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Before I buy the alpkit stuff are there any good alternatives that the stw collective have experience with?
Apidura. I've got the compact bar bag and compact seat.
I can't fill them up!
or Revelate Pika/Viscacha or Bikepack.eu if you like an all in one bag, or Wildcat if the idea of using a drybag holster appeals.
The Alpkit is due an upgrade soon iirc and frankly it's just not as good as the competition. It's alright if you have it filled with light bulky clothing but put tools, or anything weighty in it and it wobbles all over the place and the (undersized) straps come loose with annoying regularity.
UK based there's Alpkit, Apidura and Wildcat. US based there's quite a lot, check out http://bikepackersmagazine.com/ - they have quite a few comparisons in their review section.
For my main bags (Handlebar, frame & seat) I use Wildcat kit, for the smaller stuff: fuel pods; stem cells, I use Alpkit. The Wildcat stuff is rock solid, but read the instructions carefully - there's a bit of threading back and forth to do which is a fiddle the first time but once you've done it once or twice it's quite simple.
If you don't want to splash out loads of cash and are only doing one or two overnighters then you can strap the Alpkit Tapered Airlok directly to the seat/seatpost.
Remember to budget for helicopter tape - the straps will rub the paint on your frame otherwise.
I have and can recommend the Wildcat Harness and Partial Framebags and a Revelate Seatpack.
I have wildcat and mrs tr has alpkit.
The wildcat is far superior except imo the alpkit kanga bar harness fits my bike much better, keeps the dry bag off my front wheel , the wildcat doesnt do that - the gap between my bars and front wheel is very small.- short headtube and 26" rigid forks that have a 29er wheel in.
Revelate Pika here, which has the advantage of not needing a lot of seatpost, so works well on gravel bike. I also have the Revelate framebag, the Tangle, [url= http://www.backcountrybiking.co.uk/product/tangle-bag/ ]this one[/url]
but haven't used it yet - needs a bit of time taping up frame with helitape or gorilla tape to avoid it taking the paint off. So far have just gone with Pika and 20l Evoc backpack with water and the light bulky stuff
The new Alpkit is bigger and waterproof and will run alongside the current Koala. However the fittings look similar to the existing model so will probably suffer from the same swinging about johnystorm refers to above. The only time I used mine in anger I had to use a bunjee cord around the saddle rails to stop it flopping about . Since then I have used cheapo dry bags. A pity , I have other Alpkit stuff which is fine. As for bar bag, I just use a dry bag with some webbing straps round the bars. A bit of juggling to suit your cable arrangement but a cheap and fairly efficient solution
Blackburn outpost seat pack and bar harness look good. Not tried them though.
Some great suggestions, ta!