Dry Bag - Stuff Sack - Compression Bag

[trebor]

Feedback please...

I've allways used a bar bag with my flat-bar bikes for my trips. Now that I'm moving to a drop-bar set up I'm going to use a harness/sling instead. With that said, I've been looking at different types of bags to use.

I can't decide on what type/brand... those that have used such bags in their slings, have you ever had your bag "wander" out sideways on rough terrain? Compression bags have the straps to weave the sling straps through, which makes me wonder about using those.... especially the eVent style on the market. Are those durable enough (abrasion resistance I'm thinking).

Anyone use a regular drybag with an integral daisy chain? Most of those on the market seem bullet proof - are they overkill on the material?

Thoughts, as always, are appreciated.

[THE LONG RANGER]

The experiments I've one with eVent dry sacks in slings, on drop bar setups seems to be working well with the sling that Cleveland Mountaineering made for me,





This is I believe a S or M bag - I can find that out for you.

I too am pretty worried about road grit hitting the bottom of the bag and over time destroying it. That could be mitigated by double-bagging it in an external cheap (or already destroyed) bag - even something thin would work. In last year's TD I wrapped my larger eVent bag in a travel eating utensil sleeve I found on the road, basically a piece of thin vinyl and that worked great.

I do notice a little bit of slippage in this sling - nothing you'd notice in a flat bar setup, but perhaps an inch one way or another, which can get in the way of a drop bar setup. Jeremy's system using three straps to hold things on, and the outer straps barely cover this particular setup. Another option could be to simply crosscross the outside straps, instead of having them go straight. Anyways, pretty happy with everything. 

[bmike-vt]

been using a harness and pocket from revelate (mine are technically epic) with my road ride and my fargo.
i have 46cm nitto noodle bars on the IF (might be switching to cowbell 2s) and i have 46cm woodchippers on the fargo.

i'm using a M eVent bag i think. i went to EMS and stuffed up a few of the bags and had my tape measure with me, making sure i could close it tight with a bit room to spare.


Revelate by mbeganyi, on Flickr


stable by mbeganyi, on Flickr

i carry a big agness 30d bag and my insulated air core in there.

[trebor]

i'm using a M eVent bag i think. i went to EMS and stuffed up a few of the bags and had my tape measure with me, making sure i could close it tight with a bit room to spare.

What is your opinion on the eVent durability?

[bmike-vt]

What is your opinion on the eVent durability?

i don't have a ton of miles on this bag, have had it for ~3 years now, done some short trips, 1 in the pouring rain. the sling / harness i have protects the bottom of the bag on the fargo (full fenders usually on the IF) - so it doesn't get covered in dirt and crunchies as much as it might with another setup.

if i were to do it over i'd get an ultralite compression sack for my bag and something a bit more robust as an over bag. this way i'd compress the bag down, and could use the over bag to hold the compression bag and something else if needed.

happy with it though.

[annoying crack]

The experiments I've one with eVent dry sacks in slings, on drop bar setups seems to be working well with the sling that Cleveland Mountaineering made for me,

Justin,

How does this all work with the cable for the front canti-brake? Does the cable rub the sling everytime you use the brakes?
I've got a similar bike and thought about putting stuff in the front like that but I can't really see how it would go with the cable. Euh, close up picture maybe?

[THE LONG RANGER]

How does this all work with the cable for the front canti-brake? Does the cable rub the sling everytime you use the brakes?
I've got a similar bike and thought about putting stuff in the front like that but I can't really see how it would go with the cable. Euh, close up picture maybe?

Good question. Long story short - there's some  compromise to your braking power, as the damn cable will get in the way of the sling. Hard problem to get around. My front brake was compromised during these photos anyways, as that wheel is built with a strange offset Velocity rim, so when it got all untrue, it sort of stayed that way, as my attempts at bush-truing were naught.

That isn't to say the cable was in the way all the time - perhaps just when hitting a bump, or the sling wasn't cinched up. I'm not sure if Jeremy designed his sling this way, but the sling attaches to your handlebars and then has straps for your dry bag. It also has that top pocket, which itself has a few straps that click into the bag itself. If you cinch those straps, the sling and everything else also get cinched up, relieving pressure on all the cables running. Sorry I have no photos of this - bike was a loner, after I cracked the frame of my main rig and it's back w/it's owner.

If I was to have this as my main setup, I'd figure out some sort of device to protect that brake cable - from itself and from the cable hitting your bag and eventually causing wear. Perhaps all it needs is some part from a all-weather system, so at least the cable has protection around it. Or, go for disk brakes up front - or at least V Brakes (and maybe a problem solver, for your levers) to truly get around this problem. As it is, if I was (road) touring, and was using a sling like this, I'd probably just go for it!

Oh hey, my Sell An Anatomic saddle just got delivered! Weighs a metric ton!

[fotooutdoors]

For the cantis, you could look at a fork-mounted (rather than stem-mounted) hanger.  It would likely help.  I also experimented with using two stems, with the bottom one just with a short piece of handle bar.  Originally used it for mounting a handlebar bag, but kept it around until I picked up a Fargo.  At any rate, the second bar helps hold the bag out from the cable.

[annoying crack]

Good question. Long story short

Thank you for that response, it sort of confirms what I expected. Maybe mini v-brakes would be a solution then as that has the cable inside a housing all the way up to the brake-arm. I need to look into that some more.

[bmike-vt]

I have a Fargo and will likely run a really short stem with a piece of plastic mounted instead of the faceplate. Had issues with routing and rubbing and shifting last 2 trips. I will cut a plastic piece that allows me to cinch the revelate bag to it, I stead of around the head tube.