I've used both a BOB trailer and a 2 wheeled trailer over the years and have toured using panniers. I greatly prefer the 2 wheeled trailers. They are far more stable no matter how much gear you are pulling. I cussed the BOB trailer all during the tour - it had to be strategically loaded or it was unsteady and the skewers attaching the trailer to the rear axle tended to pull out, creating a potentially catastrophic situation. I liked the panniers, but I had to load them carefully to get everything in them and they put lots of weight on the frame of the bike. All in all, I would suggest a 2 wheeled trailer

Cyclist 602

Hi
Just thought I would let you know how to adjust the bounciness of your BOB trailer. A trick I learned from 4 Wheel Driving

When riding empty, reduce the air in your BOB tire. It is set up to be pulled fully loaded, so is very bouncy when empty. But not at all when fully loaded.
Cheers!
Diane

Saw this a bit late.

I rode the Divide Ride with just 2 front panniers and a dry bag on the rear rack on a rigid 700c wheeled bike with 45mm tires. I had no mechanical problems except for one flat tire due mostly to going light weight.

I met many riders there who followed the Adventure Cycling advice to use a trailer and a suspensed mountain bike. Many were overloading their BOB trailers and had rear wheel problems on their bikes-spoke breakage and rim fractures. Some had handling problems particularly going downhill. Watching them push their bike and trailer up passes was painful to see.

My lighter gear load allowed me to ride what they walked and pushed. Less is more in this case I think!

+1 - less is more in most cases.

Saying that it's the BOB trailers fault for allowing you to take too much stuff is like the lame excuse that the bartender over served you and that's why you smashed the car. Really weak excuse.

Bobs are great if you're going to overload your bicycle, which is not always a bad thing -- as when you're touring with small children who would have a bad time if they had to carry all their own gear, or when you're not touring at all and just want to go pick up a few cases of beer.

They're also great if you're riding some carbon-and-cotton-candy road bike whose frame or wheels would fracture if any load-bearing thing were screwed into or clamped onto it.

Otherwise, racks and panniers. Do you go backpacking with a trailer?

I find the anti-trailer sentiment amusing. You would think that the touring community would be open minded and enjoy seeing new folks touring on anything. I have never heard a trailer using person be anti-panniers / racks, they might point our an advantage here and there, but never anti-. The reverse anti-trailer for touring statements happen all the time. Amusing, to me anyhow.

Here's a new twist, you could always just get the Surly Big Dummy and drop this debate... =)

Sure, but then you would just be a "Big Dummy"

You will probably hear this a lot, it is your personal preference. Which it is. I have a BOB, my girlfriend has Panniers. I took the BOB to Mexico and it was great, you hardly know it is there, until you hit about 40km/hr, then it is a bit unstable. I once carried 20L of water on the BOB in Mexico, on top of all my gear, and it was heavier, but not really that noticeable. The BOB on the plane was great, I took off the wheel, and the part that connects to the bike, put my bag in it, zap strapped the bungee cords and I was good to go on the plane. The BOB is great around the city as well when you want to carry a big load, like lumber or a lot of beer.

If you are going to be jumping onto trains a lot, dealing with a lot of traffic (downtown Delhi traffic) I would definitely go with Panniers, the extra length on the back is kind of a pain, and could be safety problem (drivers don't expect you to be that long).

The bottom line, the BOB pulls great, and if you keep it under 40km/hr, stay away from crazy downtown centres, you can carry way more stuff then with panniers, and if you are really crazy, you can put a rear rack on your bike and take the kitchen sink with you as well.

Hi
I love an unqualified answer, always good for a giggle. Let's start again now I,ve stopped laughing.
I have to say it depends on the bike you choose, most road bikes today are infact to flimsy to be fully loaded and handle well and these same bikes tow poorly as well, now that is out of the way and you own a decent touring frame.
I tow a Bob Ibex, bike is equipped with a handlebar bag and a rear rack. Day trips are easy (unloaded) simply by removing the trailer and dry sack. Trailer also useful for shopping and basic chores.
Friends use panniers and take longer to pack/unpack, load/unload and there bikes seam to act like parachutes with their panniers hanging out all over them. They do have there advantages when travelling as they don't need to pack a trailer.
Both are good, try them and make up your own mind, it's the bike that matters most.
Cheers
John.
Ps Never had a trailer flat.

ahhhh were would we be without our ego's !!

probably in the himalayas somewhere




~ It took me a while to choose between the trailer or the panniers, but eventually i decided to get a bob ibex, because a significant percentage of my touring is on off-road/unsealed trails which is just so cruisy with a trailer...

also my 2 cousins did a ride aroundd Tasmania, one on a BOB and the other with Panniers... and my cuz with the panniers had a big crash... not that this couldn't happen with the BOB trailer... but she reckons it was coz the weight was too high, making it unstable ... ? not sure, haven't used all panniers...

anyway, don't get caught up on it ... either way will be great ... just get out there ... take the plunge !

best thing eva (touring) ... i now live 2000km from where i left and this is just the first base...

Yes but it is never that simple. For one thing if not riding alone drafting may be a factor. A lot of work can be saved by drafting and for this type of riding the panniers always have the edge. It is hard to draft effectively behind a rider with a trailer. Even when riding alone a trailer may have as much or more drag if riding with quartering winds than would panniers.

Personally I doubt that rolling resistance is all that much of a factor. Weight on the other hand is if climbing. It is possible to travel with less weight when using panniers if you pick light racks and panniers. If you buy stuff like the Surly Nice Rack and heavier panniers the weight difference might not be much, but assuming you pick fairly light weight stuff panniers can save 10 pounds or more. To me 10 pounds is a huge deal if riding in the mountains.

The "touring community" probably is open-minded. Don't mix the "touring community" up with a few loud posters to the Touring forum.

I've enjoyed using a trailer, although for a short credit card tour I'd use panniers. Since I don't have a front rack on my carbon fork, I only use rear panniers.

I can't say that I have noticed any anti trailer sentiment. People have pointed out advantages and disadvantages of both. Which works better depends on where/how you will travel, what bike you use, and what your preferences are. I think most of the posters on the subject on either side acknowledge that.

Did I miss something in the trailer threads where someone blasted someone for using a trailer? Personally I usually weigh in on the pro pannier side, but I don't think I ever knocked anyone's choice to use a trailer.

My tour last year had me with a BOB and 4 others with loaded panniers. I can't say one was better than the other. I seemd to have a much easier time packing, and unpacking. I only had 1 bag with all my stuff, for during trip use things I did have a handle-bar bag, and small trunk. Also in the evenings when we would ride from the camp grounds into town for eiher food, ot to actually eat I just had to drop the BOB and go.

The drawback here is that a soft tire will be hard to pull. Depending on weight and how low the tire pressure, a trailer could become very hard to pull.

You just answered a 5-year-old post, and the poster hasn't visited bikeforums.net (logged-in) in over two years.

Always note the date before posting.

Not sure I get your point - does the age of the thread make the topic any less relevant? I was researching trailers this morning - ca 2013, and this thread is one of the first to come up on the topic. The point isn't the debate, it's a source of info.

Adding , for posterity ..

Living here , Bike Tourists, Towing trailers, and racks & panniers, pass through all summer.

Toured internationally , racks and panniers .. since considered, the option of a trailer
set up so I could wear it (back-pack straps) to climb stairs , and carry the bike un-laden in my hands..

I'll offer: 2 wheel trailers, had more usefulness between tours, than 1 wheel types..

sold my BoB, got a Burly Flatbed. [the CoOp era, w 20" QR wheels] ..
& A canoeists Portage dry bag.. it has the back pack straps..

Time is almost always relevant to any topic.

I've never understood why people answer old threads. I suppose some folks like posting where there's less likelihood of disagreement. Arguing with a ghost does make life simpler.

Start your own thread, enlighten us with your newfound knowledge of trailers and panniers. I'm sure many readers are surprised that lower pressure tires roll with greater resistance.

If you want information, learn how to search (bf search is limited):

https://lmgtfy.com/?q=bob+yak+trailer...bikeforums.net

At least it shows they considered the question may have came up before,
and upon finding an existing thread , did choose to add to it ,

rather than start as if they were the only one to ever have that thought.

Seems you are trolling for an argument. I'm not here to argue - I'm here to find and share info. But I will say that your comments and assumptions speak volumes. Good day sir.

Or they didn't notice how old it was.

FWIW, I noticed a lot of people in this thread underestimating the weight of panniers and racks (on the order of thinking a rack weighs half a pound!). Most racks weigh at least a pound; many weigh more - unless you buy a tiny titanium one, you're not going to have a half-pound rack. A pair of Ortlieb Back Rollers is 4 pounds. That's over five pounds just for a rear rack and panniers, leaving out handlebar bags and front rack/panniers if present.

All this to say, the weight difference between pannier and trailer setups isn't as extreme as some might think.

All the replies I saw in the thread were also just as relevant today as they were five years ago - it seems touring luggage technology hasn't changed all that much.

That's funny - #67 is clearly an argument (with a ghost!). Maybe you don't know why you are here.

If you would spend more time reading and less time with quick quips, you'd discover I have written "volumes" on the topic of panniers and trailers, for the benefit of people like you:

https://lmgtfy.com/?q=seeker333+yak+s...bikeforums.net

https://lmgtfy.com/?q=seeker333+panni...bikeforums.net

https://lmgtfy.com/?q=seeker333+yak+p...bikeforums.net

Come back and criticize when you've actually shared some information at bf.net!