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Just doing the obligatory browse of a website before completing checkout and came across these.
I'm on a shoddy connection so can't really do much research at present, but are any of them practical for carrying drybags/camping gear etc? It seems they have a cable loop that passes round the stem and prevents it drooping so might keep my stuff clear of the front tyre/forks etc.
The one tha caught my attention was a permanent basket fixing, was wondering if it could be clamped onto a board (instead of a basket) with a couple of bungees/paracord to hold luggage?
I have used this.
If you search this forum, about three years back there was a great diy luggage holder using this.
Used a piece of plastic drain pipe heated and shaped with this as the bar attachment.
The cables work well, protect your bars.
This was in the day before all the Alpkit, Revelate etc bar bag.s
Someone posted pics of theirs on the Bear Bones forum a few weeks ago ... looked a nice job.
Thanks guys, excellent 🙂
I have used a R&K Variotek rack for a few bike pack adventures.
It has not been 100% fault free, but I cannot blame any breaks on the product, and it was tough enough to keep on going.
Photos on here: http://vc-moulin.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/camino-de-santiago-camino-frances-by-mtb.html
Firstly ditch the original straps. Then remember to get the correct sized bar clamps if you have 'over sized' (Ie normal) diameter mtb bars.
Next you should try and put some material that has a bit of friction to it between the clamps and bars - tape or bits of inner tube or something more fancy.
Then... once you have fitted the bracket and got it all wired up in the right place make sure your forks don't hit the rack at full compression.
And finally... if you are going to be hooning around off road with a bag on it you'll want to tie it down to stop it (a) flapping up and (b) shock loading and ultimately snapping the cable (which may have been weakened in a number of places already from trying to get the positioning correct...and a few Kms). I used a webbing strap or bit of cord to tie it snug enough to not flap up any.
I ended up cutting the rack down so that it sat in the highest position - which was perfect for fork travel clearance.
Sounds like I had a 'mare with it but I reckon they are pretty good if set up with care (and maybe take a bit of spare cable if you are feeling unlucky). They leave plenty of room on your bars for gps & stuff and don't crush cables and hoses.