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Hello
Saddlebag; handlebar bag; frame bag - if you were just going to use one which would you choose?
It's too hot at the moment to cycle with my bag, so I'm thinking of getting something that fixes to my bike. Not carrying too much stuff: waterproof, lunch, spares, etc.
Which of the above do you recommend?
saddlebag
gets least in the way, can grow or shrink as required.
Saddle bag or frame bag. I've an Ortlieb saddle bag of either 3 or 4 litres that mounts via a clip attached to the saddle rails. Holds everything I want (small toolkit, a bit of lunch, wallet, phone) and unclips from the bike in a couple of seconds if you need to go anywhere. Partial frame bag would hold just as much.
Lightweight waterproof in jersey pocket since you need to get to it fairly quickly.
If you will be using a dropper post then frame bag would be my first choice.
I'm in the same situation as you easily, too hot to be wearing a bag, so I've decided to go for a frame bag.
Seen a couple of bikes with them lately & for me they seem both the most practical & best looking option.
I've also decided to try & make my own, tailored to exactly fit the frame...we'll see how that goes!
To keep the bike balanced, I'd go frame bag, saddle bag and finally bar bag. You can also add top tube, stem and fork bags depending on your needs and what the terrain will be like. The nice thing about soft bags is that you can be flexible with the setup, also some bikes won't fit a frame bag very easily if you also want to use bottle cages.
Frame bag has the smallest effect on handling, as it’s closest to cog.
I use all 3, depending on how much i need to carry.
I have an alpkit frame bag, made to measure, i think it was £95, not cheap but still good value.
Frame bag made to suit your frame. These look great
https://instagram.com/naffsacks?igshid=9xpgqhfwuuft
Doesnt have to be fancy, dry bag as a bar bag with the lightest sleeping bag you can afford.
Thanks everyone. Interesting replies that give me a lot to think about as always.
I’m leaning towards the saddlebag. I like the idea of being able to fold away the capacity I’m not using,, and Planet X have some reasonable looking podsacs at 25 quid.
My concern is stability/weight distribution. A few reviewers mention sway - which sounds alarming - and the comments about weight being over the bottom bracket have mead me think a bit.
Anyway, thanks once again.
I've not used the PX/Podsac bags but saddle bag sway is influenced by two things: how the bag or harness attaches to the saddle rails and how you pack the bag.
Good attachment systems like Wildcat's and Revelate's don't sway to any great extent, others aren't designed particularly well so you can't eliminate it no matter how much you tighten things up.
If you put too much stuff, particularly heavy stuff, in the bag then you will exacerbate any sway. Also if you put heavy stuff towards the top of the bag that will increase sway.
My Wildcat harness with loaded dry bag moves by about a cm to either side, it's not something I've ever noticed whilst riding. I'll have a maximum of 2Kg or so in it, usually a lot less than that, basically my sleeping quilt and spare clothes. On the JennRide the other week it was 1100g.
I've got a podsacs saddle bag and it does sway when fully loaded but I'm talking a full 4 days worth of clothes and kit sat in there. Took it to France and used it in anger for the first time on a road bike.
When your climbing it wobbles around a.lot but on the flat it's quite stable you just need to adjust to riding with it on.
I’ve got a podsacs saddle bag and it does sway when fully loaded
I've the same saddle bag. It does need to be really firmly packed so that further squashing of the contents is minimised, thereby causing more movement at the straps. Usually have to tighten the straps a couple of times after starting to ride as the contents 'settle down'. I also wrap the seatpost with an old inner tube which gives a bit of extra grip, and had an additional strap wrapped around the whole seatpack and saddle rails, which also added a bit of extra stability, and overall I haven't found it sways particularly noticeably or disconcertingly!
I use a small saddle bag from Evoc for spares and tools and an Alpkit possum frame bag for food, phone, cash and a light waterproof.
More thanks.
A couple of personal recs from people who own them is good enough for me. For £25 I can't go far wrong anyway. Good to hear that way is not too much of a problem - I'll be getting the smaller version anyway.
All the saddlebags I've looked at have been about 1 litre or about 10, there doesn't seem to be much in-between. 7 litres would have suited me fine.
https://forums.mtbr.com/bikepacking-bike-expedition/making-ghetto-mr-fusion-1042884.html
Good one to reduce sway
Any love for the Wolftooth Valais so you can still use your dropper post?
Any love for the Wolftooth Valais so you can still use your dropper post?
Pretty much standard, in fact some of the "dropper ready" saddle bags/harness ship with it.
@easily - Alpkit do 7 litre saddle bags, but way more expensive than the £25 PX ones. The big 13L+ saddle bags make sense in remote areas where you need to carry lots of provisions but less so here in the UK. I've only ever needed more than 7L or so in winter when just by the very nature of things all your kit is much bulkier.
Agreed that a frame bag has the least affect on handling but for commuting I use my Wildcat seat harness with a tapered drybag. I find I can't get my lunchbox into a half frame bag so that's worth thinking about. I also have the Podsac seatbag, it's pretty sturdy (heavy) and does the job but sways a bit more than the Alpkit harness.
Alpkit do a thing called Exorail, which is basically a bit of metal that sticks out the back of the saddle and their bags slide over. You can buy the seat pack with or without it.
It reduces sway to a point where it doesn't bother me, and is a handy platform for attaching other stuff (e.g. flip flops & jacket)
If you are using a dropper then there's a couple of articles on bikepacking.com that might be of interest:
https://bikepacking.com/gear/bikepacking-with-a-dropper-post/
https://bikepacking.com/gear/dropper-post-seat-bags/
Looking at a seatpack myself for an upcoming trip ... I'm torn between the Podsacs one and the Altura Vortex. Both are £25 at Planet X.
https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CCAVSP/altura-vortex-seat-pack
Any thoughts on which to plump for?
That's a good question.
The dimensions are
Altura 44x20x20 12 litre 260g
Podsacs
60x22x? 9 litre 480g
or
70x22x? 11 litre 580g
So the Altura is shorter, fatter, and bigger over all. That would seem like a good thing to me. It is also significantly lighter. I guess that means it's not as waterproof or tough, but that's a trade-off I can live with.
I've got an Ortlieb half frame bag on my Rove.
Just the right size for spares/jacket/stuff. Holds a Kryptonite U lock. Waterproof, but still easy to access everything. The bag never comes off now, it's just perfect.
Bar bag was a faff, seat bag wouldn't be any better.
Thanks for all the suggestions.
In the end I went for at the small podsacs saddlebag. I'm quite pleased with it - I can barely tell it's there when it's empty, and it's not too bad when it's full. 9 litres isn't as big as it sounds (to me), so I wish I'd got the bigger size, but I can pack a fair bit in with a bit of thought.