LNKFixed

I don't know if bikepacking stuff goes here but I figured this was a good start. So I've heard of people who run carradice-style saddlebags having issues with the bags sagging and contacting the tire when secured with voile straps. Because of that I was considering running something sturdier like John's Irish Straps. Anyone have any experience they can speak to?

Happy Feet

Sure, bikepacking stuff goes here. Some members use it or a hybrid system of sorts.


Carradice saddlebags come with their own leather attachment straps that work fine - no need for additional voile or other type straps. They attach snugly through the eyelets of the saddle so the type of straps doesn't really effect the sag one way or the other.

The problem is the way the bag pivots under the seat until forward movement is stopped by the seat post or by a rack of some sort.

This shows how the bag attaches to the saddle. This is a Carradry bag that has the same basic system as all Carradice saddlebags.



And how the bag rotates forward until the seat post stops it. There is a strap that goes from the side and/or bottom of the bag around the post to secure it so it doesn't flop around.



If you don't like the angle you can use a small rack to rest the saddlebag on, like this:




Or buy a rack from Carradice to work with the bag - there are several styles: https://www.carradice.co.uk/products...fixing-systems
This is the traditional rack

Tourist in MSN

Depends on how high the saddle is above the tire or fender. If high enough, a support rack is not needed. But, bike packing where you are hitting bumps and probably have wide knobby tires, you want to make sure you have clearance.

Photo is on my rando bike, the frame is 59cm with a horizontal top tube and you can see I have plenty of seatpost showing, thus my bag (this bag is the Pendle) does not need support. I also put a sheet of corroplast (bought from Home Despot) in the bag in a U shape, the corroplast is in teh front, bottom and back of the bag, that gives it better shape and prevents it from sagging. From this angle, you can't see it but there are a few inches of space above the fender. This saddle (Brooks Conquest) lacks saddle loops but it has springs that I loop the straps around.



Same bag on my road bike. I made a bag support from a stem with correct shim for seatpost, piece of 1 inch diameter hardwood, some fender washers on the end of the wood to keep the straps from slipping off the end, and an aluminum rod bent to fit.



The above photo was cropped from the photo below. Here I have a couple inches of clearance above tire, but the bag is mounted lower on this bike because the saddle (Brooks Pro) lacks saddle loops and the stem mounting is below the saddle. This photo was taken on a 20 mile test ride to check out the mounting for the bag, I had two or three (I do not recall which) liters of water in the bag for weight for the test ride. It worked fine.



I am close to 6 foot tall, both of the bikes shown are 700c.

That bag (Pendle) is probably smaller than you would want for bikepacking, the Nelson Longflap is an inch or two taller, I have never seen the Camper model bag.

I put some leather toe clip straps on the top so I can put a jacket or some other clothing on top of the bag if I want to.

A fried of mine was trying to figure out how to support a saddle bag, and I saw a bike at a campground where I stayed that had a DIY saddle bag support, I took the photo below to send to my friend.

fietsbob

there is those.. shown above..

I have a Carradura bag. they shipped with a minirack that slipped into a pocket sewn in the underside of the bag.

I , also have a Super C on a bike with a rear pannier rack,

and an SQR clip on top of the seat post of my Brompton. ( long ways down to that rear wheel.)

A rear mudguard should keep the bottom of the bag off the tire.. [Berthoud Stainless steel perhaps?]

Happy Feet

My carradry bag has the same forward facing pocket fietsbob mentioned and that rack (a brace for front panniers I believe) would work fine. I made a diy one for a bike, bent to fit and it slipped right in the pocket.

djb

and Arkel makes different models with a metal support setup as well, including the more typical long shaped bags. Seems logical to me if I were to go the route of these type of bags to get one with a metal support system, for doing rough terrain riding. Check out the diff arkel models

https://www.arkel-od.com/rollpacker-...cking-seat-bag

tcs

More Carradice hardware.

Marcus_Ti

Get a Swifty bag and their Bagman rack:

https://builtbyswift.com/shop/carridice-bagman-support/

Miele Man

I use a threadless stem and a cut down handlebar to mount my handlebar bag to the seatpost.



This was taken before I trimmed the cutdown handle bar and plugged the ends with barend plugs.

Cheers

Tourist in MSN

Thanks for posting, I had not seen how that support system could use the seat stay mounting points for stiffening. That looks quite solidly mounted.

djb

holy doodles there dude, how many teeth on that chainring, it looks like a 54 or 55??

tcs

It's a 54x21 Rohloff driving a 650A wheel, geared 19-98 g.i. The theory is that while the big tooth count is grams heavier, there's less chain tension/wear.

Tourist in MSN

Interesting, I was not aware that there was a 21T sprocket available, I thought 19 was the biggest. I am running 44/16 with 26 inch wheels for around town riding near home, I am geared just a hair higher than you, range from 19.8 to 104 gear inches. Touring, I change the 44 to 36T for lower gearing, that has a range of 16.2 to 85.1 gear inches, remove four chain links.

I have one more new threaded sprocket in storage, have not yet converted to splined.

djb

well well, who woulda thunk, 19-98, cool
bonkers looking but cool.
I'd always figured that if I were to go the rohlof route, I'd want one of those full drivetrain covers, now that would vastly improve drivetrain life and so much less cleaning.

JaccoW

If you're tall enough you either don't need the Bagman support... or you get it to prevent it from swinging because you carry a 2 kg (4.5 lbs) lock in there and get a bit annoyed it bumps into your legs at traffic lights.
The Bagman QR adapter can be locked too with a small modification.

str

YES they hang down without an additional rack. go for a moderen saddle bag, lighter!, no rack needed and sure no upper leg contact with the saddle bag.

Tourist in MSN

Sometimes the older style bags work just fine, in this case the bag sat on the rear panniers. worked great to just fill it up every time we stopped at a grocery store.

fietsbob

Here is Mine circa 2008..

tcs

It seems like upon taking an off-pavement bump (or even an urban pothole!) the bikepacking seat bags would not be as well supported as the old school saddlebags.




But the new style is all the rage. Educated me.

fietsbob

https://www.arkel-od.com/bikepacking-bags/ note: the subframe attached to the saddle rails..

Marcus_Ti

The other thing....is that you need a very smooth pedal stroke--as the bumble-bee butt attached to your saddle acts like a pendulum in response to, and amplifies, any off-axis motions of the bike/rider

rustystrings61 

I will note that I have been using the same Carradice Nelson Longflap for more than 20 years - and that it sits at that funky angle because at the time it was introduced to market, British bikes frequently still had the old 7-shaped seat posts with the forward extension, set up so that one could adjust one's saddle further forward and turn the saddle clamp to run horizontally instead of vertically. The 7-shaped seat post on a slack-angled bike meant it was further back, so a Carradice on one of those would be upright, rather than slung in underneath the way we're used to seeing them.

Tourist in MSN

Thanks for posting. I have only seen those seatposts in photos or in museums, but that does explain a lot.

fietsbob

Red Carrimor since replaced by Super C, + have an SQR mount for the other Carradice on my Brompton seat post, .


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