*I just had a Nitto M18 fork crown strut/tang break while I was riding* with a 15lb dry bag on the rig and it wasn't pretty. Luckily I was only going about 2mph or it would've been lights out, likely permanently. The strut was originally bent to align with the fork crown hole when installed and obviously flexed under the weight load. It did take about 1200 miles for it to happen but when it did -- KAPOWWW! -- it was instantaneous and sent the load flying in front of the front wheel (I had the stays supported on the fork dropout eyelets so the rack pivoted all the way forward). I went down so fast I never knew what hit me. I shudder to think what would have happened if I'd been sailing downhill at 30mph at the time!! Full disclosure: I bought the M18 from Ben's Cycle who blissfully give the load rating as 8kg = 18lbs, hence my conservative load of 15lbs over bumpy terrain. *Nitto's 2015 catalog, however, gives the maximum payload as 5 (FIVE) kg = 11lbs. *So i was actually running the rack four pounds over its limit all those miles. Did I trust that strut/tang from the start? Nope. It looked like a weak way to connect the rack but I reckoned it would give me some warning before failing. I would definitely use straps wrapped on each side of the handlebar stem as a safety back-up in future. Instead, I'm going to be using a VO porteur rack which is rated at 50lbs (rather generous payload which should be halved using stock connections). But guess what? That rack also uses that flimsy, good-for-nothing fork crown strut/tang in a 3-point connection. Absolute junk! The way to get around that major failing is to shell out for the Surly Rear Rack Upper Kit which can be used on each side of the fork as a stabilizer and safety catch: http://surlybikes.com/parts/small_parts/rear_rack_upper_kit. If you don't have fork eyelets, simply use p-clamps for the fork connection instead. After what happened to me, I'll likely also use handlebar straps. Be careful out there and don't believe everything you read about recommended weight loads or failure rates!
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