azza_333

Is anyone using a Tubus Airy on there touring bike? if so I have a few questions about its fit. Thanks.

Tourist in MSN

I do not have one. If you just want dimensions and measurements, this may help:
https://www.tubus.com/fileadmin/user...iry_TZ_1.0.pdf

cyccommute 

I actually have several of them but I don’t use them for panniers…at least not traditional panniers. The deck is a bit narrow for my tastes. I use a Tubus Cargo on my road touring bike. It gives more space and support carry a tent and sleeping bag on the rear rack. I couldn’t carry the tent and sleeping bag in that orientation on the Airy. The bags would work in a perpendicular carry to the rack but the rack would provide only minimal support.




I do use an Airy on my bikepacking bike and have fashioned a micro pannier set for it. I use an Ortlieb rack adapter to carry a trunk bag most of the time when not touring. The Airy isn’t a good fit for trunk bags because of the deck’s narrowness.



You can see the rack adapter here.



Close up. I use this rack adapter on all my bikes. I’ve found it to be much more secure than Velcro straps. I could carry the bike around by the trunk bag if I wanted to.



I used an Ortlieb basket adapter and a plastic sheet to make the base for the micropanniers. I use this same basket adapter on a Racktime Trunkit for my regular riding.




I used two Rock Bros handlebar pockets for the “panniers”. They have around 5L of volume for each one which is enough room to carry 5 to 6 days of freeze dry meals. My bikepacking is usually quite remote so I don’t cook. I only boil water.



What the bags look like close up.



Here’s a picture of one of my bikes with the Trunkit on the rack

DSCN0387 by Stuart Black, on Flickr

That Trunkit is probably 20 to 25 years old and still going strong. It’s never come off the bike no matter how rugged the terrain.

PedalingWalrus

I have it and I use it

azza_333

Thanks Tourist in MSN, I had already found that, but it didn't quite have the info I was chasing.

Thanks PedalingWalrus.

Thanks cyccommute for all the photos, they actually answered most of my questions, Did you bend the rack the stay/s? if so are they hollow or solid titanium.

I don't really use trunk bags, so that's not a deal breaker. I normally just use a top tube bag on top of the rack, not a full fledged trunk bag, but it looks like even that might be tight with the Airy. I do quite like the fact that the rack is narrow, it makes me think the panniers will be tucked in close, drafting my legs better. Its just a a shame it doesn't have a lower pannier rack rail.

Although at this stage I cant even find a Tubus Airy in stock anywhere. I did look into having a custom TI rack made up, figured that would solve the availability issues, but I was quoted double to cost of an Airy, so that is my last resort.

Parts shortages are killing me with my new bike build at the moment, cant seem to get a whole stack of parts I need, a titanium B17 is impossible to find. I have a 4-5 month wait on my frame bag. I was going to wait until the end of the year to see if the new Dura-Ace would be released, so I could get a set of new brake rotors, but since I may not be able to get the rotors even if they are released, I settled for a set of the XTR rotors, since I couldn't even find the current Dura-Ace rotors in stock anywhere.

Tourist in MSN

If you are set on a titanium rack and consider other alternatives, Lynskey makes a rack. I have not priced the Airy but the Lynskey looks more expensive than I would ever buy.
https://lynskeyperformance.com/lynsk...ar-cargo-rack/

They do not provide much detail for dimensions and the bikes they make have rack mounting points several inches above the axle so most racks sit a bit high on a Lynskey bike. I do not know if the Lynskey rack is made a bit shorter to compensate for their frame design or not, but the Lynskey rack might sit a bit low on a different bike or might not even fit at all. If you consider that rack, double check the dimensions before ordering.

You might just buy a cheap rack that is in stock somewhere and then later buy the Airy. I use an aluminum Racktime rack for touring on my titanium Lynskey Backroad. For riding around near home on that bike I use a rack it is a low capacity Nitto rack that looks nice but is heavy and does not have much capacity. When touring, I am not as weight conscious as you (I use four panniers), thus I never considered a titanium rack for my titanium bike.

The supply chains are a mess right now. Shortages of container ships, shortages of containers, shortages of rail cars, shortage of space to store containers at ports, the only thing available in abundance these days is the Delta Variant.

djb

for the unvaccinated, it could be coming to a theatre near you, or as Mick sang, like some Puerto Rican girls just dying to meet you.

which unfortunately does connect up to the whole supply chain issue globally.

cyccommute 

The stays are solid aluminum. They are just titanium in color. I bent them on the Moots. The Dean stays were factory bent but I did have to cut them shorter to fit. Cutting is easy.
Since that picture was taken, I’ve had rack fittings added to the bike and have a much less radical bend on the stay. I only have to use one stay (it fits my brake configuration better). Again, I bent it myself.





Try Rose Bikes out of Germany. The Airy has always been expensive but Rose sells them for a bit under other sellers. Shipping to the US wasn’t horrible. You can check the shipping cost by going through the checkout process.

balto charlie

I have the Tubus fly, very small steel rear rack. It works well with small to mid-size panniers. I have also put on Ortlieb larger panniers which work but they can be easily adjusted. My Deuter bags did not fit as well, doable but not pefect. How similar is the Fly to Airy, I don't know. I wonder if the Airy is the Ti version of the Fly.

I had to bend the mounting arm to fit, it was solid steel. I used soft copper as a 'template' then heated(?) it and bent the arm in a vice to match the copper pipe. It was very easy to do, it did discolor. I usually strap a dry bag for bikepacking on it or panniers for shopping. Nice little rack, holds way more weight than I need it for.

fourfa

Late replying... I've had the Airy Ti for a few years, ordered from bike24, good experience and reasonable price. Seconded about the stays, they're the same solid aluminum rod as other Tubus products, just different color anodizing to match the titanium rack. Not hard to bend to fit your exact bike. The platform is narrow yeah but I use it with a pair of small panniers. When they're attached, there's ample platform area for the occasional overload duty (ie bag of groceries from store to campsite)

cyccommute 

I’ve bent a number of Tubus Round Stays over the years. None of them have been steel. Tubus even says they are aluminum. Don’t be confused by the designation of titanium/stainless. That’s just the color.

Tourist in MSN

I think that the Tubus and Racktime stays are the same thing, they are the same company. Racktime racks are aluminum, Tubus racks are steel, except of course the titanium that this thread is all about.

balto charlie

You are correct, I am wrong. The Fly is steel but the mounting arm is aluminum. I guess that is why is was easy to bend, duh!

NeezyDeezy

Thanks for the info cyccommute. I have a tubus airy and I'm interested in something like your setup so I can make a platform on top for bikepacking. What rack adapter is that? I tried searching so hard but for the life of me can't find info on it!

Thanks!

cyccommute 

It’s a Ortlieb E174 which are on the way out. The big problem is finding the Ortlieb E160 basket adapter. There don’t seem to be any in the world.