Bikepacking - a viable alternative to racks & panniers

I've done the same and found the Lomo 12L to be the perfect size for me:
https://www.lomo.co.uk/acatalog/dry-bags-info_355.html

I've attached a photo to give you an idea, quite a bit of unused space here too if you wanted to go longer.

They also do a double-ended version but I couldn't see the point in that so went with the cheaper single end version

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On the subject of rattling panniers, I bought a pair of Ortlieb Gravel (yeah, I know) ones recently and the (now double) hooks at the bottom are very adjustable (rail, depth and angle) and properly secure the bags onto the rack. Price is pretty good too considering the quality.

With a full Ortlieb, properly hooked, I tend to only get a bit of rattle. Have also wrapped a lot of tape on my rack at the contact points and get that bottom hook as tight as possible. I guess it is the price you pay for the ease of removal. It's usually the plastic bit at the bottom that clangs or if you pack stuff without padding out the bottom with a jacket or whatever.

my OH will be delighted that she was ahead of the curve in 2019

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Feb 2018 #hipster

Good chat. My novice sister is going on her first tour, her pal she's going with is some kinda gravel evangelist and was borderline forcing my sis to get a seatpack. I tried to steer her to panniers and we finally compromised on a racktop drybag

Drybags? Luxury. When I arrived and toured EU in 05 I had my stuff wrapped in two bin bags.

two bin bags

Luxury. All I had was a torn paper bag when I arrived in Manchester.

London metropolitan elite, innit.

London metropolyurethane elite in fact.

In my experience the vaude aqua light panniers are also super solid with 1 extra hook. Wanted a rack for a rando bag upfront and couldn't mount anything cages anymore on my fork as a result. The panniers sit a bit higher on the Specialized pizza rack, works better then lowriders for trails. Current setup is for a 2 month trip.

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Sounds like I should get some extra hooks for my small Ortliebs

Cool! Do the carradice struts make much of a difference?

Also, what is that saddle!

Yes. They stop the rails cracking, and also the bag from bouncing around.

The bagman would be useless without the support struts for my camper longflap. It's a pretty solid setup but I'm going to replace the screw that holds it on the saddle rails with a longer one so i can put a nut on top. The screw does tend to loosen after a while.

The saddle is an infinity seat. Basically you sit on anything but the sitbones. It popped up on marktplaats and thought to give it a try. So far like the saddle alot, no saddle sores.

I'm only on day two of my trip, but i hope I'm still as enthusiastic about this setup in two months time.

Having asked earlier about packrafts, I bit the bullet and got one from Andy at backcountry.Scot as he’s just had a delivery from Alpacka, and looked like that may be the only import for summer.

One wet run on the Thames was good fun, and a dry run at attaching the bike in the garden. Well thought out, feels quite front heavy but I guess it’s designed for that? Did wander around a bit the first time out, maybe some front weight will help with that

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The saddle is an infinity seat

Interesting concept. The new price listed on infinitybikeseat.com seems high at $300 at $450, though.

Yes it's way too expensive new, especially considering import taxes. I would only consider the infinity saddle if you've tried all kinds of saddles and still suffer from saddle sores. It feels quite similar to selle smp saddles. I had to raise the seatpost quite a bit, you're really sitting in the saddle instead of on.

Looks like a lot of fun! The kind of places you could reach with a pack raft and a bike would be amazing i imagine. How does the peddling feel? I understand it probably wouldn't be as fast as a touring kajak, but is it possible to cover some distance over water like this?

Certainly not as quick as a canoe. Probably 3kph average on the water, doesn’t have the same zip as a canoe/kayak, more of an amble than a sprint. Feel like you could go for some time, it’s pretty comfy and relaxing to paddle even if not quick. I’ve only done a few 1hr paddles and could go further, but would depend on conditions.

i think the argument against them is twofolds;

They weight a fucking tonnes.

Like, a pair of Ortieb Classic panniers is 1.9kg, add a rear rack (420g, Tubus Fly), and you now have a good 2.32kg of weight on the rear before you even filled the bag up.

*edited to clarify which Ortlieb model.

With a full Ortlieb, properly hooked, I tend to only get a bit of rattle.

It shouldn't rattle with the shim Ortlieb provided with the bag to allow you to snugly fit them on the panniers.

In my experience the vaude aqua light panniers are also super solid with 1 extra hook.

Was reading up that, I like that it's reasonably light at 1040g for the pairs, which is basically almost the weight of a single Ortlieb pannier, the review are mixed thought.

There's another one which is the Roswheel one, that managed an astounding 270g (540g for a pairs), can't find much review about it.

Has anyone used the PDW Gear Belly with drop handlebars? I'm wondering how stable the Rixen & Kaul handlebar fitting is fully loaded and whether the width is too wide for typical touring handlebars.

The Rixen & Kaul system are a tried and test system that will be reliable.

The main problem is the weight, it is 1026g just for the system alone, this mean you're effectively paying for the ability to take it out in second, 1026g is an awful lots just to have that ability.

A similar system that doesn't have a quick release but can easily be mounted using the dry bag is the Specialized Burra Burra handlebar system that weight only 318g for comparison, the hardware need to be properly mounted on the handlebar, but once it's mounted, there's zero slack and play whatsoever;

PDW Gear Belly...

You're gonna have to think about the trade off between ease of use and weight.
You'll quickly notice 1026g when steering the bicycle before you pack it up properly, a good handlebar bag may not be easy to strap on/off* but the big advantage is that you'll save nearly 1kg in weight alone that can be added back when you pack it.

What I don't get with the PDW bag is that it design to be removable whenever you want with the R&K system but it also design to make it easy to remove the dry bag from the system without taking it off the bike, so what the point of having a removable mount that add weight only to leave it on the bike when mounting the dry bag onto the system?

The Apidura Backcountry Pack in the largest 11L capacity is 270g (and can fit drop bar bike providing you don't overfill it).