For serious bike tourers

There is nothing worse than spending good money on rubbish equipment. Robert Beckman certainly believes his bike equipment is 'the best', but he has some serious reasons to claim that too.

Anyway, he is having a sale on panniers and racks at the moment, so it might be worth taking a peep at what others say about racks and panniers here:
http://www.bicycletouring101.com/FrontAndRearRacks.htm

And visiting the Beckman site here:http://www.coinet.com/~beckman/

Here is what Robert (from the USA) sent to TBUG the other day:

ROBERT BECKMAN DESIGNS


OCTOBER SALE!


It has been rare that I have sold my products at discounted prices. But this month there will be very significant savings on many of my panniers and on my RBD touring bicycles. It's a great opportunity to purchase the best quality and performance at moderate prices. I'm going to turn back the clock nearly 25 years and I'll be offering all pairs of my Discovery Series Panniers for $200 less than their current price, which means that some will be available at their original price way back in the 1980's when they were introduced. I'll be knocking $1000.00 off of the purchase of any complete bicycle for the month of October. This is also a good time to mention my new four-point rack adapters that I have recently designed to greatly upgrade the performance of many low-priced racks (just about all racks from Blackburn and Trek up to Surly and Tubus) to greatly increase pannier stability.


Here's a look at what's on sale and a brief overview the products:


DISCOVERY SERIES PANNIERS- Still “head and shoulders above any other pannier” (Adventure Cyclist Magazine). RBD Discovery Series Panniers represent unparalleled design, detailing , quality and performance. Available to fit Gordon, Nitto, and Jandd racks using my ultra-stable dual- and single-strap, four-point mounting systems. Also available to fit my RBD racks using the unique RBD Pivotloc four-point system.


PARADIGM PANNIERS SALE PRICE $235.00

WANDERLUST PANNIERS $285.00

EXPEDITION PANNIERS $285.00

NON-MODUALR TANDEM PANNERS $350.00

HORIZON PANNIERS $425.00

NORTHERN LIGHTS PANNIERS $525.00

MODULAR 2700 PANNIERS $650.00

MODULAR 3600 TANDEM PANNIERS $675.00


EL PANNIERS- These panniers, compared with all other panniers on the market, represent absolute top-of-the-line performance and quality, with much better stability than any others. They have been rated as “the Rolls Royce of bicycle packs,” “the best on all counts” and “in a class of their own.” It is only other RBD pannier models that come close in design and detailing. EL panniers are a now available to fit almost all racks with ultra-stable four-point mounting using the RBD four-point adapter system or with the RBD dual-strap system for low-mount front racks.


EL 1600 PANNIERS SALE PRICE $225.00

EL 2100 PANNIERS $245.00

EL 2600 PANNIERS $270.00

EL 3400 TANDEM PANNIERS $325.00

EL 3400 MODULAR TANDEM PANNIERS $425.00


HUMMINGBIRD PANNIERS- In my world view, Hummingbird panniers are the pinnacle of performance in traditionally designed panniers (panniers that have rear stiffening plates and conventional mounting systems). They are ultra-lightweight panniers with design features similar to my Discovery panniers. These panniers are available only on a purely custom basis and currently I don't have any set sale prices, but I'll entertain offers. They're very lightweight without sacrificing performance.


SIGNATURE PANNIERS- These panniers represent the culmination of my 35 years as a traditional pannier designer. All of my panniers are far more highly detailed in their design than other panniers on the market, but these panniers spare no detail and are quite a bit more elaborate than even my own models of panniers. They're kind of a greatest-hits package of my pannier designs from the last three decades. I don't ever plan to discount these packs. As a custom builder, if I were charging the same hourly rate to build these models of panniers as custom TIG-welded bike frame builders are for their wares, I'd be charging several thousands of dollars per pair to make these panniers. They are very elaborate in all respects and function beautifully. These panniers are very light, long and narrow, incorporating tandem stiffening plates, but not ultra-lightweight. My favorite traditional panniers.


INTEGRA ULTRA-LIGHTWEIGHT RACK/PANNIER SYSTEMS- To me, these systems are quite revolutionary in their design and performance. Of all of my own stuff, these systems interest me far more, functionally, than my other designs. I started building very lightweight panniers back in the mid 1980's, but these systems are light years beyond just lightweight panniers. Their unique design utilizing a tubular aluminum pannier framework allows the incorporation of very strong and rigid ultra-lightweight racks, as well, that are highly integrated with the pannier design. In the Integra Systems I created rack and pannier combinations that weigh as little as 1.5 pounds and are far more stable and advanced in their design than any other rack/pannier system available. Of all of the panniers and racks that I build, these are the most time-consuming and hand-made relative to their design, and they are in their own dimension functionally. For anyone that is looking for serious efficiency, this is the stuff to get. And like all of my other gear, it's beautifully crafted. For the sale, $300 off.


INTEGRA RACK/PANNIER SYSTEMS SALE PRICE $795.00


ULTIMA ULTRA-LIGHTWEIGHT RACK/PANNIER SYSTEMS- After working with my Integra racks and pannier frameworks for a few years, I decided to pare them down even more and develop a three-point mounting design that's simpler and even lighter than the Integra systems. Design- and detail-rich systems at extraordinarily low weights ( 10 ounce Chrome Moly tubing racks).


ULTIMA RACK/PANNIER SYSTEMS SALE PRICE $695.00


2009 RBD GUIDE TO EFFICIENT AND ULTRA-LIGHTWEIGHT BICYCLE TOURING- I've come to the realization in recent years that I probably approach touring in a far more thorough manner than most folks. I believe that most bicycle tourists carry way too much stuff. My Guide is a look into learning about the choices that can be made in selecting and altering gear in the pursuit of greatly reducing weight to generate a new, efficient way to travel on a bicycle. It's a 15 to 20 pound approach. There's also a half-dozen pages on my Integra and Ultima systems. 40 pages. $5.00