I've been tempted to play with the Donkey Boxx.   http://www.donkeyboxx.com/
 

On Wednesday, September 12, 2012 4:57:00 PM UTC-7, bwphoto wrote:
>
> I've been using a number of different things to do errands and grocery 
> runs. Big runs, that involve stuff I don't have a way to carry on my Sam, 
> are taken care of with my Burley flatbed trailer. For loads that will work 
> on Sam I use two Minnehaha  bags ( 
> http://www.calhouncycle.com/productcart/pc/Canvas-Grocery-Bag-Pannier-93p1703.htm)
>  
> they snap closed, have both shoulder strap and hand grab straps neither of 
> which interfere with riding. INstead of shlepping a paper grocery bag out I 
> just use the bags themselves in the same way I would use a reuseable 
> grocery bag. 
>
> The other bag I use is the Banjo Bro Market bag, which has a cover that 
> snaps closed. It also folds flat against the rack and like the Minnehaha 
> ones can be left on the bike. 
>
> One caveat I've learned is that at 66 I can no longer easily swing my leg 
> over anything higher than my saddle or wider than my leg will extend...not 
> to long ago I used to be able swing wither leg easily over whatever I had 
> back or front.
>
> Ecovelo.net has some good reviews of both.
>
> On Wednesday, September 12, 2012 6:12:22 PM UTC-5, Patrick Moore wrote:
>>
>> 1. Cheapest *decent* hanging scale with capacity of at least 40 lb. I 
>> know Park makes an electric one for $60, but I would be quite happy with a 
>> mechanical model if cheaper. (I want to find out how heavy my Fargo is.) 
>> (Seriously, I like to weigh my grocery loads -- just 'cause.)
>>
>> 2. Prest-cum-Schrader replacement pump chuck. In a fit of 
>> brass-and-Silca-lust folly I cut the very decent one-chuck-for-both head 
>> off my pump to replace with a nice (looking) brass screw on Schraeder chuck 
>> that I thought might work better on my daughter's Schrader valves -- which 
>> it does, but screwing on the chuck is a royal arse pain especially when I 
>> have to use a Presta adaptor for my own bikes.
>>
>> 3. Bar tape. I've found my own current favorite but am curious what 
>> others think. I like the Lizard Skins 2.5 (I think it is also made in 1.8 
>> and a thicker one whose measurement I don't have).
>>
>> 4. Grocery pannier. Here I have certain criteria to meet:
>> - Easy on and off the rack.
>> - Can be used singly or as a pair.
>> - Secure on the rack
>> - Holds a full-to-top paper grocery sack.
>> - Has either a cover that will accomodate overflow, or else has loops to 
>> which one can attach a cargo net.
>> - It is easy to insert a bulging-ly full grocery sack. (This criterion 
>> puts my otherwise wonderful Ortlieb Packers out of the running because of 
>> the (for this use) fiddly and obstructive flap and drawstrings.)
>> - Universal fit on many different kinds of rack. 
>> - Stiffener on back if not on sides (all-cloth panniers tend in my 
>> experience to end up in the spokes with certain simpler racks).
>>
>> Of course, cost and durability are part of the equation. 
>>
>> No Wald baskets! No saddlebags! Saddlebags, even the huge Hoss, don't 
>> hold enough, so I prefer panniers which I can mix and match as required. I 
>> realize that the easiest and capacious grocery carrier in the universe is a 
>> huge Wald Newsboy, but I don't have a bike that I'd care to add one of 
>> these to.
>>
>> I've used several different sorts of camping panniers, many different 
>> commuting panniers, Avenir grocery panniers (currently in use), Gnashbar 
>> grocery pannier, Axiom Dutch (style) boxy panniers, rear Wald baskets (too 
>> damn' narrow!), Carradice panniers and just about all Brooks and many other 
>> saddlebags out there. I want something that is pretty much designed for 
>> full paper grocery sacks.
>>
>> For convenience, the Avenirs are good though they are not stiff enough to 
>> be ideal. They are also too shallow and have no cover nor provision for a 
>> cargo net. Good only for short trips and you have to make sure you don't 
>> pack small, loose things on top. The folding arrangement is primitive, but 
>> they do fold when not full, which is a plus.
>>
>> The Axioms, in stock form, sagged too much under any load  and the lip of 
>> the opening deformed under weight. I had to rivet a collar of aluminum 
>> strip around the mouths to stiffen them. Thus modified they are much better 
>> but the mouths are still a bit too narrow for easy insertion and removal of 
>> very full bags.
>>
>> Frankly, when cost is a large factor, I've used nothing more convenient 
>> than the drape-over-rack pair of Target kitchen trashcans that I joined 
>> with pop rivets, dowels and nylon webbing. Wider at top, deep, so that it 
>> is easy to insert and securely carry even an overflowing bag. Certainly 
>> sturdy enough if you reinforce all weight-bearing points with big washers 
>> or thin plywood or sheet metal. Easy on and off, since they drape, and a 
>> single toe strap holds them securely fore-and-aft. And the total cost 
>> (trashcans on sale) was no more than $12. IMO, these are better than milk 
>> crates or used cat litter boxes. You can also plaster all sorts of 
>> reflective material on the backs and even bolt blinkies permanently to them.
>>
>> Their big defect of course is that they look ineffably dorky. But I can 
>> see a plastic (not kitchen white!) bin-type pannier optimally sized and 
>> shaped, suitably reinforced at stress points, and with adjustable, QR 
>> mounting system a la Carradice or Ortlieb, and cargo net top -- does anyone 
>> make anything like this? 
>>
>> Patrick "Riv + luggage" Moore
>>
>> -- 
>> "Believe nothing until it has been officially denied."
>>                                                    -- Claude Cockburn
>>
>> -------------------------
>> Patrick Moore, Albuquerque, NM, USA
>> For professional resumes, contact Patrick Moore, ACRW
>> http://resumespecialties.com/index.html
>> -------------------------
>>  
>

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