Traveling by Bike – Travel Over Road

A saddlebag attached to your bike is an easy way to store all the necessary items you might want to take with you. It is a great spot to stash your tools and supplies. By having a little storage on your bike, trips around town or longer journeys become less complicated, and your life becomes a little more organized. So, how to mount bicycle saddlebags? There are two ways to mount bicycle saddlebags: click-in docks or Velcro straps. For Velcro straps, put it through the seat rails, tighten it through the ring, and then attach the Velcro to the seat pillar. To attach the click-in docks, you will need mounting hardware and a 5mm Allen wrench. Not enough space to carry your extra tools or necessary things should not keep you from having fun on your bike. In bikepacking, there are many things that you can buy to have extra space. This article will teach you where and how to put saddlebags on your bike, how big they should be, and what saddlebags professionals use. How Do You Put Saddlebags on a Bicycle? Saddlebags have been around for years for a good reason. They are very practical, and some have a very large capacity. Putting saddlebags on a bike is very straightforward. Depending on which saddlebags you own, you can do it with or without additional tools. There are two methods to attach a saddlebag to a bike: Velcro straps and click-in docks. Compared to the click-in-dock method, Velcro strap systems are more affordable and easy to attach to the bike seat. Attaching saddlebags with Velcro straps system First, check the number of Velcro straps attached to the saddlebag. Most of the time, they come with two Velcro straps. You will have to connect these straps to the bike's seat and the other to the bike's post. Attach the longer Velcro strap into the bike seat rails, starting from the left side, going to the right, then inserting it into the “D” Ring. After that, you need to tighten it securely. Tightening it is crucial because it can determine the quality of the attachment. The next step is to attach the shorter Velcro strap to the bike seat post. Again, it would be best to fasten the Velcro tightly to give additional security to your saddlebag. When it is done, check the quality of your attachment by going for a test ride. Attaching saddlebags with the Click-in-Dock method For this method, you will need mounting hardware, which should be included with the saddlebag. This mounting hardware you have to attach to the bike seat rails. To attach the mounting hardware, you will need an additional tool called the Allen wrench, which should also be included with the product. The Allen wrench will tighten the bolts and nicely attach the mounting hardware to the bike seat. Start the installation of the saddlebag by positioning the mounting hardware into the bike seat rails. Line up the two hardware parts to connect them easily with each other. Lay the top piece on the saddle rails, then put the other part at the bottom. Line up both pieces together and use 5 mm bolts to connect them. Finally, fasten them into the bike seat rails with the Allen wrench. When you are done mounting the attachment, you can clip the saddlebag and check the quality of the installation. Inspect the quality of the mount and see for any unnecessary movement in the bag and reinstall it if needed. Check price on Amazon Keep it small Use small saddlebags like Topeak Aero Wedge Pack. Using a large saddlebag will tempt you to put more unnecessary and heavy items in your saddlebag, making your bike unbalanced and less pleasant to ride. This article can show you how to stash heavier stuff on your bike. We suggest traveling light and carrying only the necessary things. How Big Should a Saddlebag Be? A saddlebag is vital in a bag kit for people on mountain bikes, touring bikes, or road race bikes. To some, they may appear strange, but they have a lot of benefits. One of the many benefits is that they are light, and their size ranges from 5 liters to 14 liters. Therefore, when building a bikepacking kit, a saddlebag is one of the best investments you should consider. In addition, a good saddlebag like the one below can usually fit a couple of things like two t-shirts, one pair of pants, one long sleeve shirt, two pairs of socks, and a toiletry kit. Check price on Amazon Nevertheless, we advise investing in something smaller like this Axiom seat bag. A saddlebag like this is enough to fit all the necessary items you might need on a short one-day trip. Biking with a heavy seat bag in the back of your bike is often uncomfortable due to the weight change. Nevertheless, if you prefer to carry a bigger saddlebag, we suggest packing it lightly. What Saddlebags Do Professionals Use? Many professionals are big fans of saddlebags for bicycles with Velcro straps. They do not require any mounting hardware, making them lightweight, and they fit almost every bike. However, their limited capacity makes overpacking difficult making it easier to help us remember to bring only the necessary stuff. Additionally, they are easy to access, stable, and easy to take off whenever you want, and most are waterproof. Evoc saddlebag One very popular example is the Evoc saddlebag. This saddlebag might not be waterproof, but that is the only bad thing about it. It is easy to fit, it looks great, and its size is perfect for carrying all the essentials you need. Therefore, it checks all the boxes you would want from it. Attaching this saddlebag to your bike is straightforward. All you need to do is put two Velcro straps around the saddle rails and another one around the seat post. Additionally, these saddlebags come in three different sizes and three different colors, making it possible for everyone to find what they like. Outpost seat pack Want to carry a lot on your bike? Then this Blackburn Outpost seat pack might be for you. Taking a lot on your bike might be difficult without the proper gear, and often it makes your bike heavy. This seat pack perfectly addresses this problem. It is heavier than a typical saddlebag but lighter than a general seat pack. It is steady and easy to mount with two Velcro straps. The capacity of this seat pack is 11 liters making it perfect for extra luggage. The suggested maximum weight you can put in there is 4.5kg. Conclusion Bicycle saddlebags are great for both professional and recreational purposes. They allow you to bring all your necessary items on a bike trip. We discussed two different ways to mount your bicycle saddlebags. You can choose the Velcro straps system or the Click-in-Dock method. Both can safely attach a saddlebag to your bicycle. Hopefully, this article was helpful, and you got some value out of it. We hope to see you again soon! Related Questions How do I stop my saddlebag from swinging? To minimize sway, you should ensure that all the straps are tightly secured. When the saddlebag is swinging, this almost always indicates that you did not secure the bag properly to the saddle. How do you pack a saddlebag? It’s crucial to only pack items that are absolutely necessary. Furthermore, anything that you pack must be compact. Large items that can’t be compressed are not fit to go in a saddlebag. How do I pack my bike for camping? When you go camping by bike, it’s important to pack smart. Only take essentials and make sure to divide the weight over the bike. Multiple bike bags can help you pack properly.