Hepco and Beker

[banditderek]

Has anyone installed a Hepco and Beker luggage rack system on their 4PT? Is it strong and up to the job? What about their engine gaurds? I'm after these items, but couldnt find any real reviews, even on the Hubb.

[todderz]

Yes, I have. See this thread.

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...nd-racks-39201

They are good. The fit isn't perfect, and as a result one bracket snapped and had to be welded. They carried a lot of weight, probably too much, but eventually failed and the pannier rails broke, but to be fair this must have been at least partly due to the rear sub-frame breaking first and putting undue loading on the rails.

It's rated for max 10kg in each pannier. I think if you stuck to that and the frame of your bike doesn't snap, they would be good enough for moderately adventurous riding in places like Mongolia. Ride a bit more aggressively and they'd break sooner. I took things pretty easy, mostly.

I did also crash in Mongolia and ripped a box right off, which can't have helped.

I was a little unimpressed with one of the welds on one rail, but it didn't fail there. The mounting hardware is good quality and up to the job, and didn't require much re-tightening on the road.

I'd say it all depends on where you're going and how hard you ride. Anywhere rough if you ride hard, I'd say no, unless you're really careful with weight.

I found I had to use half a dozen bungies across the boxes to hold it tight across the top, without which the boxes on each side sag and bounce around more, stressing the rails.

I think the H&B is as going to be as good as any other (I couldn't find any other), and there are inherent limitations on where and how you can mount the rails. The rear rack is fine, but the fit is a little tight. The rails mount to the only places they can on an XT, which includes the rear indicator mounts. They're not all that robust, which worried me, but again, that's not where it broke.

I'm also thinking very hard about whether to use them in future, and thinking of going with soft-bags, but there are other threads about that.

Al

[banditderek]

Thanks. Your response was what I was looking for. I wanted to know if they were any good, really. There are much more expensive ones from Metal Mule, but I've read threads where people said they still broke in a crash, so why spend the extra money? I am going to us soft luggage with these racks, so that should save on some weight, but I think 10kg per side might be hard to do

Me and the missus are looking at riding the America's with these racks as part of our kit. I'd like to go off the road as much as possible, but with our offroad riding experience limited at best, I think the racks will stand up to what we will do to them!

[Guest121]

Hi there,

I've ordered the H&B rack for my XT yesterday. I'll let you know what it's like when it arrives and take some photos.

I'm planning on using some soft bags on it, something like these

Wolfman Expedition Dry Panniers / Saddle Bags > Tail Bags and Panniers

Cheers