Reddit mentions of Fuel Helmets SH-CARGONET Bungee Cord Cargo Net

A tail bag on a motorcycle is utilitarian in purpose. Fuck what it looks like. It's about how much it can hold and what you need it for.

Why not just get some bungee net and strap a gallon of Arizona to your passenger pillion?

I recently got a similar bungee net off of Amazon for under $10 and it's been the best. My bike doesn't have any saddle bags so if I end up getting groceries it's perfect. It's also non intrusive when you don't need it.

http://amzn.com/B001RBQF4G
it's seems smaller in the picture than in real life.

About $6 on Amazon. You won't regret it.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001RBQF4G/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

What kind of sport bike do you have?
I have a '97 VFR (sport touring) and I use this cargo net. It just has some simple hooks on it that I place under the plastics; my buddy has a '96 F3 and uses the same one, works fine for him.

I've seen a similar problem before and I think you'll be just fine. The top two clips may not fully close but it is not the end of the world as long as the clip "eyelets" are resting flush on the rack. First, I would make sure the bottom adjustable arm is adjusted to where it will prevent the bag from moving upward. Then I would get something like this. I would test different sizes to find one that doesn't put too much pressure (or friction) on the pannier, but enough to prevent it from moving too much on bumps. It may not look pretty, but touring is not for the narcissistic. I would definitely test your set-up on several shorter 1-2 day rides to make sure no friction is occurring which might tear up your panniers and that (most importantly) the panniers won't pop off the rack frame or slide around. Though this is just good protocol with any new gear.

Regardless if you go this route or not - DO NOT CUT your RackTime rack. It is tubular aluminum so it won't rust, but it also is a lot weaker than steel. If you cut it, you could really jeopardize the integrity of the rack (which is probably rated at a little over 50-60lbs as is), and set yourself up for a catastrophic touring accident. Given the money you spent on those nice panniers, I HIGHLY suggest supplementing them with a Surly Nice Rack up front. It's steel...and it's heavy(er)...but it will fit the Ortleibs very comfortably and will last a lifetime. I have two Ortleib FrontRoller Classics on a Surly Nice rack in the front and and works great!!!

Could you get someone to sew some pannier bags for you? I'm pretty sure their are DIY patterns out there and I've heard it's super cheap to get clothes and bags custom made there (could have heard wrong)

I wouldn't recommend welding a metal box unless you've tried every other option because for sure there would be drawbacks with that.

Just in the meantime, can you get hold of a bungee net like this?

https://www.amazon.com/Fuel-Helmets-Bungee-Cord-Cargo/dp/B001RBQF4G

If so you could probably put your current backpack on top of the rack and strap it down with the bungee net.

I don't know about cruiser bikes, they are very heavy and slow, not much good if there's any hills around. I'd way rather adjust another kind of bike to the sort of ride position I want. If you really want to change the handlebar position there are more drastic options that haven't been mentioned for bringing it higher or closer (swept back trekking handlebars, stem extender).

A regular MTB is maybe not the best choice for commuting (though you can do worse), but something like the Giant ARX 2 works better and is what I would recommend if you aren't doing extreme offroad riding: https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/arx-2