Rear vs under seat pannier racks?
- Thread starter SteveY
- Start date
woodguy
Well-Known Member
I would say yes, but I haven’t tried anything other than the bag you see in the picture. A couple of things to consider I think would be if the extra weight would cause the shock to compress too much that the tire would hit the rack frame since I’ve turned the seat post upside down, and I’ve read in some forum posts that too much weight in the back causes handling instability. The rack is the one Cruzbike sold me, so they might have a weight capacity limit.
Black Hawk Down
Senior Rookie
Yes. I checked out all your posts before embarking on this mission. Once I have it assembled and working, I'll do a photo review and post it on the forum. I appreciate all the people who have done this work and gave me ideas.
Black Hawk Down
Senior Rookie
I'm attempting to mount my S40 racks on the Q45. The back rack will sit substantially lower, hopefully reducing the center of gravity. I ride heavy. I'll post photos when I get that far.
EDIT: That didn't work out. I wound up purchasing new racks from Cruzbike.
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Question for those who have "laid back" their seat on a Q45: Have anyone considered or attempted lowering where the boom mounts to the steer tube? Looks like this would require shortening the steer tube to lower where the boom mounts.
Black Hawk Down
Senior Rookie
I shortened mine by about 3.5 inches. It was too much but I was able to compensate with a curved slider pointing up. It's perfect now.
WOW!!! Awesome! I figured you were cooking up something awesome! I think I've gone from initially getting sucked into this world by the V20c, then shifting towards the S40, and now I am focusing in on a "speedy" Q45 like you have done. Thanks for sharing!!
Is there anything preventing swapping the fork out with something more supple/light?
Black Hawk Down
Senior Rookie
I still like the V20 and plan to get mine back on the road, but for touring the modified Q45 is the best I can come up with. I'm pretty happy with it. It seems a shame that Cruzbike doesn't sell the frame separately. I got lucky and bought a used frame in perfect condition.
Black Hawk Down
Senior Rookie
I don't see why not, but this is a question for @Robert Holler
chicorider
Zen MBB Master
It would be worth asking Robert for the definitive word about swapping in a softer fork, but here is my understanding: the Q45 and S40 share the same front ends--fork, chainstay, boom, slider, and headtube. The Q fork might come with a longer steerer tube to accommodate the more upright seat angle, but otherwise I believe that the Q and S forks are the same. The only other option would be an older stock V20 fork with QR dropouts, which might ride a little softer (but maybe not--it's still aluminum). It would have a shorter (maybe too short) steerer tube, and the the narrower crown would limit you to about 28c road tires, which on a Q45, would probably not be ideal. The V20c fork does have a smoother ride, but the same tire size limitations apply, and the fork's steerer tube is tapered, so it would not fit inside the Q45's straight headtube. (Also, to use a V20c fork, you'd need the whole V20c front end, which is probably pretty pricey, if it's even available, and the boom/slider angles would be super funky on anything but a V20c frame).
Black Hawk Down
Senior Rookie
My experience with Cruzbike forks is I replaced the V20 fork with an S40 fork. There was lots of confusion on my part as to which bearings to use, but Robert straightened me out. It worked fine. Now that I have a Q45, I'm putting the V20 fork back on the bike and will make the V20 back into a light road bike.
