2nd September 2019 Totally new Overboard Pro-Sport PVC Saddlebag.

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Monday 2nd 51F, clear and bright. After going missing since the 28th my new saddlebag is in the hands of a Danish delivery firm. Hopefully I shall see it today.

A walk to the lanes where I caught a dozen pheasants red handed out on the stubble fields. They discussed it amongst themselves as I drew nearer. Until they finally panicked and flew off noisily towards the nearest copse.

I skirted the edge of the harvested field to avoid the raving lunacy of morning commuter traffic. Another cat has died on the road. The third this year. Perhaps it was distracted by the big scary monster in the sky? Grr?

Guess what? After four days off the tracking radar the delivery firm took it upon themselves to take the bag 10 miles away from my home address and leave it a packet collection point.

After waiting 23 minutes for Bring to answer their customer services number they kindly offered to deliver it to another, nearer packet collection point instead of my home address. But it would be a couple of days more before they could get around to it. 32 kilometres later I had collected the bag myself and returned home. No thanks to Bring! Who will always go the extra 20 miles [sic] for a paying customer.

The new bag was heavier and much more detailed than the last one. More importantly it was made entirely of reinforced PVC inside and out. The last one was PVC coated only on the inside. The new bag weighs 2.6 lbs or 1.2 kg.

Vastly more useful than a pair of panniers for shopping. Because nothing gets crushed when you can arrange and rearrange the contents as new stuff arrives. I have been cycle shopping for nearly a decade now and know a bag of organic potatoes from a carton of organic eggs and where each should both go.

The rain was beading off the PVC nicely as I fiddled between showers. I stuffed a huge, lightweight tarpaulin in it to take a few pictures as if it were loaded. Even that wasn't enough to fill the huge 40 litres capacity.

I need to find another PVC covered baseboard to go inside. The last one was years old when it was borrowed from a charity shop sports bag and no longer useful. A baseboard inside helps to keep the boxy shape of the bag, protects the base and dampens rattles from hard objects. 

I have already fixed the new bag to the Trykit rack. So that I am ready for the next shopping trip. I added longer Pex plumping pipe extensions to the rack crossbar to avoid wear on the bag from the ends of the pipes. Though I still rounded them off well with a sanding disk. These extensions pass through fixed bag mouldings to ensure the bag cannot come free without a lot of extra work. The hose extensions are so tight I had to tap them gently onto the top rack pipe. Only pliers will get the extensions off again. Which is exactly what I had to do with the shorter originals.

The new bag is slightly stiffer than the old one but that doesn't hinder loading and unloading. Very pleased so far. I'd say it was even better value than the old bag given the serious upgrade in waterproofing. Remember to order the Pro-Sports 40L model if you want the external, rubberised and Velcro sealed, net pocket for your 70kg ABUS Mini U-lock. No more excuses not to lock your trike because the lock is in the bottom of your bag! The OB "Classic" bag has only a small zipped pocket. As has the Pro-Sports too. Just above the big net pocket.

You'll need a tricycle rack to support such a large bag properly from beneath. I added a shortened, lightweight, black plastic, corrugated, washing up, draining tray from the local Coop for even better base support. The tray is simply zip tied to the rack to ensure no movement. The tray was also well rounded along all the edges to avoid all risk of cutting through the bag material. It never did with the old bag.

Some trike tracks may be too narrow to allow the bag to sit between the rear wheels. I find it perfect with my own trike. The bag does become narrower with filling to its basic box shape but you can't rely on it for safety if clearance is too tight.

It's a shame the bag is too big for most bikes even if they do have a rear luggage rack fitted. Though it might be possible to have the bag arranged lengthways if a stiff platform was fixed securely on top of the rear rack. Don't take any chances with bag slippage though. If it happens in traffic it could easily cost you your life! But then, the same thing goes for swinging carrier bags from the handlebars. 50 years since we went to the moon but most bikes still have no carrying capacity. How's that for an engineering cul-de-sac?

The UK supplier of my new saddlebag has apologised and given a generous discount on my postal charges as compensation. 

Click on any image for an enlargement.

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