Shorter Heavy Duty Bike Rack Recommendation for Use at Back of In-Bed Truck Camper

Question:

I currently use a Thule X2 Pro bike rack. Because I have 2 eBikes, I need a beefy rack. Because I put the bike rack on an extender SuperTruss to clear the end of my truck camper, and because I need a swing arm to clear the camper steps, Im looking to find options to bring the center of gravity closer to the truck so that I put less stress on everything and reduce the lever arm away from the truck. I also want a platform rack. I know you like the Kuat Pivot 2, but its not rated for use with an extension Im probably going to buy it anyway, because there are few drivers side swing options on the market. So my question is about bike racks that bring the bikes as close as possible to the swing arm, to reduce the stress on the swing arm. My X2 Pro has the first bike at 20 inch from the hitch pin hole, and the second bike at 32. In my research, there is a bike rack made by 1UP called the 2 inch HEAVY and SUPER DUTY DOUBLE, where the first bike is about 10, and the second bike is about 20 inch - which is a HUGE difference from the Thule, and would move the CG forward by several inches - which is significant when considering a bouncing load cantilevered out about 55 inch from the bumper already. It does not look like you sell 1UP products, so Im asking for your input on what platform racks, suitable for two 60 lb bikes, move the CG forward the closest to the hitch pin. Im not going to replace my Thule for an inch or two difference, but if I can gain several inches, it might be worth considering especially since my longer term plan is to mount the rack to the camper bumper vs. the truck - but thats a problem for another day. In addition, IF I was to go away from a platform rack, would there be other racks worth considering, provided the following caveats: I dont want to have to remove a tire no place to store it, and I want to use a bike cover when driving and most hanging frame racks put bikes are weird angles that dont support using a cover or make using a cover very difficult.

asked by: S O

Helpful Expert Reply:

Thanks for reaching out and for all of the information given!

You definitely have a situation in which you'll be going against what a bike rack manufacturer says so just know that while I can give you some advice, "technically" it isn't going to fall in line with what any of the bike rack manufacturers say so if something goes wrong with your setup your bike rack and adapter likely won't be covered under a warranty since they will look at it as misuse of their product(s).

It sounds like you're wanting to use the Kuat Pivot 2 Swing Away Hitch Extender # PVD20B so the bike rack I recommend pairing with that is the Hollywood Racks RV Rider # HLY64FR because it's rated for 80 lb bikes with up to 5" wide tires, it uses clamps to secure the bikes by the frame, and it's rated for anything other than a travel trailer. It's also worth noting that Hollywood Racks doesn't approve this for bumper-mounted hitches - I just wanted to note that since you mentioned it for possible future use.

The RV Rider measures 12" from the center of the hitch pin hole to the closest part of the rack which sounds like it's closer than the Thule rack you're currently using.

You could potentially use something like the Bolt-On Skid Wheel # TLA7100 for your SuperTruss but I would be worried that it would cause more shock to the bike rack if you do make contact with the ground.

Hopefully this gives you some peace of mind or at least a direction to head with your bike rack configuration. I wish a manufacturer would come out with a bike rack that's more rugged for these types of applications but physics makes things difficult, especially when using heavy e-bikes on an extension like you're needing to do.

Attached are some review videos for you to check out!