I’ve got some commuting choices coming up
Need to carry a laptop, change of shoes and lunch
Either backpack – least favourite option
Rack & Panier
Ideally waterproof

Now I can either find some light wheels for my 456 and get a rigid fork for it (no fork at all at the moment but drivetrain etc. is all there)
Got rack mounts but the brake caliper means it never fits that well.
Or
Get something on the road bike, it’s a battered Spec Allez thats been round the block a fair few times. It’s got carbon stays which makes me a little nervous about weight/clamping etc. It’s also got no rack mounts
I’ve found this from topeak and it looks good until it seems it only takes a bag on top and the one they sell won’t work with a 17″ laptop.
http://www.topeak.com/products/Racks/roadie_rack_sl

So what are my options?

Answers that include get a smaller laptop/leave it at work/mudguards will be ignored…

How about this that mounts to a rear qr skewer?
P clips would be fine for the top stays as they don’t carry the weight.

My first question would be how much does the 17″ weigh? The beam racks from Topeak are pretty good, but with bagweight, shoes and a laptop you may soon get to the upper bounds of what it can handle.

Also, I found that physical discs suffer on commutes, I killed a couple, since the move to ssd I’ve actually not taken my laptop home much but I suspect that would have helped.

Final comment is that I’d opt for Ortlieb bags next as my Altura panniers have been ok, but they have worn out and lost waterproofing over time, whereas a friend with the roll top Ortliebs still look strong.

I use a large carradice saddle bag with a SQR black mount which fits on the seat post. It can be used with any saddle. I’ve carried my work laptop/paperwork/other stuff for around 4 years. It doesn’t affect the handling of the bike as it’s central and close to the rider.

The Topeak racks, at least the MTB ones, can take side frames but I think they are purely for their top bags that have panniers built in so won’t take much weight.
Thule have their pack n pedal system that clamps very securely to the stays but it is pretty expensive, even second hand they are about £50 and that’s before you buy panniers. That’s the one I went for on my MTB, I also have a Alfine hub so QR racks wasn’t an option. After a bit of fiddling to get it set up the way I wanted so my heels cleared the panniers and it stayed in place, my 17″ laptop was heavy enough to pull it off center till I had tightened everything up.

Thule one?

An Axiom Streamliner rack for the Allez, a bag for your shoes and lunch and carry the laptop on you where your body will act as suspension.

Some good ideas, the laptop will be in the nice bag with the shock absorbing sleeve so not that worried so long as it’s dry.

Cheers.

Is there nothing you can do with the rack on the 456? I’ve fitted conventional racks on three different frames with disks, just using spacers and long bolts to get the appropriate clearance. Topeak used to do a disc specific rack with stand off mounting points which also works well.
I second the recommendation for Ortleib panniers. I wouldn’t waste time looking for anything else if you want bomb-proof waterproof carrying capacity.

Here is the Topeak:

Feel free to ignore, but mudguards are sensible if you are serious about commuting regularly