New Panniers needed

[tangent]

I am looking for some new rear panniers. My existing ones are about 8 years old and completely worn out. They came from Halfords and were quite cheap, but Halfords only seem to do them in a smaller size now. What I am looking for are panniers that are very quick to clip on and off a rear rack. I don’t want to mess around with Velcro or tying them on. The Halfords ones were very good in this respect, having a central locking clip and 2 plastic coated metal hooks. I use the panniers every day for commuting to work, so reasonably waterproof is essential. I also use panniers for trips to supermarkets about once a week, although I am considering investing in a much larger pair specifically for shopping as I invariably run out of space – all those buy 3 bags of potatoes for the price of 2 offers very quickly fills up the bags.

Suggestions welcome.

 

[banbury frank]

Bags

Hi I have a pair off oxford pannier bags Thy clip on easy

they come in 2 different sizes 36 and 44 liters not cheap but good

Oxford Pannier Bags | £39.95 | www.bikeoutlet.co.uk | Bicycle Luggage Solutions



the other company Vaude the most expensive

Aqua Pro Back - Roomy waterproof rear pannier with top lid closure- VAUDE - The Spirtit of Mountain Sports


or Raleigh Budget bags

Raleigh Triple Pannier: Amazon.co.uk: Sports & Leisure

hope this helps



Frank

 

[Streethawk]

Ortlieb Back Roller Classic, the reviews on Wiggle say far more than i ever could

eg rated 4.8 out of five from 187 review, and 184 of those would recommend to a friend.

Here's mine, it looks small here because you can just roll it up more when you arent carrying much:

 

[BLACKPANTHER]

I also use panniers for trips to supermarkets about once a week, although I am considering investing in a much larger pair specifically for shopping as I invariably run out of space – all those buy 3 bags of potatoes for the price of 2 offers very quickly fills up the bags.[/SIZE]

I bought a pair of panniers from Halfords last year, £25 for the set. They're only just big enough for my work gear though. I have a titanic set of panniers that came with my Aurora, but the only ones Alien sell as 'extras' are the triple ones for £25 Electric Bicycles - Online Shop - Accessories (still massive though). My latest bargain purchase though was a trailer for £68 from ebay. NEW CARGO Bicycle Bike Trailer BLACK RED up to 100KG on eBay (end time 28-Feb-11 11:09:32 GMT) It has tubed tyres (quick release), takes a weeks shopping, folds flat in seconds, and rides really smoothly. Even fully loaded it's pretty easy on the push bike, and with the ebike it's almost effortless. I used to faff about with panniers/rack, but now I wouldn't be without the trailer.......have you thought about going down this route? Just think, with a trailer you could buy 6 BAGS OF POTATOES FOR THE PRICE OF 4!!!!!

 

[Streethawk]

That is interesting BLACKPANTHER, do you think it would be suitable for a spot of touring/camping?

 

[Mussels]

My vote goes for the Ortliebs, I tried a few types of pannier both pricey and cheap but the roll top ones (mine are a copy from Agu) are by far the best and hard wearing and very waterproof.

 

[RoadieRoger]

Panniers

Wait for Lidl to do them , they come up regularly for £14 and I`m sure they include a top bag as well .

 

[tangent]

Hi All,

Thanks for the suggestions. I like the look of the Oxford and Ortlieb ones. What stops these bouncing off the bike though? I hit a lot of speed bumps, pot holes and generally lousy roads on my commute and generally don't slow down too much for them.

A trailer is out of the question - nowhere to put it (not strictly true, but wife would gpo nuts) and would probably be stollen while I was shopping.

 

[BLACKPANTHER]

Hi All,

A trailer is out of the question - nowhere to put it (not strictly true, but wife would gpo nuts) and would probably be stollen while I was shopping.

The trailer I have folds flat in seconds, wheels are quick release, and it takes up very little room. You can replace the trailer pin with a padlock to stop it getting stolen. So the trailer's locked to the bike, lock the bike up when you go shopping....safe as houses. I know a lot of people take the p155 out of bike trailers.....I used to think the same, but they allow you to use your bike in situations when you'd normally have to resort to the car. For example, I bought a large bench grinder last week.....try bungee- ing THAT to your rack!

That is interesting BLACKPANTHER, do you think it would be suitable for a spot of touring/camping?

I'd say that it's more suited to shortish journeys, shopping mainly. It's a bit loud and bouncy if you take it off road. If you're serious about touring/camping, it'd be worth paying a fair bit more and going for a single wheel speedy trailer.....the trailer I have would knock about 3 or 4 mph off your Auroras top speed when full. Empty, there's not really much difference.

 

[Streethawk]

Hi All,

Thanks for the suggestions. I like the look of the Oxford and Ortlieb ones. What stops these bouncing off the bike though? I hit a lot of speed bumps, pot holes and generally lousy roads on my commute and generally don't slow down too much for them.

A trailer is out of the question - nowhere to put it (not strictly true, but wife would gpo nuts) and would probably be stollen while I was shopping.

The Ortlieb's have two automatic hooks that close around the rail when you let go of the handle, also there is an adjustable lower hook that stops the bottom of the pannier from moving away from the rack.

You literally just lift them off and on once you have them setup the first time.

EDIT: hard to explain, this video shows you, these are the front wheel version, the rear one is the same, just bigger.

 

[tangent]

Thanks everyone!

The Ortlieb's mechanism does look good. I will visit some bike shops next week to take a look at some panniers. Still not convinced about the trailer though. The main point of me shopping by bike is to avoid the hassle of driving and parking. If I have to put together a trailer first, then I probably would end up taking the car.

 

[BLACKPANTHER]

If I have to put together a trailer first, then I probably would end up taking the car.

Seriously, it goes together in next to no time. I've just timed myself, 15 seconds! That's from flat pack without the wheels fitted to being fully assembled.....another 5 seconds to hook it to your bike (assuming you leave the tow shaft on all the time) and you're away.

 

[deadmonkey]

The Ortlieb sounds a lot like the Vaude panniers. They're also clip on, roll top, fully waterproof and have handles so you can carry them into shops or wherever. I think mine are brilliant, I wanted something cheaper but occasionally carry a laptop so was paranoid about them being fully waterproof.