I needed a front rack for my bike. The standard rear rack no longer fit on the back (I don’t have any eyelets) so I decided to take it and modify it for the front!
Here we have a fairly standard rear bike rack. 
We need to bent the front half out of the way in
order to fit on the front of the bike.
I bent the metal with my knee. You could use a vise, its probably a lot easier.
It should look something like this–>
The next thing I needed was to construct a mount for the top. I went to Home Depot and bought some Aluminum bar stock. Then I hand bent the bar into shape:
I would suggest using
something a little easier to find.
This could be an option in order to hang them from your handlebars instead of the stem. Mc Master Catalog Page #1474
The skewer for the bike is now going to go through the rack and wheel.
That’s All Folks, not much to it. Now go on out there and enjoy the rack!
This post is tagged add, bicycle, bike, bike front rack, fix, front rack, hack, make, projects
Thanks! I remember seeing your fenders from before somewhere on the internets. I plan on selling my fenders soon, I’ve been considering laser etching instead of veneering though.
Sweet rear fender…that looks like one I made for my bike:
http://www.bikecommuters.com/2008/02/21/po-boy-fenders-and-other-diy-projects/
I’ve never snapped a P-clamp, despite some brutish loads…but you’re right, they do mar the paintwork. Nice front hack, though!
I truly hate those P-clamps, the load on the back snapped more than one of those on my bikes. They also do a great job at marring the paint.
The rack does do a good job at hold most things (like grocery bags) but definitely is limited on large items.
It might be interesting to try on another bike and see how much rack space I can get.
I like the upper attachment point, very resourceful. But I’m a little confused why you didn’t just use four of those rubber-coated P-clamps to mount it on the back. I see tons of bikes without eyelets that have gone that route.
The bent top deck looks like it might make some things (say, cardboard boxes) a little tricky to strap down, which makes me think that chopping it off at the bend, and using a longer piece of your bar stock to reach the head tube might actually make the usable area of the rack bigger.
-T.