How to install a folding Grocery Basket on rear

[Pooh]

I received two used folding metal baskets that right now are just that. These are the ones that
attch to the rear of the rack. They were rusted so I painted them with a fresh coat of black.

How are they supposed to be installed? I experimented with tie wraps to see how it might work. It
looks like the baskets need to be as low as possible to keep the center of gravity low. I am using a
Pletscher rack (from the old 10 speed) that I made hangers to fit my Mountain Bike.

So what is the correct method to get the racks to be stabile. I noticed that my method might
place a corner of the rack into my spokes because they have a tendancy to swing with the load.
That's not good.

Thanks.

 

[S. Anderson]

Groannn...I HATE those racks!! ;-) IIRC, they came with metal c-clips that allowed you to clamp them
with a nut and bolt to the rack. The strut that went from the rear of the rack down to the rear
dropout also had a clamp and that prevented the rack from moving into the spokes. Additionally,
there was a little clip that allowed you to fold the rack and it would clip over the outside portion
of the rack to keep it folded. Tie wraps are probably not a great idea if they are the only clamping
method. You can put an awful lot of weight in there and they may break with all the moving around
and bumps. If you want to scrounge some clamps, you can try scoring some reflector brackets that
typically come with some aluminium racks (the touring style, a little better quality than the
pletscher which have the reflector attachment cast into the rack). They are about what came with
those basekets and you can probably make them work. They were more or less just metal straps with a
hole in each end folded over. One other tip, make sure you mount them back far enough so they don't
interfere with your heels while pedalling.

Good luck,

Scott..
--
Scott Anderson

"Pooh" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> I received two used folding metal baskets that right now are just that. These are the ones that
> attch to the rear of the rack. They were rusted so I painted them with a fresh coat of black.
>
> How are they supposed to be installed? I experimented with tie wraps to see how it might work. It
> looks like the baskets need to be as low as possible to keep the center of gravity low. I am using
> a Pletscher rack (from the old 10 speed) that I made hangers to fit my Mountain Bike.
>
> So what is the correct method to get the racks to be stabile. I noticed that my method might place
> a corner of the rack into my spokes because they have a tendancy to swing with the load. That's
> not good.
>
> Thanks.

 

[Pooh]

Thanks, I had to stick a shoe one the pedal and measure the distance so my heel wouldn't hit the
back of the rack, so it is placed way far back. I need something to stick my commute stuff into as
well as groceries. I found out what happens when hauling 2 gallon of milk while the racks are held
on using the carabiner style keychains. They swing all over the place.

I tried using the heavy duty tie wraps and looped them around 5 times to distribute the mass. I also
used another heavy tie wrap and secured the lower basktet to the rack stay. It appears to be stabile
using 3 tie wraps. Maybe I should add a forth to just to be safe.

They sure make my hand made Rockhopper look like a beater bike with fenders and all. I still have my
other bikes to use for more sporting activities.

-Wynn

"S. Anderson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> Groannn...I HATE those racks!! ;-) IIRC, they came with metal c-clips that allowed you to clamp
> them with a nut and bolt to the rack. The strut that went from the rear of the rack down to the
> rear dropout also had a clamp and that prevented the rack from moving into the spokes.
> Additionally, there was a little clip that allowed you to fold the rack and it would clip over the
> outside portion of the rack to keep it folded. Tie wraps are probably not a great idea if they are
> the only clamping method. You can put an awful lot of weight in there and they may break with all
> the moving around and bumps. If you want to scrounge some clamps, you can try scoring some
> reflector brackets that typically come with some aluminium racks (the touring style, a little
> better quality than the pletscher which have the reflector attachment cast into the rack). They
> are about what came with those basekets and you can probably make them work. They were more or
> less just metal straps with a hole in each end folded over. One other tip, make sure you mount
> them back far enough so they don't interfere with your heels while pedalling.
>
> Good luck,
>
> Scott..
> --
> Scott Anderson
>
> "Pooh" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > I received two used folding metal baskets that right now are just that. These are the ones that
> > attch to the rear of the rack. They were rusted so I painted them with a fresh coat of black.
> >
> > How are they supposed to be installed? I experimented with tie wraps to see how it might work.
> > It looks like the baskets need to be as low as possible to keep the center of gravity low. I am
> > using a Pletscher rack (from the old 10 speed) that I made hangers to fit my Mountain Bike.
> >
> > So what is the correct method to get the racks to be stabile. I noticed that my method might
> > place a corner of the rack into my spokes because they have a tendancy to swing with the load.
> > That's not good.
> >
> > Thanks.

 

[Mike Kruger]

"Pooh" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> I received two used folding metal baskets that right now are just that. These are the ones that
> attch to the rear of the rack. They were rusted so I painted them with a fresh coat of black.
>
> How are they supposed to be installed? I experimented with tie wraps to see how it might work.

I have one of these -- a Wald. I ended up using small metal hose clamps to hold it onto the rack.
These are available at any hardware store. They screw on, are adjustable / removable / reusable, and
are tough. If you don't want to scratch, or have too much vibration, wrap some rubber underneath
from an old inner tube.

You need a couple of these at the top, and then one toward the bottom, on the "down tube"
of the rack.

I don't recommend the tie wraps, if you mean the plastic bands often called "cable ties" or "zip
ties". I've used these for emergency rack repairs while touring, and they tend to wear through after
a hundred miles or so if they are under load.

 

[kokopuffs]

I just got a new rack along with a pair of heavy duty Wald collapsible rear baskets. Installation was a real b**** on my '94 Rockhopper. Yes, readjustment was necessary since my heels kicked the front of the baskets. They required repositioning. The mounting hardware, as other respondents to this thread indicated, is truly flimsy.

I reinforced the hardware with electrical ties, too, but I intend to spend some quality time at the local hardware store to see if better fasteners are available. Perhaps hose clamps would be the way to go.

Otherwise I plan to look into a removeable front basket along with a backpack. I feel that the unit was designed for a 3-speed type bicycle.

 

[Doug Kanter]

> I reinforced the hardware with electrical ties, too, but I intend to spend some quality time at
> the local hardware store to see if better fasteners are available. Perhaps hose clamps would be
> the way to go.
>

Got a car stereo installation shop in your town? Stop in with donuts and ask if you can browse their
box of throwaway brackets, especially the backstraps that are not needed for many radios. The donuts
should serve as currency.

 

[Bernie]

Doug Kanter wrote:

> >
> > I reinforced the hardware with electrical ties, too, but I intend to spend some quality time at
> > the local hardware store to see if better fasteners are available. Perhaps hose clamps would be
> > the way to go.
> >
>
> Got a car stereo installation shop in your town? Stop in with donuts and ask if you can browse
> their box of throwaway brackets, especially the backstraps that are not needed for many radios.
> The donuts should serve as currency.

"VALUE" is sometimes difficult to define, sometimes simple.

 

[Doug Kanter]

"Bernie" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
>
> Doug Kanter wrote:
>
> > >
> > > I reinforced the hardware with electrical ties, too, but I intend to spend some quality time
> > > at the local hardware store to see if better fasteners are available. Perhaps hose clamps
> > > would be the way to go.
> > >
> >
> > Got a car stereo installation shop in your town? Stop in with donuts and
ask
> > if you can browse their box of throwaway brackets, especially the
backstraps
> > that are not needed for many radios. The donuts should serve as
currency.
>
> "VALUE" is sometimes difficult to define, sometimes simple.
>

I used to be in the car stereo biz. We could NEVER bring ourselves to throw away an interesting
piece of metal, even razor-sharp chunks we had cut out of car doors for speaker installations. But,
we were happy to give some away to someone we deemed worthy. Donuts, in other words.

 

[Drifter]

Although I don't have my folding grocery baskets mounted on my bike anymore, I used small hose
clamps (the smallest, I think) worked fine. Those baskets are so damn heavy!

Doug Kanter wrote:
>
> >
> > I reinforced the hardware with electrical ties, too, but I intend to spend some quality time at
> > the local hardware store to see if better fasteners are available. Perhaps hose clamps would be
> > the way to go.
> >
>
> Got a car stereo installation shop in your town? Stop in with donuts and ask if you can browse
> their box of throwaway brackets, especially the backstraps that are not needed for many radios.
> The donuts should serve as currency.

 

[Doug Kanter]

As long as we're adding anal touches do this installation (which is a *good* thing).....stores that
offer supplies for outdoor goldfish ponds sell black rubber sheet by the foot. When my ex built her
pond in the yard, there were scraps of the stuff left over, and it's GREAT for all sorts of things,
like keeping those pipe clamps from scratching the bike frame. The rubber is not like any other I've
seen. It's extremely fibrous and tough. I've used it for all sorts of padding purposes on my boat &
bike. It's worth buying a small amount, just to have. -Doug

"drifter" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Although I don't have my folding grocery baskets mounted on my bike anymore, I used small hose
> clamps (the smallest, I think) worked fine. Those baskets are so damn heavy!
>
> Doug Kanter wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > I reinforced the hardware with electrical ties, too, but I intend to spend some quality time
> > > at the local hardware store to see if better fasteners are available. Perhaps hose clamps
> > > would be the way to go.
> > >
> >
> > Got a car stereo installation shop in your town? Stop in with donuts and
ask
> > if you can browse their box of throwaway brackets, especially the
backstraps
> > that are not needed for many radios. The donuts should serve as
currency.