Review of Delta Expedition Bicycle Panniers (1 Pair)

Delta Expedition Bicycle Panniers (1 Pair)
By: Delta Average Rating: 3.0 Total Reviews: 10
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Great product

On: 2009-08-20

This pannier set worked great. I have only used it one time but it served its purpose. The Delta Expedition Panniers can expand to hold clothing, food, camp stove, water pump, etc. The basics of life. Overloading can cause the front wheel to become lighter than air at times.

The panniers have a neat feature. It is something like a rain fly for a tent. The color is bright yellow and it quickly and neatly folds over the top of the panniers to keep your stuff dry. I used this feature for the two hours of rain I experienced.

There large but........

On: 2009-08-06

I have less than 100 miles usage with these bags and both zippers are broken. I use them for in-town grocery getting, nothing heavy. In top zipper compartments I generaly place small items. Both zippers started to come unsewn and then the zipper mech. just came off. Very poor quality of construction.

Nice, but not 100% solid.

On: 2008-08-02

I picked up a set of these Delta Expedition Panniers for my little upcoming 3 day tour. Ill be doing some road and gravel rail trail riding.

So far, Ive just used them for commuting and they work great. I havent filled them to capacity, though. The stuff I normally take usually goes in a Sunlite Toploader 3 trunk with drop down panniers. I never liked how that bag made things more top heavy. The same stuff in the Deltas was 100% better. Lower placed weight = better handling. Not that the Toploader was a dramatic difference, but it was noticeable and annoying enough.

The construction looks good except fo the plastic clips. After reading all of the reviews here I was a bit hesitent. But the price I got these at with the rack I needed (Delta Universal Mega adjustable) was too good to pass up. So Ive taken into account that the clips will probably not last and Ive got some ideas on better attachments. I also strap the handle straps together with the velcro and Ive got another should strap from another bag looped and wrapped around the handles to secure the velcro wrapped handles. Should clips fail, I wont lose a bag to the side of the road and the commotion should be enough for me to realize there was a failure. Ive heard too many stories of people losing a pannier and never realizing it fell off.

The elastic/hook attachment on the back is always a sketchy prospect, but I make sure mine are on there tight. Ill probably replace those with a buckle type strap.

The back pockets are very roomy and hold my small items like wallet, phone, keys, tubes, etc. The top mesh pocket holds my lock. The hideaway high visibility rainfly is a great feature. When I tour, Ill probably pull those out regardless of rain just for the visibility.

I was thinking of getting some grocery getter type panniers soon, but these bags are plenty bag for groceries and the top is closable with both the draw string and lid.

Overall, I"m happy with the purchase.. especially the price I got with the specific rack I needed. But I only recommend these bags that people be aware of the sketchy plastic connection clips. Have a backup plan for replacing those and also failure backup.

panniers

On: 2008-01-14

This was shipped on time. The person I bought this for was very pleased and couldnt wait to use it. He kept checking it out. I would buy from this company again

Roomy but...

by: Anonymous On: 2007-05-21

Ive had these panniers for less than a month and they serve me well for getting groceries. But one of the clips broke and I had to put a screw in to repair it. Also, I found they rub on my rear wheel. I have to stop and bend them out to get them to stop rubbing.

Roomy but...

On: 2007-05-20

Ive had these panniers for less than a month and they serve me well for getting groceries. But one of the clips broke and I had to put a screw in to repair it. Also, I found they rub on my rear wheel. I have to stop and bend them out to get them to stop rubbing.

Roomy and reliable

by: mychelona On: 2007-05-18

I got these for my daily commute, which is not long - usually 6 miles biking and 20 minutes by light rail. Wary of the other reviews, I was initially cautious about loading the bags too heavily, but have had no problems with the clips. The rain covers zip out of the top of the bags - very handy. I like the small pockets on the backs, too.

The only issue I have had is with the elasticized straps and hook on the back (dont even know what these were intended for). Got caught in my chain and had to get it removed. But thats user error - I should have taken them off long ago.

I really recommend these for commuting - theyre enormous and flexible and Ive been happy with them.

Roomy and reliable

On: 2007-05-17

I got these for my daily commute, which is not long - usually 6 miles biking and 20 minutes by light rail. Wary of the other reviews, I was initially cautious about loading the bags too heavily, but have had no problems with the clips. The rain covers zip out of the top of the bags - very handy. I like the small pockets on the backs, too.

The only issue I have had is with the elasticized straps and hook on the back (dont even know what these were intended for). Got caught in my chain and had to get it removed. But thats user error - I should have taken them off long ago.

I really recommend these for commuting - theyre enormous and flexible and Ive been happy with them.

Great bags; terrible clips

by: Anonymous On: 2007-05-08

Ive had these panniers for about 9 months. I use my bike in the city, so I mainly haul groceries and other shopping items in the bags. I could not be happier with the size and durability of the bags themselves; however, the cheap plastic clips broke on a ride home from the grocery store. I have since punch 2 holes in the back and strung a heavy duty rubber cord through to hold the pannier on. Im going to do the same for the other bag even though those clips are fine for now because I dont want any surprises. My advice, if you get these bags, find some other way to hold them on right away. The clips they come with cannot be relied upon.

Great bags; terrible clips

On: 2007-05-07

Ive had these panniers for about 9 months. I use my bike in the city, so I mainly haul groceries and other shopping items in the bags. I could not be happier with the size and durability of the bags themselves; however, the cheap plastic clips broke on a ride home from the grocery store. I have since punch 2 holes in the back and strung a heavy duty rubber cord through to hold the pannier on. Im going to do the same for the other bag even though those clips are fine for now because I dont want any surprises. My advice, if you get these bags, find some other way to hold them on right away. The clips they come with cannot be relied upon.

Great commuting panniers

by: dgbrewer6 On: 2006-11-03

I bought these panniers for commuting to work. They are quite large and easily hold my size 13 work boots, clothes, shower towel, etc. The drawstring closure at the top makes loading easy, and the bags are waterproof with a built-in rain cover. The clips for attaching the bags to the rack are secure, although sometimes they are tough to remove, as they have a spring clip on them which hooks around the rack rail. My only real issue with these panniers is with the seperate pocket on the rear of the bags. I had problems with these unstiffened pockets flopping over and rubbing on my spokes. I fixed the problem temporarily by safety pinning the outside seam flat against the bag. Unfortunately that renders them unuseable... Otherwise the panniers are excellent!

Sounds good but . . .

by: Anonymous On: 2006-08-18

I purchased these panniers for a 550 mile, unsupported, solo trip and the first failure occurred at mile 110. What seems to be missing from the product description is a weight rating. I selected these bags for my trip based on the volume of cargo I was carrying but found they couldnt handle the weight.

The good: The design is simple and funtional. The bags install easily with the top hooks latching securely on the rack. The bottom hook is a little less functional and somewhat difficult to attach securely. The drawstring closure of the main compartment with overlapping flap is simple and works well. It provides a large opening and seals up to keep everything clean and dry. The rear compartment and extra storage pocket on the top flap are great for keeping smaller items separated, although Id prefer a longer zipper on the top flap. The rain covers are simple and effective. Everything stayed dry, even in a heavy downpour.

The bad: I had 21 pounds of gear in each bag and after 110 miles the mounting hooks started breaking. By the end of day 3 (240 miles into my trip) only 1 of the 4 hooks were still intact and the bags were held on with bungee cords and duct tape. I was riding on paved roads so its not like they were getting bounced around a lot. I stopped overnight at a friends house and we fabricated some rails that we bolted to the bags and secured to the rack with hose clamps. This worked for the rest of the trip but its now a pain in the neck to get the bags on and off the bike.

In retrospect, I was carrying more than I really needed, but this was my first bike trip. I did a lot of internet research, though, before the trip and my packing list and total load dont seem unreasonable based on what I read.

Conclusion: Delta should include a weight rating for the panniers. 21 pounds clearly exceeds the strength of the mounting hooks.

Do not overload...

On: 2006-02-14

I like to carry a lot of stuff on my 3.5 mile commute. On the 10th trip I had a laptop, one book and some clothes and the plastic clip broke when I hit a bump. I was very disappointed. I shopping for a different brand now. Can we get some info on weight capacity for any of these???