Good Rack for Disc Brakes?
 

I have a caadx with disc and was wondering if anyone has found a good rack. The Topeak Explorer seems like a good option but wasn't sure if there was something better I might be overlooking.

Planning to use it for commuting, errands and some light touring. The Topeak trunk bag seems pretty useful as well but I suspect it wouldn't work with saddle bags (the kinds that are connected).

All depends on where on the frame the caliper is mounted..
top of chainstay mounts create less conflict.

Often like the Trek/Bontrager rack, It's made to stand off away further from the frame..

another technique like Old Man Mountain, is to use the QR skewer as the bottom mount
and set thr rack back a ways.

i have the cannondale bad boy 9 and use the topeak explorer with disc brake mounts that you linked and its a perfect fit.

Get this one instead:
http://www.amazon.com/Topeak-Super-T...756037&sr=1-63

I'm advising it because of the extra tubing in the back that protects the rear wheel. I had been using the Explorer rack you linked to until one morning when one of my panniers (a cheap one that was too floppy) got caught in the rear spokes and popped a fender stay. I replaced it with the Super Tourist model and haven't had any problems since.

I know that you say you're thinking of one of Topeak's trunk bags, but at least with this one, you'll probably be able to fit a small trunk bag and a pair of panniers. Or, if you get a Topeak bag with the side compartments that hang down, this rack will help manage them, too.

^^Thanks for the tip. That one looks like a good option. Is this the Topeak bag with side compartments that hang down that you mentioned? Seems a good option.

Yeah, that's one of them.

In my case, I switched from a pair of Trek Basic Panniers (hand-me-downs from my sister) to some Ortleib Back-roller Classics. I expect to hang onto them for the next few bikes.

I'm a fan of the PB Eco Rack. It did require spacers to help it stand off of the brake on one of my bikes. I think that this is pretty common among disc braked bikes.

I'm using the regular non-disc version of the Super Tourist because it has a set of extra rails specifically for panniers. I'm using Ortlieb Classics, and while I don't have a Topeak trunk bag, I could easily add one and not interfere with the panniers because they're mounted lower. Works well, and the Super Tourist provides good support for the panniers with the extended rear tubing.

Good point. I didn't actually notice that but I see the extra rails now. Does having the panniers ride lower increase the chance of heel strike? I think I'm going to grab the Topeak trunk bag with the expandable side panniers but might get some of the Ortlieb like Barracks linked.

The issue I had with a Topeak disc-ready rack was that the tabs that extend inward, acting as built-in spacers, are quite bulky and interfered with some tubing around the eyelet on my frame (2013 Kona Jake). I solved that by shaving off part of the bulk on the rack's tab with a metal file. It doesn't look like you'd have that problem with the CAADX.

BTW, I'm quite happy with the Topeak trunk bag with the expandable side panniers. Unlike an REI trunk bag I have, the drop down panniers on the Topeak bag are roomy enough to hold a 15" laptop in a protective sleeve.

Thanks for the info. I'm going to give the tourist rack and trunk bag system a try. Looks pretty close to what I'm envisioning.

Not that it matters much, but has anyone tried to fit a six pack of bottles in the DXP trunk bag (the one with expandable top)? One of my hopes with this bike is to use it for a lot of errands around town and picking up beer is one of them :)

i've got a super-tourist-dx on my commuter. it's nice, but....

* i find that it mates poorly with ortlieb classic bags. when i hit big bumps, the bottom "tab" of the bags pops-off the rack-rail. the aluminium rails are also perfectly positioned to rub against the stainless bolts, which is destroying the rack.

* it's too wide. the bags are pushed out farther than they need to be.

on the plus side, the extra rails make it easier to attach "stuff" to the top of the rack without interfering with the bags, although i don't notice any significant lowering of centre-of-gravity, nor do i have any problems with heel-strike (that will be a very personal thing). i also like that it has a solid deck, so i don't need a rear fender.

it works well, but i'd like to find something better to replace it with when the bolts on the pannier finally chew through the rails. if i don't find anything better, i'll reluctantly buy another one.

Tubus Disco Rack

10 year guarantee with the first three being mobile (will ship to anywhere in the world that you're traveling) ... try getting that with a different company :D

http://www.tubus.com/product.php?xn=10

25CrMo4 steel
20kg support

reviews in English:

http://thedailyrandonneur.wordpress....ble-rear-rack/
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/catego...-rack-09-34960
http://rodgerswriting.blogspot.de/20...e-rack-on.html

last one is interesting as it sounds like the guy have no clue. six fasteners is a good thing even if the author can't understand how to work them without directions :lol:

I was curious about what you're saying here, so I took off my drive side pannier to snap a picture of the inside of the other pannier.

I don't see any bolts rubbing on my rack. All the points of contact between the rack and the pannier are plastic (on the pannier). I also haven't had the lower tab pop off the rack, it's a nice, snug fit the way I have it set up. I think it's important that the top mounting points are spaced apart as far as possible so that the pannier can't shift on the mounting rail, if it can move, the lower tab could pop off the rack.

http://blewsclues.com/multimedia/ima...t_mounting.jpg

I have the Axiom Journey-Disc. It has an articulating left mounting point that will mount to the brake disc mounting bolt. It's rigid and looks good. Plus, it's not in the way when I remove the rear wheel. Does your bike have rack mounting eyes on the drive side?

http://www.axiomgear.com/products/ge.../journey-disc/

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...cket/006-1.jpg

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...cket/009-1.jpg

looks like the tabs on your bags are different than mine...

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=301741

on the far side, you can see the tab. just behind the tab is a bolt that rubs against the rack. on the near side, you can see what a stainless bolt does to an aluminium tube :notamused:

FWIW, i've tried putting the tab the way you've got it, but i had worse problems with the tab popping off the tube that way... but it looks like your tab won't quite reach the bottom rail the way mine does. and yeah, the clips on top of the bag are as far apart as they'll go.

so maybe i'm just "lucky" with the way my bags mate with my rack ;)

I think you have the QL2 mounting system, which would make your bags the Roller Plus bags rather than the Classics. I see what you mean now with the bolt rubbing... I agree, the QL2 mounts put that bolt right against the rack, a problem I don't have with the older QL1 mount.

Have you tried wrapping electrical tape around that area, enough so that there is no play between the rack and the tab? I'm just trying to think of how you can eliminate movement and vibration, which is causing the damage to the rack.

Is it possible for one of those to mount to a bike without disk brakes, in case I wanted to get it and then put it on another bike later that might have disk brakes?

as others have said, depending on your actual bike and its brake mounting location, you might not even need a 'disc' friendly rack. i know the caliper mounts on my GT are inside the rear triangle, and the rack mounts are above and outside the triangle, so my rack doesn't even come close to the brakes, so regular racks work on it with 0 issues.

i would think in 99% of cases, a disc friendly rack will work on a non-disc bike.

Yeah, there's no reason that wouldn't work. It'll stick out a lot farther than it needs to, but it would work.

nope, it's QL1 on a classic... the bag is PVC coated and the hooks on top need a 3mm hex key to adjust. i don't think they ever made the "plus" version in yellow :(

as to the bottom tab-mounting thing, i'm not sure...

Ortlieb QL1 & QL2 Systems
http://www.facewest.co.uk/pp/ortleib/ql1.htm

Difference Between the Ortlieb Quick-Lock Systems QL1, QL2, QL3
http://www.cyclocamping.com/Bike_Par...System-89.aspx

maybe they ran out of QL1 bottom pieces that day? maybe it was a transition in manufacturing? i think a bought the bags around oct 2009, give or take.

in any case, i guess my complaints about how they mate together might apply to my particular bag, not the ortlieb bags in general. i avoided electrical tape because as it wears down it'll leave a sticky mess. i put some good quality gaffers tape over the rail, but it didn't last long.

Okay, got my super-tourist rack and mounted it. What a PITA. The stupid mounting braces are a pain to get to match the holes on the seat stays and they hang under and look like a hazard. I bent them up a bit but will probably need to trim them. Not much clearance with the bigger 700c cross tires.

I agree with smasha that it's too wide. A non disc specific rack didn't clear the brake but these clear by a mile. I wish the extender for the brake clearance was about half as big. Asymmetrical would be nice too. I thought about trimming the extender but the lip for the bolt is right at the end.

Anyone have a pic of how they mounted theirs - particularly at the seat stays. Barrettscv's rack looks like it mounts nice and clean.

As others have said, it absolutely depends on the frame. The Vaya has a chainstay mounted brake and lots of braze-ons so normal racks (and fenders) go on easy. Other bikes have been a nightmare, even without discs.

Here's a Super Tourist DX on my commute bike using the double-butted Nashbar MTB frame:

-http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=302870 http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=302871 http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=302872

I've got an MTX Explorer 29er. You can kind of see how it's mounted here (hi-res pic of the bike, don't want to pollute this thread).

Mine was definitely a PITA to mount because my frame looks like this at the eyelets:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8447/8...24fabc96_z.jpg

I had to do this to the extenders:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8452/8...610f31cc_z.jpg

Something to watch out for...when you pull an MTX trunk bag off of the rack, it's easy to break your tail light. I broke a PDW Radbot this way. It was mounted with a PB tail light rack bracket. I just switched over to the universal clip bracket that came with the rack. That puts the light a little lower, so I'm hoping for the best.