I've got many hobbies other than WW and making backpacking gear is a pretty big one of them.

Anyway, I thought I'd share my latest project which was to make some touring bags for my WW bike.

I plan to make light, more minimalist bags over the winter but I feel like this was a very good start:





I don't have exact weights yet but the bags should be around 12oz total.

I don't have exact weights on the gear I packed in there as most of it is new-ish and I haven't gotten them into my "gram weenie" (backpacker term for WW) spreadsheet.

If people are interested in that stuff I can certainly add information on my gear list and weights too.

Thanks for looking guys!

-Jordan

Not to take away from this gentleman's homemade bags, but there are bags very similar to these you can purchase through Adventure Cycling.

Here is a bag to go in the main triangle. Below the toptube.
http://www.adventurecycling.org/cycloso ... frame-bag/

Here is a bag to go in the seatbag position.
http://www.adventurecycling.org/cycloso ... -viscacha/

RussellS, there's a lot of small cottage shops making similar gear but Revelate is my favorite.

I was actually VERY close to making these in cuben fiber last year but ended up not getting around to it...I was going to actually try to start up a company and sell them (cuben touring bags) but Revelate Designs came out with a Cuben version of the Visacha this year. I'm VERY glad they did but it essentially meant that my plan to make the lightest bags on the market was futile.

I HIGHLY recommend Revelate's bags and especially now that they're selling cuben stuff too!

I do still have an idea for cuben bags that isn't currently sold by anybody else.

Looks excellent! Thanks for the ideas as I'm in the process of doing something similar on my Tarmac. I worried about loading my carbon seat post too much so have purchased a Thompson post. The slight added weight of this post is probably well worth mitigating my concern.

Those Revelate bags look very nice. I will be looking into these.

Looks excellent! Thanks for posting and the ideas are helpful as I'm in the process of doing something similar on my Tarmac. I worried about loading my carbon seat post too much so have purchased a Thompson post. The slight added weight of this post is probably well worth mitigating my concern.

Those Revelate bags look very nice. I will be looking into these.

I will be running Shimano DA C24 wheels with 25mm Conti 4000 tires. I guess that I've put 30,000 miles on this set up without any problems so will keep the same set up......although I might look into more robust 25 tires. The 4000's are superb for fast club rides and general riding but, on those long lonely roads I don't want to suddenly face a sliced tire that can't be repaired.

NealH,

I think using a carbon seatpost would be fine if your gear doesn't weigh too much. For instance I know my setup is rather compact and light so I'm not worried about this but some friends of mine tour with ~30lbs of gear using rear and front panniers. It's just a matter of what gear you're taking.

For my uses...here's a rough markup of my gear weights:

**Rear bag**
45oz -- 2 person Tent with stakes/poles (made by me and much lighter than most stuff that's sold retail).
18oz -- Sleeping pad (Klymit Static V)
3oz -- Sleeping bag liner (made by me)
16oz -- 40F down sleeping bag (made by me)
??? -- flip flop sandals

**Frame bag**
4oz -- solar charger
??? -- spare clothes
??? -- food, maps (if my phone dies or doesn't get reception)
??? -- wallet (money, credit cards...etc)
??? -- phone

Overall, I'm sitting pretty good at around 8lbs for everything (bags, gear and food).

That's very decent jordo99, equipment wise and weight. I don't have everything yet but my equipment will be pretty similar:

On the back:
- REI Travel Sack sleeping bag (it has a full zipper so can be used as a blanket)
- Sea to Summit coolmax liner for one or two night trips when its hot (don't need a sleeping bag)
- REI 2 person Quarterdome tent (have not purchased this yet)
- Thermarest Ridgerest pad
- Jetboil stove (probably)
- clothes, slippers, a little food (will stop and buy most of the time), toiletries, etc.

At this point I was planning a smaller front bag (hangs off the bars) but may opt for the Relevat frame bag like you have. I only worry about my legs rubbing it when pedaling. Can you comment?

Also, what do you think about this rack? http://www.bontrager.com/model/08214?
I would also use this clamp; http://www.bontrager.com/model/08427. Salsa makes a similar one that replaces the seat post clamp (it will work on my Tarmac since the post is the standard 27.2). My idea is to minimize the weight on the post. More than likely its not a problem, as you say.

jordo99, Not to disrespect your creativity and effort, but at this size of "saddlebag" I would probably prefer a light rear rack, for lower barycentre and tight connection to the frame on rough terrain.

(I'm aware that using a rack might be crossing a line for some, but having done some touring without, I'd just suck it up next time. Might be an age thing as well.)

_________________
Bikes: Raw Ti, 650b flatbar CX

@NealH -- Those racks look pretty good. My only worry with putting racks on a bike without rackmounts is the weight you load take with you. Road bikes have geometry that isn't ideal for carrying touring gear; It will affect how the bike rides and handles so minimizing weight is still important even if the rack allows for more weight to be carried.



No offense taken. The bags were specifically made with road touring in mind and I would never consider taking my 15lb road racing bike off-road. I have a Lemond Proprad that I use for commuting, touring and occasional cyclocross and single track rides. It's got a rear rack on it and that's the bike I would use for "off road" touring...I would still be very confident in taking these bags off road though. I just need to split the gear across my saddlebag and a handlebar bag.

There are many people going rackless without issues. Over at bikepacking.net people who tour singletrack on mountain bikes are actually moving to rackless because there are substantial advantages over traditional racks. It's a bit confusing that a community focused on touring is coming to the opposite conclusion as you did.

What problems did you run into and how did you carry the bags? My guess is that you used a seatpost-mounted rack.
I tried that once and I wasn't even a mile into the ride before I knew I was going to sell/return it. It was a miserable trip because the rack was so unstable.

Eliminating the rack completely and attaching my bags directly to the bike (frame, seatpost, saddle, handlebars) has worked great for me and many others.

For anybody interested in rackless touring here's a pretty quick read on it:
http://www.adventurecycling.org/resourc ... the-racks/