Grocery-getter -- gimme some ideas
 

I'm just about to wrap up my overhaul of an old Robin Hood, which I intend to use for errands and runs to the grocery store (I may commute on it, but maybe not -- it might be too heavy and slow for my 10 miles in).

So, I need some way to haul around groceries and other goodies.

Gimme some ideas!

Wald baskets front and rear - you can get the big paperboy one for the front, and the hard-mounted basket "panniers" for the back.

Best of all about the back one, is that you can stuff the baskets full, then stick a milk crate or something over the top of those and use them for extra carrying capacity.

I plan on doing this as soon as I can talk my dad out of his beach cruiser (after I add a 5-6 speed rear hub and a derailleur.

I think it depends some on the type of groceries you'll be hauling, and how far you'll be hauling them. The rig I'd use for a 50 pound bag of rice would probably be different from what I'd use to haul ice cream and fresh vegetables.

You could try looking in the Utility thread.. may be some ideas in there. I would think a cargo trailer for a good amount of groceries.. maybe panniers for just a quick trip to the store.

I, personally, use a modified trike (was an old lady grocery getter) that I converted into a cruiser-trike/cargo bike with cruiser bars, springer fork and standard cruiser saddle. I also upgraded it to a 15-speed, added a paper-boy front carrier and enlarged the rear cargo bed. I am now in the midst of converting a child-carrier trailer into a cargo trailer that can attach to the trike by bolting a steel diamond-plate to the bottom, adding sturdy lattice-style framing around the sides and re-wrapping the nylon covering so that it allows the full floor-space to be utilized. I will be able to carry as much as any car-trunk and more once it is completed.

50-pound bag of rice ... what, you expected a nuclear showdown? :)

I don't want a trailer ... baskets or panniers of some kind is what I have in mind, but this is unfamiliar territory and don't know what's good, what works and what are the good sources.

My grocery store is about 3 miles away. If I get this working, I will probably do several trips a week, rather than wait until the weekend for the big haul (which I do now, with my Suburban -- talk about a grocery-getter!).

I hope you are not talking about the foldable baskets. I had one on one of my bikes and they rattled like nuts when folded though less if you bungee tied them. They were of great use however.

+1 for this. Ultimate grocery getting power on the cheap.

I use a Topeak MTX basket, which clips right into my Topeak Explorer rack in seconds. You can also carry it like a shopping basket (although the handle is a little flimsy), which gives you a good idea of how much you can carry home.

I don't get a weeks worth of schtuff, but it works fine for 2 bags or so or to pick up take out. If I have any bulky items, I bungee those to the rack. I also use a bungee type net to keep things from flying out.

http://us.st12.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.c..._2040_14581947http://media.rei.com/media/yy/d5db7d...380db34d8a.jpg
http://www.rei.com/features/zoom.htm...=513&width=700

After our daughter outgrew our InStep bike trailer, it was pressed into service as a grocery carrier. It has come in very handy, as automobile parking is very tight at our favorite grocery store. It easily carries a week worth of groceries. I'd guess that you could easily find an outgrown trailer in your area.

Paul

My grocery/utility bike is a 1987 Schwinn Woodlands that I pulled from a dumpster. I've done the following mods:

WTB Graffiti 2.2 SF tires ($25 for both)
SKS P-65 fenders ($50)
Velo-Orange Tourist handlebars ($20)
Trans-It rear rack ($20)
4gal bucket panniers ($10 of parts from the hardware store, free buckets from the bakery; these are really the way to go if you need cheap waterproof panniers.)

So, for $125 I've got a bike with a wide span of gears that can haul 2 - 3 bags of groceries before I start lashing things to the top of the rack and buckets.
The addition of a CETMA 7-rail rack will double the carrying capacity.

Waitrose supermarkets in the UK offer a "free" cycle trailer for a small refundable deposit. There are pictures to go with the press release so maybe you make/copy something similar.

http://www.waitrose.presscentre.com/...6&NewsAreaID=2

No,

https://waldsports.com/index.cfm/sto...44&prod_id=231

Dig around and find the post about the guy who made panniers using recyclable grocery bags. Dirt cheap and they look pretty reliable (or at least easy to replace).

I need to figure out how to make the baskets easily removable though...

I use the Wald folding baskets with no issues. The large paperboy baskets (front and rear) work well to on the right kind of bike. Both of the bikes below get taken on grocery runs, depending on what and how much I am picking up.

Aaron:)

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_rXxvQDmFvso/SW...0/CIMG0006.JPG

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rXxvQDmFvso/SW...0/CIMG0143.JPG

Did you change the gearing on the Robin Hood? If it's the classic three speed setup, you have a 46T chain ring and an 18T cog; switching the latter to 22T or even bigger (if you can find it), will make the bike feel ten pounds lighter!

+1

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e3...Picture165.jpg

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e3...1/DSC00077.jpg

Although it is heavy, it is a bike I've used to commute (7 miles), maybe once every week or two, just as a change from my regular commuter bike.

+2 on the wald baskets. I don't notice the rattleing like a someone else mentioned, but the;re on an old MTB and doesn't see much use unless it's a store run. They are rigid unlike the cloth versions and fit a standard size grocery bag nicely.

I use an Arkel Utility Basket for shopping and it works great. I have a shoulder strap and do my shopping directly with the basket, which is nicer than using a shopping cart. It's probably not the cheapest solution at $109, but it works great and carries a large volume of stuff. I'm single and only need 1, but if you had 2 of them you could carry a lot of ice cream. :)

http://www.arkel-od.com/panniers/uti...asp?fl=1&site=

Swagman Whee Pod

http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment...8&d=1232922432

No, but you might! One never knows. Or, you might simply like rice a lot. :D

Personally, I really don't like loads on the front of the bike. If it were me, I'd get a good sturdy rack and some panniers with beefed-up attachments, zip-ties and such. I might also add a milk crate on top, for stuff that I want to avoid crushing in a pannier or for smaller loads. Now, that rig would haul a lot of groceries, maybe more than you would need given the frequency of your trips and the fact that you're still using a car for your "big shopping". In that case I might just go for the milk crate.

Used kid trailer. Mod it to suit your purpose.

The thing I dont like with baskets is that everyone can see what you have. A few years ago when I was using a Wald rear basket I went to the market to buy a bunch of candy to give out on Halloween and stopped by a bookstore on the way home. When I got out of the bookstore the candy was gone.