Originally Posted by
qclabrat
hey, the new buzz word is bikepacking....
Congrats that's a great looking bike
as for the BD haters, whatever, though I agree you'll have a much better time not having to tinker with the FB
btw: which rack did you go with? Also which frame bag is that? it's a perfect fit!!
Lots have gone to those enormous seat packs instead of panniers to avoid singletrack scraps.
Thanks
The frame bag is a Blackburn
Outpost Med size. I dislike seat bags as most attachment systems are meh* (sway and sag) and space is limited. I have a Carradice saddle bag I prefer if I want to go that way. The only downside to the panniers will be bounce and the attachment system on rough trails so I will have to see about that.
When I look at the BD bikes I just see a cheap blank canvas to work with as I like to tinker and have a lot of spare parts. Most people replace saddles and pedals and many suggest replacing stock tires on most bikes as well so you are left with redoing the brakes and maybe a drive train later on. But you have a steel frame you can afford and customize the way you want down the road. True, the Fatboy is nicer out of the box but right away I see I have a tapered Al fork I can't mount cages to (easily) and an Al frame I also can't easily add cage bolts to. When one adds a frame bag you lose both inner cage positions and are only left with the under side DT spot so for bike packing that becomes an issue.
Six of one, half dozen of the other. I'm happy with the FB because I got it used at a good price but I could build a pretty good BD monster for $500 using the new price difference of the FB at $1800. That's $1300 worth of upgrades. My choice was that my wife would be pissed if I bought that FB at $1800 when I have 12 bikes in the garage and the laundry room still needs renovating
