Little Joe! That's the one Cartwright saddlebag I never owned -- have owned an Adam -- wonderful bag, used if for commuting for several years; and a Hoss: huge and ungainly but man, huge -- and IME, held as much as a Saddlesack Large, if you took the time to pack it properly. $150 is a good buy.
OTOH, I do think that the Cartwrights were a distinct middle step on the way to something better and more glorious (And how can you not call the Saddlesack family glorious? Shame on you.). The Cartwrights were very definitely better in material and make than Carradices, (*) but the design still left considerable room for improvement and, in fact, IMO and IME, the very improvement of the materials was a defect, in that the much better quality canvas used was too supple and left the bags rather too floppy, which the thick, stiff stuff used by Carradice (*) helped bags made to that old-fashioned design keep their shape better. (*) Carradice quality has waxed and waned over the years. The first Nelson LFs I bought, in the mid '90s from Riv, were *thick* stiff waxy stuff with no plastic; instead leather scuff pads and side flaps with cotton tapes. IIRC, the N LF was even lined with heavy cotton cloth. At any rate, my first N LF was as waterproof as a plastic bucket (before said bucket develops cracks), as I proved by practice. Quality went down; there was a period in the, what, early 2000s?, where the canvas and leather were thin. Quality picked up again, and the N LF and Camper LF I bought in 2017 were stout and stiff, albeit with nylon necks and vinyl scuff plates. But the Junior I just received last week from SJS, while having good canvas and leather, has awkward irregularly placed buckle holes punched instead of poked, and flimsy cellophane-feeling nylon for the drawstring neck. (I only paid GBP 35 for it, so I'm not weeping in disappointment, but I have owned several better-made Juniors.) On Mon, Nov 19, 2018 at 8:30 AM stevef <stl...@gmail.com> wrote: > I've used this combo off and on for years. I don't need such a big bag > that often so this set up only comes out when I do a light load/supported > tour or something, and usually carries a light, bulky load like a rain cape > and shoe covers "just in case." The bag is in really good shape for its > age, no holes, the leather trim and straps are in good shape, the buckles > have a nice patina, and aside from some darkening on the bottom from > shifting around against the rack, there are no stains. It smells not > unpleasantly of old canvas, like a boy scout tent. I've added a rawhide > shoelace and barrel adjuster for snugging things up, and a cheap old > plastic cutting board cut to fit as a bottom/stiffener. The rack looks > nearly new, though the aluminum struts have some light scratches from use. > With a light load, I sometimes haven't even bothered with the struts. Just > clamp it on the seat post and go. I think I have a pair of nitto seat > stay-sized P-clamps too if needed. Just have to dig them up. > > Ideally, I'd like to sell them together, say-$150 shipped? Or make me an > offer. > > Here's a shot of this setup on my Rambly from a tour a few years ago. > > <https://farm1.staticflickr.com/288/19206115422_10bd9259c4_o.jpg> > > > Thanks, Steve > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- Resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, and letters that get interviews. By-the-hour resume and LinkedIn coaching. Other professional writing services. http://www.resumespecialties.com/ Patrick Moore Alburquerque, New Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique ************************************************************************** ************** *Auditis an me ludit amabilis insania?* -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
