Pannier rack and bags

[nagsheadwarrior]

Having grown a bit sick of the backpack on my daily commute can anyone recommend a decent but not stupidly expensive pannier rack and bags?

Rack must be very easy to fit as im a Salesman so im rubbish at doing stuff!

[pembo]

I popped in to Halfords on the way past just to check them out last week because I was also getting sick of the rucksack.

As they were doing a 3 for 2 deal I got both panniers and the rack was free. New Loox bags and just whatever rack was there (probably a Halfords own). The rack was really easy to fit, 4 bolts and off I went, the salesman even provided me with the tools to put it on outside the shop. They also gave me a small discount because there was some sticky stuff on the which I have since cleaned off so the whole lot was £74 and it does the job perfectly and is really easy to use.

Amazingly much better than my LBS who tried to sell me one pannier, no rack, for £120!!

[ewenm]

I use a Tubus Fly rack and Ortleib panniers. Not the cheapest but not the most expensive either.

[CoolC]

Does anyone have experience of the type that fit to the seat post?

We're planning a little 3 day jaunt around Lincolnshire traveling light staying in B&B's but want to keep additional costs to a minimum as any rack would likely get very little (possibly none) use afterwards.

[JPJ]

Have a look at the Carradice stuff. I've commuted in the past with a backpack over a short distance, and then with panniers for a longer journey.

A friend then introduced me to the Carradice brand, and I opted for the SQR slim and I cannot recommend it enough. It's large enough for a medium sized laptop, some clothing and bits and bobs, so should be fine unless you're in the habit of carrying shoes and washbag everyday.

It mounts via a bracket that you leave on the seat post, and takes seconds to fit or remove. The lovely thing is that when you're not commuting, the bracket is fairly minimal and not like having a pannier rack still bolted to the bike, so the combination is a lot lighter. Finally, by the time you buy a rack and then panniers, you'll have spent a lot more than on the Carradice option, so it saves in that respect too.