Advice on carrying bicycles with Scamp 5er

[rabbit]

Steve, the fixture on the board in Donna's photo is a cast aluminum base bored for a quick release spindle and nut same as that found on your road, mtn., or hybrid securing the hollow axle of the wheel in the dropouts of the fork or the wheel stays in the case of rear wheel.

Most good bike stores sell these. The base containing the spindle bolts to a board or chunk of plywd.; you remove the front wheel and secure the fork to the base by closing the quick release on the spindle. There is some possibility of bending the fork dropouts while underway so additional guying from the head tube or seat post to tie down rings is a good idea. Jared ties off his MTB but with the front wheel in place. I had four of these fork clamping bases mounted on a 2by in the bed of a T-100 and a narrower version with clamps for only two bikes in a 97 4runner. I have never hauled bikes inside the Burro but am guessing that the major obstacle to securing bikes in trailer aisles is handlebar width.

jack

[Carol H]

Saris actually has a custom flat rack that takes the fittings Jack (Rabbit) mentions in his post above. Its called a Sans Traps Triple Track and its 35" wide so should fit in the kitchen floor area of most of your trailers. Just lifts out when not needed...... the only real advantage to using the Saris system over a wooden board is you can move the mounts along the track for best fit in the trailer.

[rabbit]

Carol, I see Saris calls the chingus simply a fork mount. Having a senior moment or maybe hour? Couldn't think what ya call it for love or money!

jack

[Carol H]

LOL I know a little about senior moments..... right now in fact...would love it if someone could tell me where l put my glasses down! LOL

[Jim Bago]

I haven't read the whole thread, but I have transported bikes while pulling a fiver. I modified the TV's hitch and put in a 2 bike rack using an oddball ball that sat on a 4-4 in cylinder of steel. It was good when we were young, but hoisting the bikes became a chore with age. We opted to install a front receiver on our Range Edge. We cut the bike carrier down to minimize visual distraction. The local State Police post looked at and loved it.

For the first time ever, we got a warning about a front air-bag. (I think it had to do with installing the hitch.) We drove 70 miles out of our way to see a Ford Dealer in Newberry and he told us...no worries the bags won't deploy at random.

Days later, we were driving home from Minnesota on US-2 in the UP. I was chooglin' around at 62mph and being passed on a 2-lane when a deer appeared on the shoulder. You never really no what a deer will do. Our rig obscured the passing car's view of the deer. Exiting stage left, was not an option. We started braking hard and the deer jumped in front us, jumped away. And then, it jumped in front us.

The airbag did not deploy. We struck the buck at low velocity. When we finally came to a stop and looked back, Rudolph had flown away. Our two ancient Sears Roebuck bikes were rearranged and and covered in deer scat.

We were able to drive home safely. There was minimal damage to the front of the Ranger. Because the bikes were spooned, we were able to salvage the rear portion of one and the front portion of the other to jury rig one phoenix from the ashes.

I've enjoyed the front receiver and have used more than I expected. If I boondock, I will lock my gen set to it. I can easily lift my moped on to a cargo carrier. If anyone is having trouble getting into a spot, you can park the camper wherever with a front mounted ball.

[cpaharley2008]

This was my point of my remark, that accessories on the front such as bikes or motorcycles can prevent the air bags from proper deploying, thus putting the passengers at risk.

[Stretcher]

Thanks to all, especially Bob, who brought his Swagman to Copake and gave me a lot of his insight. He suggested checking out etrailer.com. They seem to carry virtually every hitch and roof-mounted rack and in addition to the regular customer reviews, they have 'expert' comparisons of one rack to another, not just the comparison charts that many sites offer.

They also seem to have the best prices on racks and pay the freight on $150.

I'm leaning toward the Thule Doubletrack as installing a roof rack on our Frontier seems too complicated/expensive since a basic roof rack wasn't factory installed.

David

[mary and bob]

David, here's a little more info to add to the confusion. Since Copake I have built a new bike rack from a combination of Thule and Swagman parts. I used Thule Big Mouth trays and clamps with the Swagman post and hooks. I call it Frankenrack (frankenstein) as it's made up from various parts. If I wasn't so cheap, and the fact that I already had these parts, I would have bought the Thule 990XT as it is similar to what I made. It has a place for the wheels to set in and hooks to hold the top tube of the frame. I put a piece of that foam pipe insulation on the bike frame under the rack hook. The 990XT sells for about $270. Thule also makes a similar rack, the TH916XTR, that has a real nice base that the wheels set on, but the hooks go over the wheels rather than the bike frame. Can't be used for bikes with fenders like we have. Also it's more expensive at close to $400.

[Darwin Maring]

I complemented a neighboring camper on the nice rack and got slapped in the face. Just saying.

[Stretcher]

Hi Bob,

The 990XT Thule Doubletrack is the one we've decided upon.

We'll probably see you at one of the NY/VT/MA rallies, but it's too early to commit. We're setting out on a 90-day odyssey down the east coast and across the south to CA during the first quarter and need to focus our planning on that. We should have recovered from 'cramping' (as someone referred to camping in a small trailer) by May or June.

Thanks again for your advice,

David

[Roy in TO]

Originally Posted by Stretcher

We're setting out on a 90-day odyssey down the east coast and across the south to CA during the first quarter and need to focus our planning on that.

Keep your eye out for the 2014 Rally map soon to be posted here:
Rallies, Get-togethers, Molded Meets (Upcoming) - Fiberglass RV and the upcoming events on the right side bar. They can help you plan your trip.

Carol tells me she will have the 2014 Map up and running soon.

[Jared J]

I have the swagman xp, about the only one rated for rv use.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Roy in TO

Carol tells me she will have the 2014 Map up and running soon.

I got it up yesterday. Only has the meets that info has already been posted for but expect a lot more to be posted early in 2014.

[Steve Outlaw]

Originally Posted by Darwin Maring

I complemented a neighboring camper on the nice rack and got slapped in the face. Just saying.

I’ve never been so surprised as when I had almost the same thing happen one day after complimenting a nurse on her lab coat that was decorated with a nice group of owls.