Rowan

No, at $155 for at least the rear rack, it was a bit out of our price range. We have some Topeak racks to try. I like Topeak racks because they have the solid top on them that acts as a basic fender.

We'll find out if the racks will fit the suitcases with the bikes in due course.

We rode briefly on wet roads today, but not wet enough to create the squirt up from the front wheels.

zonatandem

Yes, some great riding n that part of Oregon.
We have spent 2 summers riding in the area.
Covered bridges, hills, neat little town and very bike friendly!

fietsbob

Hi, Rowan ,, I.. was referring to the front one, (thats all I bought)

Maybe a welded into 1 piece rack will work on the back, in knock down, to pack mode.

I assume the yes/no will be shared.. or you can find another removable strut rear rack..


raining today .. time to break out the Bike rain cape , mudguards required then, to not wet what would stay dry , otherwise.

Tourist in MSN

I suggested the RackTime FoldIt in post 16 above. Disassembles flat.

Rowan

By the way, the handlebar bags are our first venture into Ortleibs. Machka's has the magnetic fasteners, mine the traditional snap buttons. I am sort of umming and ahrring about them at the moment. The wire used around the stem and handlebars seems kludgy to me and less convenient, or more messy, to remove than the bar attachment for just about any other bar bag I have used.

The way the bag attaches to the bar fitting also has changed slightly between the two iterations we have and I am frankly not convinced that a lock is required when all a thief has to do is open the top and grab whatever is inside.

The frame on the bag itself seems robust enough, but we have concerns about the magnets for credits cards and memory sticks, for example.

Ortleib has a big reputation, but frankly I see no significant advancement -- and in fact there is a regression with the wire -- compared with other handlebar bags I have used, except maybe for the waterproofness.

tourer78

You may already be aware of this but you can replace the ortlieb mount ( I didnt like mine either ) with a klik fix handlebar bag mount, easily available from any of the uk online bike sites. With drop bars on our BF's this made it easier to move the mount when packing.

Rowan

Thanks for the tip. I will definitely keep this in mind when I am next ordering a batch of stuff from the UK.

fietsbob

earlier Mk3 bar bag mount just wrapped a cable around the bars 4x & tightened up

some user error may have prompted the redesign ..

Klick fix still uses a cable ,. but just to keep the clamp from rotating down,
the plastic U clamps dont Grip tight enough to not move-rotate downward.. but stabilize solidly..


+1 Klick Fix will hang an Ortlieb bag on it the way you put it on is slightly different..

+ KF has a bar Bag Mount that can clamp onto the Tall handlebar mast , further down than the handlebar itself ,

to Lower the bag C of Gravity a bit

Aka Handlebar Caddy, [for Vertical tubes .. their number: 0211CA ]

https://klickfix.de/index.php?lang=en

Rowan

Yep, this is the one I think would do the trick very nicely:

Tourist in MSN

I have a non-Ortieb handlebar bag that uses a cable. I have often used the cut off ends from brake cable replacements instead of the special cable that came with the bag, thus shifting to a different bike never concerns me since I just use scrap cable for the install. Have also used derailleur cable but that cable is so thin that I ran two cables, side by side.

Rowan

Most of my handlebar bags have had a cable to prevent the bag from tilting forward. The exception was the cheapest -- the bar clamp was moulded so it had a section that went back under the stem to prevent tilting; it was a most elegant solution, although the angle of the bag could not be altered unless I packed some additional material under that section. The bag itself was OK, but didn't last as long as it should have before the plastic frame broke.

The current clamp I am using is getting kludgier and kludgier. I suppose the expectation is that once in place, it won't be removed, but I have just changed over to the bullhorns on my bike, and every time the set screws are used on the cable (there are two of them), the cable gets mooshed and become very difficult to thread through the four holes.

Plus one end of the cable is swaged into a proprietary fitting and unlike the other clamps I have had (and you, too, Tourist in MSN,), it seems I can't just cut off a brake or shifter cable and use it as a replacement.

Doug64 suggested when we met at Bike Friday not to do the set screws up too tight, but that is very hard to judge without compressing the cable. And the recommended way for BF to remove the handlebars is to undo the four screws on the headplate for the stem, so the bag fitting technically needs to come off, rather than be just tilted upward like I do on my others.

In the end, I think I will just undo the two screws on the stem and remove that from the steerer tube. At least until I get a replacement KlickFix attachment.

Machka 

Too much rain ... not enough cycling!!

But hopefully tomorrow and Sunday we might be able to get out for some rides ... a kind of hub-and-spoke tour from where we're staying in Canada.

spinnaker

Congratulations. How cute! They look just like you, though I think they have their father's eyes.

You must be so proud!

LeeG

Because of the relatively short chainstays I opted for panniers only in the front with the rear rack mounted low to the tire and gear in an expandable Jandd rack bag on the cheap rack. With the bag accordioned up a decent sized load could be placed under up to the seat secured with bungies to the seat rails and to the rack to prevent side to side wobble.
No worry about heel clearence or messing with handling by sticking weight behind the rear axle. The rack was a cheap Sun brand with adjustable vertical struts. I cut the solid adjustable portion flush to the vertical tube so it wouldn't get crushed when tightened on the eyelets. It didn't interfere with folding and sat nice and low just above the fender.
One trip I took used that rear setup and a medium/small sized duffle bag suspended vertically under the bars along the steerer post and no panniers. Off the bike the duffle strapped under Jandd bag making for a carryon sized package.
https://www.jandd.com/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=FRRPII

fietsbob

Arkel 's 2 aluminum pieces for their bar bag mount, I have read, found favor with Bike Friday split bar users .

since the bag mount stays on each of the bar halves.. when trip travel packing time arrives.