Orlieb bags
 

I was tested Ortlieb racks bags! They are great! I was tested in on mountains and desert (Africa) in very heavy conditions and in rain. I made few serius crashes on it! They are bombproof!

Absolutely agree about Ortlieb. I have a roll top bag, made I think for canoeing. It's stayed waterproof for several years, and was very cheap (around £15 as I recall).

This is better solution than alu boxes! If you fall or crash with heavy, hard alu boxes, you made some holes in it and crash tail of bike, if the impact will be too strong.
Yes, soft bags are great!

I am sorry to say, but after 3 month through russia the rackpacks are not waterproof anymore. Same with the sidebags. After several contacts to gravel and stones the fabric is broken. So water leaks in... Maybe these bags are ok for "normal" travel, but offroad - forget them!

Instead of ALU Boxes I used the GOBI system of hepco & becker. Waterproof until the end, very easy to fix to the bike!

Ride save
Jochen

http://www.eurasien-tour.de

This is strange because after Morocca and rainy Europe are still ok, but I test it only 3 weeks!!!