BobbyG

Five months ago I mounted a rear rack on my old 12-speed Nishiki roadbike.

Even though it weighs nothing, something about it was interfering with the bike's overall vibe. So a couple of days ago I took it off and the bike felt more like itself. It may all be in my head, but one of the very cool things about this bike is that the very thin steel seat stays and chain stays give the frame a noticeable "flexiness". I think the rear rack stiffened things up slightly and damped the pliability. Also, even though the aluminum Cannondale rack weighs practically nothing, it still added some mass that also interfered with the balance of the bike, which I've had for 12 years now.

Then today I thought maybe I could mount the rack over the front wheel, and with p-clamps on the lower fork and a metal bracket to connect the underside of the rack to the fork-crown bolt the side-pull brakes are mounted on. And it would have worked...but as I started to secure the fork-crown bolt I was having trouble and I started to rediscover how hard it was to get the brake mount tension just right, and then the end nut cap popped off.

As I started to go at it again, I began wondering if mounting the rack up front would stiffen the long, tapered, curved front fork and possibly throw off the balance of the bike with it's meager mass again.

All I really wanted was a way to be able to carry home a few items if I was out and about and the need arose. And in five months with the rack that happened only once, the other times I deliberately went out to pick up items with this bike, but then, the bike was not feeling "right" with the rack.

And then it hit me...what about a pack-able backpack? Walmart had 14.4 liter packable backpacks for just $7.97 so I went and bought one.

It's just a little less than half the size of my 30 liter commute bag, which in the winter months would only have about 9 liters of free space for additional items on the way home. You can see in the photos it swallowed a medium throw pillow, although the weird amorphous shape makes it look small. And it smooshes down t the size of a computer mouse, so it fits easily in a corner of the small frame bag on my old ust unpack the road bike.

So now if I'm out and I want to pick up something to bring home, I can and still enjoy the light-flexi-goodness of this bike as I have for the last dozen years.

I hope this idea helps others.

icemilkcoffee 

You don't have any cables in the way, you can run a front randonneur bag:

A lot cleaner and neater than all those miscellaneous small bags

BobbyG

Yes, and handier. You can access the bag while riding. You can put a phone or map under the clear plastic. And a front bag possibly adds a little aerodynamic advantage, or at least some "wind" blocking. I have a buddy at the co-op who has one like this, but I'm not sure it will work with the interrupter/cross brake levers I have on this and the other two bikes I used for commuting. Those also have interrupter levers, plus racks and fenders, the older one even has Wald folding baskets out back. When riding this 12-speed to the office I wore my backpack (down low and resting on the small of my back). On the other two bikes I have a rack and bungee arrangement.

I just wanted to share because that is one of the great things I love about bikeforums.net. You get to see what other people do, orthodox or eccentric, and decide if it is something that fits your style.

icemilkcoffee 

I think most decaleurs position the bag far enough away from the handlebar so you to ride on the tops of the bars still. Similarly the kind that mounts with standoff blocks like these:


these also give you enough space to put your hands behind the bag.

In fact right now I'm kind of dealing with the opposite problem- I'm trying to shorten the standoffs to bring my front bag closer to the handlebar (my bike has the old style Shimano brifters with cables coming out perpendicularly)

The Chemist

Personally, I can't do without a rear rack, and I hate carrying anything on my back when I'm riding (including in my jersey pockets). Rack top trunk bag is the way to go, IMO.

mstateglfr 

That bike looks like one of the short lived 'LD' sleeve lug frames from '88ish. The tubing was larger than traditional steel tubes at the time and tubes were brazed to internal lugged sleeves and stress rings, and then they also welded at the joint for some reason.
Its a straight race bike with Tange 1 tubing and race geometry, but I am surprised it noticeably flexes since the tubing is oversized. I have a Tange 1 traditional tube diameter road bike from '89 and do not notice flex, and an oversized frame should be stiffer.

I cant tell due to sunlight- is that the original SunTour Ole shifting groupset too?

BobbyG

Yes and no. It's the original derailers, DT shifters, main brake levers and large front cog (which is slightly oval). But the rear gears were switched out a few years ago to give me lower gearing so I wouldn't have to mash up hills any longer as my knees are approaching retirement age. Also, when I acquired the bike in 2009 I immediately swapped out the smaller, oval chainring for an even smaller chainring, also for easier climbing on the hills of Colorado Springs. Also one crank-arm has been replaced.

I rode a lot of bikes before buying my 2015 Charge Plug, and nothing felt as supple as this 1984 Nishiki International.