Basket-life on the Slice is mega helpful in many situations. For spontaneous or unplanned trips, you can easily toss your jacket, backpack, or anything else in there and off you go as the lower part is fairly contained, no hassle. Additionally, in the summer, it prevents your back from getting sweaty, always a good thing. The basket is tall (13″) and keeps your belongings secure even on bumpy surfaces. On more deliberate trips, the basket can organize a large amount of items, is easy to pack, and handles the weight well.
One of the large benefits of “truck” bike design with a smaller front wheel is the rack weight is close to the ground, lower center of gravity means steering feels great with no “tippy” sensation and better overall steering dynamics.
The basket / rack is durably constructed from alloy metal tubes with sheet wrap on the outside and sized 15″x12″x13″h. It can hold up to 30lbs (or another way to think is about it is 7 bricks) and has a horizontal sliding adjustable top rail for snugging down taller bags, for example if you add paper tall grocery bags. The slide feature is a bit gimmicky but the high rail in itself acts as higher sides to the basket, so it does have some use as an extra retainer.
There isn’t a specific spot to put a lock, but you could create a holder for it. You come up with something to attach it to the outside metal sheet with some effort, or use the space under the seat with two bolts, usually for a water bottle. There are possibilities, but it’s not as simple as some other basket / rack designs.
Since I knew I would be using the bike a lot and needing to take stuff in and out of the basket, I got hold of a specific bag to fit the basket. The large PDW Loot bag fits perfectly, is easy to remove and grab. It’s almost waterproof (isn’t seam taped) and acts like a custom-sized bag, maximizing capacity and neatness. The advantage is that it’s easy to pick up and take into the shops with you. The Loot is almost perfect for using the Slice every day. I found that a hand-carry plastic basket in the supermarket was a good size guide as to what fits in the Loot bag. Oh Loot bag also comes with a detachable shoulder strap, pretty useful.
Now onto the thorny subject of tie down points. The Slice’s basket looks very nice but the function of the tie down points need some work. All the tie down points are generally too slim in width, thus a large variety of clips and bungees won’t work as they are thicker than the slots. You might be fine with inexpensive common or garden elastic bungees like the ones you find in the automotive shop. But anything with a buckle or latch say trying to secure a bag or accessory then you are probably going to have issues with. I tried a few cargo nets and just couldn’t get them to clip.
Because the bike looks incredibly nice and one of last thing I really want to do is bodge the job with cheap bungees, but a PDW cargo mesh wont work well with the clips either. This could be a restriction because anytime you carry something tall or above the height of the basket it’s going to be a pain to secure unless you have the specific bungees. For most stuff this in’t a huge deal breaker for me, especially with a bag, but for carrying awkward or loose items it would be nicer to have better accommodating design. Modifying the laser cut pattern on the outer wrap is probably a pretty small job for the manufacturer, so I can see this aspect improving in the future.
Generally, the basket life on the Slice Lite is good, really good. The size and depth allow you to carry many different items, and the low center of gravity makes it very easy to ride.
Stay tuned for Part 6 coming soon in the links below… and final review in the future
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