Anyone still use their 70's BikeWare panniers? I do!

Back in 1978 I bought a full set of Bike Warehouse panniers (2 rear plus
handlebar). They were light nylon, orange with plastic framing. I
vaguely recall the rear set cost $50...about half of the "real" panniers
even back then. These were considered budget packs.

28 years later and I'm still using all of them!

This seems a bit amazing to me.

They're a little scuffed and little repaired but by and large they've
weathered maybe 10,000+ miles of mostly commuter-style loadcarrying
probably and much winter use and exposure and just kicking around
nonstop all these years.

Pretty darn good packs after all!

Anyone else have them?

--

Jeff Potter
****
*Out Your Backdoor * http://www.outyourbackdoor.com
for modern folkways and culture revival...
...offering "small world" views on bikes, bows, books, movies...
...new books featuring: XC ski culture, a Gulf Coast thriller
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plus national "Off the Beaten Path" travel forums! HOLY SMOKES!

Jeff Potter wrote:

Back in 1978 I bought a full set of Bike Warehouse panniers (2 rear plus
handlebar). They were light nylon, orange with plastic framing. I
vaguely recall the rear set cost $50...about half of the "real" panniers
even back then. These were considered budget packs.

28 years later and I'm still using all of them!

This seems a bit amazing to me.

They're a little scuffed and little repaired but by and large they've
weathered maybe 10,000+ miles of mostly commuter-style loadcarrying
probably and much winter use and exposure and just kicking around
nonstop all these years.

Pretty darn good packs after all!

Anyone else have them?

You mean like the rear packs on my Bike Friday shown on a recent
tour down the Pacific Coast he
http://home.comcast.net/~prathman/p1010023.jpg

Yup, still have them. They were the same style and internal
frame as the Cannondale packs but made of much thinner material -
looked the same in the catalog photos though. The waterproofing
on mine has peeled off completely and I've had to repair a couple
rips near zippers when I overstuffed them.

Yep, that's them!

Maybe the lightweight has somehow helped them last longer? (Just a thought.
Like the bending tree in a breeze or something.) I know I appreciate their
lightness!

Who needs waterproofing anyway. If you want it dry, bag it.

For hauling stuff these things just KEEP ON TICKING.

Peter wrote:

You mean like the rear packs on my Bike Friday shown on a recent
tour down the Pacific Coast he
http://home.comcast.net/~prathman/p1010023.jpg

Yup, still have them. They were the same style and internal
frame as the Cannondale packs but made of much thinner material -
looked the same in the catalog photos though. The waterproofing
on mine has peeled off completely and I've had to repair a couple
rips near zippers when I overstuffed them.

--

Jeff Potter
****
*Out Your Backdoor * http://www.outyourbackdoor.com
for modern folkways and culture revival...
...offering "small world" views on bikes, bows, books, movies...
...new books featuring: XC ski culture, a Gulf Coast thriller
folding bicycles ... with radical novels coming up!
...original downloadable music ... and articles galore!
plus national "Off the Beaten Path" travel forums! HOLY SMOKES!

Jeff Potter wrote in message ...
Back in 1978 I bought a full set of Bike Warehouse panniers (2 rear plus
handlebar). They were light nylon, orange with plastic framing. I
vaguely recall the rear set cost $50...about half of the "real" panniers
even back then. These were considered budget packs.

28 years later and I'm still using all of them!

This seems a bit amazing to me.

They're a little scuffed and little repaired but by and large they've
weathered maybe 10,000+ miles of mostly commuter-style loadcarrying
probably and much winter use and exposure and just kicking around
nonstop all these years.

Pretty darn good packs after all!

Anyone else have them?

--

Jeff Potter
****


Yup! Still using mine. Mine are just a little newer, early '80s, blue
instead of orange. One of my sets, can't remember whether front or
rear, is labeled Cannondale, and the other, Bike Warehouse, even
though I'd ordered and paid for Bike Warehouse for both sets. It's
obvious they were made to the same specs, probably in the same
factory.
My fronts got a lot of use as book bags in college; now the rears are
my commuting clothes bags. Zippers are still hanging in there. A
couple of the bags have holes in them by now (drainage!), having had a
close encounter with asphalt.
I hope they hold up - I don't want to have to fork out the $$$ for
replacements.

Jim McKim

On 11 Jul 2003 14:19:39 -0700, (Jim) wrote:

Jeff Potter wrote in message ...
Back in 1978 I bought a full set of Bike Warehouse panniers (2 rear plus
handlebar). They were light nylon, orange with plastic framing. I
vaguely recall the rear set cost $50...about half of the "real" panniers
even back then. These were considered budget packs.

28 years later and I'm still using all of them!

This seems a bit amazing to me.

They're a little scuffed and little repaired but by and large they've
weathered maybe 10,000+ miles of mostly commuter-style loadcarrying
probably and much winter use and exposure and just kicking around
nonstop all these years.

Pretty darn good packs after all!

Anyone else have them?

--

Jeff Potter
****


Yup! Still using mine. Mine are just a little newer, early '80s, blue
instead of orange. One of my sets, can't remember whether front or
rear, is labeled Cannondale, and the other, Bike Warehouse, even
though I'd ordered and paid for Bike Warehouse for both sets. It's
obvious they were made to the same specs, probably in the same
factory.
My fronts got a lot of use as book bags in college; now the rears are
my commuting clothes bags. Zippers are still hanging in there. A
couple of the bags have holes in them by now (drainage!), having had a
close encounter with asphalt.
I hope they hold up - I don't want to have to fork out the $$$ for
replacements.

Jim McKim


I missed the start of the thread. I have a set, too. They started
out orange, but with all the dirt it's hard to tell.

Jim