On a recent trip to the library, Virginia was wishing she had a basket on her new bike. The old one, still in service (though not reliably so), had a trusty front-mounted one.
![Vintage Dunelt Bike](https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3549/3871237948_0a238ccf7f_z.jpg)
Though equipped with a rack, the new bike was clearly lacking the personality and utility of the vintage Dunelt. So, she came up with a brainstorm that just so happens to be a—if I may say so—perfect solution.
I ran to the hardware store for $5 worth of brackets, nuts and bolts, and down to the basement for a few scraps of an old inner tube for placing between the rack and the brackets (don’t want any squeaks when riding), and the actual box.
![Old Wine Box Bike Trunk](https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5580/14460685057_e4067555c4_z.jpg)
We happened to have a couple of these old wine boxes (one of the local wine shops was giving them away a few years ago… you never know when you might need one, right?). I busted out the sander, smoothed down some of the rough edges, drilled a couple of holes and now she has this:
![Old Wine Box Bike Trunk](https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2898/14647104665_e0c1c1b432_z.jpg)
It happens to be the perfect size for transporting a lunch, a bunch of books, her u-lock and helmet (although, the helmet stays on her head during the ride, but it still fits).
![Old Wine Box Bike Trunk](https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2899/14646693602_ccef70e750_z.jpg)
And, best of all, it comes with a sliding top to keep everything secure.
![Old Wine Box Bike Trunk](https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2927/14643866731_be3256bffa_z.jpg)
I know you can buy much lighter, much more waterproof versions of these bike trunks (and most of them start at $75 or more). You can’t go wrong with a solidly built pine box that you got for free and a few bucks for some hardware. Plus, it just looks cool.
![Old Wine Box Bike Trunk](https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5540/14460441540_b3694f0a19_z.jpg)
I’m not sure about the wine, though. It’s not one we’ve tried before. We might have to after this, what with all that free advertising.