Blackburn Outpost Seat Pack with Drybag vs Salsa EXP Seatpack

Two seat packs, measured against each other on the figures that decide whether they work on a bike.

The short answer

The Outpost Seat Pack with Drybag takes price and value per litre; the EXP Seatpack takes capacity, how far it reaches back and weight. Which of those you care about depends on the frame you are fitting it to.

Assembled from the differences below rather than written over them. Every figure is a published measurement or computed from one — nobody here has used either one.

Where they differ

5 of the 6 things we can measure come out differently.

Capacity

2L more in the EXP Seatpack
Blackburn Outpost Seat Pack with Drybag
11L
Salsa EXP Seatpack
13L

The maker's own figure. Worth reading alongside the dimensions below rather than on its own — two bags of the same litreage can want very different frames.

Reach behind the saddle

2cm shorter on the EXP Seatpack
Blackburn Outpost Seat Pack with Drybag
52cm
Salsa EXP Seatpack
50cm

Length is the lever arm on the seatpost, and the longer lever is what makes a loaded pack sway. Shorter is easier to live with; longer usually means more volume. It is a trade, not a fault.

Weight

50g lighter on the EXP Seatpack
Blackburn Outpost Seat Pack with Drybag
450g
Salsa EXP Seatpack
400g

Empty weight as published. Worth holding against capacity rather than alone — the lighter bag is not the better one if it carries a third less.

Price

$60 between them
Blackburn Outpost Seat Pack with Drybag
$80
Salsa EXP Seatpack
$140

Manufacturer's price as we hold it.

Per litre

$3.50 per litre between them
Blackburn Outpost Seat Pack with Drybag
$7.27
Salsa EXP Seatpack
$10.77

Price divided by the maker's capacity. A crude measure that still catches the case where the dearer bag is also the bigger one, which the price alone hides.

Side by side

Including the rows where they are level.

Blackburn Outpost Seat Pack with DrybagSalsa EXP Seatpack
Capacity11L13L
Reach behind the saddle52cm50cm
Depth22cm22cm
Weight450g400g
Price$80$140
Per litre$7.27$10.77
Blackburn
Outpost Seat Pack with Drybag
$80 · 450g
Salsa
EXP Seatpack
$140 · 400g

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