Using the IVAR shelves I made a freestanding bike rack for two bikes.
Materials:
- IVAR shelves
- IVAR side units
- OBSERVATÖR cross brace
- IKEA bed slats
Beginning with IVAR 89 inch tall side units, a couple of 17 inch shelves and a large OBSERVATÖR cross brace, I assembled the shelves taking special care to ensure the frame was square.
Since the bikes would sit on the front of the unit they would tend to make the shelves tip over. So, I took some old IKEA bed slats provided by a friend and mounted two of them on the bottom of the unit extending past the front edge for extra support.
Next, I took my first bike, found the balance point, and centered it in front of the shelves.
I carefully determined where supports should go to hold the bike (without denting or chafing the cables), marked the position, and fixed two more bed slats in place.
Then, I mounted the supports so that they would not stick any further than necessary out the front of the unit. I got a coarse file and cut shallow grooves in the supports to cradle the bike frame.
This tore the wood fibers to create a surface something like suede, which is gentler on the bike finish than smooth wood. The grooves also keep the bike in place so it won’t slide off the front.
The second bike was a bit more challenging as it was too wide to be supported well by supports mounted to the side of the shelves.
I finally figured out how to extend the support to the necessary width to hold the bike balanced on the shelves, using bed slats and a piece of an Ivar corner post. I cut off all the slats that were sticking out the back of the unit so that it would sit flush with the wall.
Since I have extra space and need to store a bike rack, helmets, tools, etc., I added more shelves to the sides of my main unit, creating a 3 shelf wide unit.
I was also going to use GORM shelf legs, since the wider boards would give extra lateral support to prevent the units from wobbling, but the local store was out of these parts.
Fortunately my friend had a large supply of the bed slats, and they seem to offer plenty of support, as the unit seems solid. If you’re wondering why the big bike is on top, it’s to keep the handlebars out of the way, since they stick out farther.