The Epicurean Cyclist

I’ve had a few days to play with the Swift Industries panniers and have decided to review the rear and front panniers separately because of their different designs. In this review, I’m going to compare the rear roll top to another popular pannier, the Ortlieb Bike Packer, to give people a point of reference.

Build
Out of the box, the Swift Industries rear roll top panniers feel very impressively made. The material is thick and durable. Imagine if you took the materials they use in Chrome messenger bags and used it to make panniers. It’s that thick! Short of punctures and blade attacks, these panniers should withstand the abuse of daily commuting and bicycle touring.

The ruggedness comes at a little bit of a price though in weight. The pair of Swift’s were noticeably heavier than a pair of Ortlieb Bike Packers. I don’t have a scale so I can’t give you exact numbers, but it was enough to notice very quickly. That said, it’s not like it’s a difference of five pounds or anything, so don’t freak out. Personally, the little added weight is an acceptable compromise for the added durability. I love my Ortliebs, but in comparison, the material seems so thin! If you’re a weight weeny gram counter it might make a difference though.

Hardware:
The hardware on the Swift’s comes stock with steel rubberized hooks and a bungee with an S hook. Pretty standard for panniers. The pair I got were spaced perfectly for my rear Tubus rack so I had no need to adjust the hook placement. There are two extra pairs of holes drilled into the pannier so that gives you some adjustability. In comparison to Ortlieb hardware which can be adjusted without any tools (the QL2 hardware), the stock Swift hardware is a little ham fisted. That said, there is something nice about the simplicity of the Swift hardware. Should you somehow bend or break a hook, they are easily replaceable with some bar stock, a vice and a drill.

I emailed Martina and asked about other hardware options. Since all of her orders are custom, you can specify what kind of mounting hardware you’d like. You can get their stock hardware or request Ortlieb or even Arkel hardware (for an added charge). This is a nice touch that you can only get with small makers!
(EDIT: Just to clarify, Martina is able to install the hardware for you but you may have to order and supply it to them separately.)

Functionality:
These bags are called roll tops for their closure design. You stuff your stuff in the bag, roll the end of the bag down and hold it in place by buckling the top flap. The system seems to work exceedingly well and allows for quite a bit of stuffability. Instead of the bag expanding horizontally, it expands vertically and allows for a lot of storage.

I would say that compared to an Ortlieb Bike Packer, the Swift rear roll top has a slight advantage in terms of pure carrying capacity.

There are some other nice features like two exterior pockets. One is zippered and the other which faces backwards has an elastic brim and is perfect for carrying an extra water/fuel bottle or tent poles.

One thing that is missing are D-rings to attach a shoulder strap for easy portage when running around train stations. I emailed Martina and she said that those could be easily added for a small additional charge.

Conclusion:
I have to say, that I really really like these bags. The styling of the stock one I was sent is nice, and if you don’t like it you can design your own color scheme. I’m planning to have some earth tone colored bags (with a touch of orange) made myself to match my LHT : )

There are a few issues that I had with the bag that I emailed Martina about. I mentioned the D-rings and she said those could be added no problem. Another was the stiffener in the panniers came to some sharp edges. Over time those could abrade the bag or jab at your gear. She said that they’re going to round off the edges on their future bags.

Overall, these are excellent bags. They have great carrying capacity, the material is heavy duty and the addition of the elastic pocket for tent poles/water bottles is a really nice touch. The roll top design is a nice feature and really expands the amount of stuff you can carry as well as sealing it from the elements. The fact that you can custom design the colors of your bag and request certain features is just icing on the cake!

HIGHLY RECOMMEND ++
Price: $200/pair