cost me less than $20 to make.

Chris_in_Miami

Wow, very nice work Cyclaholic! I've got a messenger bag from a German company that uses recycled banner material. It's very durable stuff, and I can imagine you broke some needles sewing through it...

Gil Elvgren

I have made a pair of hardsided panniers out of two California Coolers from Wal-mart. They are the 9-can Zipperless Hardbody Cooler with the Smartflex tray/divider system. Found here: https://www.californiainnovations.com...rdbody-cooler/ .

I used the hook and bunge attachment method outlined in the Bucket Pannier system arlready mentioned in this thread. I strengthened the top hooks with a small flat bar of aluminum placed along with large flat washers. They easily hook on to my back rack and the bunge cord keeps them from bouncing around or off. I glued a small but highly reflective slow moving triangle to the back side of the coolers. I usually use one cooler as my lunch bucket for my commute to work, the divider tray comes in handy keeping my soda from bouncing around smashing my other food items. I have also used them on my longer rides to keep my Coors Light gel shots from getting warm - a freezer packet keeps every thing nice and cold. Holds a six pack with room to spare. I took one on my PALM (Pedal Across Lower Michigan) ride this year to keep my snacks, rain gear, camera, sunscreen, etc.. organized rather than a handlebar bag.

Gil

Cyclaholic

Surprisingly only one broken needle and that was operator error (my fault). It's one very well built and maintained sewing machine even if is close to a century old.... but you're spot on in that those signs are a fantastic source of material for DIY bike bags. My next project will be a nice aerodynamic pair of bags for my recumbent.

CommuterRun

I made these two years ago and they're still going strong with almost daily use.
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...light=panniers

steve-in-kville 

Thanks for the great replies and links. To answer an above question, I do intend to keep the trunk bag on and operational. I also thought of using a PVC-coated dry bag I've kept from my canoeing days, maybe mounted horizontally on the side of the rack. I am still taking measurements and making some drawings. Maybe by week's end I'll know what I can do.

I just cannot see spending $150 for panniers. Especially when that same money can buy some quality cold-weather gear or a brighter headlamp.

Fizzaly

The closest ive came is i made a lop top pannier, since i already had a semi rigid laptop bag i just added some hooks and a bungee it works great.

iforgotmename

I made two of these for my front rack out of military bags, leather straps and conchos and a dowel rod. Total cost was about $12 a piece, and they are waterproof to boot.

jyossarian

Made this from an old shoulder bag using an Arkel Cam Lock Hook kit.

aglauser

If you want to sew a custom bag rather than repurposing an existing container, lots of good ideas can be found here: https://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/touring/bags.htm

I've patched the fabric and improved the attachment system on a crappy pannier that was falling apart. I used these MEC pannier clips (https://www.mec.ca/Products/product_d...34374302693397) as well as sewing on some webbing to create channels through which a bungee cord could be passed. When the bungee cord is knotted above the channels, it ends up working like the Arkel hook in jyossarian's post.

All in all, makes the bag much nicer to use. I used to have problems with it ejecting, but those MEC clips keep it in place quite nicely while being pretty easy to get the bag on and off.

joeyjoejoejr

I recently made a pannier out of a canvas bag I got at a Army Surplus store. Besides the bag everything else I had so total cost was about $20.

Here's the front (The patch is a Firefly the TV Show military patch):


Back:


Backing board:


Materials:
Bag
Hooks from Ikea
Screws
Clipboard
"Earthquake" Strap

The bag came with a separate compartment from the main compartment in the back so that's where I put the clipboard. I basically just drilled holes into the clipboard and screwed the hooks in as well as the earthquake strap. The bag holds a change of shirt and a book as well as my keys and wallet, basically just what I need for a commute to work. It's nowhere near waterproof, but considering I live in So Cal the weather usually co-operates.