I was looking at a thread in the general biking area and saw a picture of a fellow's bike that had only one pannier. (on the rear) Doesn't that make the bike unbalanced?

What if you have a pair of panniers and you're hauling groceries with them, and one side has all the canned goods and the other has a loaf of bread? I assume you would want to balance the load as much as practical, but how much does it affect riding if it's not possible?

Thanks in advance,

J White

Unless it is ridiculously heavy or un-even, you will barely notice when moving. Just know what side it is on for when you get ready to stop if you have a preferred foot you like to put down.

In general you want to balance the load, but in practice it matters much less on the rear than on the front. And even on the front, you get used to it, if you have to. I don't think I'd ever do 1 front pannier, but I will often do one rear pannier around town.

If I were touring, I think I'd rather have two, half-full panniers than one, full pannier, but then you've added the weight of a 2nd pannier. If you're not carrying a lot of weight in your one, rear pannier, you probably won't even notice. If you were carrying a lot of weight, you might notice, but you might not mind.

I prefer to have some some sort of balance on a long trip with a lot of gear, but I don't think it's essential. And it doesn't matter at all to me if it's just for a few miles.

I don't think it causes a problem.

Now on the Front it does cause a problem.

I have only one on my regularly ridden bike. It holds my spare tube, pump, lock, etc. I figure I might have 3# worth of stuff in it, I don't even notice it is there. Doesn't matter what side I hang it on, either, although I generally leave it on the drive side just to be able to leave it on when puttin gmy bike in the trunk.

I have a single briefcase pannier with a laptop, change of clothes, tools, and miscellany in it. The bike has always felt perfectly stable in motion. It's only when stopped or when I'm walking the bike on the sidewalk that I notice the imbalance.

10 Wheels, is that one of those Ugly Texas skies ?

I'd be a whole lot more worried about that sky than the pannier.

Front panniers need to have equal weight, or else your steering will pull to whichever side has the most. For rear panniers it really doesn't make any difference at all.

It may matter a bit more with front panniers, but my wife and I commuted for years on our tandem and our normal load was all in one front pannier and I never noticed any balance issue. For rear pannier loading I'd note that this man seems to be riding ok with a rather unbalanced load:

I doubt that he'd find it easier to balance things with a second refrigerator.

^^^^^^ That

I've always found that your body adjusts very quickly to virtually any weight distribution you can place on a bicycle. I'll do shopping runs with a single pannier and not think twice about it. When touring I never pack based on weight distribution, I pack based on function.

If you wear a messenger/shoulder bag, does it make you walk into walls?

I didn't thinks so.

I use a single pannier almost every day commuting. as said above, you don't notice.

I also use a single pannier on my bike Friday Tikit on the FRONT RACK....They sale a one sided front rack.

You don't even notice.

I'd be more concerned about the clouds they are riding towards.

shouldn't notice while riding (within reason),
but if the weight is all on the kickstand side,
bike may be more liable to tip over when
parked, especially if windy.

My gym bag is a single pannier, I bought it as a single. Often ride with one that one.

Several different manufacturers of panniers sell touring panniers as pairs, but sell shopping panniers as singles. I can't remember the last time I went to the grocery store with two panniers, but often use one for groceries.

Several comments above said that you have to try hard to get your front panniers balanced. I used to think that too, but one time on a group tour I overslept. I did not want to be really far behind the group that day so I just threw stuff into the panniers haphazardly without trying to balance weights. At the end of the day, I realized that my bike handled just fine so I weighed the panniers with my luggage scale to see how badly the balance was. (I carried a luggage scale to make sure I did not have over weight charges for my trip home after the tour.) Weights were:
- 14.48 lbs - Left Front Pannier
- 8.88 lbs - Right Front Pannier
I did not notice any handling problems or pulling to one side. Perhaps it was the bike (Thorn Sherpa) or something else that prevented the odd weight distribution from interfering with the handling? All I can say is that I have since stopped trying to make sure my front panniers are balanced.

I regularly ride -- daily rides, commutes -- with 15 to 20 pounds in one pannier on the front. No issues riding. It is possible someone unaccustomed to this might feel the steering sway one way or the other, but I don't notice anything while riding.

Gee, let's get in a debate on what brand of rack he was using! And I guess this is one way to keep your beer cold on a ride but needs a generator on the other side to plug in the fridge, plus that would balance the load.

Thanks for all the replies! If I ever decide to add them to my bike, I have a little more knowledge about them now.

J White

YIKES! Look at that storm ahead! God bless the riders.

I never could figure out where to put the 26 pound butterball turkey in my panniers!

Sometimes with a heavy load on one side and nothing on the other it can be a little awkward but mostly when not riding. If I am riding with a single pannier I try to go with as light a load as possible and keep it on the non-drive side just for some semblance of weight balance. However as people have said your body will generally adjust.

If I was touring I would certainly ride with two reasonably balanced panniers and would certainly keep them even better balanced in the front.

Front panniers , I find better when equal weight on both sides , Rear you can compensate with steering.

Front is what does the steering..