Nashbar!

linkies...

Performance: performancebike.resultspage.com/search

Nashbar: www.nashbar.com/results.cfm

Cheap and Reliable

Do Not go together.....

I use Nashbar's around town, where it doesn't matter much if they fail, which they have.

For my trip across China, Pakistan etc I just ordered from Wayne:

www.thetouringstore.com/

Who is a really nice guy and sells really high quality stuff.....

Good luck either way :)
m

I just bought a full outfit of Ortlieb panniers and handlebar bag from Wayne at The Touring Store and am very happy with them and with Wayne's prices and service. Ortliebs are NOT cheap! But they are good. If you're going to be doing serious traveling, good panniers are worth the cost!!!!

I must be the odd man out then....I got a new set of cheapy panniers from my local bike shop for $40 new and have gone from the grocery store to over a 1000 mi and they're going strong....don't buy into that quality comes at a price crap....find a cheap set inspect the seams and the closing ...if they pass your muster get them and expect them to last barring some unforseen damage...

I'll give another vote for Ortliebs. I looove mine that I got about 10 years ago. They have been through many tours. I haven't seen any that can compare in the rain. As stated, they are not cheap, but worth it!

I've had a small pair of Ortliebs that I've used
daily for about eight years-still going strong.
Totally waterproof.

I liked them so much that I got a larger pair
to use for touring or carrying anything large,
like grocery shopping, which I have used
weekly for about five years.

One other thing I like about them is that they
are a single bag--no pockets. This may
sound like an anti-feature, but on the
contrary, it makes them really versitile.

My first pair were some cheapo ones that
I got used, and I constantly had to repair
them, and they didn't balance well on the
rack.

Good luck with your cheap/reliable tradeoff--
and I disagree with an earlier poster: it is a
tradeoff, in general. Since we live in a world
driven by profit, exceptions will eventually be
corrected by the market, over time:
overpriced crap will generally go out of
business, and inexpensive quality goods will
generally rise in price. But, that is not to say
you won't find bargains.

I also bought stuff from thetouringstore
(like the thingy that turns an ortlieb
pannier into a backpack, which works pretty
well) and would recommend him for the
reasons cited above.

Bruce Gordon Panniers are an excellent value:

www.bgcycles.com/panniers.html

They are built in a similar fashion to the Robert Beckman bags, but at half the cost. The ones I have been using for many, many miles are an earlier verion with fewer organizer pockets. It appears that the quality is still there although I have not examined the current version.

There are some undenialble advantages to Ortleibs. If you can afford it, get a pair of Ortliebs for the rears so that you have a waterproof place to put your sleeping bag, then get something with lots of pockets and easier access for your fronts.

A really good maker of bags is Madden in Colorado. My wife has used these for 15 years and never an issue. Very well thought out pocket design too.

Even more important than quality bags is strong racks. Tubular steel is the way to go and Bruce Gordon makes the best at the best price (Way cheaper than Nitto). DO NOT use Blackburn lowrider pannier racks. I have broken 3 sets before going with steel and one friend had his rack lock up the front wheel when the rack broke. It was ugly. It was Mexico. Try finding a tig welder in Mexico.


Good luck on your journies.

I have two racks on my LWB recumbent. The underseat rack has a pair of small not waterproof panniers, purchased off ebay, that I use in place of a handlebar bag. Most stuff rides in zip lock bags in those panniers. I use Ortlieb bags on the back. I got an excellent deal on a pair (thank you Ortlieb) but have seen them on ebay too. They flat out don't leak. I use a small REI dry bag (another ebay item) strapped to the top of the rack.

I like the setup pretty well as far as weight distribution and balance are concerned. I'm keeping my eyes open for a waterproof replacement for the little under seat bags.

I've got a full Jandd setup, moutain expeditions on the back, mini-moutains up front, expedition rear rack, lowrider front. It wasn't cheap, but it is swanky beyond belief. Mesh drying pocket allows me to dry swim stuff while I ride, solid construction, basically waterproof, nice bungee and organizational/accessibility options, too. You might be able to find some cheap/reliable bags as others here have mentioned, but I look at it this way: Properly selected, you'll only ever own one set of panniers, it's one of the most critical peices of gear you'll buy, and the most visible. I like knowing that my Jandds were handmade in California by people who know what the hell their doing, because they ride and tour also. Good luck!

Recommend a trailer. I know there is a whole trailer/pannier debate. But when I go on trips and can take anything I want and use the trailer for grocery or laundry in the city too as well as ice runs, etc at Burning Man. I can also leave the bag inside the trailer, flip the trailer upside down and lock it to a post and leave it outside of a hostel that's not open in the afternoon or whatever and go somewhere else and come back to it later after riding around somewhere else. Then Switch it off to any bike from roadie to mountain bike to recumbent to little kids bike and have to look behind me to see if the thing is still there because it is so lightweight and causes almost no drag. Plus its water resistant and lasts forever... there's no contest for me. BOB trailers rule.

Kerri

don't get axiom... they warp and break. ortliebs are probably the best bet... but you'll spend about 120 dollars on them.

It really depends on your skills and how much you want to do and/or spend.

1) Tie a couple of hessian bags to gether as saddle bags. I toured for six months with a guy that did just that. You can gradually improve the bags by joining with webbing (heavy hand sewing), bolt/sew in backing board, shape corner for heel clearance (turn inside, sew across corner, turn out = shaped corner). Stability with trace ofstrap down with shock/elastic cord. Waterproof with plastic bags inside.

2) Plastic bins. One on the the touring email lists there is someone (USA) always espousing rubber maid plastic bins. bolt on a couple of ute hooks (SUV tarp clips) to mount onto rack, or buy a brand rack mounting system.

3) Sew your own. In the late 70s in Australia, I would buy a second hand domestic sewing machine (~$25) and some Cordura superdux (8oz poly cotton mix light canvas ) and make my own. I think I made 3 sets of rear, 3 sets of front, 1 siple handlebar bag, 1 bum seat bag/tool bag and a few billy bags before the machine went out of alignment. Get good strong thread as well. I probably spent as much as a set of panniers, but I (and my wife0 are still wearing out those sets I made them. Really they should have been all well patched by now, but life sometmes requires you to do non-touring activities.