Review of Sunlite Bicycle Welded Spring Rear Rack, Black

Sunlite Bicycle Welded Spring Rear Rack, Black
By: SunLite Average Rating: 4.5 Total Reviews: 28
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Nice Rack worth the money

On: 2008-05-29

I bought this rack after searching through the numerous styles and brands available. Installation did require me to drill 2 small holes in the fram though. I really didnt mind as long as the rack was sturdy and attractive. I do no regret my purchase and recommend this product to anyone. The bike it was installed on is a GMC yukon mountain bike.

spring bike rack

On: 2008-05-27

great product!! strong and works well. However sketchy directions so made it a bit difficult to assemble.

Quality Rack!

On: 2008-05-25

The rack is very sturdy and well built. I have sat on the rack and I am 190 lbs and it holds me up. The lower bolt area is on the wide side for my bike so it makes me increase the height of the rack in order for it to fit properly. Overall very well made! Get it!

A Wonderful Bike Rack.

On: 2008-05-11

This is a very nice and sturdy bike rack. It took a little longer than I thought (15 minutes) to assemble it but finally got it and have been very impressed with it.

High Quality Rack

On: 2008-04-23

Honestly, the pictures on this product page sold this product to me. Thanks to the kind reviewer who took the time to post them.

Every rear bike rack I would see in the stores in my area was the kind that connected on the seat post. Unfortunately, I dont have enough room on my bikes (Schwinn Suburban Cruiser) seat post for another fitting. I had to find another option. Lucky for me, this rack is a perfect fit!

This rack mounts to the bike using pre-drilled holes on the frame. If you are questioning whether or not your bike has these holes, just look at the picture above on this page that shows how the silver arms of the rack connect to the bike. If you do not see holes in the same spot on your bike, you may want to avoid this product. Im guessing, however, that these holes may be a new industry standard because both recently purchased Schwinn bikes I own have them.

As mentioned a thousand times already, the instructions are horrible. Even so, I was able to easily install it with no problems within minutes of opening the box. It looks great on my bike and is very solid. I couldt be happier and am now convinced that this is THE BEST rear bike rack available.

Check For Compatibility with other Bike Accessories

On: 2008-04-18

This rack has a nice powder black finish and feels really sturdy. It also seems to be greatly adjustable to fit whatever bike frame you might have. However, for a novice bicyclist, the instructions were way too brief and I could not figure out how in the world to get it on my bike. It ends up I had to return the rack anyway, though, because it was not compatible with the rear bike basket I bought in the same order - the basket is a Top Peak rear basket with a nice clip in feature, but you need to have their special back rack for it to clip into. It would have been nice if Amazon had information about required pieces and compatibility.

Great rack, horrible instructions

On: 2008-03-25

Everyone has said it, and theyre right. This is a great rack; the instructions are awful.

I had some installation troubles that were largely related to the moronic diagram included with this rack. It comes with two sets of mounting arms: short and long. I stared at this hunk of metal for 15 minutes before I figure out that I was supposed to end up with extra parts. I also had a heck of a time keeping the arms from falling apart as I was attaching them to the bike.

However, once youve figured out which arms to use (with no suggestion from the idiot-sheet), and adjust the height at the bottom of the rails, it turns out to be a great little rack. Its very sturdy, doesnt rattle or make any noise, and its pretty inexpensive. I dont really know what to do with the spring-loaded back end, but I know its there, waiting for me to find something useful for it to do.

I also bought a Sunlite pannier to go with it. It fits pretty well, but the clips are a little long. To correct this, I flipped over the two clip points on the bottom of the rack so theyre lower to the ground. Piece of cake.

Now that I know how to put it together, Id certainly buy another one. For the first go-around, though, have patience or find one that tells you how to put piece A into slot B.

Lightweight and Sturdy!

On: 2008-02-26

The rack arrived slightly damaged (scratched paint) and the instructions do leave much to be desired; however, its an awesome addition to my peugeot! I did have to bend the arms to get the right fit, though.

Nice Strong Bike Rack

On: 2008-02-15

Got this Bike Rack in the mail in just a few days, fast service, easy install, Looks & works great, Good place to buy parts from.

Great rack...terrible mountning instructions

On: 2008-01-19

Recently began the effort to mount this very well crafted rack on my wifes bike. Although the rack itself is attractive, sturdy and appears to be very suitable for her purposes, the instructions for putting it on the bike consisted of a small scrap of paper with a barely viewable photograph of the forward part of the rack. I was able to Google a set of instructions for another rack which I think will enable me to get the rack on the bike.

Worthless instructions.

On: 2008-01-12

As noted elsewhere in the reviews for this product, the written instructions are terrible. If you have some mechanical skill, or know someone who does, its quite possible to install this unit. On my bike, I had to remove the rear wheel in order to bolt the lower connection point to the bike, because the bolts have to be inserted from the inside. The top connection point on my bike was the handle of the fork that goes from the seatpost to the rear hub. There were two bolts, one on either side of the fork handle - I removed them, then reattached them with the attachment arms of the rack on the bolts.

This seems to be a good quality product - well designed and sturdy.

Great stuff

On: 2007-12-03

Liked it so much, I immediately got another one for my wifes bike as well. they were easy to install, the panier bags fit perfectly on the sides, only con: it is difficult to find read lights that you can mount to it, even though it has a mounting bracket, I guess for a reflector at the back (so it might be more the fault of the rear light manufacturers).

Frustrating instructions

On: 2007-12-02

Product description says that it fits almost every bike, but apparently not mine! Also, the instructions are practically worthless. This does look like a great rack though and Im sure if it fit on my bike I would be fully satisfied.

Installation Not For The Mechanically Uninclined

On: 2007-10-26

I was so excited to get this rack so Id have more room for hauling water when my Husky and I go bikejoring. Well, after struggling with the practically non-existant instructions and watching a not quite helpful tutorial video on expertvilliage, I finally had to give up. Im pretty handy, in general, and I didnt have a clue with this one! I still give it all stars because its a quality product and its not the racks fault my mountain bike is 12 years old. I just took the bike down to my friendly neighborhood bike shop owner and he had it fixed up in no time. He ended up having to drill a hole in the frame and use a piece not included with the installation hardware, but now its on perfectly and I couldnt be happier. So be prepared to seek out help as it may come to that.

Installation Not For The Mechanically Uninclined

On: 2007-10-25

I was so excited to get this rack so Id have more room for hauling water when my Husky and I go bikejoring. Well, after struggling with the practically non-existant instructions and watching a not quite helpful tutorial video on expertvilliage, I finally had to give up. Im pretty handy, in general, and I didnt have a clue with this one! I still give it all stars because its a quality product and its not the racks fault my mountain bike is 12 years old. I just took the bike down to my friendly neighborhood bike shop owner and he had it fixed up in no time. He ended up having to drill a hole in the frame and use a piece not included with the installation hardware, but now its on perfectly and I couldnt be happier. So be prepared to seek out help as it may come to that.

A wise choice

On: 2007-10-13

The instructions werent great but the installation was fairly intuitive. Its sturdy and lightweight, what more can you ask....and priced right. Very satisfied!

eh...

On: 2007-10-01

So... everything seemed to be in order. I got the product relatively quickly, and it looks quite nice. I mounted the little arms on the bike and then went to mount the rack on the bolt holes near the rear axle... and the bolts didnt fit. the holes on the bike are too big for the bolts that came with the rack. So... attempt one at mounting the rack: unsuccessful. Ill go buy additional hardware (bolts) tomorrow (losing points sunlite...) and see if I can mount that bad boy. It was a big dissapointment. And the instructions are quite a joke. Mine came with one picture and vague, relatively worthless instructions. I think that trying to figure them out would take more time than just putting the rack on without them.
Ill update the post based on what happens with the new bolts.

Great rack at a great price!

On: 2007-09-18

I received this rack FAST...within four days of placing my order. It was packed with instructions and parts, including some extra hardware that I will carry in my tool kit. The instructions are very vague, but I was fortunate that the fitting arms came assembled, and didnt have to figure it out. Referring to the picture here helped me to see how the arms attached to the rack, and it wasnt difficult to see from there where the other end of the upper arms would attach to my bike. Ive posted a couple of other pictures that might help others with assembly. My Trek 7100 had threaded holes on the rear of the frame, Im guessing for just such an accessory. Once I dug out the right hex keys (a 4mm for rack bolts and a 5mm for the bike bolts), the installation took under fifteen minutes. The rack seems very rugged, and I am anxious to use it. After that, I suspect Ill be back to give it that fifth star.

Great rack at a great price!

On: 2007-09-17

I received this rack FAST...within four days of placing my order. It was packed with instructions and parts, including some extra hardware that I will carry in my tool kit. The instructions are very vague, but I was fortunate that the fitting arms came assembled, and didnt have to figure it out. Referring to the picture here helped me to see how the arms attached to the rack, and it wasnt difficult to see from there where the other end of the upper arms would attach to my bike. Ive posted a couple of other pictures that might help others with assembly. My Trek 7100 had threaded holes on the rear of the frame, Im guessing for just such an accessory. Once I dug out the right hex keys (a 4mm for rack bolts and a 5mm for the bike bolts), the installation took under fifteen minutes. The rack seems very rugged, and I am anxious to use it. After that, I suspect Ill be back to give it that fifth star.

Very solid and versatile rack...once you figure out how to install

On: 2007-09-15

This is a great rear rack.

Once it is on the bike it is on there very good...no rattling around, etc.

Very easy to strap almost anything on to it. I purchased one of their bags at the same time so it is a very nice fit.

I agree with the other reviewers that the instructions (if you can call them that) that come with the product are just worthless.

The only reason I did not give it Five Stars is because of this. And their website also does not have anything else to fall back on.

Rather than frustrate yourself with the supplied directions make sure you have your bike right in front of you along with the online picture of the rack itself itself...it is really easier to figure it out on your own.

So let me try to explain best I can...

FIRST --Attaching this to your bike is dependent upon the frame having pre-threaded holes on it for the bolts that come with the rack. This must be some kind of industry standard. But I did not understand this part going into it which is why I was frustrated

So look at your frame and make sure you have the pre-tapped holes both at the top part of the rear frame where it starts coming down to the rear tire and down where the rear tire itself fits in. My bike had "place holder" bolts already in these holes to stop debris from getting inside so I removed them and used the longer screws that came with the rack.

See the silver/chrome parts of the rack in the picture...

First you will have to attach the angled parts to the top of the rack with the little U-shaped bracket pieces. But dont tighten it down yet. They should remain loose and flexible at this point.

Magnify the online photo to see this more clearly.

The bottom silver parts adjust up/down depending on the type of tire you have...

Notice at the end of each of these four silver pieces are holes where the bolt will go through.

These holes line up with the pre-theaded holes on your bike frame.

So slip the bolt and washer through and tighten them down to the bike frame first but still just a tiny bit loose.

Then push the rack around a bit to make sure it is level and straight. This is the reason why we did not fully tighten the top silver parts to the rack itself earlier so that we would have this flexibility.

Once you are satisfied everything is level...crank ALL down bolts very tight.

At this point go ahead and grab the rack and pick up your whole bike that way....you will see how solidly it is on there.

Enjoy!

Best one I"ve seen yet

On: 2007-08-25

I looked at several racks here and at bike shops locally. This one is very solid and fully adjustable,a must have feature because I have seen some that were not level with the bike. Highly recommended.

Best one I"ve seen yet

On: 2007-08-24

I looked at several racks here and at bike shops locally. This one is very solid and fully adjustable,a must have feature because I have seen some that were not level with the bike. Highly recommended.

rear bike rack

On: 2007-08-14

This is a very well built and strong rear bike rack. The instructions for installation are very poor. Once I got it installed, I was impressed with the four points connections to the bike and how well engineered it seemed to be. The instructions say it can hold up to 50 pounds and I am sure it can. The spring holder is very strong also. I really like the rear rack. I got some saddle bags to go with it so I can pack some items when I go out on my bike for a day trip. I looked in some bike stores and did not find this kind of rack. I found it on Amazon and it has worked just great on my bike.

Extremely Pleased

On: 2007-08-08

I ordered this rear rack and Sunlite saddle bags for my Raleigh Grand Sport road bike. The rack is sturdy, easy-to-install, and I love that I can use it on my mountain bike, too, should the need arise.

Extremely Pleased

On: 2007-08-07

I ordered this rear rack and Sunlite saddle bags for my Raleigh Grand Sport road bike. The rack is sturdy, easy-to-install, and I love that I can use it on my mountain bike, too, should the need arise.

Nice rack

On: 2007-08-06

Well constructed rack at an excellent price. Did have to do a little extra work on the upper mount due to the bike not having the type of universal mounting that the rack was evidently made for, but this was a minor problem.

Great, once we figured out how to install it

On: 2007-06-09

The rack is lightweight, a nice matte black, and fit perfectly over my 700cc wheels - its nice to have the ability to switch among three wheel sizes. I was able to attach a couple of pannier baskets with very few problems.

However, the installation process was something of a pain. The directions are not totally clear - they consist of an exploded view of all the components and some very basic instructions on how to install the rack over the back tire of the bike. One of the screws stripped immediately when we started installing the rack. There were also no directions on how to fix the "arms" of the rack (the silver ones on the left side of the rack in the image) to the main body of the bike - it took a lot of guesswork and some tinkering to figure out what we needed to do since we hadnt installed this kind of bike rack on a bike before.

Great, once we figured out how to install it

On: 2007-06-08

The rack is lightweight, a nice matte black, and fit perfectly over my 700cc wheels - its nice to have the ability to switch among three wheel sizes. I was able to attach a couple of pannier baskets with very few problems.

However, the installation process was something of a pain. The directions are not totally clear - they consist of an exploded view of all the components and some very basic instructions on how to install the rack over the back tire of the bike. One of the screws stripped immediately when we started installing the rack. There were also no directions on how to fix the "arms" of the rack (the silver ones on the left side of the rack in the image) to the main body of the bike - it took a lot of guesswork and some tinkering to figure out what we needed to do since we hadnt installed this kind of bike rack on a bike before.

Good product

On: 2007-05-25

It fits my extra sized Motobecane. and my wifes womens Schwinn Sidewinder 24". Had a funny thing happen on the trail . It (The rack) fell backwards pivioting on the rear axel, With the sunlite bag full of "stuff".(which the bag is cool too) The screw had worked loose on the bike attachment . After many mile on bumpy trails I might have tightened all the screws/bolts up . The ones under the bag also worked loose, helping the mishap along. Anyway fine product.

Good product

On: 2007-05-24

It fits my extra sized Motobecane. and my wifes womens Schwinn Sidewinder 24". Had a funny thing happen on the trail . It (The rack) fell backwards pivioting on the rear axel, With the sunlite bag full of "stuff".(which the bag is cool too) The screw had worked loose on the bike attachment . After many mile on bumpy trails I might have tightened all the screws/bolts up . The ones under the bag also worked loose, helping the mishap along. Anyway fine product.

No mounting hardware

On: 2007-05-13

This comes with NO mounting hardware to attach it to you bike. You will need c clamps and bolts for all 6 bike to rack connection points. Otherwise the rack is very adjustable to fit any size bike.

No mounting hardware

On: 2007-05-12

This comes with NO mounting hardware to attach it to you bike. You will need c clamps and bolts for all 6 bike to rack connection points. Otherwise the rack is very adjustable to fit any size bike.

Best rear bike rack out there

On: 2007-03-07

This has been the best rear bike rack I have used so far. Delivery was extremely prompt. Unit is sturdy and came with instructions, fits over 700c tires, mounting hardware is fully adjustable and came in two lengths. Very happy with this purchase.

bike rack rear sunlite

On: 2006-08-18

Fast Delivery. Only one I found to fit womans Diamondback Hybrid