ultra light panniers

[willem]

I tested them with real gear for the first time last weekend. Everything worked fine, but it was a tight fit indeed. I had planned to use only a small handlebar bag, but I needed my bigger one. I am trying to persuade Arkel to come with a largish but light handlebar bag as well. Handlebar bags are very convenient, but their the ratio of volume to weight is usually terrible. Since we do not need them as a platform for a map case anymore, they no longer need to be rigid and they can hang lower and closer to the head tube, which should reduce the weight and improve bike handling.
Willem

 

[jjb]

Thanks for the update, Willem. I stopped using my bar bag as it was 800g including the R&K fittings. I recently discovered there's a world of these slightly smaller, velcro-attached bar bags around 250g on ebay. They tend to be under £5, which is a bonus!

 

[CycleFar James]

I know I'm not really answering the question by saying this but: perhaps rather than a pannier a drybag might the a lighter option. Just one or two big stuff sacks in place of the panniers and a top bar bag. It sounds like your logic is leading you to full blown Ultralight Cycle-Touring which is something I've been very involved with lately. Good luck and don't stop counting grams!

p.s. I use a top bar bag like the Topeak Fuel tank rather than a handle bar bag - that shaves a few grams! I have a picture of my ultralight bike on my website if you want to see the Topeak Fuel tank in action. But I'll leave it at that as I'm not here to advertise.

 

[marcusjb]

I have ordered a set of the Dry-lites (stock coming into the uk arkel warehouse later this week apparently) - they do look like a good solution for light weight touring.

I plan to use them on a 1300km 5 day trip around the Highlands and Islands in Scotland this summer, and I think they tick the box for enough capacity whilst not being heavy or massive (I.e. You always fill up whatever capacity you have).

Need to think about handlebar solutions as well.

 

[Miles Togo]

Going down the same lines as cycle far James. I use a light rucksack The type that goes around the top of your hips . As I am touring the alps. I also want to do a bit of walking . And this is ideal .

 

[BalkanExpress]

I tested them with real gear for the first time last weekend. Everything worked fine, but it was a tight fit indeed. I had planned to use only a small handlebar bag, but I needed my bigger one. I am trying to persuade Arkel to come with a largish but light handlebar bag as well. Handlebar bags are very convenient, but their the ratio of volume to weight is usually terrible. Since we do not need them as a platform for a map case anymore, they no longer need to be rigid and they can hang lower and closer to the head tube, which should reduce the weight and improve bike handling.
Willem

Willem,

Once you had packed the sleeping bag, mat and Trangia what else was there room for: I see from reading elsewhere you had the tent across the top, so what else was did you manage to squeeze inside the bags?

 

[willem]

Full gear for, say, three weeks in France, apart from what I would be wearing. So (if I remember it all):
spare cycling shorts
long trousers
evening shirt
two underpants
one undershirt
two pairs of warm socks
two cycling shirts (one cool and short sleeved, one warm with long sleeves)
one light sweater/warm shirt to be worn on top of the cycling shirts
a down vest
an Ikea plastic plate
a plastic tea/coffee mug, plus folding Ortlieb coffee filter
lexan cutlery
a lexan wine glass
0.7 litre of wine in a Platypus wine bag
500 grams of macaroni as emergency food,
grated cheese
a small bottle of pesto
a small flask of olive oil
a plastic jar with jam/marmelade
a tea towel
a sponge to wash the dishes
a folding piece of closed cell foam to sit on, and to use as some protection of the panniers against the sharper sides of the Trangia
toiletries
a small synthetic towel
All this in the panniers.

Strapped on the outside because like the tent they might be wet and dirty: a Goretex jacket, rain pants and overshoes

In the bar bag: phone, first aid kit, charger, medication, sun screen, spare tube and brake pads, (very) basic tools, sunglasses, leg warmers, buff, gloves
On the bike: a bottle of water, a Thermos with hot or cold water, and a 1 litre bottle of meths (the last two in a Bikebuddy).
It was a tight fit, but it worked.

Willem

 

[BalkanExpress]

Willem

That is a very impressive piece of packing

It suggests that with my far less developed stuffing skills there should still be enough room for a weekend's worth of stuff which is good news.

 

[willem]

Mind you, unless you decide that for a weekend you will simply eat out in a pub, the difference between a weekend and three weeks amounts to little more than one set of clean clothing. To get all this into the panniers, I did not pack particularly carefully. What I did do for the last few years was to collect some light and compact stuff, like the trousers. They are very light and compact, because they are made from some thin polyester stuff. They also come with an elasticated waist band so I do not need a belt. My wife once bought them for me for about 5 euros, not realizing that this was a great find. Similarly the evening shirt is an old thin polyester one. Like the trousers I will only wear it on my camping trips, to stretch its life for as long as I can. I am afraid I am running out of further ideas, however, and certainly of cheap ideas. Also, I just bought a Garmin Etrex 30. I went for the Etrex because it is light, relatively cheap, and has the best battery life. Even so, its batteries will need a charger, so my handle bar bag is getting fuller again.
Willem