Panniers on road bike??

[Sara_H]

I only use both paniers when I'm out with my wife. I just use one for my commute. I hate the ruck sack method, it makes your back sweat and can be dangerous if you fall off.

I have this Topeak rack. Its very good because it has the top load rails that are just below the top plate so you can more easily load a separate top bag with the paniers in place.

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_231835_langId_-1_categoryId_236256

I have the disc version of that rack - I agree the seperate side rails make it much easier to load bags on and have stuff bungeed on the top. Just been cycle camping and thought the rack was great.

 

[defy-one]

15 miles yesterday with a fully loaded pannier on the near side. Didn't feel twitchy or unbalanced at all. Only felt the weight when walking the bike slightly

 

[BrazingSaddles]

You might be interested in the Tubus Fly. (link below - other retailers available - got mine from Brixton Cycles.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/tubus-fly-rear-rack/?referid=googwig&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=RTC_tubus&utm_adgroup=MS_Tubus_Fly&utm_term= tubus fly broad&gclid=CMqHraXt1LECFTMhtAodFzEAhQ

+1. As Tony says, "they're great"!

 

[Tynan]

one pannier for me because it's enough for what I carry, done 300km rides like that without falling over

 

[slowmotion]

Certainly no issue with only having one pannier. In fact for commuting it makes much more sense to only have one bag to worry about than two if you can get everything in.
I've commuted for a good couple of years now with one Ortlieb that contains my full suit, shirt underwear and shoes, toiletries, and a towel. If I need to take anything additional - i.e a Wiggle return for lunchtime posting, or my laptop, then that goes in the other side, but for general everyday commuting just one is perfect. You get over the weight imbalance in the first half mile of riding, and then won't notice it again.

Ortliebs back rollers are great by the way. Totally waterproof, hard-wearing, and very spacious.

I use a Tubus rack. Also very good quality and lightweight.

I'm with lejogger. Ortlieb Back Roller Classics are simply waterproof and blooming tough as well. Who wants a pannier that is "nearly waterproof"? I use a Tortec Expedition rack. It works just fine for commuting on the hybrid and fits the road bike too. Link...
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/tortec/expedition-rear-rack-ec006628

 

[lejogger]

I use the Ortlieb back roller plus however... a personal choice about the matte rather than gloss finish. The material is still just as tough and just as waterproof whichever you choose.

 

[Sara_H]

Another vote for ortluebs back rollers. I bought mine for touring, but use them for every day use too. They're very good for shopping, they're huge.

Never let me down in wet weather either!

 

[Cyclopathic]

15 miles yesterday with a fully loaded pannier on the near side. Didn't feel twitchy or unbalanced at all. Only felt the weight when walking the bike slightly

You're not trying hard enough. Try getting some front panniers as well and loading up the near side of those. I reckon with enough weight you could get the twitchy, unstable ride. I'm going to try it with house bricks.

 

[Crankarm]

Have a look at the Blackburn carriers. Quite a wide range, reasonably made, reasonably priced, lifetime guarantee. A reasonable middle ground choice.

Love the Blackburn carriers , one on my commuter is so old it says Jim Blackburn on it . Still works great . Not much to go wrong , though .

My experience of Blackburn racks couldn't be more different. They are CRAP. Very poor welding that fails prematurely, twice on two racks. One rack after 2.5 months the other after 2 years. I had the Expedition Ex-2 racks the one with the extra dog leg strut at the back. The Backburn life time warranty is not worth the paper it is printed on as they refused replacement. AVOID.

I now have Madison Summit racks which are far better built. Welding is first class, the rack is lighter and much stronger and rigidity very good meaning no lateral shake which I used to get with Blackburn EX-2 racks when carrying a heavy load.

The Blackburn front low loaders are poor as well as I had to bodge mine to get them to fit properly.

I now have a Tubus Tara front low loader rack which is good although look out for poor quality of finish as the first few I got from Wiggle were of very poor finished quality - lots of welding swarf on the tubing which had been painted over. I cut myself on one piece of swarf as I was handling it as I didn't see it as it was covered with black paint, small and very sharp. This one that cut me was also well out of true, like an elephant had sat on it. Wiggle were awful to deal with over this. They told me all Tubus racks were like this. Yeah right. The silver one they sent me previously was perfect. Haven't used Wiggle since. I believe Tubus have out sourced rack manufacture to China or where ever, but they are no longer made in Germany. Shame.

 

[fimm]

I have used a very small Carradice saddlebag on my road bike, which does not have fittings for a rack. I can fit clothes, towel and lunch in it, just. It does have imperfections - I bought things to screw onto the saddle rails to feed the straps on the bag through, and the saddle seems much narrower than the bag is expecting. Also the bag rubs on the back tyre unless I use bungee cords to hold it up - which works fine. I know you can get a thing from Carradice to fix this problem but I can't afford it right now. I still prefer the faff to a rucksack!

 

[captainhastings]

Oh, just to add, I use 23mm tyres at the minute and have no issue at all with the combination of that width and weight on the bike.

That is interesting I just put wider tyres on mine because I could feel the back wheel slipping off things. I tend too go too tesco for approx 4 stone of shopping but I am a novice. I didn't feel very secure in the wet

 

[lejogger]

That is interesting I just put wider tyres on mine because I could feel the back wheel slipping off things. I tend too go too tesco for approx 4 stone of shopping but I am a novice. I didn't feel very secure in the wet

don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you SHOULD use 23mm tyres, just that I do and I don't find it an issue.
You should always use what you feel comfortable with.
For my commute and the weight I carry on the commute they're fine. For a fully loaded bike and a significant mileage I would be changing to something like marathon + 25mm.

 

[Drago]

I've claimed once on the Blackburn lifetime warranty on a bottle cage that came adrift from one side of the mounting plate. A few days later a new one arrive with a packet of sweets inside the parcel, zero hassle.

Some persepective - I'm not saying they're the best option, but compared to rival stuff at the same price point from the likes of Topeak or Avenir and it's head and shoulders above them.

Conversely, I've never been a huge Tubus fan. Tough, yes. But why so expensive for a very simple piece of tubular steel engineering? And some of their "pannier racks" don't have the dog leg at the rear to stop a half empty pannier dragging in the wheel.

 

[Gravity Aided]

Never had any issues with the Blackburns . At times, I commute 10 - 15 miles per day , on American roads and bike trails in the middle west . Sometimes a full touring load, and no problems .

 

[defy-one]

Is there any way to lock the panniers when leaving the bike unattended?
I really have no need to carry mini pump,spare tubes,patches,gloves etc etc around with me all day. Would be nice to leave that stuff with the bike. Pannier is a Decathlon own brand