I have x2 Karrimor 25ltr bags on the back and x2 (what im guessing are 10-15ltr ish on the fronts.
I’m guessing I’ll need some dry bags for my sleeping bag and clothes
I was thinking it would be easy to just get a bag for each pannier.
Do I just get the closest size bag to match the pannier or do I need to get bigger as they are rolled down and compressed?
Also, any recommendations would help with regards to brands
Thanks
I assume touring. If so I suggest a multi pack of expeds.
Pack your stuff in different bags either according to day (if short tour) or use on a longer tour.
That way you know .....red bag sleeping stuff - green bag toiletries - blue bag underwear etc etc . Saves a lot of time rooting round in larger bags
Tesco bag for life (or similar) polythene bags do the job. Cheap, quite tough and free replacements when they get a hole in. I find this works much better than dry bags which are quite heavy and you need to squeeze the air out of and end up with more voids.
Don't overfill the bags so the tops will fold over. Inside the pannier shouldn't be running water just damp ooze so poly bags are more than sufficient.
I used to think poly bags did the job until the time I was out in the rain for 12 hours and ended up with a wet sleeping bag. I do what trail rat says now. Stuff that really must remain dry like sleeping bags usually go in their own drybag inside a waterproof bit of luggage
the exped bags are light
As above, my mate had a very cold night in a damp down sleeping bag after his 'waterproof" bar bag let water in after a long ride in the rain.
I've a few exped dry bags and some karrimor (sports direct) dry bags.
I organise my stuff in them, I grab the bag im after rather than routing through a big bag. Useful when it's raining and the bag is open. It's extra weight but not much.
A sleeping bag, down jacket etc packs down smaller in a drybag too. Depending on the price, ones with a one way valve to let air out are nice to have.
Exped bags don't stay waterproof for long. For stuff that NEEDS to stay dry, my default is an Ortlieb PD350 stuffsac. Available in many sizes.
Or Ortlieb panniers. I have spent all day riding in rain and none of it got into the panniers.
My ortleibs did start leaking via the mountings on the back eventually. Just a few drops tho.
They are also heavy. the big thick ortleib dry bag I have is also heavy
Since that soaking where I had become complacent and was only using poly bags to keep stuff dry that didn't work after long soaking I have been much more careful abut waterproofing my kit. so I now use waterproof luggage with exped dry bags for critical stuff and also used for organising kit. Exped bags are very light and two layers of waterproofing ensures that critical stuff remains dry whatever happens
IMO there are two levels of waterproofing - the level that keeps stuff dry in intermittent rain or periods of rain and the level where your kit remains dry after a day of torrential rain or being chucked in a river. These days I want that second high level of waterproofing. My big bike tour I did not see a huge amount of rain - just one period where I had 4 wet days in a row. My kit for that trip was the trailer which has an ortelib style drybag and then inside that sleeping bag and clothes in a dry bag. The trailer bag over time has developed a few small leaks but the belt and braces approach meant always a dry sleeping bag and dry clothes
So for me its two layers of relatively light waterproofing rather than one layer of heavy waterproofing. then I can be sure of a dry sleeping bag and a set of dry clothes even if I drop it all n the river
The OP has old Karrimor panniers that will not be very water resistant.
In which case I would have a largish exped bag as a liner and drybags inside that for sleeping bag and clothes.
The OP has old Karrimor panniers that will not be very water resistant.
Can you treat them with a waterproofer or wax etc to make them water resistant? The more water you stop getting into the bag the better. Then use a dry bag inside?