jtwilson

My rear rack isn't centered perfectly above the rear tire. This issue became amplified when an F-350 pinned my bike against the pole it was locked to. Luckily, my rack saved the stresses from my wheel/bike, but it got bent a bit. Now the rack is offset a bit more above the rear tire.

I am wondering if this will increase my chances of breaking spokes on tour. Should I replace the rack just in case? It seems fine to me, but I could imagine it might put uneven stress on the wheel when loaded. I really don't know how big of an issue this is. Is this just part of the pre-tour jitters? I am trying to head off likely problem areas.

Any opinions?

Gordon P

How much is a replacement rack worth?
What is breaking down in the middle of nowhere worth to you?

stevage

You should replace the whole bike just in case.

Cyclebum

Take the rack off and straighten it out. Shouldn't be too hard. Otherwise, just get a new one. Minimize what you're got to worry about, and maximize making the tour a fun time.

Gordon P

Sorry, I’m not trying to be mean but a day on the road looking for a replacement rack or trying to fix a rear wheel is a real pain and a vacation day wasted. If you have a respected brand of rack I would contact them about the condition. However, for the price of an exceptional rack that can be trusted is cheap insurance while on a tour. I’ve had racks and wheels fail so I know what I am talking about. Also if you are worried about your rear wheel spend the money on something you can trust.

NeilGunton

What is the rack made of - aluminum or steel? It matters because aluminum loses strength when you bend it (no fatigue tolerance) but steel can generally be bent a bit more easily. It also depends, of course, on the nature of the bend - you don't want it to kink, which might introduce a new stress point for future failure. A slight deformity in a steel rack might well be correctable. For example, framebuilders sometimes "cold set" a steel frame after brazing or welding, to get it back into alignment (since uneven heat distribution on the joint can cause distortions). This basically involves just bending the thing so it's straight again! I'm not sure it would be so wise to try this with aluminum, though.

Neil

staehpj1

What Neil says about aluminum and steel is true, but it depends on the alloy whether it is made of tube or solid rod and if tubing, how thick the walls are. The cold setting thing with bike frames is a different deal to at least some extent because bike frames are made of much thinner wall tubing and a different alloy. Any aluminum rack I have dealt with can tolerate a bit of bending as long as you don't overdo it. Unless there is a sharp bend concentrated in one place I would just take it off and straighten it.

jtwilson

Thanks for the input.

The rack is a Topeak Explorer [disc]. Hollow aluminum tubing. After much deliberation, I decided to go ahead and buy a replacement, as it's only $25. This is piece of mind that I can afford. I have tried to bend the rack back into alignment but it just isn't happening. Furthermore, one of the mounting points is bent down a little, so it's at an angle where it meets the frame. This seems quite bad for the mounting screw and ultimately drove my decision to replace it, overriding the concerns of top alignment.