Topeak MTX cycle rack

jteighty

Hi,

I'm planning a ride to paris and I need a rack to carry my belongings. I ride a Boardman road comp and sadly it isn't compatible with normal pannier racks (as the staff in evans told me). I think the only option is the Topeak MTX racks as they attach to the seat post therefore they would fit my bike. The problem is that this means I can only carry 9kg max.

I am looking at the Topeak MTX BeamRack (I know it's for MTBs but it allows me to carry an extra 2kg-will it work with a road bike?):

http://www.topeak.com/products/Racks/MTXBeamRackA-Type

and the bag I want to use (It's the biggest i think) is the MTX TrunkBag DXP:

http://www.topeak.com/products/Bags/MTXTrunkBagDXP

I suppose I'll need to buy the MTX Dual Side Frame:

http://www.topeak.com/products/Racks/MTXDualSideFrame


If i'm already buying the Dual side frame can I use any pannier rack bag or just the topeak MTX?

Does anyone know of any other seat post mounting systems (or compatible systems) that will allow me to carry a heavier load?

Is the quick release of the Topeak systems worth the extra pounds? Are there any other racks which will hold and are perhaps lighter?

Many thanks,

JT80

lastant

How much stuff are you planning on taking? 9kg is a lot!

I've just done a solo-LEJOG and got by with just under 5kg worth of bits and managed fine (details in blog below)...although I did have to get a new rack and bag on day two!

Ended up with a seatpost rack and a small Giant Trunk bag very similar to that Topeak one you've posted up (probably 10ltr in size) but had space to spare.

Pack light and it's less effort!

louismichaels

Have a look at the Tubus range.
They do some ultralight racks, and have a cool rear wheel quick release skewer that allows the 'legs' of the rack to attach to the bike (without the need for bosses).
This then allows you to use panniers!

jteighty

louismichaels wrote:

Have a look at the Tubus range.
They do some ultralight racks, and have a cool rear wheel quick release skewer that allows the 'legs' of the rack to attach to the bike (without the need for bosses).
This then allows you to use panniers!

Thanks lastant for your response, I'm not quite sure about how much I need to carry but I prefer not to be limited.

Thanks louismichaels for your suggestion. I was looking at the range on their site but I couldn't find any seatpost mounting racks. Do you have a model number? Can they carry more then 9kgs?

Also is it compatible with my bike? I don't have any clips to attach it to.

Thanks

JT80

night_porter

Tubus are well known to be the Rolls Royce of racks but you pay Roller prices.

They do sell an adaptor that might allow you to use any standard rack http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Tubus ... 360025907/ this might help you!

jteighty

night_porter wrote:

Tubus are well known to be the Rolls Royce of racks but you pay Roller prices.

They do sell an adaptor that might allow you to use any standard rack http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Tubus ... 360025907/ this might help you!

Thanks for the link. Is it only compatible with the Tubus racks as they're way above my budget . Would they work with any rack? How does it work as the rack will still have the clips at the bottom which won't fit onto my bike?

louismichaels

Tubus are pricey...
Their skewer should work with any rack.
You probably don't have upper bosses either, so you need a rack with a seatpost adaptor, or some P clips, or a rack which attaches to the brake bridge.
SJS Cycles have a good range of racks and spare bits and bobs.
I'm not aware of a Tubus seatpost rack, but I'd be wary of carrying too much on them: you'd have to tighten them up a great deal to stop the pendulum effect of a big load swinging way out bag; and the centre of gravity is quite high.
I use this by Vaude for shorter trips: http://www.vaude.com/epages/Vaude-de.sf ... ture=5,2,6
This seems to be an alternative to the Topeak bags. I just don't think you can beat the flexibility of a rack/pannier combo for longer trips, though.

night_porter

It looks to me as though it is compatible with any rack.

By adding the curved plate to either side of your wheel the rack will be able to bolt onto these plates instead of the non-existant frame holes. They are even supplying the bolts to connect to it with.

Obviously Tubus will want you to buy one of their racks but it looks to me that it should fit any rack. Given that Tubus are not suggesting any specific rack for it and their racks also fit the normal holes on bikes I would deduce that these will fit any rack.

At least if you buy the kit and a rack from Wiggle and it doesn't fit you can send it back.

Update:
Good point about the top fixings, I hadn't thought about those

+1 for SJS they are real touring specialists so they are bound to have a solution

amaferanga

The rack attaches to the Tubus bracket via the QR skewer. At the top you will need some kind of bracket that allows fixing points - you can buy seatpost clamps that have the fixings.

But you don't really want to be carrying a lot if stuff - you have a lightweight road bike and lightweight wheels. You will likely suffer from frame flex if you load it up with 2 panniers full of stuff and there'll be a good chance of popping spokes.

IMO you should go for the seatpost rack and rack bag (and maybe a bar bag) - if you can't make that work then get a sturdier bike that'll take a proper rack and a couple of panniers.

jteighty

Thanks for all your responses!

Ah, so even if i were to use the tubus adapter I wouldn't be able to carry much
. So should I just go for my original plan (topeak)? Or do you recommend mr to use the tubus with another rack and set of pannier bags as long as I don't go over 9kg too?

Thanks

louismichaels

I think as long as you don't go mental with your luggage, you'll be fine with a rack. I don't think the frame/wheels will be that flimsy.
Are you carrying everything yourself, or just enough for the day with the bulk of your stuff carried by car? If the latter, a seatpost rack/bag would be fine.
The idea of supplementing with a barbag is a good one, though the cables can get in the way a bit.
If you went the pannier route, you don't have to carry both, and you don't have to fill them to brimming either!
Whenever I tour, I try to be as lightweight as possible - lugging around lots of just-in-case-unecessary-crap is tedious and takes the zing out of the bike!
Just make sure what you buy can hold what you want, is sturdy and reliable ( but not ridiculously heavy) - a lightweight traditional rack can be lighter than the Topeak one, is ultimately a better fix on your bike and gives your more flexibility. The Topeak bags tie you into their racks, don't they?

jteighty

louismichaels wrote:

I think as long as you don't go mental with your luggage, you'll be fine with a rack. I don't think the frame/wheels will be that flimsy.
Are you carrying everything yourself, or just enough for the day with the bulk of your stuff carried by car? If the latter, a seatpost rack/bag would be fine.
The idea of supplementing with a barbag is a good one, though the cables can get in the way a bit.
If you went the pannier route, you don't have to carry both, and you don't have to fill them to brimming either!
Whenever I tour, I try to be as lightweight as possible - lugging around lots of just-in-case-unecessary-crap is tedious and takes the zing out of the bike!
Just make sure what you buy can hold what you want, is sturdy and reliable ( but not ridiculously heavy) - a lightweight traditional rack can be lighter than the Topeak one, is ultimately a better fix on your bike and gives your more flexibility. The Topeak bags tie you into their racks, don't they?

I'm doing it solo so I don't have a back up vehicle..yup if you use topeak bags you need their racks. The advantage of their bags are that they sit on top of the rack and some bags have side extensions that then drop on the sides of the wheels.

I'm not quite sure how much I'll carry yet. I suppose I'll need to carry the days supplies and some of my own belongings. I probably could fit under 9kgs if I really tried, but i'm not sure if the bags give me enough volume to carry my belongings.

Will a pannier rack and the tubus adapter be more sturdy then the topeak? They both connect to the seat (or do I not understand how the tubus adapter connects to the bike?).

If I get a traditional rack with the tubus, what would you recommend?

Are certain bags more sturdy/a better fit then others?

Thanks

louismichaels

Tubus do a special rear wheel quick release skewer: you take out the one currently on your bike and replace it with theirs. The eyelets at the bottom of the legs of the rack go through these: so the majority of the weight of your luggage is being taken by this and thus your axle Plenty strong enough. The top part of the rack attaches to your brake stay or the seatpos (via an adaptor)t: this doesn't take much of the weight, it largely just stops the rack rotating fore/aft.
I think they would be sturdier as they attach at multiple widely spaced points, and don't just rely on one very tightly clamped clmap!
I've always used Blackburn racks: lightweight, not overly pricey and have always been super reliable. I'd buy one of their lighter ones for your needs.
Topeak make standard racks too. Also Tortec (though I don't know what these are like).
As for bags, I like anything from the Orlieb range. Reliable and waterproof.

jteighty

louismichaels wrote:

Tubus do a special rear wheel quick release skewer: you take out the one currently on your bike and replace it with theirs. The eyelets at the bottom of the legs of the rack go through these: so the majority of the weight of your luggage is being taken by this and thus your axle Plenty strong enough. The top part of the rack attaches to your brake stay or the seatpos (via an adaptor)t: this doesn't take much of the weight, it largely just stops the rack rotating fore/aft.
I think they would be sturdier as they attach at multiple widely spaced points, and don't just rely on one very tightly clamped clmap!
I've always used Blackburn racks: lightweight, not overly pricey and have always been super reliable. I'd buy one of their lighter ones for your needs.
Topeak make standard racks too. Also Tortec (though I don't know what these are like).
As for bags, I like anything from the Orlieb range. Reliable and waterproof.

thanks for the explanation and the suggestions. I think I'll
go with the tubus option.

Many thanks to everyone who responded.

JT80