Oxford 1st time vs Oxford humpback panniers

Originally Posted by Mogs

I have the Oxford Sports Compact. That's magnetic and also uses the headstock strap. I too found the strap poor if fitted according to the advice provided. I've now fitted the strap below the two lugs that hold the tank on, but I had to cut the stitching of the strap to get the clip off in order to tread it through.

Cheers for the tip- I used to put the strap almost as long as it'd go, underneat the part on the main body of the bike that grips the front end. Took a lot longer to get in place than the "recommended" way. I reckon I'll go back to that in future.

I don't use the strap at all!

The two clips fit together to make an excellent handle when the bag's off the bike and that's about as much use as I expect them to be. :P

I've always had reservations about the strap potentially getting caught and reasoned that if the bag was going to come loose (!) then it'd no be able to fall away because of the position of my arms & body.

Originally Posted by Cronos

I don't use the strap at all!

The two clips fit together to make an excellent handle when the bag's off the bike and that's about as much use as I expect them to be. :P

I've always had reservations about the strap potentially getting caught and reasoned that if the bag was going to come loose (!) then it'd no be able to fall away because of the position of my arms & body.

Yes- I use it as a shoulder strap too! I may well cut the headstock strap off- as you say, it's not going anywhere.

The clips on the Compact are both female, so they can't clip together. I've not found that the bag moves, so perhaps could use it without, but then I run the risk of the clips flailing about and doing damage to my tank.

The bag separates from the magnetic "saddle", it can then be used as a rucksac, leaving the saddle fixed on the bike. I've not found an effective way of locking the saddle to the bike yet, and I know that should I leave it some spotty oik will off with it.

Originally Posted by Mogs

The bag separates from the magnetic "saddle", it can then be used as a rucksac, leaving the saddle fixed on the bike. I've not found an effective way of locking the saddle to the bike yet, and I know that should I leave it some spotty oik will off with it.

How about feeding the strap under the fuel tank (but above the frame)? It'd be a pain for a thief to get it off, without cutting the straps. I've left mine on there (just clipped on as normal) in public view for a couple of hours on a few occassionas and it has been there when I've come back, despite the pikey population

Besides, what use would it be to them?
If it was for out and out vanalism/kleptomania, I'd be more concerned about cut brake cables or theft of task disk...

Ceri JC..like Cronos, I gave up on the headstock strap, just in case it caused a lock up. The magnets on my Sports have had held rock solid with more than a few miles a max warp - that's 69.9mph in earth terms