Thought I'd seen the last of 58 webbing large packs after running around as a 16 year old squaddie in training with far too much in it-before the issue of bergens.

Hope they last you well-the assembly by the handle/flap was for attaching a spade/pick axe handle, the large straps across the pack were for securing your helmet-just for info!

I trust they are far more comfortable for the bike-than they were for my back!

Enjoy!

__________________
BMW GS650 Dakar and too much bling from Touratech!

Ahhh, I was wondering what all the straps were for... Thanks !

What era are these from then ?? I was guessing the 60's-80's ??

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

When I was 16 I had army packs strapped to the side of my Royal Enfield Bullet , the packs eventually rotted away .
At the time it was all I could afford .
If you keep them stuffed full they might be OK ,otherwise they'll flop around and drive you nuts .
Try and incorporate some support underneath the bag so that it's not just hanging from it's straps .

__________________
Blessed are the cracked, for they let in the light. - Spike Milligan
"When you come to a fork in the road ,take it ! When you come to a spoon in the road ,take that also ."

I can guarantee they will always be full

I take it you can patch these ?? If they ever get a hole or rip bigger than thread fixing...

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

58-being as in 1958 design.

In reality most things military obviously take a few years to come into general service. I was certainly still wearing the webbing up until 1989 when I left-and it was phased out to be replaced by the current PLCE issue-throughout the 90s to my knowledge.
Most soldiers either bought their own packs, or dependent on which regiment/role you were in had SAS or GS bergens-which carried far more kit-they were based on a frame and made from a nylon/waterproof material.
The large packs-once you had stuffed it with the huge 58 pattern sleeping bag-had difficulty taking much more!

__________________
BMW GS650 Dakar and too much bling from Touratech!

Is that single stitched webbing?

I'd strap that to the rack with some Andy Strapz. Those straps will secure bin liners securely enough to your rack.

__________________
Tacos Tyring Travels.com

Yep ,I used Copydex [ glue ] and pieces of canvas to patch them .
You cut out a piece of canvas ,paste glue all over it ,lay it over the hole on the bag and beat it with a hammer to make sure the glue permeates into the fibres .
Or if you have a big enough needle you can sew a patch on .
Mine weren't waterproof ,which was a pain in the arse .

__________________
Blessed are the cracked, for they let in the light. - Spike Milligan
"When you come to a fork in the road ,take it ! When you come to a spoon in the road ,take that also ."

This is how the squaddies did it in your grandad's day .



Note the support at the bottom and the y shaped strap around the pack .

__________________
Blessed are the cracked, for they let in the light. - Spike Milligan
"When you come to a fork in the road ,take it ! When you come to a spoon in the road ,take that also ."

Absolutely brilliant !!! Imagine a trip to capetown on one of those

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

I got a pair and cut all of the unecessary bits off as liners for my non treated panniers!

Sacriligious !!!

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

I got a pair from silvermans years ago they sell them as motorcycle panniers but they are just 2 webbing bags strapped together, I think they were £30 and that must be about 10 years ago so I guess you got a bargain.

I sent mine back at the time and got some from the local surplus for a tenner once I knew what they were.

I put a light ally back on one and carried it exhuast side and then had a home made ally box on the other side.

I think soft bags are the way to go with some kind of lockable top box.

Definately !!! Although iv had to swap my topbox for a fuel can on this trip and pack very light...

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

I thought the same, but now I reckon a lockable topbox is too much.

All I wanted to keep locked was my tools, cash, and documents. I've got one of them small ammoboxes in front of the bashplate for the tools, so all that leaves is some way to lock up documents and money.


On my trip to Mongolia I started off with a topbox made from two normal size ammo boxes welded together, but I'd started to think it was redundant after a couple of months. After it broke doing some trailriding in Tajikistan I threw the thing away and carried on with only softbags. I bet there are plenty of things to use as small lockboxes if I racked my mind, but I quite like the idea of integrating another small ammo box into a siderack - Bigger than it needs to be, but being steel they're easily welded to attach them and they're fully watertight.


In this photo you can see the offending topbox and also the rack behind it was a bit pointless as well - Any weight that far back is putting too much leverage on the suspension. Okay for camping gear, but I could really feel a difference if I tried carrying water bottles back there.

My take on minimalist, army-surplus based luggage setup. I had jerrycans on the side racks, then the webbing bags/panniers hung on the sides.

__________________
UK to Mongolia 2009, on a DR350

sweet rig there Nath very purposeful looking

yeah I know what you mean about the top box being too much, the solid things conected to the bike , the more chance of damage in a fall.

just gonna check out your site its definatly got my interest