Bicycle Rack pros and cons

[S&K]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

By the way here's the tandem.

Pretty sweet ride you have there!

[piper guy]

I have the Swagman rack also. Have had the bikes on the back with a custom made cover for more than 8k miles and no problems. If you position the bikes right on the rack they don't block the tailights.

Michelle - where did you get the extension and is there any way to tighten it also so that the rack doesn't wobble ? My bikes just fit but only clear the coach by about 2" and I'd like to have a bit more.

[homeguy]

you can buy the extensions at many farm stores or auto stores. I got mine at Tractor Supply. I couldn't clear the ladder without it when I installed my cargo rack on the back.

[0nTheRoad]

Originally Posted by atom ant

Wow!

Anybody use a cover on their bikes? Seems like that might block the taillights.

Don't cover the bikes when towing, we do cover them when in the park.

Anyone ever see people that cover the seats of their bikes whir underway, do you know why they do?

[spindrift]

Originally Posted by 0nTheRoad

Don't cover the bikes when towing, we do cover them when in the park.

Anyone ever see people that cover the seats of their bikes whir underway, do you know why they do?

I cover mine so I don't wet my pants, so to speak, after a ride. Is there another reason?

[TNTBaker]

Haha S&K! "Sweet ride" just what Napoleon Dynamite would have said!

[mhs4771]

As mentioned, extension many places. CW and probably other places sell a clamp that fits over the receiver and the extension at a slight angle, forgot the exact name for it, but crank that sucker down good and tight and there's no movement.
And we actually have the Swagman cover for our bikes, doesn't block the tail lights, but does hide the License plate, so I move it over on the ladder with cable ties. Don't worry about no lite on it as we don't run in the dark.

[atom ant]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

By the way here's the tandem.

Super Sweet - My wife would love for me to get one of those so we can bring our handicapped daughter! I didn't think I could rack it, but you may have a solution! Thanks!

[johnboytoo]

ok - got the swagman rack in and forgot to order extension !!! grrrr..

thank goodness for Amazon Primes two day shipping
think 4000 lb rating is enough ? --> http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

[johnboytoo]

Thanks for the suggestions - got the extension in and swagman mounted/tested...

but
While lights are fine,
what do you do about the hidden license plate ?

also, I have a lot of 'wiggle' - not in the extender or hitch (as I used the hitch locks that bolt in place)
but the bike rack itself twists...

Will try strong bungees to dampen it... but what do yo do ?

thanks in advance !
John

on edit - you eagled eyed ones will notice two girl bikes... leaving mine at home since I am ambidextrous
(that's why the two bikes are offset so I could link them at the lowest point)

[0nTheRoad]

Our rack doesn't wobble, it's rock solid. I do put locks on the bikes/rack, not to stop wobble/sway but to discourage theft.

[SecretSkwerl]

We have a Thule hitch mount and it has worked great from Cali to Florida.

http://www.thule.com/en-us/us/produc...9025-_-1258650

[johnboytoo]

Got the wife to follow me to the storage area and being she's always doing the 'just in case' planning

she said it moved but not that much - so we're good for the trip...

[JohnEileen]

We have the Thule Tandem bike carrier for our tandem, but it is for the top of a car. We are trying to figure out how to use it on the back of the RV. I like the carriers for singles shown here, but they won't work for the tandem.

[johnboytoo]

John, what's the wheelbase on your tandem ?

If you look at the picture from my previous post, on either end of mine there is about 6 inches more that the wheels go go out... maybe that's enough length for a tandem ?

[travelin' texans]

JohnEileen
Did you not get my PM I sent to you?
Also look back at this topic & you see my tandem rack, I couldn't find what I thought was a good one so southern engineered my own.

[spindrift]

These guys are having a Swagman sale.

http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/b...rs-bikes-1.htm

[mhs4771]

Oh, for the License plate, I just move ours over to the Ladder and attach it with cable ties. We don't worry about no light on it as we're generally parked by 4 PM.