Wednesday, October 12, 2011

What's In Your Seat Pack?

I'm a seat pack Nazi. I hate those seat packs which rattle and swing around under the saddle. I like the pack pulled up tight and silent.

TimBuk2 Bike Seat Pack
So anyway, what's in mine? This is my road bike seat pack. An orange TimBuck2 optimised for running tubeless tyres.

So I cram the bag with:

A compact bike tool. You can get more comprehensive tools with chain-breakers and stuff, but this is for basic, on-the-road, adjustments. If I'm at the stage of needing a chain-tool I'm calling for a ride home.

Tube and rattly bits secured in an old sock
Tyre lever. Tubeless tyres are very tight so I carry two. One lever will do for most regular tyres.

Spare tube, tyre boot and self-adhesive patches. The only time I had a failure with a tubeless tyre was because the tyre fabric ripped. A tyre-boot and inner tube will get you home.

Emergency cash. Whatever you think appropriate. A note will also act as a tyre-boot in emergencies. I rode thirty miles successfully with a dollar bill sealing a rip in a tyre.

CO2 Inflator: Will get your tyre pumped up enough to ride home. CO2 seems to leak through rubber, so your tyre may look flat again the next morning. Just inflate it with your usual air pump.

Yes, it all fits in ...
Hand wipes: Gets the worst of any oil off your hands. I also carry thin latex/poly gloves in my back pocket so I don't necessarily have to unpack all my kit to help someone else.

I wrap the rattly bits in an old sock. This helps stabilise the pack and stop annoying rattles.

So, there you have it ...
Posted by Alan E Hill at
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3 comments:

  1. Do you also carry a frame pump or just rely on the CO2 inflator? I'm not a big fan of the CO2 inflators alone; if it malfunctions, the ride's over.

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  2. Normally, I ride in a group. Someone will have a pump if the worst comes to the worst. Conversely, I might be carrying stuff that they will need ... like a tube. On longer rides, I do carry a pump; a Blackburn Airstik 2-Stage : http://www.blackburndesign.com/airstik-2-stage.html
    This fits in a larger seat-pack I use on endurance/distance rides. I've never had need to use it for myself.
    I use a JoeBlow track pump for regular and maintenance inflation - http://www.topeak.com/products/Pumps/JoeBlowSport

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  3. You might want to look at Topeak's Road Morph pump if you're ever in the market for a frame pump. http://www.topeak.com/products/Pumps/RoadMorphG
    It quickly can fill a tube to the recommended pressure; it has a hose that prevents damage to the valve; a gauge that's fairly easy to read and a foot hold that allows you to get some good leverage on it while pumping.

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