Author Topic: Rear rack after flight  (Read 2769 times)

in4

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Rear rack after flight
« on: October 27, 2023, 08:25:30 PM »
EasyJet taking care of my rear rack - not.
How they do this I do not know. Dropped bike box I suspect. At around 20kgs it’s not exactly ‘heavy’
I’ll see what I can do to bend it back and will pursue EasyJet at the same time.
Great tour not to be soured at all!

mickeg

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #1 on: October 27, 2023, 08:34:41 PM »
If that is the Thorn rack, here is the link with the info you need for your claim:
https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/carriers-racks/thorn-expedition-steel-rear-cycle-pannier-rack-black-powdercoat/

WorldTourer

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #2 on: October 27, 2023, 09:30:06 PM »
The Thorn Rack is steel. Isn’t one of the advantages of steel is that it can be bent back, with the aid of some machinery, without compromising its structural integrity? After all, loads of people have suffered from crushed forks after a flight and then had a local shop bend the fork back open.

Andre Jute

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #3 on: October 27, 2023, 11:37:23 PM »
Commisseration. I admire your resolve not to let the wretched cargo handlers spoil a good tour.

Danneaux

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #4 on: October 28, 2023, 12:12:52 AM »
So sorry for the angst, disappointment and now inconvenience of having to deal with this, Ian.

This bend is in the unsupported rear section of the rack, a section intended primarily to support the taillight by mounting it rearward to a point where it is not obscured by the panniers. As a bonus it extends the length of the top deck and gives another lashing point.

Based on my experience bending tubes as a hobbyist framebuilder and rack maker using cro-moly steel, based on the photo I think you could pretty easily bend that back into place after uncoupling the last bolt-on crossmember. In the absence of cracks I don't see a major problem, provided the rest of the rack is straight. Check to make sure the steel is good, as the powdercoat may show signs of being strained past its plastic recovery and that can look like more major cracks. If the rest is bent, it may still be easily recoverable but other methods would need to be employed. Instructions included with Thorn's(front) racks remind the user the racks are heat treated and this can sometimes result in misalignment that can be addressed by bending. I recall seeing a photo with someone, possibly Andy Blance by memory, standing on part of a rack and heaving up on another portion, so I would not be shy. I'd probably demount the rack to work on it and use wood as a fulcrum along with my boot to avoid scarring.

At the same time, I'd place a claim in case you don't wish to pursue a DIY remedy or to make you whole if you cannot get it to work satisfactorily.

If 't'were me, I'd also check frame alignment as a general precaution in case I needed to extend my damages claim, though I would be very surprised if this is affected it at all. The Nomad's frame tubing is large-diameter and robust and the 19mm seatstays particularly so. Though shaking to find and see, if the damage is limited to what we see of the rack alone, it is actually pretty minor and easily addressed -- a good sign.

Hopefully helpful,

Dan.

in4

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #5 on: October 28, 2023, 08:36:26 AM »
Thanks for your replies everyone. I think I can bend the rack back into shape with a bit of careful force. It’s just annoying that despite careful packing as per the airline’s instructions they still manage to create damage for me to address. That said I’m grateful that the rack may have acted as a buffer and prevented significant damage to the bike itself.
I’ve had a great tour and won’t let this issue colour what was a great experience. Besides I’m sub 80kgs now and my close relationship with Brazil nuts has never been better!
Thanks everyone.

PH

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #6 on: October 28, 2023, 09:04:46 AM »
EasyJet taking care of my rear rack - not.
You should certainly take it up with Easy Jet, I would, they took your money, it is their responsibility.  But don't be too hash on them, baggage is handled by the ground crew, who are airport employees, it gets the same care, or lack of, regardless of who you're flying with.

mickeg

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #7 on: October 28, 2023, 05:14:51 PM »
... baggage is handled by the ground crew, who are airport employees, it gets the same care, or lack of, regardless of who you're flying with.

It is a mix, some airport employees and some are the airline employees.  When you look out the window you see airline employees handling the luggage and loading or unloading it from the plane.  The vehicles used to move the luggage between the building and the planes are the airline's. 

Also varies by size of airport.

PH

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #8 on: October 29, 2023, 01:23:03 PM »
... baggage is handled by the ground crew, who are airport employees, it gets the same care, or lack of, regardless of who you're flying with.

It is a mix, some airport employees and some are the airline employees.
I defer to your greater experience, I hardly ever fly, the one airport I worked at had no airline employed baggage handlers and I assumed that was universal.

WorldTourer

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #9 on: October 29, 2023, 01:31:28 PM »
Yes, on another bike forum I once posted the same claim "the baggage handlers are employed by the airport, not the airline", and then someone responded by explaining how some airlines (Air France was one, IIRC) preferred to employ their own baggage handlers at at least some airports.

mickeg

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #10 on: October 29, 2023, 03:47:42 PM »
It probably varies by country too.

I fly very little after I retired, but I traveled a lot in the 1980s and 90s for work.  Some of that was field work where I was hauling tools, outdoor clothing, etc.  Some was indoor kind of work.


Andyb1

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Re: Rear rack after flight
« Reply #11 on: November 13, 2023, 04:44:12 PM »
While being sympathetic about the damage, it would be very easy for the airline to decide not to carry bikes in future.   Hopefully the rack bent back OK so no lasting damage?