Jack the Rack, thoughts and knock offs

Anyone own a jack the rack?

https://wholegraincycles.com/

They look cool so would like to try it out. Be also keen to know if anyone knows an alliexpress know off version :P

There's the Nitto F16 but I'm not calling it a knock-off.

Got one for my birthday a month ago. They're not cheap, but so far it's been super useful and very easy to transfer between bikes. It takes a bit of experimenting with heights/tightnesses/the straps they give you, but when it's set up well it's pretty solid.

It doesn't quite match a fixed basket or rack for stability, but even with a few kilos of commuting bag on the front, well cinched down, it doesn't bounce around too much. The yellow self-tying bungees included are very good.

I dunno if this is a shameless promotion but these will be available for purchase via Seabass Cycles soon.

Well set up, they do the job well - especially on a track bike with no mounts.
The 5kg recommended limit is potentially limiting.

All told, there are better options in many circumstances but if you don't have bosses for a rack, this is the one.

Bought into the kickstarter and have been using most days for a long time now.

To echo the above, it isn't as a good as a dedicated rack but when you have a bike or three without mounts, it is really quite good.

It excels as a general rack doing commuting and odd jobs, it hasn't added much for me in terms of bikepacking. Strapping a tent to the handlebars vs using Jack doesn't gain much and then the rack bounces around more on rough surfaces.

On the negative side, if you don't get things right, it'll feed kit into the front wheel. I've solved this using rigid dry bags and not bothering with the straps provided. Turns out you still can't beat the good ol' Voile strap.

More niggles and photos in this build thread..
https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/383746/

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Any slippage issues or just that stuff has a way of finding itself out the back? I'm looking at one for my girlfriends bike and she's on the 230mm limit (actually more like 220mm once i add a mudguard). It'd be primarily to carry her work laptop so i'd probably think about a low profile basket fixed to it so no risk of anything falling through.

To be honest if it doesn't work on hers i could see it being a better option for me given how little i carry and that my current rack weighs around 1kg.

I use mine with a Wald 137 half and basket bag. It holds a laptop, jacket and shoes really well. There isn’t much clearance but it’s only hit the wheel on one occasion when I wasn’t looking and smashed through a pothole.

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It's a nice rack but tbh I'm not sure I'd carry a laptop in it. It does bounce around a fair bit.

It's very tempting, but I'm not sure I'd use one enough to justify the price tag, no matter how good the quality is.

Any slippage issues or just that stuff has a way of finding itself out the back?

This, it's open at the back and stuff can work it's way onto the wheel but this has been solved with the above voile configuration, that I'm sure could also be done with the cords provided.

To be honest if it doesn't work on hers..

If you are still near my office in EC1, you can borrow it for a week, just drop me a pm with the handlebar diameter.

That looks spot on, she's on drops but they're flared so can't see the 137 being a problem. How did you fix it to the rack? She has a pretty beefy protective case but that bag is a very nice option.

Oh that would be ace, i won't be in next week but will message you to arrange something soon enough.

I've also got one. I have a Wald 137 attached with zipties. I use it everyday for commuting and have done some touring. I love it. Not as solid as something with dedicated fork mounts but its pretty good and def takes more than the official 5Kg

I used zipties too, holds perfectly. The bag’s great: my partner has one made by @Buildhigh which has more features, is more functional and was really good value compared to what I paid for mine.

No-one asked but if anyone is getting a Jack and wants to carry clothing and stuff, after some experimentation, this is the best dry bag I've found for size, fit and ease..

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/waterproof-dry-bag-5-l/_/R-p-325038

Actually just picked one of these up for the same purpose! Like the vent to help squash it down.

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/trekking-waterproof-compression-cover-20-litres/_/R-p-311987?c=GREEN

Anyone want to buy my Jack? I have one from the kickstarter, completely unused and box still sealed.

Will be listing on classifieds soon but quick heads up here....

Pmd

It holds stuff, I’m happy.

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Tempted to get the Jack The Rack but my Commuter has 26.0 bars and looking at the attachments included it only comes with 31.8 and 25.4. Does anyone know if there is an aftermarket solution to this?

4 winds of electrical tape is a shade over .6mm

Thanks but not sure that works. Bar is 26.0, Clamp is 25.4 so you'd need to remove some of bar or clamp to get it work? Or are you saying it should just about squeeze in?

The part of the bulge next to the stem is 26.0, the rest of the bar is 22.2. Figure out where your bulge ends to see if it will fit.

I can also swap spacers and see if it fits a little later today.

Thanks. Yes the bulge is up to the tape on these bars. Not sure it would work unless the 25.4 clamp fits. If you get a chance that would be really helpful. Thanks

Thinking of getting one of these, before I pull the trigger anyone have one surplus that they are thinking of selling?