I bought a Planet Bike Versa Rack not too long ago and after fiddling around with the arms that are supposed to mount on the seatstays, I decided to mount it with the arms up and connected to the brackets on the bottom of my saddle. So aside from it not being so aesthetically pleasing, is there anything wrong with it? See pics below for comments. It is mounted perfectly flat, so thats a plus...

hm.

Yes, there is something wrong. That mount point lets it move. Not a good thing. That's the reason to mount it to the frame.

Never hang it on a part that can move independent of the rack itself.

Move the mount to the frame, or the seatpost, below the suspension part of the seatpost......

If you get a bolt on seatpost clamp, the size of the seatpost, you can attach each side on it's respective side of the clamp. Mount it as close to the bottom of the exposed seatpost as you can. Or, "P" clamp it to the seatstay bridge, or the seatstay itself..

I don't see any mounts on the seatstays**********? Odd....

Looks like it works...

I see now it has a shock on the seat post. That will cause problems with your other mounts.

LOL never seen it done like that before. There are 2 brazers down by the break shoes. They usually go there, I have the same Bike

P-clamps are your friends. To the seatstays not the saddle rails. You might be okay if it weren't for the fact that you have a suspension seatpost.

Looking at the bike I'm guessing you went up because the seat stay was too low so the front brackets wouldn't reach? it looks similar to my wife's which is why I mentioned that, hers the seat stay was too low so when I extended the front all the way the rack was still angled forward and since we put a child seat on it. I made a bracket that connected to the frame then the seat stays and went up higher to make the rack mounts the same height as the stay on my bike.

wow these pictures are brutal, take a normal side on picture

Unfortunately the sloping top tube design isn't ideal for racks.

I ran my wife's to either side of the seat clamp bolt.

Okay, let me clarify some things here. First off, I did not want to mount it this way. In order for this friggin thing to work, this was my only option. I have yet to find any braze-ons that I could use. I'm no dummy with this stuff either. Also, the arms that were given for attachment points are about an inch too short, at minimum..

Unless I am blind as a bat, I can't find these damn braze-ons. Can anyone help me? its an 07 model. I have P-clamps as well but theyre about 1cm too short to use on the seatstays.

Take it easy, nobody is calling you an idiot & there is no such thing as a dumb question. I can not see the braze-on in your pictures. I have the same bike & it has them but that doesn't mean yours doesn't. My bike is an 07 or 08, it is certainly possible it didn't get them in production for some reason. You can go to the hardware store and in electrical pick up a couple of 1/2 inch tubing hangers. You really want the rack supported from the bottom & not suspended from above. Most racks need some modification. You can also mount it to the brake mounts but you will have to make a trip to the hardware, you need a small L bracket and a spacer and maybe a longer screw for each side.

I don't see any braze ons in the picture. It looks like the bottom stays are adjustable. Lower them a step or two to still clear the tire, take the front stays, put a twist in them to turn 90 and run to the seat post clamp with bends as needed to keep the rack fairly level.. You may need to stop at the LBS (or hardware store/scrap yard/mechanic) and find a longer piece of strap or piece to extend them if they are too short. You could also P clip them to the seat stays but the brake linkage/arms movement may have some interference. Trial and error is often needed when there isn't a clear "put it here".

My opinion YMMV

I'd try mount it to the seatpost with a clamp or to the seatpost collar. It may result in the rack tilting forward a bit, but that's not a huge deal.

Something like this might help:

I second AdamDZ's suggestion - it's what I use on one of my bikes:



Due to the geometry of your frame your seatpost clamp is lower in relation to the rack than mine is, but since those attachment struts are already bent, flipping them over should line them up with the clamp.

Here are picture of my trek 7100fx. With the stock parts that came with the rack. All I had to do was bend the metal straps.

So I talked to the guy at the LBS about the rack today. I also found my braze on...not ons, on. Right where the seatstays, the seat tube, and the top tube come together, there is a small metal bar with a braze-on on the bottom. One of the reasons why it was such a bi-atch to find. Obviously I couldn't use it with the mounting kit that came with the rack, so the guys at the LBS said for me to leave my bike there and they'd mount it for me. In their words, "we'll find a way to get it on". Talk about service?

Also, Timber and the rest of y'all who have been giving me suggestions please forgive me if you thought I was mad atcha in my last post. I was just extremely frustrated because I kept reading the Planet Bike website which said it should fit "97% of bike frames". 3%er! Woo! But seriously, I appreciated your help so much. I knew that if I posted here, I would hear back quickly and I did in earnest!

Oy! Too many pictures!! Why include the pic of the headbadge? (Also, install the front wheel so the lever is on the left side. Not that it matters except, that position is unusual.)

the photo uploader is a funky thing. i only tried to upload certain ones, and it uploaded em all. fail.

OK. Good luck with the rack! (Flip your wheel!)

get an adapter kit and connect it to the seatpost instead

That is great your LBS was able to help you out, I also have a great LBS so I try to always buy my stuff from them or order it through them. I will find things on line I want and ask the if they either have it or can get it. Good luck and post more pictures.

Most manufacturers seem to claim that their racks will fit 97% of bikes.... however from what I've experienced, 99% of the time the people who want me to install a rack onto their bike seem to own the 3%er bike that the rack won't fit.

As for the term 'universal fit' that you see printed on the packaging of most bike accessories... that doesn't mean it will fit most bikes, it means that just about anybody will end up throwing a tantrum when trying to install it on a bike.

I'm wondering if this particular rack isn't that well-suited to this bicycle.

Small frame hybrids have weird frames because they're made to accommodate a smaller rider and the larger 700c wheels.

Maybe go to a seatpost rack? Attaching your rack to your saddle means you can't adjust your saddle and there are three more linkages between your rack and your bike frame.

When the package says it will fit 97% of bikes, what it means is, you will have to find a creative way to rig it 97% of the time. 3% of the time it will fit the first time with no issues. I ran into this problem when trying to mount fenders. The fenders cost me $35 and then I ended up spending another $20 on stainless hardware to get them to mount properly. I should also mention that I had to make clearance for disk brakes though, so I knew what I was getting into when I started the project.