anyone use the basil sports pannier? want to get one for the rack on my new (to me – cheers jake!) pompino as i’m enjoying my new errands town bike especially with the load on the bike not my back.

was wondering about getting these, but wasn’t sure if they could be used separately or only as a pair? any info anyone might be able to provide much appreciated.

well looks like i’m getting an ortlieb back roller classic instead. my fisrt foray into the world of panniers… it’ll be plus fours and tweed caps in no time!

Good choic on the ortlieb. The quick release system makes it so much less faff to use them regularly. The one slight niggle with them is the shoulder strap, leaving it attached when trying to open/close the roll top cloure is difficult, so is hooking it under the clip on the front (requires frequent adjusting of the strap length). My top tip for is to ditch the shoulder strap for the most part and just fasten the roll top by clipping the ends together, makes for a good carry handle too (you can always keep the carry strap in the inside pocket for if your going shopping).

You can see what i mean in these pics…

Enjoy!

nice one, cheers for the tip. i’m planning on using it most of the day once i arrive and get it off the bike so ease of removal and carrying are both important. good to know it should do the job. annoyed that the shop i’m getting it from was out of red, though, seeing it against your pomp!

also, stato, looks like you leave yours on the bike when locked up. can they be locked to the rack somehow?

I just got the Ortlieb ones aswell, I am so impressed with the fitting system compared to other pannier bags I’ve used in the past. I cycled around Lake Constance a couple of weeks ago and I think 95% of the “proper” touring cyclist had Ortliebs. They can’t really be locked to the bike, but as a deterrant you can thread your normal lock through the handle but anyone with a knife would get through that.

(I guess you’ve already bought yours but I got mine in red from Wiggle a couple of weeks ago).

oh cool, thanks for more info.

i haven’t bought it yet – getting a single one as a bday present from my sis and can only find one place that sells them singly. works out a bit more than getting a pair, but i don’t want to get into splitting the difference and that as it’s a present, so i’ve sent her the link.

red is nice though!

I dont leave mine on usually (pic was taken just as i was about to cycle home) tho you can get a security kit, basically a small wire, that can attach to your lock but this is only available for the ‘back-roller plus’ not the ‘classic’. Mine have taken a fair bit of abuse now, being scraped along walls, used to haul oversized loads and taking the brunt of a car impact which destroyed the rack it was on and crisped my rear wheel, all without any issues.

With only one pannier you might find it a little un-balenced, but youll soon get used to it, the extra weight has a more detrimental effect (especially to singlespeeders trying to muscle the bike up a hill) than any slight imbalence due to having only one pannier. Ive actually got a pair of them and only use the 2nd when i really have to, the convenience of only one bag outweighs the disadvantages.

Rich.

yeah i was thinking that about the balance – i wanted a rack bag really but don’t think i’ll have enough space in one as it’s for when i’m (hopefully!) a student again in sep/oct and will be needing to take almost a full change of clothes and books each day. just have to get used to counteracting the lean!

Shiny and red. Ortlieb Back Rollers are the best ever..!

oooh – more red ones! mine will be stealthy black i think.

aha, they're not they're shiny red!

got them yesterday, used them for the first time for a trip to sainsburys last night and the commute this morning. i like do far!

🙂