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  #1  
Old 1 May 2009
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panniers with inbuilt water storage
hello all, i am currently starting to prep my bike for a trip from alaska to argentina which will take place next year. and one thing iv been suprised with is that no one sells panniers with water storage inbuilt, so i am currently having a set of aloy panniers made with 3.5l of water storage in the bottom of each one, the main storage will be 32l each box.
does anyone know of any good reasons for why zega/metal mule etc are not doing this?

i plan on camping for this trip and when ever i go camping especially in hot conditions i am always short of water! so i figured these would sort that problem, and with water being heavy then the best place for it is as low as possible.

also the filler for the water tank will only be accesible by removing the lid of the pannier, so as to stop any one being able to put anything in the water when your not looking!!

also these panniers which will be extremley well made out of 2mm alloy will cost considerably less than the touratech etc equivilent.

i will post pics of them as soon as i have them.

would anyone be interested in panniers like this? if so then the more i have made the cheaper they would become.

cheers chris
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Old 1 May 2009
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They do
Hepco and Becker plastic panniers are doubled skinned and the gap between the 2 skins is used as a water container that holds 3 or 4 litres. They sell taps and bits and bobs as extras for the panniers

The panniers came as standard with KTMs a couple of years ago and can still be bought I think

But you're right, I don't think any metal ones are made

cheers

Dick
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Old 1 May 2009
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I'm assuming you'd just be putting water to cook with in there as in hot countries, any water you carry outside on the bike just gets too warm to drink, though I can imagine what it would taste like after being in a metal pannier...and ask yourself what happens after your first little spill. My g/f had TT panniers which just split after her bike blew over in the wind. One of the best bits of kit we bought was a colapsable 12can cooler from a US supermarket for about $10 which folded flat when not in use.

I could fit a large 2L bottle of cold water in there along with other things we wanted kept cool and would stay cold for hours unlike putting them in my luggage. Makes a huge difference drinking cold water in swealtering heat!
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Old 1 May 2009
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hi mike, yes mainly it will be for cooking/washing. i use a camel back for drinking mainly.
also i think a big problem with panniers like touratech ones is the square edges, its a real small point of contact when you drop it, the ones im having made have an angled bottom edge and will be reinforced to stop it splitting. hopefully in a weeks time ill have some pics for you.... hopefully.
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Old 11 May 2009
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What exactly do you see as the advantage of a built in water tank?

In my experience - we had the Gobis on a KTM 990 - it's a very bad idea. Like Mike said, in the first spill there will be a crack. I wouldn't want to drink it either. Solid containers also use up a lot of space, even when empty.

I would say a much better bet is a water bag like the MSR dromedary. Folds up flat when empty, can be carried everywhere and will not break in a fall. It also holds more if you need it and the water can be drunk as well.

My €.02
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Old 11 May 2009
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+1 for MSR dromedary I agree with Lukas
It adapts to whatever you put it in/on (like in a spare tyre well)
You can add a small right angle valve to the nozzle and connect a long hose to drink-on-the-ride. (hose from your local aquarium shop)
Advantage= soft, light, various sizes available (mine was a 10 litre one) and
Interestingly, I read a report that someone in the USA filled one with petrol and hung it in his garage for 3 months- no leaks- petrol was good to go-
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