What is the lightest rear rack?
09-28-15, 03:18 PM
#26
Senior Member
This is going to really make you sick but I was able to pick one one from Fleabay for $100 + $30 shipping. And that wasn't an auction. It was brand new shipped from Germany. For some reason, the Airy was dirt cheap this summer. Dirt cheap enough that I got another one for just a little bit more and didn't have to pay shipping. There are still some around if you look and know how to search for them. I'm not sure I'll tell you (and the world) the exact search terms...I might still want to buy some...but use German for rear rack and titanium. You'll find them.
Yes, putting a trunk bag on them is more of a hassle but I haven't found trunk bags to work all that well even on wider racks. They tend to go floppy in my experience.
J.
09-28-15, 03:51 PM
#27
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If you drive to work on occasion (I do at least once a week most weeks, I'll admit it), the lightest solution would be to find a place at work to stash a bunch of clothes and just bring a load back and forth with you when you drive. 
The second-best solution I know of is to have one bike with a rack/pannier that you can use to schlep said load of clothes back and forth weekly or so, allowing you to ride a rack-less (and presumably go-fast in other ways) bike the other days of the week, which is nice for the fun factor.
If all else fails, I agree with the previous posters that a cheap aluminum rack ought to do the job as long as you keep your promise not to overload it. After seeing Rene Herse's super-light front rack in "The Golden Age of Handbuilt Bicycles", I've been tempted to try fashioning my own out of sheet aluminum:
(Image from Jan Heine's blog.)
The second-best solution I know of is to have one bike with a rack/pannier that you can use to schlep said load of clothes back and forth weekly or so, allowing you to ride a rack-less (and presumably go-fast in other ways) bike the other days of the week, which is nice for the fun factor.
If all else fails, I agree with the previous posters that a cheap aluminum rack ought to do the job as long as you keep your promise not to overload it. After seeing Rene Herse's super-light front rack in "The Golden Age of Handbuilt Bicycles", I've been tempted to try fashioning my own out of sheet aluminum:
(Image from Jan Heine's blog.)
09-28-15, 04:48 PM
#28
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Actually, I wound't. I've done enough of this to realize that there are all sorts of incompatibilities between bags and racks and loads. You have to check each combination no matter what.
You don't have to put it on the bike to test it. You can do it off the bike and see how it fits first. No different than any other rack and bag combo. I guess I've always tried them out on the racks in the store or when I've gotten them all home and found that important to do. And, FWIW, I think you pretty much need to go through this with any rack and trunk bag if they are not from the same mfg and designed specifically to work together as well as how it's going to be loaded (and sometimes even then).
You don't have to put it on the bike to test it. You can do it off the bike and see how it fits first. No different than any other rack and bag combo. I guess I've always tried them out on the racks in the store or when I've gotten them all home and found that important to do. And, FWIW, I think you pretty much need to go through this with any rack and trunk bag if they are not from the same mfg and designed specifically to work together as well as how it's going to be loaded (and sometimes even then).
It's like recommending a dynamo light without mentioning that you also need a dynamo hub. It leaves important things out, it's bad advice without the important second mention.
09-28-15, 05:19 PM
#29
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If the idea is commuter by week,
And group rides by weekend.
Perhaps try a quick release seatpost rack.
Aluminum Bicycle Cycling Rear Carrier Pannier Rack Seat Post Quick Release Bike | eBay
https://www.amazon.com/RockBros-Carri.../dp/B00K74JGT0
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B014O2CZMU?psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/Mountain-Bike-.../dp/B00963A002
https://www.amazon.com/OUTERDO-Bicycl.../dp/B0119G4D74
Oddly I'm not seeing the seatpost size. And while shims are ok, they'll lost if you mount and remove it weekly.
And group rides by weekend.
Perhaps try a quick release seatpost rack.
Aluminum Bicycle Cycling Rear Carrier Pannier Rack Seat Post Quick Release Bike | eBay
https://www.amazon.com/RockBros-Carri.../dp/B00K74JGT0
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B014O2CZMU?psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/Mountain-Bike-.../dp/B00963A002
https://www.amazon.com/OUTERDO-Bicycl.../dp/B0119G4D74
Oddly I'm not seeing the seatpost size. And while shims are ok, they'll lost if you mount and remove it weekly.
09-28-15, 05:39 PM
#30
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09-28-15, 06:52 PM
#31
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Going to the source helps. I just ordered 2 marathon Mondial 28x2.00 directly from Germany and payed less than half the price they are in the US. The European sites have a lot more choices for touring gear that is comparatively hard to find state side too.
09-28-15, 07:43 PM
#32
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https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tortec-Veloc...ortec+velocity
09-28-15, 08:04 PM
#33
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Whats really ironic is that Schwalbes primary distribution center is in Ferndale Washington as most of their products come from Asia.
09-29-15, 10:05 AM
#34
Banned
Duh, Asia is where the Rubber is , and their factory workers are paid a Fraction of the German's Rate.
09-29-15, 02:17 PM
#35
Senior Member
Well, everyone has an opinion, I just do not agree at all. I don't think it's fair to recommend racks that require extra braces and work to get working without mentioning they require that extra work. I have used a number of racks and a number of bags, and with the exception of "quick release" systems, have not had a problem with them all working with each other easily. The simple strap system on a trunk bag is versatile for fitting any rack with a wide top area.
It's like recommending a dynamo light without mentioning that you also need a dynamo hub. It leaves important things out, it's bad advice without the important second mention.
It's like recommending a dynamo light without mentioning that you also need a dynamo hub. It leaves important things out, it's bad advice without the important second mention.
Please read again what I had suggested. There are enough incompatibilities between racks and rack trunks to make it necessary to check any set up. For example, I had a Racktime Add-it Rack (i.e. "wide" rack) and it did not work well with the Arkel Tailrider. Wide enough, but the velcro straps just didn't land in a good spot to anchor the bag properly. Right there that is a good example of your statement that a "simple strap system on a trunk bag is versatile for fitting any rack with a wide top area" untrue and leading to my recommendation that it's prudent to try any combination first.
J.
09-29-15, 04:02 PM
#36
Squeaky Wheel
Tubus Airy in the wild. Awesome little rack, very sturdy - impossibly light. I've got 21,000+ miles on this rack now and it's going strong.
I bought this on a sale for $140. Very expensive yes, but I don't care.
I bought this on a sale for $140. Very expensive yes, but I don't care.
09-29-15, 04:37 PM
#37
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Please read again what I had suggested. There are enough incompatibilities between racks and rack trunks to make it necessary to check any set up. For example, I had a Racktime Add-it Rack (i.e. "wide" rack) and it did not work well with the Arkel Tailrider. Wide enough, but the velcro straps just didn't land in a good spot to anchor the bag properly. Right there that is a good example of your statement that a "simple strap system on a trunk bag is versatile for fitting any rack with a wide top area" untrue and leading to my recommendation that it's prudent to try any combination first.
J.
J.
Tubus Fly Rear Ultralite Bicycle Bike Rack
If you are one of my customers who want to use a rear "rack trunk," you'll find that the Fly rack is probably too narrow on top. For that purpose you will want to use a rack at least as wide as the Tubus Vega or Logo, and probably something more like the Cargo.
I don't think it's fair to mention the fly for someone looking for a trunk bag without mentioning that it won't fit most trunk bags without additional modification. The usual rack and usual trunk bag (if you don't count quick release systems) usually fit together fine. A few don't, but those are exceptions. With the fly them not fitting would be the typical case, not an exceptional case.
09-29-15, 04:53 PM
#38
GATC
09-30-15, 08:49 AM
#40
Senior Member
I wish I could see a resolution, I just think our experiences differ and we're not going to agree. The airy or fly are to narrow to fit most trunk bags. I've seen mentions of it before like here:
Tubus Fly Rear Ultralite Bicycle Bike Rack
If you are one of my customers who want to use a rear "rack trunk," you'll find that the Fly rack is probably too narrow on top. For that purpose you will want to use a rack at least as wide as the Tubus Vega or Logo, and probably something more like the Cargo.
I don't think it's fair to mention the fly for someone looking for a trunk bag without mentioning that it won't fit most trunk bags without additional modification. The usual rack and usual trunk bag (if you don't count quick release systems) usually fit together fine. A few don't, but those are exceptions. With the fly them not fitting would be the typical case, not an exceptional case.
Tubus Fly Rear Ultralite Bicycle Bike Rack
If you are one of my customers who want to use a rear "rack trunk," you'll find that the Fly rack is probably too narrow on top. For that purpose you will want to use a rack at least as wide as the Tubus Vega or Logo, and probably something more like the Cargo.
I don't think it's fair to mention the fly for someone looking for a trunk bag without mentioning that it won't fit most trunk bags without additional modification. The usual rack and usual trunk bag (if you don't count quick release systems) usually fit together fine. A few don't, but those are exceptions. With the fly them not fitting would be the typical case, not an exceptional case.
Fair? That's actually kind of funny. Rack bags are not a "social justice" issue.
Besides that, I use it that way frequently - it certainly works and meets my needs. Maybe it wouldn't fair to not mention it. There is always a solution and I just offered a simple one including pictures. This is not brain surgery. It's a YMMV kind of thing. To get a great fit on a bag and rack I think you always need to do some fooling around or "Macgyvering" (love that term).
I have a more than 5 rack trunks of various brands. I don't think there is any such thing as a good fit with the velcro/rack style of connection. There is always something that is loose, that doesn't fit perfectly, that slides around because the rack and trunk widths are never made for each other (or maybe my cyclist OCD is showing). The only time that works is if the mfg makes both the rack and the pack and they are made for each other - that is the exception and certainly not the rule. An example of this is the Arkel Tailrider bag and the Arkel Randonneur rack that were, in fact, made for each other. They fit together perfectly but the combination is heavy and expensive but it is very nice and fit perfectly together.
J.
