A Home for a Battery: The Rack

I spent a considerable amount of time debating where I might put the battery on the bike. A full suspension bicycle does not offer many options. This ZED DS also does not have eyelets anywhere on the rear. I closely considered a seat-post mounted rack, but was scared off by reports of them cracking under heavy loads. One seat post rack which did look promising was one made by Headland, as it boasts a 40lb capacity (most others are 15-25 lbs max). It is a little on the expensive side though.

In the end I settled on a rack made by Old Man Mountain called the White Rock. The LBS where I purchased it installed it for me, which required drilling and tapping above the rear dropouts due to the lack of eyelets. The upper struts fasten to the rear brake bosses.

Though I am happy with this rack, as it is a strong setup (40lbs capacity) on a bike that was never meant to take a rack, it does pose one problem. If I mount the battery too close to the seat, the seat will hit against it as the suspension flexes. This issue makes my original plan of a large Topeak MTX DXP bag look unlikely, as the height and length (9"-13"x12.5") will surely pose interference problems. I will have to find some kind of suitable box for the battery that is short enough to not conflict with the motion of the seat.