Carradice saddle bags

[thirdcrank]

I have both 1 and 2.

The Longflap really will swallow just about anything you might reasonably want to put in it - you would probably lose control of the bike before you ran out of carrying capacity.

The Super C has a sort of gusset around the main compartment which probably makes it marginally more weatherproof.* It also has zipped compartments down the back inside. I tend to think that the Super C was introduced by Carradice in an attempt to be more trendy.

* Because it's behind you, a saddlebag is normally well-protected from the weather anyway, much like the stoker on a tandem.

[BrianInnes]

I have a Carradice Camper Longflap. Bought it mainly for commuting use as it can take my work uniform (excluding safety boots which I leave in my locker!) + lunch etc.

I've got it fitted using the Carradice SQR bracket - makes the bag nice and quick to release and gives a carrying handle. The bag does sway a little on my racing bike which has no rear rack, however despite the bag being full a times the bike handling isn't affected to much. The bag is a lot more stable on my touring bike as once it's on the SQR bracket it gently rests on the rear rack. However it's ~£27 for the complete SQR system, and another £11 for each additional SQR seatpost clamp. You do need a fair bit of seatpost showing, and if the saddle is quite far back on the rails then the SQR might hit the back of the saddle.

The carradice + SQR setup was slightly expensive but it can take a fair amount of kit and looks a lot better on my racing bike than a seat post mounted rack + rack pack.

[thirdcrank]

I forgot to mention that one thing you have to be careful of with cotton duck is abrasion - being a woven fabric it doesn't do it any good.

It is very tempting when propping your bike against a wall etc., to use one side pocket as the point of contact - it's in exactly the right place. If you do it will eventually wear out. Carradice do an excellent repair service but with care you can avoid using it.

[andrew_s]

The Camper Longflap is slightly larger than the Super-C. It has buckled straps (side pockets easier to open/close one-handed whilst riding). The lid is a simple extendable flap. You can hold quite a bit in the way of bulk under the lid, but there's not an awful lot to stop loose items falling out from under the flap.
The Camper has the same "gusset" at the top of the main compartment that the Super-C does. It didn't used to.

The Super-C is slightly smaller (23l vs 24l). It has quick release fasteners for the lid and pockets. The lid is shaped, and will be more weatherproof, and will hold what's stuffed under it more securely, but you can't fit nearly as much there.

The Carradura is a nylon version of the Super-C, pretty much. It's cheaper, and you will get more leakage in the rain.

The bagman Quick release clamp requires >15mm of saddle rail.

The SQR requires a couple of inches or so of seatpost. It also requires a reasonable amount of space below the bag to allow for the lift, tip back, and lower removal action. If there isn't enough space, you can't get the bag off without taking stuff out.

I use a bagman clamp with the saddlebag sitting on the rack. I've a Super-C that I got in preference to the Camper because of the gusset, but if buying now I think I'd probably get a Camper now that they have them too.

[thirdcrank]

The Camper has the same "gusset" at the top of the main compartment that the Super-C does. It didn't used to.

Should have mentioned I might be out of date - I often am these days. My Longflap was bought in 1964 to replace a plain Camper (not Longflap) stolen (complete with bike) by a discerning thief. It was repaired at for a minimal charge some years ago.

I intended to mention but forgot that decent saddlebags have D-rings on the flap for the carrying of a rolled-up cape. Capes are IMO an anachronism but all sorts of stuff can be strapped on top of a saddlebag when you run out of space inside. I got the now defunct Freedom Bikepacking company to make me a couple of waterproof roll-up jobbies to my own design which allow waterproofs to be carried there where they are accessible, and then put back if the rain stops, without having to put wet stuff in the bag itself.

[fatboy]

I intended to mention but forgot that decent saddlebags have D-rings on the flap for the carrying of a rolled-up cape. Capes are IMO an anachronism but all sorts of stuff can be strapped on top of a saddlebag when you run out of space inside. I got the now defunct Freedom Bikepacking company to make me a couple of waterproof roll-up jobbies to my own design which allow waterproofs to be carried there where they are accessible, and then put back if the rain stops, without having to put wet stuff in the bag itself.

Does the longflap have D-rings? I couldn't see any on it in the pitcures.

[thirdcrank]

Mine does - alloy ones. The world has moved on a bit though since I was 19.

Edited to add.

I've had a look at their website In the small pic here, there appear to be the metal rings mounted under the strap coming down the flap. If you click on the little pic of the Longflap, the bigger version on the next page shows the longflap extended and so the D-rings - or the part of the flap where they used to be - is hidden.

[NewHorizon]

It’s a shame Carradices's web site is so mediocre. If you want some decent pictures and info, have a look at some of the american stockists; http://www.PeterWhiteCycles.com/carradice.asp
for instance is excellent.

[glueman]

Thirdcrank is correct in all parts. We can quibble about leaning a Carradice against a wall, something I've been doing since Ena Sharples and Minnie Caldwell were running a bordello off Inkerman Street, even so the Nelson and Longflap are the defining motif of the domestic cyclist. More so now Brooks is Italian owned (can that really be true or have I made it up?)

Brooks have begun to re-introduce loops to their saddles, dropped because racing men were wont to file their's off and nobody looked for thirty years that they'd been using plastic seats, but the leather wranglers have put a financial premium on what was once regarded as standard - like so many things of quality in the modern world.

If you have a rack the job's a good'un and if you're petite/shorthouse I'll say there's a Lowsaddle without looking at the site, a delightfully bespoke solution to saddlebag mania. You can get chrome loops which bolt onto the rails, something else that appears to have risen in price fourfold since I bought a pair. A dab of glue on the threads at assembly will avoid them sliding down the seat rails. And don't overtighten them, the threads strip or they ping in half; frankly they need beefing up at tad.

Many people just give the vertical chrome leather straps a horizontal twist as they wrap round the saddle rails but that leads to the characteristic Carradice Sway, a rhythm that's part Hawaiian temptress - part Lancashire mill town dowager and as hypnotic to following cyclists as a stoat to a rabbit. I opt for electric cable ties through the leather straps, one biggun or two small one's each side. They're almost invisible, you can adjust the height to a T and the bag is attached as snug you like.
The real joy is watching them age. Though Carradice supply proofing, many folks don't bother. My favourite was thirty years old when I got it and I sold more than twenty years ago. It belonged to a window cleaner and had a Bakerlite badge and every buckle said 'will not rust'. Veterans are finding a market on internet auction sites and so they should.

The only reason Carradice aren't listed on the FTSE and their owners enjoying the pleasures of a private island is their stuff lasts forever. You may be young enough to need a second Longflap but you're either transporting volatile acids or very youthful indeed. Chances are it's a vanity purchase because they've changed the typeface or it's been stolen to order by small people smugglers. The bags have the maker's name inside and owners vye for which lady has the most impeccable stitch.
A perfect object in an imperfect world.

[fatboy]

Many people just give the vertical chrome leather straps a horizontal twist as they wrap round the saddle rails but that leads to the characteristic Carradice Sway, a rhythm that's part Hawaiian temptress - part Lancashire mill town dowager and as hypnotic to following cyclists as a stoat to a rabbit. I opt for electric cable ties through the leather straps, one biggun or two small one's each side. They're almost invisible, you can adjust the height to a T and the bag is attached as snug you like.

I wish I could picture what you mean for the attachement ideas. Are you suggesting to no use bagloops? Is the big cable tie to replace the saddle loop?

[glueman]

I wish I could picture what you mean for the attachement ideas. Are you suggesting to no use bagloops? Is the big cable tie to replace the saddle loop?

Yes. The leather straps run round a piece of wooden dowel inside the bag as per usual. You put the buckles inside the bag and do them up as you would normally.
Then you slip a cable tie between the wooden dowel and leather strap and tighten it up snugly round the saddle rail. The cable tie just makes the vertical leather straps attach horizontally to the steel saddle rails. It replaces the metal loops, nuts and bolts, fancy supports, weight and slippage and I've found plastic ties very robust.

The time a QR system is useful is if you're commuting and leaving the bike out in the street. Mine's rarely in that position and if you should need to take the bag off just snip the ties and put some more on. I always carry a few cable ties anyway as they're invaluable for fixing anything up to and including broken frames.

Although people just twist the leather straps around the saddle rails it's impossible to get them tight, hence the sway.
If I get time later I'll post a picture.

[fatboy]

Now I see! Do you bag stuff up inside so that you can then carry it about whilst leaving the saddle bag in place?

[glueman]

Outside cafes and shops I tend to remove camera, wallet and valuables and the rest stays. If I were to linger a bit longer, say an hour or so in a library and couldn't be bothered taking my usual junk out, I may slip a tie round the buckles to deter prying fingers.

Something grotty laid on top of the contents like an oily bag stops the casually light-fingered, in much the same way that a soiled nappy on the passenger seat is said to put off villains from nicking your sports car.

[glueman]

I intended to mention but forgot that decent saddlebags have D-rings on the flap for the carrying of a rolled-up cape.

There was a period when Carradice dropped the D-ring and replaced it with a sewn on leather panel with two slots for a strap. Both did much the same job but I agree the D-ring shades it and they've returned to them.
Talking arcana my oldest bag not only had a Bakerlite badge, buckles with advice on, D-rings and a long flap but leather trim to the pockets, etc., not just webbing reinforcement. The reinforced bottom panel was also leather. Them were the days.

[thirdcrank]

fatboy

If you have a B17 with bagloops, my recommendation, and I thought this was something I had plugged ad nauseam is the Karrimor Uplift:


As you can see, this comes in two versions.

Both fit in the bagloops, using the metal tongues and they lift the bag well clear of everything. The bag is held in place by the strap under the seat. The L shaped one provides extra support (which I've never found to be necessary.) These, unfortunately, are now in rocking horse doo dah territory (or probably lying about in garages/ sheds unidentified) having not been made for ages. Tese pics were taken when one of mine went to an advertiser on here who sent me some nice pics of it in use in France, where it will have impressed the cycling locals no end.

Returning to the Uplift, when you get to journey's end be it youth hostel (forgot, they are disappearing as well ) or whatever, you undo the strap and the Uplift then becomes a convenient carrying handle.

Usually by now, glueman has posted the excellent link to the site with all the 'no bagloop work arounds.'

I speak as one who usually has little time for the 'Mafac Racers were the best brakes ever' brigade, when I say the IMO the duck saddlebag is the best way of shift stuff on a bike known to man.

(I'm not saying don't prop your bike against a wall - just be careful or gang warily on the nothern parts of the end to end.)