Great laundry bag solution...
 

My old lady and i were doing some shopping when we found the best thing in the world-- laundry bags.

Specifically, czech republic land force (army) laundry duffel bags.
MASSIVE, durable, and cheap. Got them at our local army surplus store (for you phila cats, i goldberg) for 12 buxos each.
TONS of room in these things. Perfect for quick sprints to the laundromat and hopefully lots more:

http://img524.imageshack.us/img524/4031/inbaglm8.jpg http://img401.imageshack.us/img401/1073/backbagcw2.jpg


really impressed by the durability... they feel bomb-proof.

http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/8...gtoprz9.th.jpg

check out your local army/navy/military surplus/etc stores for stuff like this. lots of big durable things meant to carry in battle, which typically means on your back, which translates nicely to cycling.

I bought a bag from Boblbe-e which was supposed to be an update on the traditional sailor's sack, it was on clearance for like $20. I modified it to wear like a messenger bag, which is a thousand times more comfortable. You should see if you can rig that up with that bag, since it doesn't even look like you'd clear the saddle.

One downside to these bags: No waterproof liner.

yeah, i like to think i'm entering into battle everytime i ride my bike. it really helps me to become a bigger ***hole on the road.

it rides high enough to work.
plus, i'm not a mess bag fan. backpacks make more sense, since i'm not a courier and am a fan of balance/even weight distrobution when putting weight on my back. probably personal preference, though...
honestly, "out of the box" these things are remarkably suited for cycling.

ok, just checked my math. packed one of the bags full of clothes and pillows and rode around our (2500sq foot) warehouse loft-- works nicely. mounting requires a little nudge of the bag to clear the saddle, but once you're on it's comfortably and surprisingly balanced on the back. a full pack actually works better than a half empty pack, which i tried it with initially.

hows the shifting of weight when you get off the saddle to skid/hills? the straps comfy for extended use?

not sure yet. out of saddle and trackstanding is fine. we do grocery shopping with backpacks (i use the odyssey b.e.t.a. bag, she uses the snafu alpha), both PACKED with groceries, so the idea of doing small climbs and skidding with heavy loads is familiar, and so far it looks (haven't tested a full load on the road yet) like this will work nicely. it rides high, so i'm pretty sure that (assuming you're asking because you think the idea is interesting, not because you want to "test" a stranger on the internet) these bags willl work nicely for city riding and skids (no hills between here and our laundromat) with heavy loads.

i'll keep you posted.

I have seen them used before, so I know it's certainly feasible. I too would worry though about shifting/functionality while skidding and climbing a hill. Looking forward to updates on your experience.

my laundromat is gonna weigh that heavy ass bag every time i drop off laundry, it will cost me a fortune!

Dayum, I want one. (and your GF/wife is cute)

Apparently the correct term is "old lady"

gf. and i agree...

http://img262.imageshack.us/img262/2900/backbagex7.jpg

check your local army surplus store, they might have them.
ps, i'll post this weekend about how they work-- it's when we do laundry.

picked up one of those on EBay a few years ago, and used it mostly for laundry for a couple of years. held up great, -- even w/forty pounds of soil (don't ask), no prob. since i moved and got laundry on-site, it's been a while since i've had a load big enough to justify busting out the beast.

we were actually thinking of buying a washer and dryer sometime this winter. if this works out, though, we might skip it.

youre talking about a girl right?

lolol

So is riding your bike in your apartment as sweet as it sounds?



Cuz it sounds really sweet.

you just blew my mind...

Wow. Your apartment is 2500 square feet. That's twice the size of my childhood home. Are you famous? For your laundry skillz?

I've been using my dad's old seabag from when he was in the Navy. Nearly indentical to that bag. And yes it is the best laundry bag.

If you can fill that thing with laundry you need to start doing laundry a bit more often.

not famous, just lucky. i live in a warehouse set up for residential living. alison (gf) and i knew we wanted to move into one, but didn't know where to start looking. turns out, someone who was renting one found a house they really wanted to buy but didn't know how to get out of the lease. the timing was perfect, the price was right, and here we are. 47' x 52' with two 20'x15' bedrooms. the rest is a huge block of space. we're thinking about building a quarter pipe...

we have lots of clothes, so we sometimes go every other weekend (but every weekend is actually lots of clothes as it is) + it's winter, which means washing comforters + detergent

Nice.

I used this as a laundry bag for years:

http://www.uspatriotstore.com/images..._duffleodm.jpg

I always wondered if it could be modded into a roll-top backpack.

bump because reading old threads makes you think of times passed...