Good Panniers for a Road Bike

[darkstar]

Hi all, i'm going to be cycling LeJog next summer and my parents have offered to buy me some decent panniers for christmas. I have a Cube Aerial Road Bike, so just wondering what i need to connect them to the bike??
Anyone recommend any particular brands? They don't need to be too big, i'll be unsupported but don't want to be weighed down too much.
Cheers.

 

[Dave Davenport]

You'd have to use something like a Tubis Fly rear rack with P clips on the seat stays. It would be very limited as far as weight goes but you'd just about manage as long as your're staying in B&B's/hostels and don't need to carry much. As for bags, a rack top and bar bag might be best.

 

[willem]

Or two Ortlieb City Line front rollers on that same Tubus Fly. Alternatively, you may consider a Carradice saddle bag like the Nelson Longflap (plus support, and beware for fragile seatposts). If you want to go camping, that is of a different story.
Willem

 

[andym]

Go with the Tubus Fly - you won't regret it. As far as panniers are concerned - if they'll spring for a pair of Ortliebs you won't regret it. I'd buy normal size rear panniers and try really hard not to fill them.

 

[willem]

The Ortlieb city line are a quarter cheaper and a quarter lighter. On a racing bike you may not have the heel clearance for real rear panniers.
Willem

 

[andym]

My bike has a chainstay length of about 405mm (IIRC - might be 415mm) so as tight as you can get, but full-size Ortliebs still work fine, although you do have to position them as far back as they'll go (my feet are an average size 9/43 BTW). Not ideal, but probably better than buying a pair of front panniers which turn out to be too small when you want to go camper-touring. 25 per cent cheaper isn't much compensation if you have to go out and buy another pair of panniers to replace them because they aren't big enough.

But obviously it's worth checking that you don't have problems with heel strike before you commit to buying (or before it's too late to exchange).

 

[Crankarm]

Would smaller front Ortlieb panniers mounted on a Tubus Ergo Low loader be an option?

I read a RTW travelogue record attempt of a guy, Mark Shand I think his name was, who used just front panniers on a road bike back in the mid late 1980s on a world record attempt and he faired fine. He stayed in motels, BnBs and slept in fields when ever darkness stopped him cycling. As I say he seemed to get on fine. I've started using front panniers only and whilst strange at first I now prefer it as my bike handles a lot better as not so much combined weight is over the rear wheel.

 

[willem]

Front panniers mounted on the back is indeed what I suggested. We find that we often use front panniers on the back of our communting bikes as well. So I would not worry about them ever being surplus to requirement. On the other hand, for camping you will need the volume of the rear panniers (but won't need the fronts if you can restrain yourself) so if you will only get one pair, these are obviously the ones to get if they fit.
My remark about the new Ortlieb city line had nothing to do with either front or rear panniers as such: they exist in both. What I like about them is that they are a new no frills variant that is fully functional for touring, but both quite a bit cheaper and quite a bit lighter (1520 grams for a pair of backrollers as opposed to 1900 grams for the comparable classic backroller or 1680 grams for the rather more expensive backroller plus).
Panniers themselves (and the racks) make up a disconcertingly large proportion of your total luggage weight, and these are the lightest that I know of - and yet they are very robust.
Willem

 

[Crankarm]

Erm..... Willem I was suggesting a front Tubus Ergo Low loader with smaller front panniers and maybe a bar bag, keeping the rear wheel load free save for the weight of the rider, but yes indeed, using smaller front panniers on the rear would indeed reduce volume size and likely weight depending on what you carried of course.

 

[willem]

Sorry, I was in a hurry and misread your post. I am, however, not sure how many front forks on modern racing bikes will cope with a lowrider....
Willem

 

[darkstar]

O.K, thankyou everyone for your advice, i think i have found the solution through a combination of your posts.
I like the idea of having the front panniers mounted on the back, to save a bit of weight. So what do people think of these two?
Rack- http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Tubus_Fly_Rear_Rack/5360025254/
Panniers- http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Ortlieb_Front_Roller_Plus_Panniers/5360007502/#more

I'll be staying in hostels and carrying the minimum amount of kit i can.
Cheers

 

[darkstar]

Anyone? Am hoping to send an email to my parents tomorrow so they have time to buy them

 

[Crankarm]

Anyone? Am hoping to send an email to my parents tomorrow so they have time to buy them

Looks a good combo both excellent products pretty much the best makes you can buy for each respectively. However check that you can actually fit the rack to the Cube Aeriel as for fixing to the frame the Tubus Fly shows just on single stay upper mount that suppsoedly secures to the brake bridge, which would be fine if you had V-brakes but you don't. The Aeriel has road cantilever brakes which mount on the brake bridge. Click on the pic for the rack, zoom in to see the fitting points and see for yourself. Do the same for the Aeriel unless of course you already the bike. Do you have holes just above the drop outs for a rack on the Aeriel frame as I can't see any? Plus there are no upper rack mounts on the seat stays. If not you will need a rack mounting kit as well - p clips. Wiggle do these as well.

http://www.cube-bikes.de/xist4c/web/aerial_id_36191_.htm

BTW some one posted a link on a similar thread to some Vaude Aqua front panniers on Amazon. They are b****y good panniers. I already have the Aqua Plus Rear Panniers (with side pocket). The ones on Amazon were a pretty good price - 22% off, so apologies darkstar, I bought them and the Aqua bar bag as well to have a complete set. Postage was free as well. The panniers were delivered to my door this morning and have now fitted them to the bike so they can go either front or rear. They are quite a bit smaller than the rears which is much the same for the Ortlieb Roller Classic panniers as well as they are very similar in sizings - both made in Germany and of the best quality. The bar bag is due to arrive monday. I can't work out why Amazon split the order I didn't request them to. Their call centre in the Phillipines was hopeless. The first woman I first spoke to could hardly speak Ingleesh let alone understand it. She kept telling me they were out of stock and would take 5 weeks to arrive which caused a few missed heart beats and so I requested for a refund but she refused wanting to reserve them for me. Then it clicked that because I had bought the last ones of each, her system in downtown Manila, was now showing o.o.s. on order 5 weeks. Suffice to say she could not grasp this so I asked to speak to some one who could actually speak and understand Ingleesh. A sexy fluent female Ingleesh/Amurkin/Portugese voice then came on - the boss, it was too much to bear!!! Anyway, she cleared up all the confusion her underling had created and eventually she said she would call the local transport company here Citysink (Oh-oh)to re-arrange delievry of both the panniers and bar bag for tues 8th decemebr as originally inidcated by Amazon when I placed the order. Anway whatever she did or didn't do, it had bugger all effect, as to my surprise the panniers turned up this morning with a young lad who looked like he should be on a BSO or skate board. His white van looked dodgy. Anyway the package has Amazon emblazoned all over it and it was addressed to me. It was lucky I was in as I had been faffing around getting the bike ready to go out. I wonder when the bar bag might materialise ..........

I didn't know that Amazon did quality cycling gear. Another on-line shop to browse at.

 

[darkstar]

Thanks a lot for you help Crankarm! I've decided to go for the Tubus Fly, by the looks of it it can be adapted to fit just about and bike, I'll need p clips so i've advised my Dad to phone up Wiggle to ask them which attachments are suitable.
Cheers again.

 

[Crankarm]

Thanks a lot for you help Crankarm! I've decided to go for the Tubus Fly, by the looks of it it can be adapted to fit just about and bike, I'll need p clips so i've advised my Dad to phone up Wiggle to ask them which attachments are suitable.
Cheers again.

Take a cose look as are you sure the single stay of the Fly can be attached to something other than to the brake bridge as I think on your Cube Aeriel the brake caliper is attached to it. Maybe you might have to fashion some sort of additional bracket which sits between the brakes and the bridge onto which you can mount the single stay of the Fly rack.

Yes on the rear stays you will need the p-clips to secure the lower rack mounts. To protect your frame, if they don't come with rubber strips, you can use pieces of old bike inner tube or even old bike tyre! Cut nicely to size of course.