Which panniers for moderately loaded touring?

[andrew_s]

...my arguments for favouring Carradice Super Cs - they are in essence waterproof,..

Super Cs are not fully waterproof. Given sufficient rain you can end up with small puddles in the base.
You wouldn't, if you were wise, just ram your clothes and sleeping bag in with no other waterproofing and set off for a couple of weeks touring, as I routinely do with Ortliebs.
However, I agree that Super Cs are considerably better than any stitched Cordura pannier (old Karrimor, Altura Arran or similar).

I find the technique with fully waterproof Ortliebs is to have a designated "wet" pannier, in which everything that's damp gets put. There's generally enough damp-agnostic gear to balance the load (things like spare gas canisters that won't suffer when wet, but which don't hold enough water to get other stuff wet).

[chris3vic]

My Ortliebs came yesterday and my first impressions, upon taking the parcel from the delivery guy was "they only sent one!" - they felt so light compared to my Alturas.

They look nice and seem robust. The closing of it still baffling me though!

[DaleFTW]

Just roll it like you would a dry bag, secure with the strap that goes over the middle.

[pjclinch]

To seal, press the edges of the top together along the plastic strip and roll them over tightly a couple of times towards the back of the pannier (i.e., where the rack fittings are), and hold that roll in place with the strap and buckle that runs over the top. Then you can attach the connector/shoulder strap and run that through the hook on the front so the whole thing looks like the pic at http://www.ortlieb.com/_prod.php?lang=en&produkt=backrollerclassic, or you can leave out the extra strap and just connect the two ends of the roll directly over the top of the centre strap (which is a bit less faff and works fine if the pannier has a fair bit of spare space).

Pete.

[bikes4two]

I use Altura Dryliner that have proved to be rugged and waterproof (not submerged in rivers waterproof (not tried it
) but torrential rain over days waterproof) . You can get bright yellow slip-over covers for these panniers which I like to use for increased visibility on the road and help to keep the panniers clean.

I've not used Ortleibs though, and they come highly recommend by members and at the price above, they are a bargain.

[chris3vic]

Used the Ortliebs for the first time yesterday and was mightily impressed by the ease of use and look of them (most important )

Since seen some carradice front panniers second hand which may be worth a punt for the price

[willem jongman]

I have just come back from a weekend touring and camping. On such a short trip in summer I use two front panniers on the rear rack, plus a bar bag and the dirty wet tent on top of the rack. On longer and/or colder trips I use a set of rear panniers (plusagain bar bag and tent on top of the rack). I only use front and rear panniers on family tours, and I would also do so on a world tour. For the last fifteen years my panniers have been Orlieb classics. They are reliable and convenient, but heavy. 1900 grams for the backrollers is a bit much if you only take 12 kg.
Willem