Hitch mounted bike racks
- Thread starter Boatbuilder79
- Start date
Betarocker
Adventurer
The NSBR uses an anti-rattle receiver pin. I've never had an issue with excessive movement the few times I've used my brother's, even on rough gravel roads. My brother regularly carries 4 bikes with his 4runner.
The weight is pretty much vertical, not levered out as one (or more) of you are implying. A 2" class 3 receiver will handle the weight of 4 DH bikes without issue, as long as the receiver is properly suited to the vehicle. I'd be worried more with using a tray style one, especially one of the four bike bike versions. They definitely increase the moment forces.
The weight is pretty much vertical, not levered out as one (or more) of you are implying. A 2" class 3 receiver will handle the weight of 4 DH bikes without issue, as long as the receiver is properly suited to the vehicle. I'd be worried more with using a tray style one, especially one of the four bike bike versions. They definitely increase the moment forces.
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
A receiver mounted bike rack of any kind looks to me an awful lot like a cantilevered beam with one fixed end, a distributed load (itself) and some number of point loads (the bikes). The tray style especially. Is that not how are the forces are analyzed?
It also seems different than the draw bar forces. When towing the beam is supported on both ends, the receiver and the trailer, more like a simply supported beam. There's shear and bending but won't it be concentrated differently? There's mostly tension on the hitch towing while none with a bike rack in it.
Boatbuilder79
Well-known member
If a bike rack breaks your truck frame or hitch then something is wrong.
It is nowhere near enough moment to worry about.
The made in China bike rack is gonna fail first
It is nowhere near enough moment to worry about.
The made in China bike rack is gonna fail first
Boatbuilder79
Well-known member
For a trailer Look at the case of the beam on a pin and a roller.
The pin is your trailer ball
Your hitch itself is like a cantilever beam
The maximum moment is gonna be applied where your hitch is bolted to the truck frame.
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
Yeah, maybe. I have a distinct downward slope to my bike rack but it's not a rated receiver. It's one the aftermarket bumper manufacturer fabricates when replacing the factory bumper so their alignment and fabrication jigs come into question. But having around 100 lbs on a 7" hitch extension is in the back of my mind.
FWIW 1UP racks are made in Dickeyville, Wisconsin.
Also, I know the question has been floating around but 1UP rates the Super Duty and Heavy Duty for use on an RV or trailer with a maximum of 2 bikes at 50 lbs (HD) or 75 lbs (SD) each.
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dman93
Adventurer
Why isn’t your 1Up rack not inserted further? On both my Tacoma (factory receiver) and our VW with a Torklift EcoHitch, our 2” two tray SD rack goes pretty much all the way in and still clears the tailgate or bumper when folded up. That does reduce the moment arm. As for your strength of materials ideas, I suspect that the hitch insertion into the receiver is neither fixed nor simply supported. And the rack can clearly support two bikes, so you don’t care about stress in the rack. What you care about is some combination of vertical load (aka tongue weight, regardless of moment arm) on the vehicle, and that vertical load creating stress on the hitch in some combination of shear, bending moment, and even just loads on the mounting hardware. It’s probably very complex and greatly simplified by the manufacturers. Our 1Up has held up for 3+ years including a fair amount of dirt and washboard.
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
@dman93 - the reason is the All Pro bumper I have has a receiver hidden behind where the license plate is supposed to go (which I offset to the right). So it's recessed pretty deep and is pretty high up on the frame. It's about 12" higher than the stock location. The extension is 7" and I have the 1UP inserted to about the "U" on CURT. So it could go in maybe 2 inches before bottoming in the extension.
The extension pushes the rack back so I can open the tailgate without denting it. Hard to see but the notches where the cross bar engage to pick the 4 angles are just under the tailgate skin. If I moved it in further they would touch at the bottom of the curve of the tailgate.
Plus the inside bike would hit the kicked back part of my WilderNest. Right now the bars just kiss the top point of the shell.
I need ideally to make the rack either higher or lower. Higher would work except that then I couldn't open the tailgate at all even with the rack tilted down.
Lower would be fine but then I would have to use a different rear bumper or get a stock bumper and hitch. Plus I'd still have to watch how close it gets to rear window glass.
A swing out is an option but the bumper is pretty low profile so I haven't gotten around to sketching up a way to fabricate a pivot. I don't want a swing out anyway but a low profile arm with a receiver for the rack would be fine. I don't want the weight of a tire or jerry cans hanging that far out on the frame of this truck. It's not boxed yet in the rear and until I do reinforcements I want to keep the amount hung out there sort of low.
The extension pushes the rack back so I can open the tailgate without denting it. Hard to see but the notches where the cross bar engage to pick the 4 angles are just under the tailgate skin. If I moved it in further they would touch at the bottom of the curve of the tailgate.
Plus the inside bike would hit the kicked back part of my WilderNest. Right now the bars just kiss the top point of the shell.
I need ideally to make the rack either higher or lower. Higher would work except that then I couldn't open the tailgate at all even with the rack tilted down.
Lower would be fine but then I would have to use a different rear bumper or get a stock bumper and hitch. Plus I'd still have to watch how close it gets to rear window glass.
A swing out is an option but the bumper is pretty low profile so I haven't gotten around to sketching up a way to fabricate a pivot. I don't want a swing out anyway but a low profile arm with a receiver for the rack would be fine. I don't want the weight of a tire or jerry cans hanging that far out on the frame of this truck. It's not boxed yet in the rear and until I do reinforcements I want to keep the amount hung out there sort of low.
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dman93
Adventurer
@DaveInDenver thanks for the explanation. With our stock Tacoma bumper and hitch one of the nice things about 1Up compared to most hitch racks is that the dimensions allow the tailgate to drop completely and clear the rack when it’s horizontal, with no bikes, and clear the rack and our two bikes, when the rack is tilted down. Our truck is currently open-bed, but even when we had our ARE Z Series cap, with a sloped rear window lift gate, there was just enough clearance to open the liftgate and reach in for small nearby items. I’m hoping that if we ever get a Drifter or AT Summit, or the new FWC shell, that the vertical rear window will clear handlebars. But at worst I think there’s enough insertion to slide the rack out a bit and get things to clear.
Kuat Racks are some of the best in my opinion after been around bikes for more than 40 years...
Even more amazing their customer service..
Little story,
A few months back the circlip that holds the quick release arm broke after more than 12 years of abuse, is totally fine with me..
I call the tech department to ask them what size it the optimal so i can order one from mcmaster's, the guy ask me for pictures, I send them and then another fellow send me a email asking for my address..
And I'm
"look I have had trash this thing for years, you don't need to send me anything.."
the Dude is
"Well we can not let you drive around on a rack that looks so weathered and bead up, let us send you a new one"
Me..
"No, forgeted...!!!!!!!!!! I'm plenty happy with the one I have.."
the guy
"Sorry my manager insist and you will not like for me to get in trouble with my manager, do you..!?!?"
Three days later the new rack was at my house, so I give it to my Ex-wife so she can put it on the pretty Lexus RX 430 and I hack the one I have so i can carry motorcycles as well as bicycles at the same time..
I'm also use it as "Starts" for my kiddos to get inside the van..
Even more amazing their customer service..
Little story,
A few months back the circlip that holds the quick release arm broke after more than 12 years of abuse, is totally fine with me..
I call the tech department to ask them what size it the optimal so i can order one from mcmaster's, the guy ask me for pictures, I send them and then another fellow send me a email asking for my address..
And I'm
"look I have had trash this thing for years, you don't need to send me anything.."
the Dude is
"Well we can not let you drive around on a rack that looks so weathered and bead up, let us send you a new one"
Me..
"No, forgeted...!!!!!!!!!! I'm plenty happy with the one I have.."
the guy
"Sorry my manager insist and you will not like for me to get in trouble with my manager, do you..!?!?"
Three days later the new rack was at my house, so I give it to my Ex-wife so she can put it on the pretty Lexus RX 430 and I hack the one I have so i can carry motorcycles as well as bicycles at the same time..
I'm also use it as "Starts" for my kiddos to get inside the van..
Explorerinil
Observer
I got a yakama Dr tray, it works great for 2 inch receivers but the 2.5 inch my ram truck has makes the rack wobble a tad. On a long trip in Wisconsin I had the bikes shift off due to the wobble, I called yakama, they said, “yeah we hear that complaint often with 2.5 inch receivers”. They offered no remedy, anyone got a solution?
chet6.7
Explorer
billiebob
Well-known member
WOW !!!Kuat Racks are some of the best in my opinion after been around bikes for more than 40 years...
Even more amazing their customer service..
Little story,
A few months back the circlip that holds the quick release arm broke after more than 12 years of abuse, is totally fine with me..
I call the tech department to ask them what size it the optimal so i can order one from mcmaster's, the guy ask me for pictures, I send them and then another fellow send me a email asking for my address..
And I'm
"look I have had trash this thing for years, you don't need to send me anything.."
the Dude is
"Well we can not let you drive around on a rack that looks so weathered and bead up, let us send you a new one"
Me..
"No, forgeted...!!!!!!!!!! I'm plenty happy with the one I have.."
the guy
"Sorry my manager insist and you will not like for me to get in trouble with my manager, do you..!?!?"
Three days later the new rack was at my house, so I give it to my Ex-wife so she can put it on the pretty Lexus RX 430 and I hack the one I have so i can carry motorcycles as well as bicycles at the same time..
I'm also use it as "Starts" for my kiddos to get inside the van..
These just blow me away. Completely blocking the tail/turn/brake lights
Just WOW at the stupidity..... and lack of enforcement.