Tips on buying a rear rack?

[pandorapi]

I hope this is the right part of the forum for this question!

I have recently bought and fixed up a vintage woman's road bike with 27" wheels. My plan is to use it for day trips and such out of town, but I hate carrying a backpack all day. I am looking into buying a rear rack so I can hang pannier bags.

I thought I'd ask the hive mind if anyone has any tips or words of advice before I dive headfirst into ebay.

Thanks!

 

[Heltor Chasca]

Of all the racks I have tried, Tubus come up top trumps, so if you see one of those, you are onto a good start.

 

[Spiderweb]

In my opinion Tubus racks are the best but also very expensive. If you are on a budget Tortec racks are good and much less expensive.

 

[MontyVeda]

If you've got big feet, you might want to look at racks that allow the panniers to be mounted further back.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Racktime is a brand of Tubus and about half the price. They've got some very neatly designed racks., like the StandIt Shine

 

[robjh]

I'm assuming your frame has the necessary bolt holes for fixing the rack to? Ideally there would be two sets, one near the rear axle, and another at or near the top of the seat stays. If not, there are solutions such as racks that just hang off the seat post, or seat post clamps with attached eyelets, but it is best to know what you'll need before buying anything.

 

[Pale Rider]

Rose stocks lots of Tubus and Racktime.

Postage adds a bit to the prices, but the site is good for a browse.

https://www.rosebikes.com/search/find/?q=racktime

https://www.rosebikes.com/search/find/?q=tubus

 

[Gravity Aided]

Nice to know, about Racktime. I had no idea.

 

[wisdom]

I personally like the tortec racks as they fit my Altura panniers perfectly.

 

[pandorapi]

I should have mentioned that I do have a budget. I certainly do not want to spend more on the rack than I did on the bike itself!

Haha, no, I don't think I have big feet MontyVeda.

User, yes, that was my thought. But not all vintage racks are the same, so I thought the forum's collective experience will have some advice as to what to look for and what to avoid.

Robjh I had not considered that bolt holes might be needed. I will have a look. There are some racks like the one below that look to attach to the brakes. Is that a recommended solution? Would I need to make sure my brakes have any special sort of bolt?

Also I have a rear mudguard on the bike that I do not want to remove. Will the bolt holes on the frame fit both a mudguard and a rack? They should. Would I need to longer bolts maybe?

 

[graham bowers]

Some photos of the mounting points at the rear brake bridge area and rear wheel dropout area would allow more meaningful comments to be made on mounting points and hardware. Just buy whatever rack is suitable for your frame, I don't see that for daytrips that it matters whether the top attachment is a single to the brake bridge or double to the seat stays. I've never had to fit a longer bolt to the brake to accommodate a rack. No need to spend Tubus money for daytrips.

How much do you want to transport? For day trips, a rack bag may be suitable. I thing to bear in mind is the length of the chainstays and where panniers may end up being positioned. Heel strike is something to be aware of, as was alluded to by MontyVeda.