Cargo rack question?

Okay, so I'm in the market for racks so can install some of the DIY panniers from the other thread. Money's definitely an object, but I'm willing to pay to what it takes to get something that I'll be happy with, I'm getting really sick of throwing my keys, cellphone, wallet etc in my backpack and dealing with that everytime I go anyplace.

Any suggestions on what to look for, brands to consider, where to buy, etc? I have no clue.

Thanks agan,
LM

PS I got the new saddle and tires on, hopefully I'll get to go put some distance on it and see how much they help, it was too dark when I got finished Saturday night and Sunday was the great vain quest for a bike for LeftyDad, part two. (This isn *not* a good time to be looking for a decent used bike, I guess with gas prices more people are looking and fewer are giving them up.)

Hollow tubes are stronger, whether the tubes are aluminum or steel. Other than than most bike racks are the same. The higher end tend to be a little lighter and use hollow tubes, the cheaper bikes tend to use solid tubes.

Presently I have been using a Tubus rack but a little high at $100 a copy but I like it, it has survived four years of abuse from me and that is no small achievement.

Also think about getting a good handlebar bag. I am using a Topeak Handlebar bag right now and I like it. My Sister is using a Cannondale handlebar bag and in some ways it is better (The attachment system is more solid in my opinion). If you get a handlebar bag make sure it has a "solid" frame i.e. it is not just a bag that hags on to the handlebar but has an internal plastic frame to keep it in box form. These tend to be much better than the handlebar bags that just hang.

Picture, Cannondale handlebar bag (Nashbar Price $59.99).



Nashbar web cite:
http://www.nashbar.com/

I don't know if there is a Dick's near you. I was there and took stock of what they had. I recall the Avenir rack looked like a fine design with aluminum tubes. The welds looked to be fine workmanship. I don't know the weight. People who shop at Dick's don't shop by weight, they shop by price and availability.

I cannot seem to find the rack on Dick's website, though http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/category/index.jsp?categoryId=713103&clickid=mainnav_browse_txt

I believe it was about $15.00.
It is solid 1/4" steel tubes, so it probably weighs a few ounces more than the hollow tube versions.
Since I am currently 25 POUNDS overweight (formerly 50* overweight), I am more concerned with trimming my personal weight than saving ounces on the bicycle.
When I am loose the surplus personal pounds (in the foreseeable future if I keep up my miles), I will focus on a diet for my bicycle. :)

I don't have the brand name, and the instructions were indecipherable fine print. It took some experimentation and imagination to get it on properly, but I am happy with it.

You can see parts of my low budget rack in the post about "Home Made" saddlebags.
I could "level" the rack if I used an additional piece of hardware included with the rack, but I chose the angle and additional rear wheel clearance over the added complication.

But hollow tubes are stronger. I will NOT go into the mechanics of it and sounds counter-intuitive but it is do to the greater strength of hollow tubes that one should buy hollow tubes over solid tubes.

Given that the Same volume of Steel is stronger than the same volume of Aluminum, Solid Steel Tubes are less of a concern than Solid Aluminum Tubes. The reason for this is that by Volume Steel is twice as strong as Aluminum even through by Mass Aluminum is four times stronger than Steel. This disparately between Mass and Volume is why some people view Steel as stronger than Aluminum, true if Volume is the same, but False if Mass is the same.

About five years ago (Before I bought my Tubus Rack) I had purchased a Topeak rack with solid aluminum tubing (I liked how Topeak bag attached to the top of the rack, never bought the bag before the rack broke). The tubes on the Topeak Rack snapped after about six months of relativity light use. If the tubes had been hollow they would NOT have snapped.

My list of preferred racks (In order of preference):
1. Hollow Aluminum Tubes (Cannondale Rack)
2. Hollow Steel Tubes (Tubus Racks)
3. Solid Steel Tubes (Almost any cheap rack).

List of Racks NOT to buy:
4. Solid Aluminum Rack.

I appreciate the advice, now I have some idea where the price differences come from and what to look for when I go shopping for racks. :)


Here's the current state of my bike (I'm tacking this on to avoid postwhoredom,) after cleaning it up and replacing the tires and saddle. There's a light that goes on it, but my son walked away with it again so I have to go track it down.



and this is LeftyDad's new ride (I sold his Kmart cheapie a few weeks ago at our yardsale for $15) a Marin Muirwoods which set me back all of $25 via Craigslist. It needs a new saddle, lights and I want to add city-appropriate tires (the tires are almost new but very fat and knobby,) but it already rides like a dream, much smoother than the rather bouncy ride on my bike.

Once I've taken care of the tires, saddle and lights, should I do anything else before dealing with extraneous stuff like racks and that fancy trailer I'm saving for?

...on my commuter bike. Yes, backpacks utterly suck. I've used my current racks for four years now and I love them. Here's my commuter ride, with JAAND panniers on the back-- I have JAANDS for the front rack, too, but they're not mounted in this pic:



One additional piece of advice-- get yourself some SPD pedals and matching shoes/cleats. You'll really grow to love them.