After 7 years of bike commuting, I finally have a "proper" commuter bike
 

"proper" according to the unwritten rules of bike commuting. after 7 years of being a backpack commuter, I finally broke down and put a rack and panniers on my new motobecane CX bike from bikesdiret.com. my 1st commute into work with her will be tomorrow. the rack and panniers represent a $75 investment, so I hope I like them.





http://s27.postimg.org/kvw1l0o5v/motobecane_CX.jpg

Should be a lot better than a backpack.

Nice Ride.

I think you will like them. The overall look is nice, and I like the long front fender...most effective in the wet!

Is it just me or does that front fender look weird?? Like it's too far back..

Nice setup! Congratulations on the new panniers :thumb:

I went with panniers on my blue Motobecane several months ago. For me, it's much nicer than lugging a backpack. Plus I'm faster without the backpack. Don't think I will ever go back unless it's on a short ride.

Nice. Not a proper commuter until you get a little dirt and grime on it. And clipless pedals. Style points for a better fender line and removing the reflectors.

Something similar that does this would lower it. I don't think it would work with a carbon fork and I wouldn't pay eighteen dollars for it, but the idea is on the right track.

In my experience, the bike feels heavier with the rack/panniers, but my back much appreciates not having the load on it, so it was a net improvement for me. Hope you like it as well. Just don't succumb to the temptation to bring the kitchen sink along since that weight is no longer on your back. :thumb:

I'm betting you like the rack and panniers. And, that is a nice bike. Enjoy:thumb:

Nice bike and great you finally have the proper setup for commuting. Curious which rack you used. I have a bikesdirect bike in the mail that has disc brakes (the Fantom titanium model) and I'm probably going to have to get a disc specific model rear rack. Curious to know what you've got there.

wait for it.... wait for it.... it's a brand spanking new bike.




it already has them. I have forte campus pedals on the bike, they're combo SPD/platform pedals.





the wheel reflectors are practical so i'll probably leave them on. the wonky front fender line is due to the CX fork crown being way too high above the tire for the mounting bracket attached to the fender. there does not appear to be an easy fix. if it bothers me too much going forward, i'll have to invent a kludge to fix it





that would be a great fix for a steel fork, but yeah, it won't work with the carbon fork on my bike because there's no hole in the bottom of the crown.





i'm expecting the bike to perform differently from what i'm used to, but now that I have a radically shorter commute after my recent move (from 15 miles one-way down to just 5 miles), my focus has shifted from raw performance concerns to more practical ones, hence the rack and panniers.

My SKS Longboards look the same, and they're great. They really keep the bike clean.

it's an axiom rack I got from nashbar. my disc-brake motobecane CX bike has the rear disc brake mounted inside the rear triangle on the chain stay, so there was no issue with mounting the rack and fenders on the rear dropout eyelet. the titanium motobecane CX bikes might still have the rear disc brake mounted on the seat stay, which necessitates a disc-specific rack.

A nice sheet of scrap aluminum from the hardware store is ~$10 and everyone should have a pair of tin snips and a drill. I mostly make my own custom long brackets for that situation.

Reflectors should stay.

Nice bike! :thumb: I think you'll find you prefer panniers. I'm not familiar with those, but I much prefer panniers that attach and unattach from the rack very easily. It's worth spending a bit more to get something with a quick release system to make it a snap instead of a daily chore.

Why clipless pedals? If you like them, go for it, I have nothing against them. But I personally find platforms more suitable for stop and go traffic, and you can wear whatever shoes you want, which makes life easier for a commuter. Clipless is strictly optional.

And what's wrong with reflectors? While you can't rely on them alone, they do improve visibility at night. They certainly can't hurt. They are perfectly appropriate for a commuter if you ride at night. Commuting is about getting safely and efficiently from point A to point B, so what style points are you talking about?

Nice ride.

To fix fender mount issue, simply hit up hardware store and ask what they recommend for hanging a screw.

- Andy

I guess it's mounted behind the fork, instead of in front of it. This way water sprayed in front by the front wheel will be run onto in case of headwinds. Been there, done that, so put the fender just a bit more forward.

this morning was my first ride into work with the new commuter bike.

i liked the freedom of having a completely unencumbered back, but with all that extra weight over the rear wheel, the handling is weird and it will take some getting used to. the bike feels heavier, slower, and more lumbering than my titanium road rocket, but that's a really unfair comparison i suppose. for my short little 5 mile runs to work and back, this bike will be great. and with the addition of the rack and panniers, i'll be able to use the bike to stop and get groceries on my way home from work a couple times a week, which i'm sure my wife will greatly appreciate now that our daughter has finally been born and she's knee deep in feeding and caring for the little one. the more chores and errands i can take off of her plate the better.


clipless pedals are great. so are platform pedals. that's why i'm a big fan of combo SPD/platforms pedals like the Forte Campus pedals i have on my new bike. some people think combo pedals are the worst of both worlds, but i love the maximum versatility and flexibility they allow. i've been riding combo pedals for 7 years now, and i don't think i'll ever switch to any other kind of pedal.

You've got me rethinking the Fantom Cross Pro Titanium I bought for a couple of reasons:
1. Price
2. Those discs are mounted inside, so I wouldn't have to buy a new rack and fiddle with that at all
3. Simpler 10 speed (the one I bought comes with 11 speed Rival, not sure I'm a fan off that)

How do you like the BB5 brakes on the bike? i've never used SRAM much, are you a fan of the Apex?

Not really excited by Avid cable-actuated discs after using them for a weekend.

Much more excited by hydraulic discs like on my MTB.

Also, had a chance to use one of these over the weekend and like it quite a bit:

Whitechapel, £550 | Whyte Bikes

considering that i have a grand total of 5 miles on the bike, i'll have to get back to you on those questions ;)

but everything worked just fine this morning.

How was ride harshness? The panniers do change the handling, forcing you to put more active input into the handlebars & positioning your weight more often, and changing how you take sharper turns by sometimes over-correcting for where that weight wants to push you. I am a fan of panniers, but when i want a nimble trip that time, they come off & backpack goes on.

- Andy

^ i didn't experience any harshness, in fact the 28mm conti grand prix 4-seasons i put on the bike are quite a bit plusher than the 23mm vittoria rubino pro's on my road bike, and even easier riding than the 32mm conti gatorskins on my hybrid.

but yes, the handling with rack and panniers is very unusual and will take some getting used to. and for the times when i still want a zippy agile ride, i can always just throw my backpack on and ride my titanium road rocket into the office when the weather cooperates.

finally got the rack/panniers You could have put those on past bikes I suppose..

I have a pair on the front of a bike .. easy to stop and grab stuff out of them, mounted there..