Two MIKs...sort of

[Bill G]

I've been transporting an R&M Nevo 3 between Upstate NY and Florida twice a year. With two overnight stops, I was always nervous even with multiple locks. So I just bought a Trek Allant 7s gen 2 and am leaving it in Florid. A plus for the new bike was its MIK compatible rack. So I tried to install my Basil MIK trunk bag and it wouldn't attach which confused me since MIK is supposed to be a universal system. Well, after a little digging, I found that Trek apparently produces (ed?) two MIK racks with different widths. Then the light went on, however dimly, that the four feet on the bottom of the bags adapter could be move by simply unscrewing them and moving them one hole closer to the center. Now the bag fits fine. I just don't remember previously reading anywhere that MIK racks came in two different widths. Oh, i do like the new bike. Seems easier to get higher speeds with the derailieur on the Allant then on the Nevo 3 with its Enviolo transmission.

 

[Sparky731]

I've been transporting an R&M Nevo 3 between Upstate NY and Florida twice a year. With two overnight stops, I was always nervous even with multiple locks. So I just bought a Trek Allant 7s gen 2 and am leaving it in Florid. A plus for the new bike was its MIK compatible rack. So I tried to install my Basil MIK trunk bag and it wouldn't attach which confused me since MIK is supposed to be a universal system. Well, after a little digging, I found that Trek apparently produces (ed?) two MIK racks with different widths. Then the light went on, however dimly, that the four feet on the bottom of the bags adapter could be move by simply unscrewing them and moving them one hole closer to the center. Now the bag fits fine. I just don't remember previously reading anywhere that MIK racks came in two different widths. Oh, i do like the new bike. Seems easier to get higher speeds with the derailieur on the Allant then on the Nevo 3 with its Enviolo transmission.

Kudos on your 7s purchase. And the MIK adapter scenario. Very universal. I have 4 different MIK-adapted carriers and trunks I swap around as the ride suggests.

I also ride a 7s and recently turned over 10k miles. My fav. ride.

Like you, after multiple transports back and forth cross country we purchased more bikes. Mine are Allants, my wife’s are Verve’s. My 7s stays in WI and my 8s stables in AZ. The Sport motor is super fun and powerful. I have sweetened my 7s with a few accessories. I am interested to know what adds you have or plan to do.

One general rule I have with my 7s is to upgrade whatever component requires repair. The 7s is favored for the suspended front and the functional rear rack. But Trek put the pricier componentry on the 8s.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

There are also 2 RackTime standards. Definitely complicates shopping for things to put on the RackTime rack that came on my Vado SL 5.0 EQ.

The RackTime site shows how to tell which version you have, but mine has features of both. Grrrrrr. And "RackTime-compatible" products don't always say which version they need. Mine's still largely unused as a result.

 

[Mulezen]

I have a 7s in a medium for friends who visit me in the country. My 9s is an extra large which means I’ve spent little time on the 7s though I am using its low mileage battery. I bought sometime ago a bag for the 7s rack which didn’t mate. This thread stimulates me to re-examine the situation

 

[jowzia]

It's great that you found a solution for the Basil MIK bag and that everything fits well now! Mounting systems like MIK can sometimes be confusing, especially with variations in mounts. It's great that you were able to adjust the feet of the bag to make it compatible.

 

[JustRiding]

if you would change from a bike with a Racktime compatible rack and you have several bags for it (Klickfix) and another bike you are considering has a MIK compatible rack: Ss there any adapter on the market that would enable you to continue using your Klickfix racktime compatible bags on a MIK rack?

 

[6zfshdb]

It's fairly easy to make adapters to use other mounting systems with MIK.
These MIK mounting plates are well suited for the task:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075DKV1MK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

My E-bikes all use the MIK system, which meant I couldn't use my collection of Trek / Bontrager bags that use the old Interchange system. As a fix, I made up this adapter using one of the MIK mounting plates:

Now, I can use any bag on any bike.

 

[JustRiding]

thanks for the advice. Not sure what I see on the picture - does that mean you fix the adapter plate on the MIK, then put another rack on top of the plate to which you klick in various bags? so 4 layers (bag+rack+adapter+rack) instead of 2 (bag+rack)?

 

[6zfshdb]

thanks for the advice. Not sure what I see on the picture - does that mean you fix the adapter plate on the MIK, then put another rack on top of the plate to which you klick in various bags? so 4 layers (bag+rack+adapter+rack) instead of 2 (bag+rack)?

It's bag+rack+MIK adapter, which then attaches to the MIK rack on the bike. Seems convoluted but it lets me use all my Bontrager bags on the bike without having to put separate MIK adapters on each Bontrager bag.

The picture is the Bontrager rack attached to the male half of the MIK adapter.