Ok, I'm building up my touring bike, and went to my LBS to look at panniers...well, the price wasn't bad ($85/~$50US), but the LBS guy admitted they're not that great and should be alright for "riding around town"...he said good ones (I think he mentioned Topeak or something similar) would be a ridiculous amount, about $300/~$220US. I'm a soon to be student, so this is far too much.
I've had the idea to get some canvas and something hard for the backing and to get a frabric/sewing shop to make some simple one pocket panniers for me. seems straightforward enough, but I am wondering how to fit them onto a rack? like what do I need on them to attach them securely?
If anyone else has any better ideas, that'd be great to hear too.
(锕侊箒)~~~~---------------------------------------------------------------------- http://www.cobbworks.com/ You could probaly make these yourself for 25 bucks,
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You might take a look at TheTouringStore.com which has Lone Peak panniers. Smaller ones are about $65. That's for a pair. If you can make your own for less than that, go for it.
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Cobbworks can be used as a seat (in camp) as well.
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I made a trailer for commuting out of an old Rubbermaid "Action Packer" storage container. It really works great. You may want to consider that approach.
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The corrugated plastic of "For Sale" signs is ideal stiffener, tough and light. You can simply rivet it onto the inside of the pannier, one piece on the back and another for the base.
Carradice bags are a good model for home-builds. The mounting system is Rixen and Kaul. You need to rivet an Al extruded rail onto your bag (through the stiffener) then slide the hooks onto the rail. Also riven on the anti-sway device.
You can use thicker cordura or canvas material. My dad made some panniers out of tough pvc/cloth and simply draped the pair over the rear rack Use some reinforcment where the bag rubs the rack. Remember to cut the shape for some heel clearance.
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There's some info on making your own panniers here: http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/touring/bags.htm (锕侊箒)~~~~----------------------------------------------------------------------
I've had some aggravations with a set of those cheap panniers too, and as a result I haven't been able to see myself putting such a huge sum into more expensive ones that might do the same thing (one of mine got in the spokes on a bump and got a big hole in it).
So, I'm going to try not having panniers at all, instead using other means of hauling my cargo.
For one, I have a very sturdy backpack that got me through college and a couple of short adventures back then, strapped to the top of my rear rack. I plan on trying to revive that to carry most of my gear. (Again, strapped to the rack, not on my back!)
I've also ordered one of those "jungle hammocks" (yesterday, actually), and I plan on trying it out on a short little mini-adventure tour later on when I have some time off from work. By eliminating some of the tent bulk, I hope to be able to actually do some light (but self-supported) touring on my '03 Lemond Nevada City (a steel road bike -- not your usual tourer).
Maybe this will give you some ideas on other ways to carry your gear besides the expensive (and in my limited experience, frustrating) panniers.
Check this bike out too for some photos of my cargo carrying idea: http://milly.org/rambouillet/index.htm
(Someone else originally posted that link, but I can't remember who and I'm late for an evening bike ride!)
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I've made a pair of panniers and the easiest way (IMO) to attach them is to make saddle bags and loop a peice of fabric over the rack. Sew a fabric loop towards the bottom of the pannier and attach a loop of elastic cord thru the fabric loop and around the bottom of the bike rack. You will need a peice of webbing to go from the saddle bag on top of the rack to the seat end of the rack to prevent it from sliding off the back of the rack. If you realy want to get high tech with it there are some fabric suppliers online that you can find anything you want. There was a thread about a month ago entitled pannier geekiness that a bunch of us talked about homemade panniers.
