Tubus cosmo vs. logo
 

I've decided to definitely go with one of these tubus racks. I like the idea of Stainless not rusting, but I wish they were polished and not so grey. I think the black logos would look better, but I'll be running them year round, and can't stand the idea that they would rust. Anyone have that happen? does the paint wear away where the bags clip on? do you guys think balk or silver looks better on this bike.
Thanks ahead of time for the help!
R.
http://nexo-s.com/userstatic/risingp...Photo%2036.jpg

I have the black one. No signs of rust or of the paint/finish coming off. The stainless one was too expensive! But I have a surly on the front that is silver. I don't mind that they don't match. :)

I am a commuter and I have the black one - no issues except that the tubes are thicker than some racks, and one of my bags (arkel briefcase) has a hard time hanging on since the hooks mouths are not quite big enough - my other Arkel bags have no issues (T-42s, and I have a tail-runner on the rack deck).

How long have you had the black one? Does it see a lot of bags?
Thanks
R.

Have you had them long/ use them a lot?
I'll be riding daily in every weather!

I have the black logo, use it on my commuter bike. The other day in stiff winds the bike fell over while parked.
The rack got a nice dent and some paint came off. Luckily I was able to clean it up and put some touch up primer to prevent rusting (hopefully, knock on wood). But if that had happened on tour I am not sure how quickly the logo would rust.

I have the following on 3 separate bikes, Tubus Cargo, Surly Nice Rear rack and Trek Interchange. I use Ortlieb back rollers.
1. Paint wear happens. But with regular use, the surface that has worn remains polished and there is no rust.
2. Once after a mild accident, I scraped the paint off the Tubus at some odd corner. It started to rust within a week. Bit of sanding the rust down and a little touch up paint cleaned it off.
3. I have rolled some electric tape at the contact points now and don't worry much about wear or rust.

I suppose you should go with what you like and have reasonable expectations on their function. All the racks I have serve their function and I don't bother with them apart from replacing the electric tapes when they tear.

I have a Cosmo and three Logo racks. The coating has come off of all three of the Logos in multiple places due to pannier rub. Of course these places are also rusting. While Tubus designs great racks, they really need a more robust coating on them. Rust on such an expensive rack just isn't okay.

Looks aren't everything but...
 

Do you guys like how the Stainless steel racks look? I had the Axiom tour de monde, I didn't like how they looked at all. They were VERY bulky looking, and looked like silver painted almost. I was disappointed to hear they weren't like a shiny chrome.
Thanks
R.

Raffi, there isn't any wear on mine but I don't use panniers that often.

If you have wear/rust concerns, just get the stainless. I love stainless, it's a great material.

After 60 days of use with heavy loaded Ortlieb rear panniers, my logo does have a few areas where the paint has rubbed and, yes, there is a small amount of rust. There has been several nights it has been left out in the rain, though, so I am not surprised. Tubus includes several plastic buffer patches which would probably prevent the rub, but I lost mine before putting on and frankly, don't care all that much. It is a SOLID rack that has never come loose and does it's job well, so unless you are really concerned about aesthetics, I would say go with the Logo.

My silver Logo has a bit of rust (two years of 3-season commuting and some touring). The older uncoated Arkel hooks eat the finish rather quickly. I added a couple of layers of duct tape where the hooks are, something I should've done before. The tape matches the rack colors!

Hi

I have the Tubus LOCC. I would take the Cosmo because the Logo is too small for me and the back light isn't protected (My bike flies a lot). I have the black one and I use it since April 2008. At places where put my panniers the colour already disappears :( if it will rost I will see next winter. May I toured too much on bumpy single trails :D

I took the Locc instead of the Cosmo only because the cosmo isn't available for 26" and I wanted to put my panniers as deep as possible. But that isn't with your bike relevant.

Thomas

I have tubus stainless racks front and rear on my touring bike as I didn't want to have to worry about wear, tear and rust. I like how they look but it is a slightly odd finish compared to nickel plating (like Nitto racks), paint, or powder coat. It looks as though they shot peen the tubes this gives a somewhat rough satiny appearance that's a little hard to describe.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shot_peening

It makes the racks stronger, and gives them higher resistance to scratching and wear. I dig it.