# rear bike rack questions



## e39540is (Apr 10, 2009)

What do I need to look for in a bike rack to carry a trunk bag. I have just been using a back pack, and would like to get a rack, and trunk bag, or panniers, but there are so many options. What do I choose?

As far as what racks fit what bike, I would like to have a rack that will fit most any road type bike, as I am constantly buying and selling bikes. None of my current bikes have braze ons for the top mounting, but they do have the holes at the drop out.

Another consideration is cost. Right now I am low on $$. I probably have 10 friends with a rack sitting in there garage that they dont use anymore, and I could probably trade them for something else that they could use. Is there any reason why I should not go used instead of new?

What are your opinions on the Topeak racks. I still have a Topeak trunk bag, the kind that slides in and locks. Is the conveinience of that worth getting a new Topeak rack, instead of just a standard rack.

One more thing, sorry I am so analytical. I still might want to put a rack on my MTB for snowy winter commuting, but it has disc brakes. I see the racks, even topeak makes one that are specific for disc. Will those fit on a non disc bike too? Maybe that is the answer for me...??

Thanks in advance for your advice.


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## rodar y rodar (Jul 20, 2007)

" I probably have 10 friends with a rack sitting in there garage that they dont use anymore, and I could probably trade them for something else that they could use. Is there any reason why I should not go used instead of new?"
Probably fine. Some racks are too short legged for a 700c wheel- easy enough to find out.

"I see the racks, even topeak makes one that are specific for disc. Will those fit on a non disc bike too?"
Yes. They either mount via the hub skewer or they have some kind of dogleg or offset to clear the caliper- that`s the only difference.


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## PaulRivers (Sep 11, 2006)

Topeak, unfortunately, does not make any racks that I'm aware of (I've searched) that go on a road bike without upper rack mounts.

The cheapest rack I know of that does is the Axiom Streamliner:
http://www.eriksbikeshop.com/ride/p...id=0&mscssid=BPMSANS6QRDU8J2P37539B1FNG0V9NF9

Old Man Mountain and Tubus also make racks for bikes without dedicated mounts, but they're most expensive.


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## rodar y rodar (Jul 20, 2007)

Since upper mounts usually only serve to keep the rack from rocking back and forth, P-clips or clamp on seatpost mounts should be no problem at all. Mounting the bottom of a rack to P-clips sounds a bit iffy to me, but people get away with that too.


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## Jesse D Smith (Jun 11, 2005)

e39540is said:


> What do I need to look for in a bike rack to carry a trunk bag. I have just been using a back pack, and would like to get a rack, and trunk bag, or panniers, but there are so many options. What do I choose?
> 
> As far as what racks fit what bike, I would like to have a rack that will fit most any road type bike, as I am constantly buying and selling bikes. None of my current bikes have braze ons for the top mounting, but they do have the holes at the drop out.
> 
> ...


I went through this search on two different occasions. One was for a mountain bike as commuter, the other was for a road bike as commuter. The mountain bike was a rigid with rear disc brakes. The answer was http://www.oldmanmountain.com.
For the road bike, a cheap Pletscher was the answer. I didn't get it from Rivendell, but found it for $19 on ebay. The Arkel trunk was expensive ($100), but worth it for its durability, capacity, and low profile. The rack was attached to the frame's specific rack braze-ons, but it could have been mounted to the rear brake caliper mount also. With P-clips, I could have mounted it directly to the seat stays. This is a small 53 cm frame, and there's not much seat post exposed, yet the trunk is still far below the level of the saddle, without having the back of my legs hit the trunk. Keeping the trunk low, with a lower center of gravity, makes for a much more table ride.
For using a rear trunk, I found it was important to know the dimensions of the trunk and the rack's platform. So many racks have a platform that's just too short and narrow adequately support an average trunk.


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## brucew (Jun 3, 2006)

I'd like to sound a note of caution about the Pletscher rack Jesse shows in the pic above, and others like it.

If there's a possibility of panniers in your future, then a single-leg rack should not be. A good rack for panniers has three legs. They're not for support, but to keep the panniers out of the spokes. I learned this the hard way with my first rack, which was a single-leg one from Delta. It wasn't pretty for the panniers, the spokes or my skin. 

Single-leg racks are very nice and sleek looking (the whole reason I bought it), but they should only be used with trunk bags--never panniers.

Although I realize it's outside of the OP's budget, I'd like to echo Jesse's recommendation of the Arkel Tailrider trunk bag. I have one, only in firetruck red with yellow accents. I love it to death.


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## Jesse D Smith (Jun 11, 2005)

brucew said:


> I'd like to sound a note of caution about the Pletscher rack Jesse shows in the pic above, and others like it.
> 
> If there's a possibility of panniers in your future, then a single-leg rack should not be. A good rack for panniers has three legs. They're not for support, but to keep the panniers out of the spokes. I learned this the hard way with my first rack, which was a single-leg one from Delta. It wasn't pretty for the panniers, the spokes or my skin.
> 
> ...


Yup, this particular Pletscher wouldn't work for panniers. It's just an example of how open your options could be for mounting the rack. There's no reason to avoid checking out all the options your friends might have in used racks. I'd advise to find the one that has a wide and long platform to support a trunk, has plenty of holes drilled in the platform to open up mounting options. You can get mounting hardware cheap and usually bend or cut it to suit your needs. If you any of your friends has a rack that has adjustable main struts, that would be great, making it easy to fit on different bikes.


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## hepcatbent (Aug 19, 2009)

I've been through this many times... and continue on the quest for the 'perfect' setup.

Since you change bikes frequently and have a need for versatility, I'd suggest some brand of seat post mount rack with pannier "guards" (for lack of a better adjective). I'm not a big seat-post mount rack fan but I have one on a mountain bike and it works ok. You just have to make sure that the mount is cinched down really REALLY well.

I have some inexpensive "day pack" panniers on my commuter that work fine for me for carrying a rain suit in one side, and the rest of my 'stuff' on the other. The top of the rack remains flat for other 'stuff' but the panniers have useful tie-down straps sewn on to the top.

On my Trek F600 folder, I have a Dahon-built rack with a small rack bag that has zip-out panniers in side pockets that drop down when you need the extra storage. It's pretty convenient, and they can be found in a number of sizes. That might be just the bag for you... kind of the best of all worlds for a seat-post mount rack. Here's an example of a much larger one than what I have on my F600:

http://www.amazon.com/Topeak-MTX-Trunk-Side-Panniers/dp/B000FICAQ4


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## jack in the matrix (Feb 23, 2007)

I got the Topeak disc model when I went to discs on my commuter. My frame has eyelets on the dropouts, but I had to use p-clamps (not suppied) on the seatstays. It has the slide-in feature for trunks, but I use panniers (only one daily) and I have been very happy with it. No problem with 700c wheels either. The disc model pushes the side struts out wider at the dropout, and while this may be an issue (stability with panniers), it also keeps the bag further from the spokes. That said, I haven't had any problems carrying 8 half litre cans of beer on one side. I also see no reason why this rack couldn't be used on a non-disc equipped bike, so for ultimate versatility, if you're going to buy new, this could be the rack for you.


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## Tweezak (Dec 6, 2008)

jack in the matrix said:


> I got the Topeak disc model when I went to discs on my commuter. My frame has eyelets on the dropouts, but I had to use p-clamps (not suppied) on the seatstays. It has the slide-in feature for trunks, but I use panniers (only one daily) and I have been very happy with it. No problem with 700c wheels either. The disc model pushes the side struts out wider at the dropout, and while this may be an issue (stability with panniers), it also keeps the bag further from the spokes. That said, I haven't had any problems carrying 8 half litre cans of beer on one side. I also see no reason why this rack couldn't be used on a non-disc equipped bike, so for ultimate versatility, if you're going to buy new, this could be the rack for you.


I used the same rack on my Redline Conquest but didn't like the idea of p-clamps so I opted for a seatpost clamp that has a place to bolt rack brackets. It works great!


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## e39540is (Apr 10, 2009)

Wow! Thank you everybody for your replies and tips. I sent out a dozen emails to my friends, and none of them said that they have a rack that they dont want to keep around. They offered seat post racks, but I had one on my MTB, and didnt like it. 

Looks like I will be waiting, and buying a new one. I am not going to be carying much weight, just lunch, and a change of clothes, so I think p clamps on the seat stays would work. Although, I do like that seat post mount...very neat. I may just go that way too.

Where did you get that seat post clamp/mount, and how much?


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