Will shoot a couple!

That looks like a good option Dwayne. Do you have any photos? I reckon it would probably fit better than the logo!

I am using the Sherpa Rack from Old Man Mountain (http://oldmanmountain.com/Pages/RackPages/RearRacks.html). It fits great and mounts up to the vbrake posts! The only adjustment was that I needed to use the front rack J shaped adapters as they were shorter.

Hi George,

Thanks for your comment and questions.

The fenders I use are SKS chromoplastic ones.

Since my tyres are so big, I had to hacksaw off the part of the front one that went under the fork arch and in front of the fork. I also had to make a hole a bit further up the rear one to rotate it a little further forwards than the standard fit. Neither of these mods seems to reduce the functionality of the mudguards. I then fitted the wire attachments to the mountings a little further up the frame than they are normally, thus necessitating bending them. The photos show the bendage, so let me know if you need to know more.

I use the Tubus Logo and it works really well, but the Disco might be better. I looked at it when I was buying racks but was put off by the minimal protection of the wheels - I had an incident once where the pannier I was using, which had a pretty rigid back, bent all the way into the wheel when I was accelerating across a road junction. This took spokes off the rear wheel and stopped me in my tracks. I am therefore a little paranoid about racks without a wide area that holds the panniers. The Disco is probably better in some ways as it will mount lower, making the centre of gravity lower and the bike more agile when loaded, but the Logo has been great. See my "Good Rack Guide" for more info. I have found that the rigid panniers I use just clear my heel.

Good luck!

Charlie

Hi Charlie :)
Thanks for sharing all this things w/us, it trully helpful. Can i ask which fenders did you used? I havent found anything on the local market that looks it could fit. (is there any hint?)
Regarding the rack, did you give any look to Tubus Disco.? When i've contacted Tubus myself they informed me that Logo shouldnt be fitted to Sutra since they developed the Disco rack having Sutra in mind. I do prefer the size of your rack though and the versatility of mounting the panniers (ortliebs) a bit more to the rear to earn space for my heel.
Thanks
George
Crete Island - Greece

Hi Mike,

Not really. There IS toe overlap but you get used to it. Most road bikes these days have toe overlap. It's a bit like clip-in pedals : once you are used to it there's nothing to worry about.

I am looking at getting one of these. Any problems with toe overlap at all?

thanks

mike

Hi Julia,

Thanks for your comment. Did you get a new front rack in the end? How's the tour going?

The bag in the bottom cage is actually a folded up rain layer. The vertical cage has a "cagerocket" in it, which holds the toolkit and other things. I reccomend it.

Happy touring!

Thanks for your honest review. I've been scouring the web for more information on these panniers and was deliberating over whether to get a set of bikebins. I think I'll pass!

Thanks Charlie, I've now realised I have to get a different cage anyway since I have to take a 1L fuel bottle which wont fit in the standard cage. As for racks, on the front I'm going to get a lowrider.. i'll probaby go with tubus or topeak since they're usually pretty sturdy. The Kona one is seriously shit. It isn't low rider so it makes your centre of gravity higher and it is pretty hinky the way it attaches to the front cantilever bosses. I'm pretty happy to be giving it a miss. As for adding the extra levers it wasn't hard - I had my LBS do it for me, but if you are clever I'm sure you could do it yourself. You just need to replace the cables to work inline for both brakes. Only down side is it does reduce the amount of room you have on the bars to fix things like lights and so on..
Only one thing left to sort out now and that's a centre stand... ergh! I didn't want one but after a 3 day tour to Kent I can see it's pretty essential for loading and servicing the bike en route..

Thanks for the comment too! .. feel free to keep in touch - I may even keep the blog updated! ..

Oh, one more thing,, what;s the little bag you have in your bottom cage.. is it a tool kit? or storage? and where did you get it? Am looking for a stoage thig for my tool kit but i'm sure you're familiar with the clearance issues that cage has!

Cheers, Julia

Hi Julia,

I had no probs fitting the cages without mods, but I have used Elite Ciussus, which I managed to get super cheap at Chain Reaction. I recommend them, especially in yellow :D

What type of rack did you put on the front? I have not used my front rack for carrying stuff yet but I reckon if it's anything like the rear, it will need prompt replacement! Also, was it easy to put secondary brake levers on? I reckon they'd be really useful on the commute.

Anyway, have a great trip, and thanks for the comment!

Charlie

Hi Charlie,
Nice to read about your bike.. I have the same one, but 56cm. I am preparing for a bike tour.. On friday I'm going to start riding from London to Sicily.. mama mia!
Anyway, you have cool bottle cages.. and you seem to be fitting 2 bottles in the middle easily.. mine doesn't fit!! what kind of cages have you used? Or have you put extra bosses in?
Have had my sutra since dec 08 and I love it, have made a few changes too.. brooks imperial saddle, new front rack (the one it came with doesn't fit ortlieb's front panniers), shorter stem since the frame is a touch large for me, GPS, gel on the bars, upper brake levers yadda yadda..
happy cycling!
julia

Thanks Stevo!

I think the bridge has been finished now. We were lucky to catch it at this stage of its construction.

I like the black and white photos of the bridge. It's like you caught an engineer's perspective and almost gave the bridge an antique look.

Hi gio,

Thanks for your comment. I have heard mixed reviews of the Sutra, but I love mine.

1) I have had no spoke breakages. This is despite cycling 22 miles in London a day, with a pannier on, jumping off kerbs etc. I am relatively light I suppose (73kg) but still it's held up very well.

2) I have big feet (size 12UK, Euro 48, US13, 30.5cm) and have no issues with clearance. The standard rack was really flimsy so I replaced it with the excellent Tubus Logo, mounted as far back as possible, and it's fine. Super rigid.

I love the disc brakes, even if they make noise when it's wet. It rides beautifully, and goes fast.

Do you have a Sutra?

Charlie

Hi,
did you eventually get the Sutra? I like it too! However I have read few not very enthusiastic comments.
1) back wheel spokes breaks frequently
2) not enough clearance between back pannier bag and feet.

Thanks
Gio