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Bikepacking Bags - what's your favourite/hated and why?

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rabbit:
Hey folks,

After a very long absence from the road, I have just brought a gravel bike for some audaxy stuff, touring stuff and general gentle miles.

I am planning to get some nice matchymatchy bikepacking luggage to go with it but I am looking for opinions. Alpkit would have always been my go to, but I am not happy with them and their customer service (which means they have lost out on both a gravel bike sale, and selling me a lot of luggage to go with it)

So I am looking for alternatives. Currently Ortleib are at the top of my list, but I am open to other suggestions. Things have moved on so much since I last purchased luggage, I literally don't know where to start!

So what do you use, and why? Can you convince me to return to Alpkit and replace my alpkit seat bag and frame bag, both of which have worn through with the use they have had.

gibbo:
For touring I use Ortleib front panniers but used on the rear rack. I like them. Good at keeping water out and seemingly hard wearing, plus, I use the carry straps meaning I can walk around with them over my shoulder and still have my hands free.

I also have a seat pack from Birzman used when bike packing. It's ok but if I were going to buy another bag of the same style I'd get a holstered version e.g. Restrap. Reason being the simplicity of removing the bag and not having to refit later which, in the case of the Birzman, is faffy.

I have a "front loader" bar bag from Topeak which uses a cylindrical dry bag with valve which means you can stuff the bag, squeeze it (with the valve open), then close the valve to keep the compacted size. The valve leaks over time and the bag gets slowly bigger. Going forward, I'd probably buy the Restrap version as you can fit, what they call, an food bag.

perpetual dan:
I have Alpkit seat post, frame and handlebar snack bags that I'm very happy with.
I like my Ortlieb panniers (full size for with a tent and stove, small for otherwise).
I have forks that don't lend themselves to bags, so none there.
And, in tourist rather than bikepacker style, a bar bag. Either Haberland or Arkel for with a camera and depending on how big, or a Scourge phone and wallet if bag if it's a lighter day ride.

Sent from my SM-S911B using Tapatalk

Frank9755:
I have an Arkel Seatpacker, which I enjoy using. It works much better for me than the Apidura saddle pack that it replaced. Key difference is that it has a light aluminium frame which clamps to my saddle rails. This gives two benefits. It is rock solid and doesn't ever sway, and it only takes a couple of seconds to put on or take off the bike which saves lots of time vs Apidura.
It's also rated as waterproof, which I don't totally rely on but which is a positive.

It's been through two TCRs and a few other trips and is wearing pretty well.

I've got an Apidura top tube bag, which goes almost the full length of the crossbar, so it holds more than the ones that just tuck behind the stem. Works better with a more horizontal top tube. My new frame is quite compact so stuff falls to the back more than on my old bike.

Current bar bag is a Cyclite, which works very well with aerobars and is very good for access when riding. But I do have a reservation about it which is that I think it might affect bike handling when descending in a cross wind.  My previous bar bag was a couple of chalk bag style bags, mounted in front of my bars - I may go back to those.

I've just got a Tailfin to try it out. Normally I don't like roll tops as I think they are a pain to access and not necessary, but I thought I'd try it as lots of people rave about them. Not used it yet.

Edit: just seen you want matching stuff. If that was important to me I would go for alpkit as I think they have a frame for their saddle pack which might do what the arkel one does, or restrap as their holster system probably works OK.

Cudzoziemiec:
I used to have an Alpkit saddlepack, yonks ago, but didn't like at all. Too shapeless and too hard to find the things I wanted in it. Might have been good for bikepacking, packing in the morning and unpacking in the evening and that's it, but no good for audax, which I was using it for.

I love my Gorilla fork bags. Waterproof, tough, leave only the tiniest unobtrusive bolts on the forks when not in use.

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