# Small(ish) front racks for fixie, and some questions about wobble?.....



## RedRex (Oct 24, 2004)

I commute on a Surly Steamroller. I use a clip-on seatpost "trunk" rack for my rain gear and repair items, which stays on the bike. I use a small internal-frame backpack for clothing, computer, etc. 

I notice if I place a few items in my trunk rack bag (REI Basic Trunk bag), the front of my bike wobbles quite a bit if I take my hands off the bars. If I take the seatpost rack off, the wobble goes away. No-hands is sort of needed for those of us with common back issues.

So I'm thinking a small clip-on rack up front might balance the weight. True?

So I'm looking for a small rack to put on the front. My fork does not have eyelets on the dropouts so it would have to clip on the steel Surly fork. I have long-reach Shimano brakes, and I have mounted panniers before on another bike by using a framing strap from Home Depot, mounting it on the caliper's center bolt and creating a 90 degree bend on the strap to come up over the caliper, forward and mount on the rack. So I'm wondering if I need to do something similar on the front, or if there is a small rack out there that will mount on my caliper. There are no studs on the crown for a rack.

Just a small rack with small bags for a little weight to counter the back. 

Am I on the right track here? Rack recommendations?


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## Thommy (Sep 23, 2003)

*RBR Search section*

Try the search feature of this forum. Lots of good info posted in the past, you might find what you're looking for. Here's one tip, when you don't have front eyeletts you can use a rubberized hose clamp/strap to wrap around the front fork then attach to your rack. If possible, try to get a front rack for panniers. Performance usually has something affordable and adaptable for your needs. The key is to get the load down low on your rack(s) for better stability. Tons of cheapie panniers available if you're on a budget.


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## RedRex (Oct 24, 2004)

Search the forum? Sometimes it appears that this forum should be renamed The Sticky Forum. Shees......


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## M.J. (Jan 28, 2004)

mounting a front rack to balance a wobble sounds pretty extreme - why not fix some steel weights instead?!

seriously - I have a Carradice seat post bag mounted on my fixte and load it with up to 30 pounds of stuff - never noticed a wobble but I know each ride is different - I would not think a counterbalance would be the way forward - sorry no other suggestions


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## meat tooth paste (Oct 6, 2004)

When I used to commute on a fixie, found this rack by Old Man Mountain that doesn't require rack eyelets. However, it does mount based on the quick release front axle, so that might be a problem on a bolt-on track hub. Never got around to ordering it, so can't say it'll work for sure.

Sherpa Rack link


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## ispoke (Feb 28, 2005)

I'd go with a front lowrider rack mounted with rubber coated p-clips. As someone mentioned above, maybe Performance has them for low cost. Or troll around ebay and you'll find something similar. Low rider racks with the best structural design usually have a bar (arm?) that passes in front of (or over) the front wheel such that the two sides are attached to each other, supported by each other, and somewhat triangulated. Here's a good example, but I'm not advocating you spend this much:

http://www.thetouringstore.com/TUBUS/Tara/Tubus Tara Front Bicycle Rack 2.jpg

The added mass of low panniers tends to damp steering response, although if you have enough shimmy then that may not be enough. But I also think front end shimmy is caused by too little weight, in which case those panniers may help alleviate that problem too...


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## RedRex (Oct 24, 2004)

Hey now that TARA looks pretty cool. I've also found "Mark's Rack" at Rivendell. Both of these are kind of pricey so I'm still looking around......


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## Chris H (Jul 7, 2005)

The biggest obstacle you'll probably run into will be your front brake.

Most of the small type front racks you seek use that hole. As most of the bikes they mount on have Canti's.

I have an old Nitto Campee rack (identical to the Rivendell Mini front rack). It works great for what you're looking for. I took mine off a while back, since I mainly used it to hold my headlight. Since upgrading to a Niterider, it was just dead weight so I took it off.

I wish I had a need for it, it's an incredible rack. That's why I'll probably hang on to it. Especially since I picked it up out of a used parts bin for $25.00.


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## ispoke (Feb 28, 2005)

Here are some options under forty bucks:

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=front+lowrider+rack&category0=

The Zefal appears to have upper and lower clamps so that you might not need threaded bosses at all. But you gotta be sure those clamps snug down tight because you don't want a loose rack on your steering axis...


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## ispoke (Feb 28, 2005)

I'm wondering how much weight you have with just rain gear and repair items? But then again I'm not surprised that wobble is possible even with low weight on a bike not intended to carry racks or baggage. By the way, front end wobble can be influenced by weight distribution *within* a pack. Using your rack trunk, can you move the heaviest items forward? 

The folks at Rivendell claim you can eliminate shimmy by leaning one knee against the top tube, but of course on a fixie that would never be an option.

All of this advice assumes you've already eliminated your wheel bearings as a source of the wobble. I thought my high end touring bike had a problem for months until I finally followed someone's advice and adjusted the rear wheel bearings. A couple of cone wrenches and the Park Tool website is all you need to do it yourself and then you'll really feel handy!


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