Help with topcase+rear rack weight issue

[jasondavis48108]

So I got this givi E450 rear rack a few days ago. I've been trying to figure out how to go about safely carrying stuff in the topcase like my laptop in my backback. I bought the larger size so that I wouldn't have to carry the laptop and backpack separatly. The E450 is large enough to hold my swissgear backpack without too much squishing Anyway, I've been using my bicycle scale to weigh things and my backpack with my laptop and charging brick in it weighs 12.5 lbs. The topcase itself weights 6.6 lbs which brings me to about 19lbs all told on the rear rack. I know the rack is only rated for 11lbs. I used to carry this much weight in my old genuine topcase without much thought but now that I'm thiniing about it I'm a bit nervous about it. Has anyone found a way to renforce thier rear rack to support extra weight? This amount of weight is almost double what the rack is rated for. Also, is there anyone who carries this much weight on thier rear racks on a regular basis? If so what if any issues have you had with it. Thanks in advance for any info you can give me on this

[jijifer]

why do you carry your laptop and backpack separate? I have a 5yr old ogio "street" pack that is "hydration" ready. It's kept my laptop dry through several sever rains.

there's a TON of vibration through that topcase such that I can't imagine that's good for a laptop. It'll shake some innard loose over time! I learned that hard way trying to transport my left over fajita home. I had in a box within a tied plastic bag and got home to topcase covered in shook loose fajita! had to take a hose to it!! ICK! so since then, anything fragile is on ME not the bike.

Yeah, it's a heavy backpack but for sure your books would be safe in the topcase but I wouldn't think the laptop will be.

[jmkjr72]

i have always abused the rear rack on my zuma
i dint think the weight is completly about how much the rear rack would hold but how it effects the balance of the scooter

too much weight on the rear rack and the wheel will hit the gorund when on the center stand and it could take off on you

the more rear weight the less that is on the front means you need to use more rear brake to slow down

plus the fact that it is cantalevered over the rear shock it multiplies th force on the shock

[jasondavis48108]

why do you carry your laptop and backpack separate? I have a 5yr old ogio "street" pack that is "hydration" ready. It's kept my laptop dry through several sever rains.

there's a TON of vibration through that topcase such that I can't imagine that's good for a laptop. It'll shake some innard loose over time! I learned that hard way trying to transport my left over fajita home. I had in a box within a tied plastic bag and got home to topcase covered in shook loose fajita! had to take a hose to it!! ICK! so since then, anything fragile is on ME not the bike.

Yeah, it's a heavy backpack but for sure your books would be safe in the topcase but I wouldn't think the laptop will be.

Unfortunatly, I don't fit so well on the scooter with backpack on and topcase mounted so wearing laptop and putting books in topcase is not really an option. It's kinda like having a passenger, its a real tight fit. I think that, at least for tomorrow, I'll just take the topcase off and wear the backpack. Luckily I don't have to bring the laptop home everyday. I do know that Givi makes a trolley that has a laptop sleeve built into it so there has to be a safe way to do what I want to do, even if it means buying the Givi soft luggage trolley. That still leaves me with a rack that isn't rated to support the weight though. It seems so odd that I have a 28lb bicycle that can carry me (200lbs) and 50+ lbs of cargo on the rear rack, but I can't seem to figure out a good way to carry my laptop and backpack on the scooter without wearing the backpack. As you brought up, I'm a bit worried about the vibration, but I'm also worried about how wearing the backpack will effect an accident if I go down

[jasondavis48108]

i have always abused the rear rack on my zuma
i dint think the weight is completly about how much the rear rack would hold but how it effects the balance of the scooter

too much weight on the rear rack and the wheel will hit the gorund when on the center stand and it could take off on you

the more rear weight the less that is on the front means you need to use more rear brake to slow down

plus the fact that it is cantalevered over the rear shock it multiplies th force on the shock

I'm not too worried about handeling issues. I've carried my laptop and two math textbooks in a smaller bag in my old genuine topcase and that was about 15lb or so. I don't notice a great deal of change in the handeling like you do when you have a passenger. The rear wheel touching thing I hadn't thought about before, but I'll definitely watch out for that. My main concern is that with 19lbs on the rack, I'll hit a bump in the road and my topcase or rack will snap off my scooter and trash the laptop or worse yet, cause a traffic accident.

[michelle_7728]

I'm the one that posted all the pictures in the other thread of the platform I built to attach to my rack.

I just wanted to comment that with the platform and the pull behind, it's right at about 20 pounds. I just make sure I pretty much creep over speed bumps so as not to jar the rear and make the momentary weight even more.

And yes, you definitely have to be careful about the bike tipping backwards onto the rear wheel when it's on it's center stand. 20 pounds seems to be about the magic number (at least in my experience) when that starts to be an issue when parked on a flat surface. If you were parked going slightly upwards, then I'm sure it would take much less. In fact, when I have my pull behind bungied on there, if I'm not sitting on the bike when I turn it on (and often I'm not, as I'm still putting my helmet on, etc.) I have to keep one of my feet on the floorboard to keep it from tipping backwards. So, yes, weight is a factor, but I've never noticed any issue about it making the bike handle any differently, even in a bit of wind. Of course, in my case it's all sitting on a platform that doesn't make it much higher than the rack by itself. Maybe if the weight was up higher in a top case...

But didn't you indicate you are 6'2"? Maybe since you are taller, you won't notice much difference either, whereas someone that is maybe 5' tall would notice a huge difference.

I carry my laptop in my pull behind bungied on the platform on the rear rack(on the Buddy) or in my top case (when on the MP3) all the time. In the pull behind there is built in padding for computers, but I'm sure it still gets shaken up. In the top case, I always carry a small stadium blanket that I fold up a bit to provide cushioning for the laptop. Maybe getting bigger saddlebags might be your answer...?

Nothing is ever easy, is it?

[jasondavis48108]

Nothing is ever easy, is it?

nope it certainly isn't. I think that as I experiment with the topcase a bit more I may gain more confidence in the topcase/racks ability to support the 19lb without failing. The funny thing is that I never gave it much thought before I changed the topcase. I used to carry all sorts of stuff in the genuine topcase but it was firmly bolted to the rack whereas the givi is a quick release with a 6.6 lb weight limit. I'm juts not sure if they are covering thier butts with a rediculously low weight limit or if its becasue the connection points for the topcase can't handle much more weight reliably. Its very frustrating