Luggage advice please

tony R said:

luggage. Any advice would be much appreciated, particularly if
anybody has used either of the Altura bags above.

You can get padded laptop sleeves so you can safely carry your lappy
in anything you like.

Do you really need to transport a laptop though? Can't you carry the
data you need to move on a USB stick or a USB hard drive? That's what
I'm doing.

Chris
--
Chris Eilbeck
MARS Flight Crew http://www.mars.org.uk/
UKRA #1108 Level 2 UYB
Tripoli UK Member #9527 LSMR

Chris Eilbeck said:

tony R said:

luggage. Any advice would be much appreciated, particularly if
anybody has used either of the Altura bags above.

You can get padded laptop sleeves so you can safely carry your lappy
in anything you like.

Do you really need to transport a laptop though? Can't you carry the
data you need to move on a USB stick or a USB hard drive? That's what
I'm doing.

I've been carrying my laptops for years in panniers, rucksacs and in the
front basket of a Brompton with no special care and no problems. If you
look at the powered down shock and vibration specs of the vulnerable
components (disc drive and display) there is nothing on a commute short
of an accident that should do them any harm.

--
Tony

"I did make a mistake once - I thought I'd made a mistake but I hadn't"
Anon

I often carry a fairly hefty ThinkPad loptop on my 12-miles-each-way
commute and I just chuck it in a regular pannier. If it is raining it
goes in a carrier bag first. It only just fits, but I've never had any
trouble (yet!).
I don't enjoy it much coz it weighs the bike down quite a bit,
especially with the power supply, but it is way better than having the
weight on my shoulder(s). That'd be agony.

tony R said:

Hello all,

my commute will soon be complicated by the need to transport a laptop on a
fairly regular basis. I see there are now rear panniers available that claim
to be designed to carry laptops (eg Altura Urban 15" Briefcase pannier). Or
there are courier bags designed with laptops in mind (eg Altura Urban
Courier). Given the state of the roads on my commute I'm leaning towards
getting a courier type bag however I've no experience at all with this style
of luggage. Any advice would be much appreciated, particularly if anybody
has used either of the Altura bags above.

thanks,

tony R.

tony R said:

Hello all,

my commute will soon be complicated by the need to transport a laptop on a
fairly regular basis. I see there are now rear panniers available that claim
to be designed to carry laptops (eg Altura Urban 15" Briefcase pannier). Or
there are courier bags designed with laptops in mind (eg Altura Urban
Courier). Given the state of the roads on my commute I'm leaning towards
getting a courier type bag however I've no experience at all with this style
of luggage. Any advice would be much appreciated, particularly if anybody
has used either of the Altura bags above.

thanks,

tony R.

Some good advice already.

My thoughts are:

a) avoid carrying a laptop to work. The extra weight just bugs the [censored] out of you. As already mentioned, a USB memory stick will be much easier. Another alternative would be to use some remote takeover software, so that you can access your laptop from work (e.g. VNC server or similar)
b) If you have to carry your laptop to work use a pannier. It'll be safer for the PC and less annoying for you. The extra weight on your shoulders is a pain.
c) If you don't have panniers/rack or mounts, then use a rucksack - Howies make some really nice ones specifically for the job. Howies are a seriously good UK company - you should check them out anyway.
d) If you'd prefer a courier bag, then Timbuk2 make the best ones - I've been using mine for about 15 years. Newer models have a second strap to help keep the bag in the right place (basically the strap forms a V across your front to stop the bag slipping around your body) - this is essential. They're available from Camden Market cycles or to order from the US online. You even get to choose the colors!!
e) Get a smaller laptop. 😄

Hope this helps. 🙂

On Thu, 11 Aug 2005 20:23:46 +0100, "tony R" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

my commute will soon be complicated by the need to transport a laptop on a
fairly regular basis.

Stuff it in a pannier. If wet, put it in a poly bag first.

I have commuted in all weathers with an IBM laptop and latterly a
Fujitsu Siemens one, without ill effect to either.

tony R said:

Hello all,

my commute will soon be complicated by the need to transport a laptop on a
fairly regular basis. I see there are now rear panniers available that claim
to be designed to carry laptops (eg Altura Urban 15" Briefcase pannier). Or
there are courier bags designed with laptops in mind (eg Altura Urban
Courier). Given the state of the roads on my commute I'm leaning towards
getting a courier type bag however I've no experience at all with this style
of luggage. Any advice would be much appreciated, particularly if anybody
has used either of the Altura bags above.

thanks,

tony R.

I'd avoid the courier bags - I suppose it depends on the length of your
commute, but that's a lot of weight for one shoulder.
A rucksack is better for the load distribution, but they tend to be hot
on the back.
I just put mine into it's regular bag (nylon "briefcase" style thingy),
remove the shoulder strap and bungee it carefully onto the back
carrier. I keep a heavy-weight white bin liner in the front pocket, so
I can wrap it up before bungeeing the lot on if it's raining.

I'd thought of putting a piece of extra foam between the rack and the
bag, but there's some padding in the laptop bag, and I didn't bother.

Done this 14-miles each way on 2-3 days a week (don't always bring it
home) for several months with a large/cheap Dell laptop, no problems so
far. I suppose I conciously avoid jumping kerbs etc with it on board,
but other than that, I just bash away.

Panniers would be fine too, I just don't bother using mine. I suppose
the weight would be carried lower (generally a good thing - I can
clearly feel the extra weight on the back of the bike with the laptop
bag on board). I'd be tempted to buy the panniers I wanted (once they
were large enough) and bodge up something to hold the laptop (foam
rubber etc) safe inside, rather than buy somthing single purpose that
might not be much use for anything other than the laptop.

HTH,

bookieb

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'd avoid the courier bags - I suppose it depends on the length of your
commute, but that's a lot of weight for one shoulder.
A rucksack is better for the load distribution, but they tend to be hot
on the back.
I just put mine into it's regular bag (nylon "briefcase" style thingy),
remove the shoulder strap and bungee it carefully onto the back
carrier. I keep a heavy-weight white bin liner in the front pocket, so
I can wrap it up before bungeeing the lot on if it's raining.

I'd thought of putting a piece of extra foam between the rack and the
bag, but there's some padding in the laptop bag, and I didn't bother.

Done this 14-miles each way on 2-3 days a week (don't always bring it
home) for several months with a large/cheap Dell laptop, no problems so
far. I suppose I conciously avoid jumping kerbs etc with it on board,
but other than that, I just bash away.

Panniers would be fine too, I just don't bother using mine. I suppose
the weight would be carried lower (generally a good thing - I can
clearly feel the extra weight on the back of the bike with the laptop
bag on board). I'd be tempted to buy the panniers I wanted (once they
were large enough) and bodge up something to hold the laptop (foam
rubber etc) safe inside, rather than buy somthing single purpose that
might not be much use for anything other than the laptop.

HTH,

bookieb

Thanks to everyone who replied - very helpful. I think I'll check out
panniers first.

tony R.