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A lot of options must be small enough that a strap can run from the bottom of the bag under the seat. Otherwise there are pannier rails you can strap them against. Maybe with twin shocks people just let them bash against the coil. Depends on the bike for sure. Lots of ‘universal’ square-shaped options out there on ebay that attach to the grab-rail mounts.
Mine, I cut and welded remnants of two scrap bmx frames and used the rear stays. They are mounted to the shock and pillion peg points. I wanted the strongest possible with materials available, since I’d be carrying varying weights often, and such a small bike important to reduce any chance of affecting control.
The (adjustable) top straps through the D-rings hold the bags tight up and over the seat. The (fixed) upper loop locates it on the upper rail. The (adjustable) lower strap clips around the triangle and holds it tight.
I’ve been doing some deliveries for a local charity, as their shop has had to move online, and made the larger red and yellow bags. Stuffed them full of bulky but not too heavy stuff and noticed no ill-handling or flapping about. I can’t get rid of the last 10-15mm of chicken strip, there are no twists and turns local enough that warrant it, but relatively lean-y I’m still seeing good handling.
The black ones had tools and emergency kit for a quick stretch over the Ridgeway (gravel, loose, potholes, undulating) the other day. The bike, bags, mounts, survived. I think my shoulders were worse off than the bike.
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pdlouche
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Great to see you are enjoying biking so much. Reminds me of my early motor bikes. One thing that you might want to be careful about when customising the bike with frames is the potential for you following it down the road in an accident and then catching up with it suddenly.
Looking at the relatively sharp ends of your pannier racks and the strength of the metal it would be very unpleasant to get impaled by one.
When you look at the BMW ones upthread you can see that they manage to use a much smaller but solid dimension of steel and it forms a hoop that would be less likely to dig into the road or other things in the case of an accident. The BMW ones manage to hold a lot of weight at high speeds, the only time you notice the big BMW panniers is in a side wind.
I'm not knocking the initiative you are showing but having been down the road a few times I'd like to offer my crash test dummy findings!
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Very nice set up and bags. My one comment is keep the bags clear of the exhaust ;).
Airhead
lynx
Throw-over saddlebags; what keeps them from flapping up and down on uneven road?
Yours look really good btw, @pdlouche !