Help me out with rear rack/basket options
 

I recently moved closer to work and I'm commuting by bike regularly again, but the back sweat is getting to me! I'm also living close to a grocery store and would love to be able to carry more food than what I can shove into my backpack. I don't have a rear rack yet, but I have the mounts for one and I'm planning to get my hands on one soon, the question is what kind of container to attach to it. My first thought was to just go with a milk crate, or step it up slightly to the pretty wire basket the LBS recommended, and zip-tie one of those on. But I'm not sure I want to commit to having the basket attached all the time; I'm afraid of it making mounting and dismounting annoying, and worried it will get in the way of putting my bike on the bus rack. I found a few options for quick release rear baskets like this one, but all seem to have mixed reviews and people say they're not secure enough.

Right now I'm leaning towards folding baskets like these (Lovely Bicycle cw, lol) because I think it will let me carry the most groceries, I like the idea of having the weight distributed on either side of the wheel instead of up high, and I can fold them flat and forget about them when I'm not using them. My only issue with these is whether they'll be good for commuting as well. I would probably stick my backpack in one basket, bungee it on, and then either put my lunch and a book in the other basket, or else leave it folded up. For those who've ridden with an uneven load like that, is it as annoying as it sounds? Or do you get used to it?

As someone who has had a rack (and used it) for many years, I'll try to answer all of your questions.

Yes, get a rack. Period. They're extremely useful.

Those baskets are VERY heavy. I never realized this until I tried lifting a bike that had 2 mounted to the rack. They add significant weight to the bike. Whether this bothers you or not, I don't know. They are also quite a bit noisy (rattling around and what not.) I say this from bikes I've had come into the shop, not from any of my bikes. So I'm not sure if you could spend a few moments with some fabric tape and fix the rattles.

I personally think the better option is panniers or "grocery getter" panniers.
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ROAM: Review: Banjo Brothers Grocery Panniers

They serve the same purpose as the baskets, but are lighter and are easily removable.

If you want something waterproof, obviously the grocery getter panniers aren't great.

Riding with a single pannier isn't a problem. I do it every morning. It makes it slightly more difficult to ride no handed, but that's the only real observation I have about it.

Thanks for your reply, I was considering panniers as well and hadn't included them in the original post. Those look really good for what I need!

My errand setup is very similar. Rear rack, open top grocery panniers. Best solution I've found for my needs.

I have a Bontrager BackRack S on my compact frame hybrid with sloping downtube. But there are plenty of good similarly priced racks around. I like the tube support attached to the seat stay better than some of the twisty flat spring supports on other racks.

And I use the Nashbar Townie panniers, nearly identical to the Banjo Bros, JandD, and a few other models. Some have mesh sides, some solid ballistic nylon fabric; some have slightly different attachment methods -- usually hooks over the rack and a bungee hook for the bottom eyelet; but all work pretty much the same way. They fold flat when not in use and don't add much wind resistance. So some days I'll take a 20-40 mile ride with the empty panniers, then stop for groceries on the way home.

I also have a huge soft sided rolling drink cart that's good for errands when I need to fetch lots of stuff that needs to be kept cold or frozen, but it's a bit of a hassle to rig up. Generally I'll use heavy duty zip ties reinforced with bungee cords. And I have a heavy duty milk crate, but it's a real hassle to use -- I'd use it only for lugging awkward loads.

If I had room in my apartment I'd get a cruiser as a dedicated errand bike and rig it up with Wald folding baskets on the rear and a big basket on the front. It'd be much easier for my errands, which range from a mile round trip to 10 miles, tops.

I put Panniers on my Rear rack , they come off, go into the grocery shop and come out full of food.

I have Wald folding baskets and I love 'em! They're not heavy IMHO, and they are more versitile than paniers. I have ridden with a backpack in one side only and didn't notice any real imbalance.

I have Wald folding baskets on both my bikes, and am very happy with them. They are bolted on, so theft is not a problem -- and they are always there if I decide to go shopping or similar on the spur of the moment from work. The shopping bag style panniers just clip on and off, so you need to remember to bring them or allow anyone who passes by to slip them off the bike when it is parked.


Wald has a poorly-designed clip to keep the baskets folded up. I just use bungee cords to keep them folded up when I'm not using them. No one has ever run off with the bungee cords, BTW. The Bungeed Walds don't make noise in my experience, and the bungees are useful for securing the load when the Walds are in use. The size of the Walds is perfect for one large grocery bag each.


I also use 20L dry sacks that I place in the Walds instead of using rear panniers when I tour. The Walds have enough extra space for a water jug or miscellaneous stuff that I don't need to keep in the dry sacks.


The biggest issue is that the bike (a Trek 520) doesn't handle well if you put too much weight in back. When the weight gets up to 50 pounds or so, the bike is awkward to steer. So I got a Soma Porteur front rack that accommodates odd lots up front (I've brought a watermelon home from the supermarket on it.). If I put 20-25 pounds up front, I can load the back with all the weight I'm willing to pedal without having handling problems. And the Soma will take a pair of front panniers if you do any touring.


Obviously, weight weenies would not opt for any of this...

Specifically what would you say makes them more versatile than panniers of similar shape/size?

I think I misspoke. I guess it would depend on your specific needs. And in some instances I suppose panniers maybe more versatile. What I was originally thinking about was that the folding baskets are always attached to the bike so they're always there when you need them. However I'm sure there are some people that keep empty panniers attached to their bike all the time. I was also thinking that the Wald folding baskets can hold more weight without tearing, but there are heavy canvas panniers. And the wire mesh wald baskets cannot be used without a bag for small items but I carry a pair of small canvas bags so I didn't think about that.

And the main thing is I have never owned panniers so I really should not have said that they are more versatile.

I was quick to offer an opinion before gathering all the facts. Perhaps I should go into politics.

I think you should look very hard at Racktime's Addit Carrier rack and Racktime Baskit Trunk Carrier Basket - rear basket.

This is the setup I have and it still leaves you free to add panniers or Wald side baskets or whatever.

The Racktime rack and baskets come with a snap in system to secure the basket and it is also a quick release system.

The racktime basket is also very long, longer than my Axiom rear basket and it is perfect for when I want to buy a 5kg bag of ice or when I want to put my backpack into it, when commuting.

Of course when I just want to go for a ride, I easily take the basket off and don't have to deal with the annoyance of a permanently fixed basket.

Try getting a load like this into panniers:

I've learned to do smaller shopping trips, and I've found that to be OK. There is a tendency to want capacity to carry the biggest conceivable load, but it's really not that important. I buy what fits and save buying the rest for later. I use panniers. When they're empty, they're very light and quiet.

Interestingly, if I have only one pannier, or if I load them unevenly, it's not at all difficult to ride.

LOL. My commuter setup (for summer, so far) is the Banjo Brothers Market Pannier. It's essential the Grocery Pannier with an covering flap. In addition, it has a small pocket on the flap, which I use for the garage door opener (and coupons when I use it for shopping), and an internal hanging pocket, which holds my work cell phone, wallet, and badge. It's not waterproof, so I put my computer and change of clothes in 2 gal Ziploc bags. We'll see come winter whether I regret not paying 2 1/2 times as much for real Ortliebs. The most groceries I've had have been 2 gallons of milk and 3-4 small plastic bags of produce.

Another option: Kitty litter bucket + Pannier = Kittier

You gotta commit to looking like a hobo though.

I have two of those, and if I fill them both, and hold more stuff on top of them and the rack (their tops are flush with the rack) with a bungee net, I can haul home quite a lot of groceries.

I'm a fan of the Wald folding baskets. Inexpensive, lightweight, and yes they may rattle but the one on my 3 speed is decades old. Another option is Wald's non folding option. The folding ones can each perfectly fit one of the cold storage zip top grocery bags, and those hold a lot.

Would it be possible to kill the rattles by squeezing silicone glue into all the joints?

I embrace the rattles. Of course, it's a 70's Raleigh Sports - there are all kinds of things rattling around and I suspect my front hub is a bit loose

Have a friend that used to ride a vintage univega so noisy, we used to call him The Tinker (medieval seller of pots/pans/various metal utensils)

Sounds like grocery panniers and folding baskets each have their fans. I like the idea of carrying grocery panniers into the store, but for commuting use I'd need to decide whether or not to take them into the building. I'm leaning towards the baskets because I could just unfold one to put my backpack in and then leave the basket on the bike while I take my backpack inside.
Thanks for all the responses!

I use the Topeak system. I have a rack, basket and trunk bag for it. I can mount panniers to the rack along with the rack/trunk bag. My backpack fits in the basket, if I have to pop into the store for booze/provisions I can always wear the backpack.

Put me firmly in the rack and panniers crowd.
Easily removed, no rattling, the weight is carried lower than a basket and even non-waterproof ones are still reasonably weatherproof. Mine are actually smaller front panniers but I've always been able to pack as much weight (clothes/laptop for commuting or groceries for errands) as I really want to carry on a bike. Riding with just one loaded is barely noticeable.

Here are my 2 bikes I will haul groceries with. I have a basket on rear racks most of the time they don’t interfere with riding at all and if you get your rack mounted low as you can and keep the top below the saddle height you wont have a problem. On the KHS mtn bike converted to commuter I use snap rings into the basket or bungee to attach a bag or two or whatever to the basket. I found a light weight cooler that drops in the basket. Keeps stuff pretty cold if I freeze a few water bottles and put them in.

The Windsor is for more serious hauling and will hold a lot being a touring bike and made for it. Same basket for cold stuff and the bins for heavy stuff. The bins have regular quick mounts that snap on the rack just like soft bags would. Out front I built a flat platform rack perfect place for hauling the jumbo family pack of 36 rolls of TP. I try and keep that load light but bulky. You could easily load a 100 pounds of groceries if you wanted. Might be riding the granny home but she would do it.

Please don’t comment on the bars lol. It was a setup I was experimenting with for a while on both bikes actually.

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I've got a hybrid with a rear rack with a wire basket zip tied to it, and I've used a traditional milk crate on my last bike. They make 1 inch zip straps that are sold at Walmart with strong 100 lb working load strapping and strong metal buckles with spring levers that make great quick release attachments. It's the same sort of straps you would use to secure a tarp covered load on a truck bed, but specifically the smallest and lightest ones. Pack Cam Tie Down Straps Cargo Lash Luggage Nylon Bag Belt Metal Buckle | eBay

I've had great luck with simply lacing paracord between the holes in the basket and the frame of the rack just like a shoe, and then tightening up with a single quick release shoe string knot. The idea is that the more times you wrap the single string around the perimeter of the frame of the rack, the higher ratio of slack in the rope to play in the entire basket. This way you can attach the entire basket with a single knot, and take it off just as easily as you could remove the laces from a shoe, yet hold it securely even if the knots work loose. The play that you do end up with acts as a bit of a shock absorber, so it's not bad at all.

Obviously you have to be careful with loose strings and straps and make sure to secure any excess line to keep it out of wheels, etc. A zip strap or some parachord with basic slip knots, bow line knots, and quick release knots can securely and temporarily secure a rack basket on an odd sized load. Technically you could weave a harness out of parachord for any given load. Something as simple as piece of stick used as a toggle could act as a strong, lightweight, and secure quick release mechanism.

Ha, just yesterday I was walking to and from the store with a big pack of paper towels thinking "I wish I could attach this to my bike somewhere." That and carrying a pizza would be nice, but it's not an immediate priority.