Carradice Saddlebags

@veLLo - I don't think the traditional bags are designed to be removed on a regular basis, in fact I set mine up so that the buckles are in the interior. I take a nylon shopping bag with me and put everything in it so that while parked I can carry my valuables with me.
@Vesalius - In the past I've actually built a curled portion of plastic (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYhEsQekd9Q
into the bag. It worked great, though was a little rattly and overkill.

Narrow racks won't hold a large saddle bag, which will falls on both sides.

To be quite far, this is fairly true, as I also have similar problem when you have little load in them (that promptly slide to either side causing it to falls on the side.

@Skülly's solution of using a pump is sound, but it's preferable if it doesn't exist in the first place.

@withered_preacher is on the money about the bag being left on the bike, constantly removing and installing can take it tolls (sadly a must in London's famous London), but leaving the bag in allow it to settle in nicely.

TBH, @veLLo you did have a fork with a front rack, ask Bigxtop for a custom bag to fit the dimension of your set up (including decauler), and you got yourself a solid dependable everyday bag without all this swing and nonsense behind it (see what I did there?).

Or ask Wilson to make one;

Yes, I carry boules and vine daily.
Yes please picture, and another picture of my spoke tension meter with today's newspaper, hehe!

I want Wilson to make so many things, but lack of time to organize it, and can't spend on bikes atm too much either...

To avoid the hassle of the buckle-unbuckle twice a day, I use this bag support for commuting - which was first around in the 50s-60s but has just been re-manufactured and re-introduced:

http://www.carradice.co.uk/index.php?page_id=product&under=range&product_id=136

It's fine for normal loads, but anything heavy puts quite a strain on the saddle rails, so I wouldn't load up with more than 2 boules at a time.

edit: just scrolled back and realised everyone knows about this already. sorry

Could this extra strain lead to a fatigue crack?
Across both rails.

My Spa saddle's rail snapped a while back, after about six months of being used daily with the carradice rack.

I think the rack contributed to the snapping, but I suspect that it was much more to do with the fact that I had the clamp too far forward...

however it did make me think that these kind of racks - as convenient as they are - really shouldn't be used for regular, heavy loads.

Brooks, five months, rails about in the middle. Barley bag on a classic rack, never more than a couple of kilo in there so I still think the more likely cause is the 95kilo of me every day on uneven terrain.

Yes, I carry boules and vine daily.
Yes please picture, and another picture of my spoke tension meter with today's newspaper, hehe!

Hahaaaaa I loved this I cackled out loud at work.

I honestly have no need for the tensionmeter, I have my own now. But then, it seems, neither do you. Let's have a beer, and we can swap exciting saddlebag tales.

/\/\Word!

I am slightly bemused by all this rack chat. My bag just hangs from the leather loops, onto the saddle mounted QR thingy. If I want it to not swing fore and aft, I do the other leather strap up round the seatpost. That's all.

What am I missing by not having a metal frame?

Not much, really. The bags often sag down and interfere with the rear wheel or get in the way of other things, but if it doesn't happen to you then a support rack won't really do much for you.

My Barley likes to tilt forward so all my stuff falls out.

Also because I haven't got a lot of seatpost showing, it faceplants directly onto my rear tyre and makes a horrible noise/sensation.

Ah.I have a lot of seatpost shoaing. Maybe the difference.

Anyway...
A bit of amateurish Saturday morning metalworking (£3 steel tube from b&q) and I'm now happy, it's stable like I wanted it to be and I doubt it would break after the re-used pannier rack clamps.

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Wondered about doing this to strengthen mine. Once you got tube is it simply mallet ends flat then drill the holes?

Heated the (steel) tubes on gas hob, flattened in vice, then tidied up on bench grinder and drilled...
Not sure it would work with a hammer, may not flatten both ways together but one way only, and may not be as precise (not that what I've done is very precise...)

No worries, i has vice so can do it that way too, hadn't crossed my mind earlier. ta!

Further to my mention of Krazy Karpet scraps, I did this a couple of years ago.

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Nice work. May try make meself something to hold my saddle pack stable.

Very good solution, I met an audax rider who have a block of wood neatly cut and trim to increase the gap between the back of the bag to the seatpost.

Not pretty but a lots lighter.

Works very well, used it yesterday for the first time like this, then commute today.
Got rid of front bag until I find a better way than the horrible chunk of Klick Fix plastic bit...

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Looks solid, my tubus fly is lighter though...

-ducks-