Hi all, I just got myself some Sunlite Utili-T Panniers and I'm not sure how to mount them properly. Here is a photo (not mine, borrowed from a user uploaded picture on Amazon) of the back of the pannier:


panniers by hurley81388, on Flickr

Obviously the rubber hooks mount on the top of the rack, but where do you normally attach the hook that is attached to the bungee cord? My rack is just a standard Blackburn EX-1 rack. Nothing fancy.


rack by hurley81388, on Flickr

Thanks!

I don't have the same rack or bag, but the setup of mine is similar. I hook the hook to the bottom of the rack, on one of the outer tubes where they curve out from the middle. There's enough tension that it hooks on very securely.

On my bike there is a loop on the bike frame right above the dropouts (where the wheel axle is bolted into the frame. However, on the rack you have, you could use the bottom of the rack struts where they flare out. I always spin the hook a few times so the cord is twisted like a bag tie, to make it tighter, because otherwise the pannier can bounce off the rack when you go over a bump. On one panier I actually knotted the cord to shorten it. That ring in the webbing near the hook may also be intended for the cord to go through it, to lessen the pannier swinging out too much.

Mount the pannier as far back on the rack as you can to avoid heel contact. You can also use those adjustable chrome straps on the rack to move the whole rack as far back as you can and the mounting bolts on the bottom of the rack can be screwed out a bit to also move the rack up.

Yup, that's exactly it. You want the bungy part with the hook to stretch, so it's holding securely. If that part is too long, which I don't think it will be, you can shorten it by tying a knot. Should work just fine.

That being said, I lost a pannier like this riding over a bump in the road and didn't even notice (people in the car honked and told me... doh...). I usually check back to make sure the bag is still there, if I go over something substantial.

Ah...that makes sense. The bungee cord seems to be in a pretty decent amount of tension when i hook it under one of those flare-outs but I will be sure to check behind me when going over bumps.

Thanks for the help everyone!

Just remember, "mounting" a pannier is illegal in at least 37 states!

Start with dinner and a movie.