Forum menu
Wicki - generally 40C (Nano or similar) with room for guards. Probably a bit more if it's a road-tread tyre.
My touring ride from last years' home to Lake Constance ride -
[img] 
[/img]
[img] 
[/img]
Lightweight camping with a meths stove for coffee and heating up canned lidl fodder.
Excuse the last min red cable fit ..
@ simmyI like the look of the Pinnacle lithium for a reasonable priced tourer how fat can the tires go?
Mines got standard tyres on at the moment and I'm running SKS full guards and there is 3-4 MM between each side of the tyre and the guard.
Looks like there is loads of room on the frame so it depends which guards you use.
I wouldn't want to go wider with my guards.
Edit :- jameso knows a little bit more about them than I do 😀 😉
Cheers steezy, the Tubus Tara seems to be the default choice for a lowrider.
Yeah, no complaints - it keeps the weight low down so nice and stable when cornering. If I was buying again I'd get the stainless steel version as the panniers rub the finish slightly - I just use some clear nail polish to touch it up and stop it getting rust spots.
I am eyes open for a nova low rider, wiggle were doing them for 65 quid and i stalled as i didnt have the bike yet 🙁
My rear tubus is stainless ( and 10+ years old)
I've been using [url= http://www.racktime.com/en/racktime-products/system-carriers/racktime-product/topit/ ]Racktime's Top-it racks[/url] on the front of [some of] my bikes.
I've not yet tried small panniers (as I've not yet found any I like), but the rack has a 10mm rail, so should be fine.
On my Vaya:
(Holding a 13ltr Alpkit drybag).
[img] 
[/img]
On my Swift:
[img] 
[/img]
You can't really see it here, but the Swift has Enabler forks, so the rack is bolted to the [i]inside[/i] bosses of those fork, rather than to the outside, like you'd normally do (pending me building a wider version of the same thing to go around the 135mm front end on that bike).
Now that i like ocb .
What do they cost and where can you get em ....
[img] 
[/img]
I have now got a front rack and panniers, but not actually used them yet. Having too much weight on the back does affect the handling a bit.
Now that i like ocb .
What do they cost and where can you get em ....
£30 from Acycles..
[url= http://www.acycles.co.uk/racktime-topit-front-wheel-bag-rack-6959.html?utm_source=google_produit_cpc&gclid=CP2p9LSB4csCFdYV0wodq-UPzg ]Here you go... [/url]
Teetosugars - what mudguards do you have on the Vaya and what size tyre ?
cheers
Poor very unpretty pic but it's in use rather than on show. Bags wise swap around depending on what I fancy currently has a bar bag and rear carradice but no pic
[URL= http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f278/firestarter4075/IMG_20150813_145621_zps7yg5cx61.jp g" target="_blank">
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f278/firestarter4075/IMG_20150813_145621_zps7yg5cx61.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]
10 day tour in the Baltics, mix of paved roads, gravel tracks and grass. Rode my spesh tricross, which was great. Discs were appreciated. The Schwalbe Marathons were pretty slow, but I didn't puncture, even on the gravel roads. [img] 
[/img]
I got a light Vango tent from GoOutdoors. I didn't get the smallest one, unlike my co-rider. His tent wasn't much bigger than a coffin, and couldnt fit any luggage in the tent with him. My tent had a little 'entrance porch' at the front, which has handy for keeping beer and wet boots in. I slept next to my luggage, and tied a rope between my bike and my arm incase someone tried to pinch it. Mark Beaumont did the same on his big tours.
[img] 
[/img]
Lastly, if you're riding on sand dunes and beaches, Marathon's are useless!
[img] 
[/img]
Teetosugars - what mudguards do you have on the Vaya and what size tyre ?
SKS guards iirc, and 41mm Knards..
AAAGGGHHHHEEEHHHHHHHHGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRR I'VE HIT A SNAG!!!!!!!!!
The canti mounts on the fork are too narrow to accommodate CR720 around the rim 🙁
Any way to solve that, or recommend some powerful canti's that fit older narrower forks? The pad needs to sit right above the boss, not inboard of it.
I would show you mine (2009 CDF with a full 2010 XTR groupset 😳 )
But I just remembered I had left it outside in the driving rain & I've just brought it inside the in laws house dripping all over the tiles 😮
The canti mounts on the fork are too narrow to accommodate CR720 around the
How close? Silly question but if it is close have you tried swapping the dished washers around on the v break pad? Could gain a couple of mm.
Sounds like any canti brake that takes a STD non threaded canti blobk (rather than a v break / linear pull block ) should work.
[img] 
?oh=f8f2f59cb6323c22c096e692036f90bf&oe=5790768E[/img]
[img] 
?oh=bc810da8a7cd0268fedc3e160943b5ef&oe=5783A888[/img]
it's been a few years since I last posted this 🙂
[img] 
[/img]
[img] 
[/img]
Old school Carradice saddle bags on QR post mount. Bar bags.
there's a kit list in here somewhere
http://pompinos.blogspot.co.uk/
My old Specialized Tricross:
[IMG] 
[/IMG]
My current Cotic Roadrat:
[IMG] 
[/IMG]
is that an outpost front rack busta ?
on looking at the racktime topit thing a bit closer im not sure im willing to have only high mounts for front panniers 🙁
can i ask, what are the benefits of using panniers on the front rather than the rear?
i have noticed when trying to stand up to climb/pedal, with my rear bags on, the bike feels very odd.
balanced bike - rides better ESP when climbing stood up ...
i disagree on the front pannier only front - makes cornering very odd having alot of weight up there.
but spreading it out is no bad thing. -
[img] 
[/img]
Ive done a few thousand miles on that set up and it was fine because with the triple i could stay seated for almost all climbs - im on a double now with a 34:32 lowest gear so want to balance it oot
I like that outpost front rack but they should have bought the platform further back towards the head tube.
i like it but the more i look at it the more i see light issues - i have an IQx mounted on the crown , the racktime throughtfully included a protected light mount at the front udner the platform , the outpost doesnt - how ever that doesnt mean it cant be done - have welder - can weld 😀
is that an outpost front rack busta ?
Yes it is. I'm very pleased with it. Fitted using p-clips rather than a mid-fork eyelet but still very sturdy. Rear panniers clip straight on and you can have them low or high (handy lifting them up for rutted tracks etc). It's very adaptable too- would easily fit over 29+ tyres.
Regards front panniers only: I prefer the handling with more weight on the front wheel. It weights the steering nicely and is more stable for corners and climbs (compared to just having rear panniers). It's also easier when pushing the bike (no rear pannier to hit against).
And I think it looks cool.
The top rack on the outpost can be unbolted so you could easily fashion up a longer version or light mount etc.
@ Ton - a good article about front loading [url= http://www.adventurecycling.org/default/assets/resources/200906_MechanicalAdvantage_Heine.pdf ]here[/url]. Basically depends on the geometery of the bike, but I've found it way more preferable to having two panniers high up on the back.
I don't actually do any touring (and that wasn't the question 😉 ), but if I did, I'd use this:
[img] 
[/img]
Currently fitted with Schwalbe Marathons & mudguards, gets used to pull the kiddie trailer. It's pretty heavy but I really like the way it rides. It's one of the bikes I'll never get rid of.
How close? Silly question but if it is close have you tried swapping the dished washers around on the v break pad? Could gain a couple of mm.Sounds like any canti brake that takes a STD non threaded canti blobk (rather than a v break / linear pull block ) should work.
Needs more than that I think, looking at the CR720 next to something like a CX70 you can see that the arm is inside rather than outside the pivot.
With the 720's on my bike and the brake set up so that the pad arm is vertical, its only a few millimetres fro the tyre, maybe 6-7mm from the rim.
Even with no washers it's not possible to get the pad between the calliper and rim.
The shimano ones on the other hand have that hourglass spacer which can be replaced with shorter versions, but the brakes are £50 and end and the spacers only come with new pads at £25 each, which is ridiculous!
[img] 
[/img]
[img] 
[/img]
I'm also firmly in the front panniers only club if I can get away with it. As others have said, it makes climbing feel much more neutral, especially out of the saddle.
My Surly LHT - 20,000kms of big tours, short tours, long day rides and sloppy commutes in rain, shine or snow. Shoved in the back of cars, planes, trains and ferries and still going strong.
[URL= http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l137/elduderino12/IMG_20150519_105114.jp g" target="_blank">
http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l137/elduderino12/IMG_20150519_105114.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]
How it used to look before the powdercoat.
[URL= http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l137/elduderino12/594.jp g" target="_blank">
http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l137/elduderino12/594.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]
[URL= http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l137/elduderino12/2013tour024.jp g" target="_blank">
http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l137/elduderino12/2013tour024.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]
^^^love that^^^
[IMG] 
[/IMG]
^ I like that, classic MTB / ideal world tourer.
Old 1986 Rockhopper
This is actually a back-rack bolted into the front mudguard holes. It worked for two weeks in West Sardinia
[img] 
?oh=12b1d7d9e1a52673e858f938e7619612&oe=578358AA[/img]
One other thing about front-pannier-only setups: If you have a non touring-specific frame but want to go touring, it's much easier to replace the front fork with something more suitable and fit a decent lowrider rack than it is to cobble a rack onto the back, putting stresses on the frame it isn't designed for and deal with the inevitable heal clearance problems.
Busta
Exactly that, I was catching my heels on the pannier bags when they were on the back.
Love the Rockcombo Sundayjumper. Not many still around.
Yep my old faithful Stumpy, bought an original Stumpy in 83 ish and traded it in for this one a few years later, a deal I couldn't refuse from Bike in Bristol. It was my only Mtb for prob five years then became my go to alround road hack. It gained Tubus racks and has done a few thousand miles of touring. It's still on the original thumb shifters and derailierurs.
I'm debating what fixing system for the front panniers I want to put on my Vaya.
To my eyes, tubus lowriders tend to put them a bit low, whereas the Racktime Topit tends to put them too high. The Blackburn outpost seems a possible solution as they can be mounted either high or low. I've also seen pictures of a Vaya or two fitted with a Pelago front rack which has mounts for panniers and looks like it puts the panniers where I think I want them. The rack itself comes in two sizes, huge or enormous, to strap even more stuff to 🙂 .
Has anybody used a Pelago rack or know who has them in the UK?
Of course, I might be wrong about lowriders as lots of people here seem to use them !
[url= http://imgur.com/adFBaLc ]Still can't get the hang of posting pictures[/url]
This is mine, I've only done one ride on it really, from Ipswich to Manchester, but that was a pretty good one. It's nice and comfy, but pretty sketchy to ride sometimes with all the weight on the back.
Cougar, that Pomp pic prompted me to get one all those years back. Been on it ever since.
Cougar has a pomp?
@Jerrys What are your concerns about having the panniers low? The only time I've had an issue with lowriders being too low was when we took a wrong turn down a rutted green lane and the panniers were grounding out. With the Blackburn Cargo I was able to lift them up a few inches to the next rail and carry on pushing!
The Pelago racks don't look particularly suitable for front panniers. You could always buy one of the cheap lowrider racks to give it a try?
[url= http://www.tredz.co.uk/.ETC-Alloy-Lowrider-Front-Bike-Rack_45878.htm?sku=119256&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=AdwordsProductAds&utm_campaign=Adwords&gclid=Cj0KEQjwz-i3BRDtn53Z5Z7t4PUBEiQA23q2ADYasyMppaP0iRN8rMSUPt_QLQtbaAa7FdmIn_GXBGAaArVr8P8HAQ ]ETC £16.99 lowrider rack[/url]
[img] 
[/img]