In the wee hours of this morning, we had snow flurries and freezing rain. I wasn't awake, so I know about them because of the weather report and the glaze I saw on the windshields of parked cars this morning.
There were also some ice patches on the street. So I decided to delay going for a ride until the temperature warmed and the glaze melted. In the meantime, I did a bit of web surfing and came across this:
Now, those of you familiar with Tubus racks won't find this image remarkable. And it isn't, really, except for one thing: the rack is made of titanium. Someone's selling it, slightly used, for $200.
I've never owned or used a Tubus rack, but the ones I've seen look to be very well-made (though, I must say, I like Nitto's finishing and overall workmanship a bit more). Still, I'm not sure of how I feel about a titanium rack. I'm sure it's strong. But titanium is flexier than steel tubes or thick aluminum alloy rods or tubes. So, even though I believe a Tubus titanium rack won't break, I have to wonder whether it might shimmy more than an alloy or steel rack from Tubus, Nitto or even, say, Blackburn.
The original Carradice Bagman supports were offered in titanium for a couple of years. But they seem to have been discontinued before Carradice completely redesigned the Bagman supports a couple of years ago. Apparently, some people reported their bags--especially the larger ones like the Nelson Longflap and Camper--bounced and swayed. To be fair, the clamps on the original Bagman supports--both in the steel and titanium versions--weren't the strongest, so that could have been a source of some problems.
Anyway, I said earlier that I'm not sure how I'd feel about having a titanium rack. Even if swaying and flexing weren't issues, I have to wonder what benefit such a rack offers, aside from weight savings. How much of a difference would 50 to 100 grams off the rack would make if you're carrying 30 to 40 kilos with it--and you're riding wider, heavier tires than you'd ride on an unloaded bike.
Given what I've said, I'd still take a rack made of titanium that mounts on the seat stays and rear dropouts over one from carbon-fiber and designed to attach to the seat post.
There were also some ice patches on the street. So I decided to delay going for a ride until the temperature warmed and the glaze melted. In the meantime, I did a bit of web surfing and came across this:
Now, those of you familiar with Tubus racks won't find this image remarkable. And it isn't, really, except for one thing: the rack is made of titanium. Someone's selling it, slightly used, for $200.
I've never owned or used a Tubus rack, but the ones I've seen look to be very well-made (though, I must say, I like Nitto's finishing and overall workmanship a bit more). Still, I'm not sure of how I feel about a titanium rack. I'm sure it's strong. But titanium is flexier than steel tubes or thick aluminum alloy rods or tubes. So, even though I believe a Tubus titanium rack won't break, I have to wonder whether it might shimmy more than an alloy or steel rack from Tubus, Nitto or even, say, Blackburn.
The original Carradice Bagman supports were offered in titanium for a couple of years. But they seem to have been discontinued before Carradice completely redesigned the Bagman supports a couple of years ago. Apparently, some people reported their bags--especially the larger ones like the Nelson Longflap and Camper--bounced and swayed. To be fair, the clamps on the original Bagman supports--both in the steel and titanium versions--weren't the strongest, so that could have been a source of some problems.
Anyway, I said earlier that I'm not sure how I'd feel about having a titanium rack. Even if swaying and flexing weren't issues, I have to wonder what benefit such a rack offers, aside from weight savings. How much of a difference would 50 to 100 grams off the rack would make if you're carrying 30 to 40 kilos with it--and you're riding wider, heavier tires than you'd ride on an unloaded bike.
Given what I've said, I'd still take a rack made of titanium that mounts on the seat stays and rear dropouts over one from carbon-fiber and designed to attach to the seat post.
