Touring - Anyone tried the Specialized front rack?

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stevage
06-30-10, 11:47 PM
This one: http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCEqProduct.jsp?spid=41923

I dismissed it once since it's not for panniers, but these days I'm doing more lightweight offroad touring, and it might be the right thing to carry a tent lower down than the handlebars.

Anyone tried it? Durable? Other suggestions for a Tricross? Supposedly it's hard to get a front rack to fit.

zeppinger
07-01-10, 12:01 AM
Nashbar sells a similar front rack for less money. Also, that rack is small but it has "sides" which means it would be hard to put stuff on it that might be slightly bigger than the rack. Does that make sense?

Here is a link: http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product_10053_10052_167593_-1___
stevage
07-01-10, 12:53 AM
Hmm, good thought. That one looks a bit fragile based on the comments ("the real problem is that the mounting hardware that comes with this rack is cheap aluminum and does not work with all bikes. ") but I guess it's true there could be other racks that fit.

wheelgrabber
07-01-10, 04:59 PM
1 x Front fork rack holds a six-pack of your beverage of choice
Integrated bottle opener

I drink my beer after the ride....
zeppinger
07-01-10, 05:21 PM
Any front rack that mounts to the brakes bosses is going to be a little fragile. I would never put more than about 5-7 pounds on that kind of rack. Its a great rack for having an extra space to strap light stuff light a sleeping bag, one man tent, or thermarest. I would not used it to haul anything dense as brake bosses are just not designed for it.

If you want something more substancial but short of a FULL front rack like the jannd extreme or sulry nice right, you should consider the Nitto min front racks. They make several different version. The one I have uses padded hose clamps to mount directly to your front fork blades without mounting mounts. Would that solve the mounting problem with your bike?
Raiden
07-01-10, 07:48 PM
They sure designed the top of that front rack awkwardly, as well (with rails that stick up). You can't put something flat across it.

The Surly Nice Rack is... nice for all the crazy attachment points, but the Jandd Extreme is much cheaper and plenty capable/durable.

Edit: I know your looking for something light, but larger front racks solve just about every problem you might have with smaller racks (durability, size/weight allowance) at the cost of some weight.