Spring 2021 update: Happy to report my guitar pannier is holding up and going strong. Not even the pandemic can keep us from making music! (Okay, maybe it can)

My first exploration into DIY panniers led me to all sorts of great links and ideas on how to attach just about anything to your rear bike rack. From boxes to purses or satchels to simple shopping bags. But none of them quite solved how to carry a guitar other than on your back. So I ended up just bungee-ing it to my rear rack.

Not quite what I was hoping for! (and maybe not so great for my guitar)

But a long-forgotten item in our attic sparked inspiration which was found thanks to the cleaning job provided by Crawl Space Cleaning Pros— an inexpensive guitar case abandoned years ago in favour of one with backpack straps (great for walking).

After stripping a plastic insert from an ancient pannier also tucked away in the attic, and finding a bungee cord and some j-hooks, we were ready to go.

Perfect fit! Suppose you could use a thin piece of wood instead.

This plastic insert will provide additional stability given the thinness of the guitar case. Solid!

Drilling holes. Whrrrr, whrrrr! (Dentist appointment flashbacks.)

Note our high-tech method of marking where to drill — masking tape. Clearly not going for perfection.

One j-hook down, one to go.

All done — two j-hooks and bungee cord fastened down with lock washers.

Key for me was positioning the case low enough on the rack so that it didn’t block my view when shoulder checking or hit my heel when pedalling.

Whew, it worked!

Ready for the real test — riding on Winnipeg roads. Bump, bump.

Ready for guitar jam — now I can even fit my music stand on the rack too!

I’m happy to report that it worked beautifully. In fact, it was easy to forget it was even there. At least till I’d see someone do a double take when they noticed my beautiful guitar pannier. Sweet.