Bike racks |
Post Reply | Page 12> |
Author | |
voisj
Senior Member Joined: 19 Jul 2016 Location: San Luis Obispo Online Status: Offline Posts: 471 |
Topic: Bike racks Posted: 27 Sep 2017 at 11:29pm |
Is any body else hauling bikes on the rear receiver and have their been any issues with the receiver hitch and loads I should be aware of? While installing it on the pod I noticed that the 2" square tube that holds the receiver is only welded to the frame on the top and sides. I finished up the welding job by welding the bottom of the tube and triangle gussets at each end. Since the tire and mount weighed in at 77lbs and the bike carrier and bikes weigh in at the same, I feel pretty confident it should be ok, and I strap the bikes to the bumper so they don't swing. Leaving next week for a month long tour of the northwest and wondering if anybody has had that flimsy tube twist or bend. I did find 1 post with a post from a Forest river rep claiming the rack is good for 125 Lbs. Rgds John |
|
Subzilla
Senior Member Joined: 23 Jan 2017 Location: Concord, NC Online Status: Offline Posts: 302 |
Posted: 28 Sep 2017 at 9:44am |
To avoid voiding the frame warranty, FR says you can only use their bike rack and the hitch max loading was 150 pounds (IIRC) to account for the down forces of trailer bouncing down the road, according to what I researched on this forum. Last week, I emailed FR directly to hear it from the horse's mouth asking about the capacity and their bike rack and got this response: "Your hitch weight is 292 pounds, we cannot
recommend any other type of bike racks other than the one we sell. I have
listed below the information to our parts department as I have no information
on pricing for parts."
She didn't elaborate so I'm guessing the 292 is the static weight and not the dynamic weight (150?). So I emailed the parts dept for price and got this response: 90M35732A - $231.00 -
BIKE RACK R.POD. I DO NOT KNOW WHAT SHIPPING WILL BE AS WE DO NOT KNOW THAT UNTIL
IT SHIPS. A little more expensive than most out there. I had also asked for any pictures or other info but only got back the response above. If you've already welded on your frame, then you've probably voided your frame warranty from what I understand. I don't blame and will probably do the same at some future point. |
|
Mark
Concord, NC 2017 RP 179 "Podzilla" 2011 Silverado 1500 4X4 |
|
voisj
Senior Member Joined: 19 Jul 2016 Location: San Luis Obispo Online Status: Offline Posts: 471 |
Posted: 28 Sep 2017 at 10:02am |
Subzilla,
Thanks, Not to worried about warranty I voided that long ago. I bought my hitch at Harbor Freight for $39, it's the lightest one I could find, and it doesn't wobble at all. "Your hitch weight is 292 pounds," What? If I just pull on the bike rack a little it flexes the square tube the hitch is mounted to, Is this a front mount and they are mentioning tongue weight? John
|
|
Subzilla
Senior Member Joined: 23 Jan 2017 Location: Concord, NC Online Status: Offline Posts: 302 |
Posted: 28 Sep 2017 at 10:12am |
No, it wasn't the front hitch. I was very specific in my question to them: " I know you only authorized the one bike rack to be used on the rear hitch. What is the price and how do I get this? Can I not use another bike rack? What is the capacity of the rear hitch so I know what weight bikes I can carry? Thanks! "
I agree with you, 292 pounds seems like it would twist the hitch off on a speed bump at 10 mph. This is why the conclusion on this forum was that 150 was the "still" weight with the 300 (or 292) being the dynamic force weight....a safety factor of 2. I've inspected mine a few times and know how I would beef it up. I just received my bike rack but haven't put it on yet but, like you, am worried about just having the bikes on there. BTW, love your picture at the red rocks....Sedonna? Mark |
|
Mark
Concord, NC 2017 RP 179 "Podzilla" 2011 Silverado 1500 4X4 |
|
voisj
Senior Member Joined: 19 Jul 2016 Location: San Luis Obispo Online Status: Offline Posts: 471 |
Posted: 28 Sep 2017 at 8:14pm |
You and I are on the same page with the rear hitch & bike racks, That picture was from Valley of fire east of Vegas, a truly amazing place! The current one is Brights Lake in Tehachapi CA I told my daughter i couldn't figure out how to put a picture with my signature and she did it in a minute... Kids today!. I think I got it now and plan for a new picture occasionally. When we were there a group of Bighorn sheep came for a visit!
|
|
GoGirlKY
Newbie Joined: 07 Nov 2017 Location: Central KY Online Status: Offline Posts: 14 |
Posted: 27 Nov 2017 at 6:22pm |
Hi! Checking in to see how the rear bike racks have worked out! Hubs and I are setting ready to travel from KY to FL in a couple of months, and we want to take our bicycles along. We already have a nice bike rack, so we really don’t want to invest $231 in the FR version. We were thinking to go with the hitch convert to 2” receiver. We have a 2016 179, no bumper. I am concerned that it will not be stable.
Any advice for us Newbie podders on all of this? Thx!
|
|
Dog lover and camping enthusiast 🐶 ⛺️
2016 R-pod 179 and 2017 Chevy Silverado 4x4 Beloved husband and a Labradoodle named “Cooper” |
|
voisj
Senior Member Joined: 19 Jul 2016 Location: San Luis Obispo Online Status: Offline Posts: 471 |
Posted: 27 Nov 2017 at 7:22pm |
GoGirl,
No issues what so ever, Just finished a 2400 mile trip and the bikes and rack survived unscathed. Remember though, I did some welding to the square crossbar to finish the factory welding job and my harbor freight rack is only 13 lbs with a 1" tongue, and sits in pretty tight to the pod. If you use an adapter from 2" to 1" and it makes it hang out further, and your rack is heavier, and maybe heavier bikes (cruisers?) , you may run into issues if you hit big bumps. john |
|
GoGirlKY
Newbie Joined: 07 Nov 2017 Location: Central KY Online Status: Offline Posts: 14 |
Posted: 27 Nov 2017 at 7:50pm |
Ok thanks for the info! This is very helpful!
|
|
Dog lover and camping enthusiast 🐶 ⛺️
2016 R-pod 179 and 2017 Chevy Silverado 4x4 Beloved husband and a Labradoodle named “Cooper” |
|
Live2Camp
Senior Member Joined: 17 Apr 2017 Location: No. California Online Status: Offline Posts: 240 |
Posted: 28 Nov 2017 at 11:50am |
GoGirl, any reason you don't want to carry your bikes in the bed of your truck? Just asking because I like to hear why others do/don't these various things that we're all dealing with Since the truck we tow with is open bed it makes it really easy to lay them down, tarp and lock. That said we haven't ruled out a bike rack, as there are lots of other things that could go in the truck bed too. Thanks for any insight!
|
|
2017 R-Pod 179 HRE (the green one)
His:Ford F150 double cab 4WD; Hers/mine:Tacoma V6 double cab 4WD Still love rugged, diggin' comfy too |
|
Wood River Pod
Senior Member Joined: 30 Sep 2016 Location: Wood River, ID Online Status: Offline Posts: 153 |
Posted: 05 Dec 2017 at 7:37pm |
John,
Could you please provide a few pics of the reinforced welding you did to the square tubing to beef up the tire/bike receiver. Thanks Jeff
|
|
Post Reply | Page 12> |
Forum Jump | Forum Permissions You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot create polls in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum |