Reviews of Arkel Randonneur Rack Black

Pros

Worked well with Arkel pack. Did 500 miles of road rides on country roads with no problems. Easy to install and remove. Caused no damage to carbon fiber seat post.

Cons

A bit heavy.

Pros

Easy to install, does not touch your bike frame. Relies on your seat rails for 90% of its strength and stability, so the seatpost part of the mount is less important and cannot damage your seatpost the way other clamp on racks can. Has a quick release, and can easily be moved from one bike to another. Center bar of the rack is relatively wide and can keep some of the mud or water off your back. The rack is also very good looking, and is not heavy.

Cons

Not very heavy duty. It’s hard to beat a rack with struts that go down to the rear axle to carry heavy loads long distances. But I have a carbon frame fatbike, with no other mounts and a 12mm thru axle. I only planned to carry light loads part time, so this is a great solution for me.

Other Thoughts

I bought this rack because my bike has limited options for mounting. I only need to carry some emergency layers for winter fatbiking, no big heavy loads. I had to put some grip tape on my seatpost to keep that mount from slipping when loaded. After that it was solid.
Installation instructions were good, and all the parts needed were included. My seatpost does stick out far from the frame, so there is plenty of room to mount the rack. Some road bikes with a very low seat might have trouble here, so measure first.
Using this rack with a carbon seatpost should be no problem. The mounting bracket for the seatpost is rubber lined, and is held in place by a strong Velcro strap. As I mentioned before, some grip tape here might be needed to prevent slipping.
I would not mount this rack on a seat with carbon rails, since the quick release seat mount is steel and aluminum and would not be carbon friendly.
Overall very good quality, and I would buy it again. I only gave 4 out of 5 stars because of somewhat limited load capacity.

Pros

Best solution for a racing bike that you are using for touring.

Cons

Not that easy to install

Pros

Does not twist like other seatpost racks.
Suitable for use on carbon fiber seatposts.

Cons

Somewhat difficult to mount.
Needs an adaptor for wide seat rails, and I had one of those adaptors strip out on a ride.
No good way to mount a light on the rack.
Needs additional options for lowering the rack.

Other Thoughts

Good base product and great trunk bag. Could use some additional accessories to improve functionality

This purchase was actually my second rando rack, so I have one set up for both normal (Selle Anatomica H2) and wide (Brooks b17) saddle rails.

Pros

Easily detaches to accompany Arkel bag. Best when purchased with Arkel bag and both can be removed to avoid theft.

Cons

None - great rack

Other Thoughts

Think through whether you want the rack to be high up near the seat or lower near the wheel before beginning assembly. It's a personal choice based on your preferred bag height placement.

Pros

Reasonably light, doesn't require stays.

Cons

The unit came with the wide seat rail mount attached and a shorter mount in the package. My rails are not wide but the short attachment barely cleared the rails. I tried the long attachment and was completely unable to mount it to the seat, with seat in place. Using the short attachment, the rack came loose twice. I decided to remove the saddle post and install the links and let the saddle height be governed by the lower rack attachment. While off the bike, I slid the long attachment between the saddle rails and was able to get it threaded to the attachment fastener. The longer attachment clears the rails by a good half inch, each side. I do not believe it is possible to mount without separating the parts the way I did but if others were able to avoid this, congratulations. The rack is now completely secure on the seat rails.

Re-mounting the saddle and post and lowering the post to where the lower rack grip meets the frame, I tightened the post. Mounting the bike the pedals are just a bit lower than I wish, but acceptable. I am six feet tall with average length legs. The Arkel pack now sits acceptably lower than the saddle with ample clearance above the rear tire. I am now willing to rate the rack a solid Four Stars

Pros

Easy to put on, take off. Looks great. Great for day rides!

Cons

None yet.

Pros

This is the only bike rack that I have come across that is meant to be used with a carbon seatpost. Used it when I was road biking in Vermont and wanted to have the extras without using a backpack. It was very stable as far as not flopping around and could carry up to 10 lbs. You need to make sure that it is securely fastened and check it after each ride. I had to tighten it after several days but maybe I didn't crank it down tight enough to begin with. The picture shows extensions that allow someone with a large frame to hang the rack in a lower position than I did on mine. I have a small frame 50cm. You need to make sure you have enough rail to hang it from. I put mine on the bottom of the rail rather than the back of the rail (the part that goes up to the saddle). It looked like more of the weight was supported by the rails that way. Just stick to light loads and you will be fine. Remember your bungie cords to keep your stuff secure.

Cons

Expensive.

Other Thoughts

It takes a few minutes to get it installed but the more you do it the less fuss there is.

Pros

Low profile, outstanding stability, very sturdy, works with variety of small bags

Cons

none

Other Thoughts

Maybe a bit tighter seat tube clasp so the rack doesn't tip backward. This is a very minor slippage however and is easily corrected.

Pros

Great rack. Easy to install and remove. Extremely lightweight. Works on bikes that don't have rack mounts so it is extremely useful.

Cons

Works best with its proprietary bag.

Pros

Lightweight
Attaches easily
Detaches easily
Sleek design
Acts as a rear fender on wet rides
Great for road/racing bikes

Cons

None at this time

Pros

Easy to mount and transfer to another bike no other tools are required once properly installed. Lightweight rack worth its weight. It connects to the seat with a mechanical connection plus to the seat post with a velcro strap that is plenty secure. The rack is rated for 13 pounds, I have never loaded mine to this limit but, probably half of the max easily, it feels stable unless you get out of the seat and start really pumping the pedals you may feel the extra weight behind you.

Cons

Not designed for heavy loads. May have to adjust locking lever when it's moved to another bike. Certain bags may slide to rear of rack depending on velcro strap placement. There are two positions of rack height from under the seat. I like my rack to be low as possible. So l custom made a bracket to allow me to change the rack height to go low on one of my road bikes, On my Caletti road bike this is not an issue.

Other Thoughts

I do light road touring basically for the day so a seat bag was to small for me. I really try to avoid using a small back pack just not comfortable riding in Santa Cruz mountains or anywhere, the back pack does not breath well with annoying chaffing. I also commute on the bike and it is holding up well I have over 200 miles on this rack with out a problem. For day trips I will not leave without this rack and bag.