Group test: Front pannier racks

For commuters, tourers and anyone looking to carry a load by bike, whether it’s groceries or something for the allotment, the rear rack is a well-established essential. Less common is the front rack, but it’s indispensable if you’re looking to maximise your bike’s carrying capacity.

So long as your bike’s fork is compatible, a front rack gives you more space for extra stuff.

It’s particularly useful for long-distance cycle campers, tandemists (who have double the luggage requirements), and for cyclists whose rear rack space is compromised – such as a parent with child seat on the back that prevents the use of rear panniers.

While you can ride with one pannier on your rear rack without issue, a front rack’s load needs to be balanced. Scales aren’t essential; judging by holding a pannier in each hand is fine. A balanced front rack won’t compromise your steering (although it will still make the steering feel heavier, as there’s more inertia).

Packing discipline is essential for more enjoyable riding. As a rule, you’ll want your lightweight, bulky items in your front panniers and your heavy supplies in the bigger rear bags because the rear rack will generally take a heavier load.

Surly Nice Rack 2.0 – Front

Price: £149.99
Weight: 1,382g
Maximum load: 32kg
Tube diameter: 10mm
Platform dimensions: 230x170mm
Available from: Surly Bikes

Nice and easy to install, this chrome-moly steel rack weighs in at 1,413g with mounts. Aside from the easy-to-follow instructions, which came in a handy tool pouch, what impressed me most were this toploader’s fitting flexibility and ease of adjustment.

Panniers can ride high or low depending on terrain. If fitted low down, a basket or other luggage can be fitted without affecting pannier removal – a nice touch when on tour. If panniers are fitted higher up, any top load will interfere with their mounting and removal, which is a faff.

With a weight allowance of 32kg, your main concern will be about making sure you get the weight balance right.

There was plenty of room to spare around my 27.5×2.8in (70-584) tyres, where it looked right at home. On my tourer with 26×2.0 (54-559) tyres and mudguards it looked big but there were no issues.

There are handy ‘nubbins’ at the bottom of the rack, which I found useful for attaching bungees when strapping things to the top. For dynamo-light users, there is a front lamp mount.

I think it places the light in a precarious position in event of a crash; I’d like to have seen light mounts on the sides of the rack as well to give options. The rack is available in silver or black.

Verdict: Round-the-world rack that allows you to take the road less travelled

M Part Explorer Low Rider front rack

Price: £39.99
Weight: 565g
Maximum load: 15kg
Available from: Freewheel

A classic design reminiscent of the tourer’s long-standing favourite: the Tubus Tara. Unlike the steel Tara, the Explorer is aluminium, which means it’s about half the price. That price, coupled with a well-proven design, makes the rack a great entry point for those on a budget.

The low cost also means you will need to make a visit to your local hardware store before installing the rack, as you’ll need to supply your own Loctite, nuts, spacers, washers and bolts. The instructions provided recommend using MC6S A2 – information frustratingly missing with online retailers.

With its good adjustability, I had no trouble installing it around 26×2.0 wheels. It will also fit 700C (ISO 622) wheels. I couldn’t find specs on this, but it fitted my partner’s Dawes Galaxy with 38mm tyres and mudguards.

If struggling to fit the rack around mudguards, the rack’s many eyelets might enable you to attach your guards to the rack, but you’d want to make sure it doesn’t interfere with your wheel removal.

Total load is 15kg (7.5kg each side). The rails for panniers, however, are an odd diameter. My panniers rattled when I used one set of hook spacers but didn’t fit with the next size up.

Verdict: A well-priced, classic design with some flaws that’s suitable for budget tourers

Old Man Mountain Divide Rack

Price: £165
Weight: 960g
Maximum load: 25kg
Tube diameter: 13mm (main rack frame), 10mm (pannier rails)
Platform dimensions: 100x266mm
Available from: Old Man Mountain

The most versatile (and expensive) rack on test, the Divide has rough-stuff riders firmly in mind. Designed for both front and rear fitting, this black, aluminium 960g rack is rated to take a mighty 25kg. This increases to 31.75kg if you mount the rack to the front axle (QR or thru-axle) using the appropriate Fit Kit.

The Fit Kits are a sign of Old Man Mountain’s commitment to riders of all disciplines. They’re suitable for various thru-axle lengths as well as quick-release skewers.

It should be possible to fit the rack to virtually any bike, including full suspension ones – so long as the tyres aren’t bigger than 29×3in (75-622). In fact, fitted to my Surly ECR with 29×3.0 tyres, there was still plenty of space to play with.

The OMM website has a handy tool that can show whether the Divide will fit most mainstream bikes. Intuitive instructions make installation a breeze.

Given the off-road focus, panniers have a higher centre of gravity, but this only significantly affected handling on technical terrain where panniers would be a hindrance anyway. The height also interferes with what you mount on the deck, which means, say, zip-tying a basket and using panniers is a no-no.

Verdict: A versatile back-country adventure rack for just about any bike

Tubus Duo

Price: £100
Weight: 616g
Maximum load: 15kg
Tube diameter: 14mm (main rack frame), 10mm (pannier rails)
Available from: Tubus

Designed with touring bikes in mind, as they are likely to have the inner and outer fork eyelets required to fit it, the Duo is another tried-and-tested steel rack that has served tourers for decades in some of the world’s further flung locations.

The rack weighs 616g and was supplied with all the bolts and simple instructions you need for mounting. Given it comes in two separate pieces, which fit separately to each fork leg, you’ll have no issue with tyre size – a bonus for fat-bike riders.

I found fitting this rack fiddly, particularly on the inside of the fork where I nearly stripped a thread. While with the other racks you can mount them with the wheel still in place, this isn’t possible with the Duo, which makes adjustments more of a faff.

That being said, you shouldn’t need much more than a leisurely half hour to fit the rack. Perhaps due to my bike’s fork fittings, I found the rack sides veered out at a slight angle from the wheel.

While aesthetically displeasing, this didn’t affect handling. In fact, the low centre of gravity made luggage carriage (a max of 15kg in total) as easy as it can be with a front rack. It’s available in silver and black.

Verdict: A classic rack for all wheel and tyre sizes – if you have the right fork fittings

Overall verdict

For my touring needs, where child carrying and a preference for rough-stuff converge, I’m torn between the Surly and Old Man Mountain racks.

Both have an impressive weight capacity, work well with large tyres and have top decks allowing for the use of a basket or other luggage. Overall, the Nice Rack wins out for its facility to fit a dynamo light and the ease of removing panniers without disturbing a basket on the top.

The Tubus and M Part offerings are more traditional road touring racks. If I were to tour the world for years on end tomorrow, I’d choose the Tubus Duo for its reputation and quality.

But despite all of my quibbles with the Explorer rack, I can’t fault the price. This is one of the cheapest front racks out there – and from a trusted brand.

First published in Cycle magazine, August/September 2025 issue. All information correct at time of publishing.