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My usual riding consists of trail centres and Surrey Hills, so my 3l Camelbak Rogue has been fine. Last weekend I made my first visit to the Peak District and realised packing food, waterproof, first aid kit and spare tubes was impossible.
Long story short, what size riding pack do I need? Is 10l big enough? If I go 12l or bigger, will the extra weight of the bigger bag be offset by a waist strap?
That lot would fit fine in my Camelbak Mule
I use a 25l for pretty much everything, a lot of the weight will be in the straps and buckles anyway, its not a great deal more material wise.
That way I can pack a slighly more comprehensive 1st aid/tool kit, phone battery pack, some packable waterproof overtrousers, a hat, a waterproof shell jacket and a fleece.
I dont find the weight an issue, I notice the weight of fluids oon my back much more, and chest and waist strap keeps it from swinging about.
Mule here too, can carry:
pump
tube
multitool
leatherman
puncture kit/spares - mech hanger, links etc
lightweight rain jacket
small 1st aid kit
glasses
food
phone
full hydration bladder
Plus I could actually wedge more stuff in, but it'd be getting quite ungainly.
Edit - what I tend to do if riding away from home is take everything bar the kitchen sink in the car with me then just lob the bits in the bag that seem appropriate depending on type and severity of trails, weather etc.
I have used an Evoc cc 10L the last few years. 2L bladder included.
I carry the following in the front room:
spare 29" tube, Lezyne medium HV pump, 4 zipties, tyrelevers, Lezyne multitool, small roll of 3M electric tape, 3 chain links+2KMC quick links, small plastic bag, tiny hand sanitiser gel, 2 bars, 1 gel, keys, wallet.
The top room:
smartphone in plastic bag+Lezyne GPS when not in use.
The main room:
bladder, extra jersey or windproof l/s jersey, emergency rainjacket.
I find my bag on the small side and have to fold the jersey the right way to make it fit. Would like a bigger so I can bring a first aid kit, not having to fold the jersey and maybe carry a thicker layer or a pair of G-form(thin) kneepads.
I've looked into the Mavic Crossmax 15L with 3L bladder. just my thoughts
For general riding I use an EVOC 16L.
Multitool, pump, co2, pliers, squashed flapjacks, medi kit, chain links, puncture kit, tyre boot, zip ties, 3L of water and enough room for a light jacket.
Jersey pockets or an 18l bag. If you need a bag, then any smaller is pointless imo and results in overstuffed sausage shaped thing sitting awkwardly on your back. Better with a less loaded bigger pack.
Mule here too. its a 9L capacity bag + the 3L bladder.
Pre mle I used a 15L pack which seemed smaller than the mule it sat a lot higher on my shoulders. I could almost forget it was there and felt it gave me a lot of movement. part of me rationale for getting the mule was to move the weight+bottles+cages off the bike itself.
Usually I carry 2L of fluids.. couple energy bars, glasses with clear lenses.. spare tube, patches, tyre pump + shock pump, chain quick links, chain breaker, allen keys, spare mech hanger, small screwdriver for mech adjustments, zip ties, spare gear cable and some needle nose pliers
winter essentials - bag cover and pac-a-mac removed for now
tried to lighten it up to the essentials, but there's little escaping that you have 2L of water on your back, as 2l of water is 2kg (i looked it up!) that's equivalent to carrying 2 bags of sugar. so think carefully about lugging too much water unnecessarily!