Kriega US-20 tailbag review

Wearing a rucksack for a trip away, or a longer daily commute, is convenient but not always good for the health of your back and shoulders.

That’s where I find Kriega’s US-20 tailbag comes in especially useful, letting the bike take the strain that would otherwise be on my own back.

The advent of airbag protection also encourages moving away from rucksacks, which can only be worn over an airbag if the straps are loose and are not clipped up across the chest.

For these reasons my trusty US-20 has been seeing more action recently, as it’s the perfect size for my commuting essentials - and can also carry the clothes I need for a couple of days on the road by bike.

It’s constructed in the same way as Kriega’s other Drypacks, combining a Cordura outer shell with a waterproof liner. Roll up the closure, clip it shut at either side and there’s no route in for rain to soak your stuff.

The bag mounts to your bike’s pillion seat using straps that have clip-in buckles at the bag end and alloy hooks on the other. You need to fit four supplied webbing loops to your bike, which then act as holders for the alloy hooks. 

Pull the straps tight and you’ve got a bag securely mounted to the back of your bike.

I’ve been using a US-20 since it was first released back in 2007 and it’s one of the few pieces of kit that has survived all those years of service.

It’s easy to pack and attach, has always kept my kit dry and has never interfered with my riding. I find it especially suited to bikes that only have a pillion seat as a suitable perch for luggage.

The design has been updated considerably in the intervening years, which is why I’ve recently acquainted myself with an up-to-date version of the bag.

It’s now made from tougher materials and has improved attachment methods, but in essence is an upgraded version of the original.

I find it a little Tardis-like in its ability to swallow more stuff than its appearance suggests. The only slight downside to that is that the narrow opening makes it tricky to fish out your stuff without completely unloading.

With only a couple of days’ stuff inside, that’s always been less of a problem than if unloading everything from a large bag.

There’s a zipped pocket on top of the bag for storing things that you might want speedy access to while out for a ride, though this section isn’t waterproof so best not to put anything in there that won’t survive a soaking.

There’s a shoulder strap to make it easy to lug the bag into your hotel or workplace and a mesh section at the base of the bag for small bits you don’t want in the main compartment.

The US-20 is part of a family of modular bags, alongside the US-10 and US-30. You can connect up to three of them together to extend your storage, up to a maximum of 70 litres by way of mounting US-20s to either side of a US-30.

There’s also the benefit of Kriega’s 10-year warranty, in the unlikely event that anything does fail. If the US-20 waterproof liner gives out then those are available separately for £15 at the time of writing, and they just secure inside the bag with two strong Velcro strips.

Kriega have recently added a second 20-litre Drypack to their range, in the shape of the Rollpack 20.

If you want something with a less technical appearance that loads from both ends rather than just one and comes with integrated straps that will never be separated from the bag, it’s worth checking our review of that here. In some circumstances that Rollpack 20 may be easier and faster to secure to your bike too.

But if the technical look appeals to you then I can heartily recommend the US-20, which has given me years of back-saving service.