Which rack top bag fits an 11" MacBook Air with space for a little padding?

Question

The goal is to carry a change of clothes and the MacBook Air (1.7 cm high, 29.95 cm wide, 19.2 cm deep and 1.06 kg) on a 14km commute. I've used Ortlieb panniers (on a Tubus rack) but I don't like the way my heels can hit them, they way they stick out on the sides or the way they add drag. Nicely made though! Also I don't want all the weight on one side and I don't want to carry two of them.

A backpack is way too sweaty.

The best rack top solution so far is a Rixen & Kaul Rackpack 1 mounted on a matching Rixen & Kaul Freerack (sorry, can't find a link for that one). A MacBook Air 11" (bare - no sleeve), a pair of jeans and a T-shirt are a tight fit. Other stuff goes in the side and it's workable. But I can see that it isn't a great solution because the laptop has to be placed in diagonally with the thin edge sticking up. Over time the sharp edge of the laptop is definitely going to wear through the bag, and any crash is going to cause a lot of damage to the laptop.

I have also tried a Deuter 10l rack top pack - it is also too small, not quite as good as the Rixen & Kaul and the velcro attachment is much slower and less secure.

I've got a lot of nice things to say about Rixen & Kaul. It is a very well made bag and when I had a problem with the clip they sorted it out right away. This bag is just a little bit too small to be perfect. The click fix system is great. I have thought of removing the click fix mount and assign it to some other bag but it's a last resort and chances are my home-made solution is not going to be as nice as the ideal bag I'm wanting.

Update: I looked at the Topeak Office MTX and it isn't for me. Inside it has a big divider/pocket thing that takes a lot of space and can't be removed. It doesn't appear to be particularly sturdy, especially the attachment mechanism. Their beam rack product has a quick release fastener rather than bolts so anyone could just unclip and walk away with it. The rack is just not finished as well as the Tubus/Rixen-Kaul racks I already have, it feels chunky and heavy.

The solution looks like it is the Ortlieb Office High Visibility QL3 - 30x40x17cm, 21l (unfortunately it's more expensive than the Topeak bag and rack system). While it is still side-mounted the QL3 system attaches to my existing rack so I can still use my current rack top bag with it's special mount when I don't need so much space. Position on the bike is widely adjustable so heel strike isn't an issue. It's rectangular so folded clothes will hopefully stay folded rather than falling down into the pointy bit of my older tapered Ortlieb panniers. It is waterproof without needing a rain cover. It's eerily reflective over its whole surface.

Answer 1

Topeak has a laptop bag called an MTX Office Bag that attaches to the MTX racks and lays flat.

It is said to accept a 17" laptop so yours should fit in great and given how thin they are, you should have room for a change of clothes. You might be able to use a padded sleeve.

I tried to put my older 15.6" Dell 131L in my Topeak DXP pannier and it fit, but not much room for other things. However, I recommend getting a padded sleeve, and with mine it would stick out an inch or two and really no room for anything else.

These bags are pretty good about keeping stuff dry on short commutes (30 min) unless it rains really heavy (and then it was the bottoms of the pannier due to tire spray), but a large locking freezer bag will do the trick nicely.

Answer 2

I think a top bag for even a small laptop will be tricky - a shame really because the top section of the all-in-one touring pannier towers would be plenty big enough so it's not impossible.

I use an Altura laptop pannier set well back (there's some adjustment). I've got big feet (and a big bike) and my heel doesn't hit it (platform pedals). The cheap big pannier (something like £8 on ebay including postage) does get in the way of my other foot if I'm not very careful how I fit it.

Because this is meant for big laptops my 11" netbook fits sideways leaving lots of room for other stuff (a full change of clothes is easy, smart shoes rather more awkward to get in)

The rack is a topeak, and there's a little bit of tilt adjustment when you fit the rack to the bike, allowing you to gain another tiny bit of margin if you're worried

I went through a puddle that was almost up to my bb the other day,feet were wet, pannier contents dry.

Answer 3

I'm using Timbuk2 messenger bag for couple years now in DC area sweaty climate and very happy with it. It built for last and have lot of special commuter features making it best commuter bug I can find for myself. You can order custom colors and features also.

Answer 4

I changed from using a pretty nice laptop pannier to the Topeak Office bag about 2 years ago. It was kinda life changing. Suddenly my bike was well balanced and I felt more in control. Until recently, I had been using an incredibly heavy System 76 laptop (6.8 lbs), so being able to center that weight was probably a little more important to me than the average person.

Though it was a big laptop, but I could still fit in a change of clothes without much of a problem. There's not a ton of extra room in the bag, so you may need extra bags if you have lots of stuff to carry. I ended up getting some cheap small panniers so I could carry clothes, lunch and running gear if necessary.

I highly recommend you get the accompanying rack with the drop rails (Super Tourist DX) so that you can add panniers if you want.

Anyway, I was surprised to see some lukewarm responses to this bag in this thread. It could be bigger, but it's well made, very secure when mounted and makes for a way more comfortable, balanced ride than you get with panniers. I've encouraged a couple of coworkers to get this bag and they've been happy with it as well.