Drilling a hole in a pannier rack

[Richard D]

For reasons of aesthetics, I want to try to destroy my very pricey titanium Tubus pannier rack by drilling a hole in it.

Okay, what I actually want to do is to hide the wiring to the rear dynamo light, and as the Tubus is hollow it has real potential.

It's already open at the bottom of the rack, but where's the best place to drill at the top/rear corner? At the back of the horizontal rail, at the top of the upright stay, or somewhere along the bend where the upright transitions to the horizontal (and if so, whereabouts?).

I know that drilling *anywhere* is going to compromise the strength of the rack, and it’s not got the greatest load capacity as it is. What I’d like to achieve is a hole in a position that compromises its strength the least.

https://share.icloud.com/photos/078O3J4G0p2CchIygiS8IGMaw

[Boring_Username]

You are Alf Engers and I claim my £5

[Jdsk]

I wouldn't weaken it in any way at all: how about adding another similar-looking tube and running the cable through that?

Jonathan

[andrew_s]

I'd suggest the top of the leg.
The horizontal secion probably has less impact on the strength of the rack, but a cable exiting there is likely to get damaged by pannier hooks or rubbed against the edge of the hole by rackpack velcro straps.

[PDQ Mobile]

I wouldn't drill it.
Expensive as I'm sure it is.
It will surely weaken it.


What price aesthetics?

There must be another acceptable solution.

[Richard D]

I like the idea of running a second tube alongside the first.

As to "what price aesthetics?", have you seen the number on the invoice for this bike??? Besides, Beautiful things make the heart soar in a way that mere money cannot.

[pwa]

I'd put the drill away. I don't think there is an acceptable place to drill.

[hamster]

If you are that bothered use a battery rear light. They last ages on a single battery anyway.

[PDQ Mobile]

I like the idea of running a second tube alongside the first.

As to "what price aesthetics?", have you seen the number on the invoice for this bike??? Besides, Beautiful things make the heart soar in a way that mere money cannot.

I am sure your last sentiment is often true.
But beauty can be in the eye of the beholder of course.
And badly drilled and placed holes are not only unaesthetic but function is compromised.
And there is beauty in function too.

There is an old carpenter's saying about joints "if you can't hide it enhance it".

How about some rainbow striped insulating tape?
Only joking of course.

[Cyril Haearn]

I should definitely not drill a hole in it

[Vorpal]

I wouldn't drill, either, but if you *must* do so, avoid the joints & bends by at least 1/4" or 5 mm. Those areas will already have stress risers due to the manufacturing process.

I would think that one of the horizontal bits would be less likely to cause problems. If you can figure out a way to thread the cable there. I guess you would mount the light just below the bottom- / rear-most horizontal tube? Maybe you could put the hole in that one?

If you go forward with this, get some little rubber grommets, so the metal does not abrade the cable.

[slowster]

As to "what price aesthetics?", have you seen the number on the invoice for this bike??? Besides, Beautiful things make the heart soar in a way that mere money cannot.

In that case I would definitely not drill the rack. Instead I would get a set of mudguards which would allow the dynamo cable to be concealed by the mudguard, and combine that with a B&M Secula light mounted on the rear mudguard.

SKS make at least a couple of mudguard sizes with a plastic tube affixed inside the mudguard through which a dynamo cable can be routed, and I think there are other options, such as using the cylinder created by the rolled edge of metal mudguards made by the likes of Gilles Berthoud to carry the cable.

[Vorpal]

As to "what price aesthetics?", have you seen the number on the invoice for this bike??? Besides, Beautiful things make the heart soar in a way that mere money cannot.

In that case I would definitely not drill the rack. Instead I would get a set of mudguards which would allow the dynamo cable to be concealed by the mudguard, and combine that with a B&M Secula light mounted on the rear mudguard.

SKS make at least a couple of mudguard sizes with a plastic tube affixed inside the mudguard through which a dynamo cable can be routed, and I think there are other options, such as using the cylinder created by the rolled edge of metal mudguards made by the likes of Gilles Berthoud to carry the cable.

I didn't know that there were mudguards with cable tubes. That sounds like a really good idea!

[Cyril Haearn]

US$ 323.36

[Brucey]

I didn't know that there were mudguards with cable tubes. That sounds like a really good idea!

it is a good idea but I'm not sure it has been done in a perfect way. The SKS/Bluemels 'cable tunnel' mudguards have a tube riveted on the inside.




IME rivets through chromoplastic mudguards are always where the rot sets in first. The tube itself is wider than you might expect (can the wire rattle inside it, I wonder...?), reduces the clearance inside the mudguard and itself constitutes something of a mud trap. The cable tunnel mudguards also only come with

a) side-mounted (clip-on) stays, i.e. there is no bracket on the mudguard where the stays mount, they are each separately attached directly to the chromoplastic material
b) the front stays have the ASR stay release system, which IME is vulnerable to breakage, and leaves you only two options; new ASR clips (which ought to be made of solid gold, judging from the price of them) or new stays.

IME the side mounted stays tend to tear the mudguard to bits as soon as it takes the slightest clout; when the mudguard is a year or two old this gets increasingly likely because the chromoplastic material is polycarbonate based and this embrittles with UV. These mudguards presently cost £35. This seems like 'quite a lot' considering they are far from perfect. I wonder if you wouldn't be as well off getting some pneumatic tubing and mounting that to some mudguards that suit you better to start with...?

Another idea is to substitute some of the solid wire stays for ones made of stainless tube instead, and run the wires inside those...?

cheers