How Can I Put Smart Luggage With Wheels Onto Bicycle Rack?



ship69

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Sep 24, 2015
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Hello

Background:
I need to buy some sort of smart over night luggage (for a 2 night stay) onto a bicycle... that I can then take onto public transport (train, bus, tube etc). I am going to smart business meetings so whatever form of luggage I get, it must be fairly smart as well as being pretty much waterproof in case it rains. I have a robust rack on my bicycle that can handle panniers.

Which should I buy:

A) A rucksac ?
(Not so smart, and less good for heavy weights within urban environment. Also tends to crush smart cloths. Also may not fit into aeroplane cabins should I use it for that... Also tends to be difficult to store in over-head luggage racks. Also the rucksac straps tend to rather destroy the shape of any smart jacket I'm wearing at the time.)

B) A small 'cabin' bag with handle & wheels?
But if so, how can I attach such a thing onto the bike's panniers?

Any advise?

J
 
Don't try to attach it to the panniers. They're made to put things in, not attach things onto.

I'd get a couple of stout bungee cords and attach the bag to the top of the rear rack. I know the bikepacking experts say keep the center of gravity low, but if you have to carry one big bag, the best place for it is centered and securely fastened to the rack.
 
Interesting. Thanks.
The problem with bungee cords is that they are rather a pain to keep taking on and off.
Also the width of the rack is quite narrow compared to the width of the bag. This means that my current bag will probably wobble off the back unless I add a solid base to the top of the rack... All of which seem rather unsatisfactory.


To get clear it needs to be as large as possible that will still be allowed into a British airline cabin (i.e. must be squeezable down to 55 x 40 x 20 cm)

I can't decide if it should be a solid shell or flexible.

AND


It order to be easy to handle on public transport it must have wheels (ideally 4 rather than 2 wheels - to avoid tipping weight, which can be a pain over
longer distances).
 
ship69 said:
Interesting. Thanks.
The problem with bungee cords is that they are rather a pain to keep taking on and off.
Get one long bungee cord, about twice the length of your rack. Attach it in the middle to one end of the rack using a girth hitch. See illustration.
girth_hitch_h.png

Hook the ends over the other end of the rack. To attach your baggage, unhook the cords, pass them over the baggage, and hook them back onto the rack. If it's too loose, criss-cross the cords a couple time before hooking.
 
Not bad thinking... but I would also need some sort of horizontal plate attached to be bike rack to stop it from wobbling. My existing 'cabin bag' complete with wheels and extensible handle is only semi-rigid and will wobble / become damaged if there is not a solid base for it to be attached to.

OK I agree that this would work - sort of. But surely someone somewhere has designed a bit of smart (i.e. good-looking) wheeled cabin bag that can snap nicely onto a bike, no?
 
If *really* pushed I suppose a wheelie bag that had shoulder straps would be better than nothing, as I could use the shoulder straps on the bike to get to the railway station.

However if I am wearing a smart jacket (and/or nicely ironed shirt?) it will get ruined by the shoulder straps. For this reason I would rather attach the bad to a rack on the bike...
 

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