Bike rack question.

Some pics of my set up. It may seem a bit bulky but the benefit of opening the tailgate with the rack installed is worth it. I bring my dog riding with me so that feature is a must. And with the dual hitch I can mount a bike rack and a trailer at the same time.
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ShinDiggity said:
Yup. I was wondering if the bike rack would clear the spare.
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I just saw today Rugged Ridge offers a hitch extension. That is going to solve my bike rack problems. :thumb:

I will scan in a pic tomorrow.

I had the same problem with my current bike rack not fitting past the spare so this is perfect solution!!:rock:
 
Im still trying to find a decent hitch rack that wont murder my wallet. Thule is awesome but way too much. I don't want a cheap one either. Im going to go with something the bikes will sit on as opposed to hang on.
 
ShinDiggity said:
Im still trying to find a decent hitch rack that wont murder my wallet. Thule is awesome but way too much. I don't want a cheap one either. Im going to go with something the bikes will sit on as opposed to hang on.
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I think my Thule is worth every penny. I got mine at REI during one of the 20% weekends. REI if you don't like it you can return it no questions asked. The tray style racks are much safer for your bikes.
 
I use the Thule (T2 XTR) rack shown in other pics in this thread. I like the basic style of the rack; however, I am not a fan of the clamps used to clamp the tubing the bikes ride on to the main tube that plugs into the hitch (the clamps are not stiff enough). I am running the expedition one tire carrier with 37" Falken Wildpeak A/Ts on ATX slabs (with 3.5" backspacing). With this combination, the rack fits fine without an extension. I cannot fold the rack up for stowage; however, after removing the bikes, I can still open the tailgate if I place the rack in the down position.

The initial rack that I wanted to purchase is the Kuat NV2. I liked the idea of having a bike maintenance stand built into the rack in addition to the feature they use for eliminating the rattle. I haven't observed a similar anti-rattle feature in any of the other bike racks of this style. The unfortunate issue is this rack would not fit on my setup without a hitch extension, which I was trying to avoid since I wanted the bikes as close to the back of the jeep as possible.

The Thule rack is easy to install and remove with one person (I do not have the extension to allow mounting 4 bikes so I can only speak to the main unit that accommodates 2 bikes). One just needs to insert the rack into the hitch, install and tighten the bolt and place the lock on the other end. Putting the bikes on the rack as well as removing them is very easy, the only thing that I have to watch our for is the pedal location since the forward bike mount is so close to the spare. Though it does come with a lock, it isn't much of a deterrent (yes I speak from experience). I also check the bolts on the clamps periodically to make sure the tubing the bikes are mounted to doesn't slip while I am driving.
 
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Doknocker said:
I just saw today Rugged Ridge offers a hitch extension. That is going to solve my bike rack problems. :thumb:

I will scan in a pic tomorrow.

I had the same problem with my current bike rack not fitting past the spare so this is perfect solution!!:rock:
Click to expand...

I got my hitch extension at harbor freight works for me. I'm running the Rocky Mountain Locking Tail Pipe 4. Kind of a pain with a full suspension Ellsworth Epiphany. But its easier than taking the the car seat out and taking the wheel off my bike and folding down the seat..haha. I'll post pics when I get a chance.
 
Tray type carriers are great with non-standard frame bikes. But usually hold 2 bikes so you'll have to get that brands extension to hold 4. If your hauling nice hard tails or dual sprung bikes, this is a good way to go. I'm running a Yakima with a drop extension. Cool thing about the Yak is the bike lock & hitch lock are integrated and has a built in bottle opener.

And if you get a drop hitch extension, spend the extra cash to get one with anti-sway. The lock-pin is a bolt that snugs the receiver and hitch preventing the side to side movement.
 
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Got the Thule 916XTR 2 Bike Platform Hitch Rack. Installed and used it last weekend. Love it - (was a bit pricey - just under $400 w/tax and all), but definitely worth it! The bikes don't move!!! Had experience with the Rugged Ridge spare tire rack before and hated it! It never fit right on the spare tire ('10 Rubicon w/stock tires), and was a pain in the butt to make two bikes fit. Had to squeeze one pedal through the wheel of another at just the right angle, then after some time, the lock on the top quit working properly and would just spin. Also, the bikes were way too close to each other and I was always worried about damage from one scraping the other. The Thule rack holds the bikes in place very well and was very easy to install. Only problem I'm having is folding it up for stowage; spare tire is in the way. This will be solved with a hitch extension or drop hitch, which I'm ordering soon! 20130330_142210.jpg20130330_142242.jpg
 
Holeshot, that rack looks good, but it really depends on what kind of bike you want to transport. The one you posted holds the bike from the top tube. Some bikes won't allow that. And some people don't want to damage the top tube finish. Similar tray style racks hold the bike from the wheel. Hope that helps.
 
BlackRockBurner said:
Holeshot, that rack looks good, but it really depends on what kind of bike you want to transport. The one you posted holds the bike from the top tube. Some bikes won't allow that. And some people don't want to damage the top tube finish. Similar tray style racks hold the bike from the wheel. Hope that helps.
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look carefully, this rack holds the bike by its wheels, there's only a foamed hook on top to retain the bike and serves as a lock also.
 
Holeshot said:
look carefully, this rack holds the bike by its wheels, there's only a foamed hook on top to retain the bike and serves as a lock also.
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I'm not so sure about that. The wheels are held in place to prevent movement, but the clamping is that center locking padded slider. Would the bikes stay in place if the center slider was not touching the bikes top tube?
 
BlackRockBurner said:
I'm not so sure about that. The wheels are held in place to prevent movement, but the clamping is that center locking padded slider. Would the bikes stay in place if the center slider was not touching the bikes top tube?
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The clamping on top is what prevents your bike from falling, and its not really "clamping", it only pushes down a little so there is no latteral movement of the bike.
 
Something has to ratchet down and secure the bike wheel or frame on a tray type carrier. The wheels are usually held but not secured by nylon ratcheting ski type straps. This prevents the bike from moving left or right, but does not secure the bike frame from up and down, forward & back travel. The up & down, forward & back travel is controlled by either clamping the wheel down, or clamping the frame down. By clamping I'm not saying squeezing like pliers, but applying downward force. You want a few pounds of pressure to secure this triangle of clamp and two wheels that are strapped. Other wise that expensive bike will work its way off the tray.

But it still comes down to what type of bike frame you want to secure. Bikes with a severe top tube angle or odd geometry from dual suspension may not work with a top tube frame held mechanical. I have a hard tail with hydro-formed tubes and severe angles: so I'm running a Yakima tray carrier that clamps the wheels. When I push down on the ratcheting wheel arm, I apply at least 10 pounds of force.
 
I totally agree with that, and this is what this rack does (push downward) so the wheels are in the wheel opening just like a school bike rack, and with the applied downforce, the bike wont move.

but like you said, with severe angled frame, this rack would not work.
 
I just got a mountain bike but still need to get a rack. Thanks for sharing I'll check out everyone's recommendations.
 
The harbor freight dual hitch works great with Yakima flipped down to allow gate opening. For $30.00 we'll worth it.

As for Yakima racks, or any for that matter, watch Craig's list. There are usually a bunch on there.


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