Saddle Bags

[Glasgow44]

Hi there

I'm looking to buy a saddle bag for my two road bikes:

https://www.evanscycles.com/bmc-teammachine-slr03-105-2017-road-bike-EV273214
https://www.giant-bicycles.com/gb/defy-2-2016

I'd like a saddle bag big enough so I can carry spare tools, tyre levers and inner tubes. I also have my pumps attached to each bike on the frame, so wouldn't need to carry them in the saddle bag. Can anyone recommend any saddle bags? Also, how easy are they to fit?

Thanks in advance for your help.

J

 

[Rooster1]

As an alternative, I use a bottle cage to hold one of these

Much easier to get stuff out, and I can transfer it from bike to bike.

 

[mjr]

I'd like a saddle bag big enough so I can carry spare tools, tyre levers and inner tubes. I also have my pumps attached to each bike on the frame, so wouldn't need to carry them in the saddle bag. Can anyone recommend any saddle bags? Also, how easy are they to fit?

The velcro or buckle strap type are generally cheap and cheerful, plus you wouldn't need a bracket for each bike like you do with quick-release ones. However, looping the straps around the rails can be a bit fiddly and you'd do it every time. Fitting is pretty simple, really. Most of them seem much of a muchness - I'd just go look at them in shops and buy any one that seems the right size, shape and the stitching looks secure on. You can find that sort in some supermarkets, even.

The quick-release ones usually have a bracket either on the seatpost (have you enough seatpost showing?) or the saddle rails (have you enough rails showing behind the clamp?) and sometimes a stability strap goes around the other. Fitting the bracket is usually a tools job (screwdriver or hex key) and can take a couple of tries with various shims and rubber strips to get the grip just right.

A third type are the Brooks-like little rolls or boxes that have straps that go through saddle loops but I doubt you've got those.

My saddlebags are much much bigger, so I'm not good with recent recommendations. Carradice and Ortleib are probably still the top brands, though.

 

[cosmicbike]

I use this, though I bought with no tools.
https://www.topeak.com/global/en/products/saddle-bags/363-survival-tool-wedge-ii
Have a clip on each bike so easy to move around

 

[vickster]

I don't much like saddle bags, too much hassle getting stuff in and out but I do have Topeak and Specialized. Straps and Velcro, two minutes to fit. Think about how you'll mount rear lights especially if you don't have loads of seatpost showing, some have a little strap to mount on, smart rear lights work on these but other brands might not

Just go to somewhere like Evans and get the one you like and that meets your needs

 

[si_c]

I use a Topeak wedge with the quick release. Very good, can fit two tubes, 3 co2, multi tool, levers as well as patches quick links and a few zip ties etc. Still a little space.

 

[rivers]

I use a topeak medium size wedge on one bike, and something I bought off of amazon for £6 on the other bike. The topeak is slightly bigger, and I can fit 2 tubes, tyre levers, multitool and phone or snacks (not both together). The amazon special can fit two tubes, tyre levers, and a multitool. maybe a cereal bar, definitely not a phone though.

 

[mjr]

Think about how you'll mount rear lights especially if you don't have loads of seatpost showing, some have a little strap to mount on, smart rear lights work on these but other brands might not

Get a seat stay mount for the rear light (or a rackmount if you have a rack - allows a much larger illuminated area). Back lights on saddlebags often point up or down too much or wag about, so at the very least, make sure it's a wide-angle one and not dazzling even if it wobbles to point directly at the eyes of a following cyclist.

 

[vickster]

I'm assuming he doesn't have a rack on his shiny new road bike, hence wanting a saddle pack

I don't like seat stay lights as the only like...as I said I don't much like saddle packs either...I use a rack with a rack mount for the rear light (I don't often ride in the dark either)

My point was that if he is going to use a seat pack he needs to consider where to mount lights / which lights to use as the typical seatpost mounting may not be an option - he may/may not have already done this

 

[Vantage]

Get a Carradice Pendle on the back. They look uber kewl on any bike.

 

[Jody]

I bought one of these for my Defy at the weekend. Its just big enough to fit a tube, 2x CO2, multi tool with chain splitter, levers, few patches/glue and some latex gloves but not much more beyond that. It's waterproof, the bracket is sturdy and it is quick release so will swap between bikes easily if you purchase an extra bracket.

https://www.evanscycles.com/ortlieb-micro-saddle-pack-EV146600

 

[Fab Foodie]

This is a saddlebag.....

And some 30 plus years old!

 

[shirokazan]

This is a saddlebag...

Which Carradice is that? And what is that red bag?

 

[Fab Foodie]

Which Carradice is that? And what is that red bag?

Camper longflap and the red bag is a 13l alpkit double ended drybag.

My kit (exept the Garmin case) for The Fridays tour including extra casual kit for the Ghent Jazz festival.
Worked well. Bike handled nicely and no need to remove panniers on trains, small ferries etc.

 

[jefmcg]

This is a saddlebag.....

You haven't paraphrased it correctly...

View: https://youtu.be/XLZAupaUwyc