beebe

I found an awesome deal on timbuk2 mess bags at a local store, and I'm considering getting one, as I need a water resistant way to haul my books to and from school.

If I can get it to fit on my track geometry bike without heelstrike, I was thinking of rigging it with some Ortlieb or Arkel pannier hardware to turn it into a water-resistant pannier, with mess bag straps. My big concern right now is that my massive textbooks for next semester (damned physics and chemistry!) are going to make the bag painful off the bike.

I haven't worn a 'proper' messenger bag with a large load in it. Is my plan good? or should I shell out the extra 75-100 bucks that I can't afford on a proper water-proof pannier?

In before: wrap a Jansport in a garbage bag and bungee it to a cheap rack. Not going to happen.

no1mad 

Two words- Banjo Brothers.

I just recently started using a mess bag instead of my backpack. Lemme tell ya, I wouldn't even attempt hauling heavy college texts around with the mess bag...

threecarjam

Sounds like probably a bad idea (though I'm sure you could make it work with enough time and ingenuity) - traditional messenger bags big enough to haul a big load of books aren't shaped the way you want a pannier to be shaped (especially if you have short track bike chainstays), and Timbuk2 bags are basically just a big floppy bag. You'd need to give it a pretty significant amount of internal structure, I imagine, to get it to work as a pannier, which would make it even more uncomfortable to use on your shoulder. I used to commute with an XL Timbuk2 messenger, and with any kind of heavy, bulky load (like books), for any kind of significant distance, it gets pretty uncomfortable pretty quickly as it is. If you want to have a convertible bag/pannier, I'd look at something like these North St. Bags - I've never used them, but they look like they're designed well and could work for your situation. Not to mention many others, both mass-produced and smaller makers.

I will say that my experience with panniers that you throw a shoulder strap on to carry around can be way more uncomfortable than a "proper" mess bag to walk around with for any amount of time. You might just want to look into a bag from Seagull, Baileyworks, Chicago WIG, or some of the other well known messenger bag companies - much better designed than a Timbuk2 for riding comfort, and you can get one with a padded back to take away one of the most painful parts of carrying around big, heavy books on your back. More expensive (maybe) in the short term, but probably the most straightforward solution to your problem.

Or you could just strap a basket/milk crate to the top of your rear rack, get a bungee net, and put whatever bag you want inside the basket.

zoltani

A heavy one strap bag isn't very fun to carry around off the bike, no matter how well it is designed. YMMV, but if I am walking a lot then I prefer a two strap bag. Most of the companies that make mess bags have some good two strap offerings.

Check out the mission workshop rambler or vandal, expensive, but will probably last you a lifetime.

jdgesus 

backpack for heavy loads.
dont know why they dont make a backpack with pannier mounts on one side (or do they?)

just hauled a 60lb car battery and associated tools to change said car battery 5miles with a backpack on the bike.. couldn't imagine doing that with a messenger bag.

blakcloud

I am a strong proponent of messenger bags, as I have four different ones but for heavy loads like you are talking about, you may want to rethink it at least with a Timbuk 2 bag. I once owned one of their bags and they were nice but not really designed to accommodate heavier loads. For my heavy loads I bought a Pac Design bag with something called the X strap which helps distribute the load over two shoulders. Do you need to carry the books to school everyday? If not then maybe the well priced bag will work just fine.

Sundance89

I have the Timbuk2 Messenger Pannier as well as the Mission Tote. You won't have to worry about heal strike as they placed the hooks so that the bag sits a little higher than most. I wear a size 13 so this design is well received with me. The hooks are also very well made and the bag does not budge with heavy loads. There is no need to bungee this bag down. Just drop the hooks unto your rack and go.

Standalone 

messenger bags are all about manning up and throwing a load on your shoulder. as a lifelong nerd with the build of a string bean, I can attest that regularly hauling heavy loads with a regular messenger bag is an effective and worthwhile workout. to heck with whatever fashion/political statement it makes.

ryanwood

I use a mess bag for textbooks and it works just fine. I actually prefer the messenger bag because it is huge compared to the average backpack. I ride with it on my back. When I purchased the bag my plan was to turn it into a pannier, but I just couldn't seem to figure it out. The main issue is the lack of form, I once tried putting in some lightweight aluminum bars to keep it from sagging and dangling precariously close to my spokes, but it became miserably uncomfortable to carry.

There is a reason pannier messenger bags are so expensive, it requires quite a bit of ingenuity to make it work and even then it isn't really perfect. It will always be a pannier that can be carried like a messenger bag, or a messenger bag that can be used like a pannier.

kegoguinness

You could become an english major. Then you'd only be hauling around 5 paperback copies of Dostoevsky at any given time. Would you like fries with that?

CCrew

I'm a big messenger bag guy, absolutely detest backpacks, but for what you want to carry a messenger bag really isn't the best choice. Something flat and hard like a book, or in my case occasionally (2) laptops, that hard board like object against your back is far from comfortable.

I'd be looking for a pannier with a carry strap. Ortlieb, Banjo Bros, all make them.

Standalone 

Ha. I resemble that remark. Except the fries part... I've had a salaried job with benefits since age 21 using that degree. I decided that literature and human experience were much more worth my while than autocad, titration, or the TI-85. And to think that I could have ended up one of those engineers who design those car-friendly highways...! No thanks!

Some lightweight backcountry hiking advocates are moving away from backpacks to single strap shoulder bags. If you either know how to pack or how to HTFU, messenger bags can be much more roomy and versatile than backpacks.

I feel like they're more stable while riding, too.

The "e" in "English major" is capitalized btw.

Fizzaly

A cheap alternative to the ortlieb is sunlite, this one would probably work best for you https://www.bikewagon.com/Sunlite-For...-p7340332.html

I bought the sunlite Utili-t waterproof pannier earlier this year and im pretty impressed by its quality. And side by side my buddies ortliebs the only real difference is the mounts. Ive been using it daily the last few weeks as its been wet, and so far so good i load about 30lbs in it.