My Epic Designs bags have shown up! Excited and relieved.
And now I have to see how much stuff I can stuff into them!
Update shortly with photos. I have a magazine to finish first.
And now I have to see how much stuff I can stuff into them!
Update shortly with photos. I have a magazine to finish first.
OK, so I couldn't resist (and I've just finished most of my magazine words too...)
First off (seeing as Blogger uploads pics in reverse order and I can't be bothered to resort them...) Here's the correct shifter which, after all that, was a triple shifter after all. It has a Madison M-Parts inline tensioner to take up the difference between granny and big ring so I can have rub-free riding in all gears.
And then we have the seat pack. It's empty at the moment. I'll be trying to stuff it with, er stuff, later on this evening. What do we reckon? Clothes, mat and sleeping bag in here?
Then the frame bag. Perhaps tent in the upper compartment, all my other junk in the lower one? I'm also going to take an old waterbottle on the lower downtube bosses to carry my tool, tube and other tech stuff.
The Gas Tank - ideal for snacks, camera (though it's definitely not waterproof with that big entrance gap) and other junk. Sorry, I won't have space for junk so 'other essential touring gear'. I'm still reserving the right to run a handlebar bag too - it would seem to be a good/better place to carry lighter things like maps, rain jacket, flip flops than trying to crush them in with tents etc.
And here it is in pretend 'ready to go' mode. My first go at bag stuffing happens tonight... Looks quite smart I reckon. And no, those lever hoods aren't level... nor do I have any bar end plugs because they keep falling out...
See if you can get a spare pair of socks and shorts in there. Wearing damp shorts each morning sounds like a recipe for trouble, and you can never underestimate the feel-good factor of fresh socks.
ReplyDeletekeeping it tight, but loose!
ReplyDeletestill can't make my mind up about the bike but it does look better with the bags....adventure time :)
ReplyDeleteWould you have preferred that it was either a mountain bike or a road bike? :-) My justification for having a Fargo was that I wanted drop-bar comfort but there's no way I want to do 12 mile descents on a loaded bike with only rim brakes to stop me.
ReplyDeletenot sure, maybe it's the wheels. 12m descent 'fully loaded' with rim brakes would be more than interesting ;)
ReplyDeleteWhat Alex said. If you do end up running a bar bag as well it might be an idea to put the gas tank at the seatube end of the top tube, if you can.
ReplyDeleteJust loaded up the bike with 75% of the gear I'll be taking and taken it for a five mile test-run. What was great was that it rode just like 'a bike', which is always a good sign. The tent took up the whole top compartment of the frame bag, but the sea pack swallowed my evening clothes, flipflops, sleeping bag and mat. (My mat is a Big Agnes one that looks like a Lilo and folds down to the size of a can of Coke, so there's no real 'body' to unroll.)
ReplyDeleteAll good so far!
Black socks Alex? I don't think I have room for spare socks... I definitely need to run a bar bag (or, if I can't, a small Camelbak/Wingnut) to carry maps, passport, jacket and bits and bobs. Apart from that, I'm really quite optimistic...
Alex does the KIMM trick.
ReplyDeleteWingnut wins over Camelbak; carry the weight on your hips and no sweaty back on those climbs.
You now have three weeks to perfect the packing anyway, at first it only matters that it all fits. Later on you'll sort out where stuff needs to be based on how often you reach for it.