Better rear rack for full suspension bike suggestions

[geetarboy]

I have been trying to find a rear rack to hold 30 lbs. If there was one that would attach to rear axle and have supports to attach to rear triangle w/brackets - it would be ideal. I have looked at "old man mountain " & " pletscher." The pletscher looks pretty flimsy and the "omm" has a system that doesn't seem to work w/ a hub motor. Any suggestions? Or do I try to build my own?

 

[PeteCress]

.. rear rack to hold 30 lbs. .. attach to rear axle and have supports to attach to rear triangle w/brackets

Take a close look at the video in http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=235&start=435#p240178 at about 0:22.

I PM'd DoctorBass and he said that the only part he had to fabricate was the interface between the front of the rack and the seat post binder bolt.

 

[Mark_A_W]

Don't put 30lbs on a rear rack.


Your bike will handle like shit. Been there, done that. Broken racks, seatposts and frames, and crappy fattarse bike that doesn't corner and is just nasty.

The battery needs to go in the frame triangle. If you don't have a frame triangle, then you have the wrong bike IMO.

 

[amberwolf]

Alternately, you could use a rack that could support the weight, then use side-mounted panniers that center about the rear axle or more forward (as much so as you can get without your heels striking them). Put the battery(ies) in the bottom.

Even if you have the battery only on one side, the weight is so low after a while you won't even notice that you are compensating for it a little. This is how I have DayGlo Avenger setup, with the big metal box lockable pannier on only the left side, and the battery and controller forward and at the bottom of it. Works fine even when I have 30 or 40 pounds of groceries in it, too, though I do have to be careful to load them toward the front for the heavy stuff, or else it puts too much weight behind the rear axle.

Gonna fix that with an xtracycle clone to extend the rear once I figure out how to do it right and easily.

 

[slayer]

Axiom makes one for full suspension bikes
here is the link
http://www.axiomgear.com/products/gear/racks/rear-racks/odysee-rear-suspension/

or if you already have one study how you can duplicate the idea ...the rack is moving with the swingarm in this setup

 

[morph999]

Axiom makes some of the best bike racks. The topeak Explorer racks can hold 55 lbs. I can verify, I think I've had actually more than 55 lbs on mine before. Also, I don't know where people are getting this handling problem with weight on their bike racks. My bike is just fine. I ran my bike all last year with about 35lbs of batteries and didn't have any problems but I don't go ramping up sidewalks or anything like that. The only time you'll have handling problems is when you have about over 45 lbs on the bike OR your load is not secured properly. If your batteries are properly secured, you should not have any handling problems from my experience. I think these handling issues are from people not securing their loads right and so it swings back and forth when they ride.

 

[dogman dan]

I have to agree about " Don't put 30 pounds on a rear rack". But I do it all the time, and while the handling suffers, it's far from impossible to ride. It just depends on what the bike is intended to do. The suggestion to put the battery in the frame triangle is fine if you have one, but none of my FS bikes have much space there. 15 pounds on the rear rack I don't notice, but 30-50 causes me to want to slow down to below 20 mph, and do less abrupt dodging of potholes.

A lot depends on what kind of battery. Tool packs, A123's, hobby lipo, etc can be stashed in wierd little crannies on bikes. A set of 3 sla's or a big pingbattery is pretty much a block the size of a shoebox.

Another big factor is where the motor is. Front hubs help balance out a big weight on the rear enough to handle better with 30 pounds on the rear rack. It's one of the reasons front hubs are popular despite fork strength issues.

Axxiom is definitely the rack, but to completely prevent breakage, I like to put a brace to the bottom of the seatpost on them. This prevents any adjustments to the seatpost, so make sure that you have the height right before you put bracing on the rack. The main thing to avoid is one bolt racks. Axxiom has 4 bolts to hold it.

I find that on a seatpost type pannier rack, the bottom of the rack can sway a lot, so I put light stuff on the bottom of the pannier, and then put heavy batteries near the top. On a regular pannier you have the bottom support bolted to the frame so the sway doesn't happen. All that advice to put the battery low in the pannier comes from people with normal panniers that don't sway. But for sure, weight carries better at the top of panniers than it does 4 inches higher on top of the rack.

I'd rather carry weight on a rear rack that some of the frame carried batteries I've seen. Anything more than 4" wide making you pedal bowlegged is not worth it to me. Anything making the top tube taller is not worth it to me. Anything that could rub the front tire if you hit a big bump and compress the shocks is really stupid since you could go flying over the handlebars at 35 mph.

Here's a pic of how I do the rack on FS. When I carry one battery it goes in the toolbox, weighing 15 pounds. When I carry two, I put one 15 pound battery in each pannier.

 

[Mark_A_W]

OK guys, I think we will have to agree to disagree.


My definition of handling is maybe different from yours. I got by with the big Headway pack on a rack, but it was horrid to ride compared to what I have now, which has almost perfect weight distribution.

But it will only go 20 miles if I'm very careful. If I hammer it will be through the 9AH in 15 miles.

 

[PeteCress]

Don't put 30lbs on a rear rack. Your bike will handle like shit. Been there, done that....The battery needs to go in the frame triangle.

My first build had the battery on a rear rack (SUS bike) and I agree 100% with the handling. It is especially bad out-of-the-saddle.
viz:

My second build has two much lighter batteries: one in the triangle, and one on a rear rack and handles almost as well as the bike unmodified.
viz:

Just for grins, I left the two smaller batteries in place and put the 5.1kg/11.25 lb battery from the first build in the saddle bag (not the trunk rack bag) of the new build.

Rode it up and down the driveway a few times and, surprise-surprise, the handling was still pretty good. Not that it wasn't heavy... but out-of-the-saddle it felt relatively normal.

On a scale of 1-10 where 1=unrideable and 10=exactly the same as the bike before conversion:

First Build = 3
Second Build = 9
Second Build with 1st Build's battery in pannier bag + 4 add'l pounds of batteries = 7

So, bottom line: Yes, putting all of the battery in the triangle and as low down as possible is the best. But just getting it low - as in a rear pannier bag instead of a trunk rack bag - counts for a lot.

 

[dogman dan]

Yeah, I have two definitions of handling I suppose. Under no circumstances do I expect my ebike, that needs to have a minimum 20 mile range, to handle anything like a bike whatsoever. My first ride on an ebike with 35 pounds of slas aboard left me pretty dissapointed. I lightened up with a 15 pound lifepo4 really fast and have been happy since. I'd build a different type of ebike if I worked 5 miles from home.

I understand that better is possible, but rear drive and 5 ah batteries can't do what I personally need.

Once I accept that the big battery I need, the strong motor I need has ruined the handling, I simply adjust to the shitty handling. I've rode bikes, motorcycles, scooters, mopeds, dirtbikes since 1970. Belive me when I say many of these bikes handled a lot worse than the ebike in the picture with two batteries weighing 30 pounds in the panniers. The 350 pound Honda 350 I bought when I was 15 made every other bike seem to handle like a dream. It had about 1/3 of the suspension travel of my current ebike.

Telling the original poster he's doing it wrong is real helpfull to him I'm sure. The rest of us at least pointed him to a decent rack. I don't enjoy carrying more than 15 pounds on my rear rack, but I did work out how to do it, and have ridden close to 500 miles with 30-40 pounds back there. I only carry two batteries on long cross country rides. Once loaded like that, the bike you are on gets increasingly important. The frame must be very strong.

 

[02jze]

I agree with not putting them on the rear rack. I went from
this

to this

And for the first few days i loved it because of the extra batteries/power but then i went to
this.

Handles much better. Feels a heap lighter and frees up my carry rack. I strap my charger and lunch to the carry rack for my trip to work everyday.

 

[biohazardman]

Here are a couple below that I am aware of that might werq as well as a link on how some mounted their batts. I did not care for all the weight in the rear but it was manageable if it was low. Thirty pounds may crack a frame so give it some thought as that is allot. Just make sure whatever you do it is plenty strong and the batts are sheltered from any damage if you drop or crash the thing.

http://www.mtbr.com/cat/accessories/Extras/old-man-mountain/cold-springs-expedition-rear-rack/PRD_358258_117crx.aspx

http://www.modernbike.com/technical/instructions_odyssee_rear.pdf

http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=9431

 

[dogman dan]

The axxiom oddesey rack in the link above looks cool. I'd not seen that one before.

And we get another suggestion for battery placement from a hardtail bike owner that ain't gonna work if the OP has no frame triangle space.

Probobally the best example of fitting a big battery on a Y frame full suspension bike is Dr Bass's ride. But we don't all have his pack building skills. The rest of us just have to figure out how to make the best of a bad situation. 5000 miles with 15-20 pounds on my rear rack has me not noticing it at all anymore. But when I get on a MTB to pedal in the mountains, I really appreciate the handling of a stock bike. Nowdays ( When I'm in shape) I'd rather pedal up the hill and have the good handling on trails.

 

[geetarboy]

Hey guys, thanks for all the ideas. I'm gonna give the "axiom oddyssy" a try and put a set of panniers on it to hold the batteries, that will keep the weight a little lower. I'll post a picture when I get it done.

 

[RPA]

I have that Axiom Odyssee rack and love it. Its very strong. I did a test with using my own weight (155 lbs.) and it felt very solid. If you have a rear hub motor then you have to make your own adapters. The one's that come with it are for standard axles. I have my 29s2p Headway pack and controller on the rack and it holds up very well but obviously effects the handling. You get used to it though.

 

[geetarboy]

Hey RPA, Thanks for the heads-up on the adapters. Do you have a picture of the modification you did?

 

[limey2]

this is my solution for a full suspension rack. made from a cheap seat post rack and modified with some 3/8 ms rod and some stainless sheet. this will not work unless you have rear disk.

 

[evblazer]

That is a pretty cool rack and I think it may work fine without disks. You just need a longer bolt for the vbrake and make sure the rack supports don't get in the way of the brake pads or arms etc but otherwise should be good to go.
The front rack on my xtracycle attaches just in front of the v-brakes with a bit longer bolts then the brakes came with and has worked fine for a few thousand miles.

 

[PeteCress]

this is my solution for a full suspension rack. made from a cheap seat post rack and modified with some 3/8 ms rod and some stainless sheet. this will not work unless you have rear disk.

Why did you go forward with the supports that connect to the v-brake bosses?

i.e. Why not straight down?

 

[limey2]

this is my solution for a full suspension rack. made from a cheap seat post rack and modified with some 3/8 ms rod and some stainless sheet. this will not work unless you have rear disk.

Why did you go forward with the supports that connect to the v-brake bosses?

i.e. Why not straight down?

that would have been two bends!! dont want to over tax my abilitys !

 

[dogman dan]

I think putting the weight on the frame after the springs is the way to go, not having all that weight bouncing along with the wheel. It might be the only workable solution if you are carrying lots of big sla's though.

 

[kafka-cloud]

I am currently looking to try out a freeload rear tour rack. It attached on the rear triangle and so is full suspension and rear disc compatible.

http://www.freeload.co.nz/pages/9/Products

Somewhat expensive, but could be exactly what I am looking for.

 

[PeteCress]

I am currently looking to try out a freeload rear tour rack. It attached on the rear triangle and so is full suspension and rear disc compatible.

http://www.freeload.co.nz/pages/9/Products

I'm fooling around with slinging the battery under the down tube.

There's a huge benefit in handling over rear rack mount.

 

[Pure]

I am currently looking to try out a freeload rear tour rack. It attached on the rear triangle and so is full suspension and rear disc compatible.

http://www.freeload.co.nz/pages/9/Products

Somewhat expensive, but could be exactly what I am looking for.

Somewhat expensive my ars. Those prices are insane! Honestly at those prices I would probably look at building my own rack before I fed their corporate expense account.s

 

[gensem]

I am currently looking to try out a freeload rear tour rack. It attached on the rear triangle and so is full suspension and rear disc compatible.

http://www.freeload.co.nz/pages/9/Products

Somewhat expensive, but could be exactly what I am looking for.

Somewhat expensive my ars. Those prices are insane! Honestly at those prices I would probably look at building my own rack before I fed their corporate expense account.s

Its surely expensive, but its very well done, looks amazing and its warranted for alot of load (25kg). You can have alot of load in any rack if its not moving, but it takes only some vibration and a good pothole to break one with 10 times less weight.
I havent tested it with any real load yet, but I have one waiting to be use in greyborg frame.
Still I understand thoses who like to build their own rack, i just dont have the proper tools to build one (I tried) that doesnt weight a ton itself.
Racks are for eventual use, do not put your battery there... its sucks!