Carradice Equipment Review

Equipment report dated 28th June 

Report Received 16th November 1999

Small Super C Pannier Review

The panniers have so far performed so well that we have begun to take them for granted - in terms of their waterproofness - we have encountered lots and lots of rain and some snow - and have only found 1 of the 8 panniers that leaks - but only in very heavy rain and surface water spray. The others have been great.

We have maintained them by cleaning them in warm water to get the mud off - and they look like brand new after cleaning!

The clips are the best design we have seen - as we originally suspected - but now almost 3000 miles up the carrying and fixing system is still performing superbly. We both have our clips positioned correctly - it took me until after Istanbul to finally get mine properly sorted - LAZY BOY!! - But we now get very little movement in the bags - they seem to be solidly locked to the racks. 
The front rack - as supplied by Carradice - although not specified as an expedition model is performing well to date - no problems.
The side pockets work well - keeping things mainly dry - but they do keep all muck out from the road which is important. The clips to open and close the side pockets can even be opened and closed using hands in heavy winter gloves - a big plus - more than can be said for our cameras!!
The drawstring closure on the inside of the pannier with toggle does not close as far as we would expect - note this does not seem to have caused a problem with water ingress - but is just slightly disconcerting - as most rucksacks and bags normally close to a smaller hole.

Most of all  the panniers are definitely making our life easier - not harder! 

Richard and Andrew (Gümüshane Turkey - 1070m alt.)