cudak888 

Clip the ends, Grant.

Clip the ends.

-Kurt

JaccoW

After this I remember seeing Pelago doing something like this. Lo and behold: Pelago Rasket!
Stainless steel construction with the possibility to attach panniers to the side as well and a light mount.

And of course it's stainless steel. Pelago is Finnish. Anything less will just rust away before you blink in the Northern European climate.

I myself have the narrow version of their Commuter front rack though that bike is still in the building/project phase.

Narhay

They are practical for a certain bike user but yes they are particularly hard on the eyes.

ramzilla

This Wald basket was intended to be installed in pairs over the wheel. I kept hitting my heel on it. So I mounted one one top of rear rack.

bark_eater 

While we're on baskets, Can anyone recommend a couple small pouches to attach randonneur bag style on the back of the basket faceing the rider?

JaccoW

I think those are generally called "Feedbags" or "Stembags". Bikepacking.com has a small review roundup and even a MYOBG.

I have little experience with them as I use a rando bag and saddlebags but I have positive experiences with Roadrunner bags.
Roadrunnerbags has the Auto pilot, Co-pilot or matching waterproof lids.

I do wonder if they are not too large though and hanging too low.

abshipp 

Also, see Swift Industries.

bark_eater 

I was thinking about some kind of Airsoft Surplus pouches like these:

JaccoW

Ah yes, the Rando pouch or Sidekick would be great options.

Hey if you can attach it and it works then why not? I would wonder about waterproofness with one of those but that might not be an issue in you area or for your kind of riding.

cudak888 

Very nice, though as I feared, stainless adds a prohibitive cost.

There has to be something that can be made under the $60 price range that doesn't turn into a rusted, busted mess.

-Kurt

due ruote 

I mounted a short length of scrap handlebar under mine. I drilled holes in both ends. Bolted one end to the strut tab (otherwise unused, as basket is zip tied to a rack). The other end is zip tied to the basket. It’s solid and doesn’t rattle.

canklecat

I don't love or hate metal baskets, but they'd be more practical for my heavy errand bike, a Globe Carmel with a massive, long wheelbase frame like a Yuba cargo bike. It already weighs about 35 lbs with a heavy duty rear rack, puncture resistant tires (Michelin Protek Cross Max, about 1,200 gm each in 700x40, which measures closer to 700x45).

Despite the weight it's a great bike for hauling stuff. And the heavy spring suspension fork offsets weight from a loaded down rear rack -- my lighter weight rigid fork Univega often feels unbalanced and twitchy with the rear rack loaded.

I've been using Nashbar Townie folding fabric panniers for groceries. But Wald or similar metal baskets would really be more practical. I'm hoping to find a junker bike with decent metal racks to buy for cheap and scrap the bike. In my area racks, baskets, bags, etc., don't add any value to used bikes.

BFisher

Those Lime Bike setups look pretty nice, as does the Pelago. Snapped a pic of my Wald for grins. The QR feature is convenient. It ain't the best thing out there, as baskets go, but it's serviceable.

LBCwanabe 

Word up homies. Much love here for the Wald. I do get some heel clip, but I think it’s due to the frame being a little smallish.

non-fixie 

So, "a certain bike user" is the politically correct nomenclature, yes?

due ruote 

A pic of the under basket light mount I mentioned a couple posts ago. Also a small basket I picked up at the Container Store for $5. Not Wald so I guess I am cheating by posting.

dweenk

I haven't had a Wald basket on a bike since I was in college, but I have one sitting out in the weather now (actually it has been out in the weather for about a year when I removed from a bike I donated) and I suspect that it spent many years outside before that. There is no rust on it, so the galvanizing must be decent. What I dislike about it is that the struts mount to the axle and the inverted J-clips that mount to the bars.

I agree that the wire is under-sized, and the basket deforms more easily than it should. All in all they do work. I wish Wald would make a higher quality basket as an upgrade product.

tyrion

We accept all kinds here. Basket-bicyclists are a tolerant group.

due ruote 

Mounting to a rack with zip ties is a big improvement. True they can deform, but a more robust build would be heavier still.

eom 

The use of the word deform to describe flexing as a basket is loaded is discouraged, but not yet banned by the "First Church of Wald". Planing is the preferred terminology.

nlerner

I use the smallest-sized stainless hose clamps to attach my basket to a Nitto rack. Zip ties have a tendency to wear out/degrade over time, I have found.

cudak888 

Very clean look. How's the basket's finish been holding up (and how long have you had it)?

-Kurt

due ruote 

The small basket? Just got it, so it’s untested. It looks like a PC finish but I don’t know for sure. It wasn’t labeled. The basket itself seems pretty nice; a bit heavier wire than my Wald basket. They had two sizes, this being the smaller one. Colors were pretty odd - pink, a dirty goldenrod, turquoise, and teal, which is what I bought.

jonwvara 

Conceptually, I love Wald baskets. If I understand this correctly, the benefit of a basket is that it doesn't cause much air resistance when it's empty, although it obviously adds some weight. That makes sense to me.

I have a nicely-made Jandd handlebar bag that I never use because it weighs at least a couple of pounds. A medium-size basket attached to a front rack (and with the cargo in a lightweight dry bag) would probably weigh the same or less and push less air out of the way. I have been meaning to give that approach a try but haven't yet.

Out in my shed there's a set of those pannier-style rear baskets that came off my mother's bike. They've been out there in a damp (though not wet) environment for many years, and have no trace of rust on them. Possibly the quality of the galvanizing in 1965 was superior to what's available today?

Miradaman

I used folding Wald rear baskets on my old Mirada Sport and on my current Mirada as well. Love 'em because they fold up and out of the way when you don't need them. Discovered the hard way that you need to secure them with a bungee when they're fully loaded with groceries — otherwise when you hit a bump they bounce and the bottom drops out, scattering everything in the street...