Why Can't Bike Rack for Use at Rear of 5th Wheel Also be Used at Rear of Bumper Pull Camper

Question:

I GUESS I AM TRYING FIGURE OUT WHY MY BROTHER CAN MOUNT THIS RACK ON THE BACK OF HIS 34 FOOT 5TH WHEEL YET IT IS NOT RECOMMENDED THAT I MOUNT THIS SAME RACK ON THE BACK OF MY 30FT ROCKWOOD TRAVEL TRAILER? THE HITCH ON MY ROCKWOOD IS A FACTORY INSTALLED HITCH MOUNTED TO THE TRAILER FRAME. I HAVE A REGULAR BIKE RACK, WHICH LOOKS SIMILAR TO YOUR RACK, THAT I HAVE BEEN HAULING TWO REGULAR BIKES ON THAT WEIGH ROUGHLY 45-50 POUNDS EACH WITH NO PROBLEM. WE ARE LOOKING INTO RAD ELECTRIC STEP THRU BIKES WHICH WE NEED TO HAUL ON THE BACK OF THE ROCKWOOD. JUST CURIOUS. THANK YOU

asked by: Kenneth T

Expert Reply:

Bumper pull trailers have the roughest ride quality at the rear of them of all of the RV setups out there. The suspension is just not as sophisticated and the distance between the axle and the rear of the trailer is long enough that all bumps are accentuated to the point of putting quite a bit more stress on the rack. Now the difference between a fifth wheel and a bumper pull trailer is the difference between what the front of each trailer design is going to do when hitting bumps.

The fifth wheel trailer connection will move up and down considerably less since it connects above the rear axle which will translate to less movement on the front of the RV. At the rear of a vehicle the bumps would translate to a larger movement than if that same movement was tracked above the rear axle so in effect you have a much rougher movement at the rear of the trailer where the rack is carried. Also the suspension of a vehicle that is towed at the bumper is gets worked harder as well since the tongue weight has more leverage over it.

The Swagman E-Spec bike rack part # S94FR is rated for use at the rear of a travel trailer like you have though so it would be probably your best option.

expert reply by: Jameson C