Haakon
has an accommodating arse
The rack and the adapter held up under the weight of an Orange, so I'll go out on a limb and suggest its pretty robustThe missing link between Orange and Alfa
Not the prettiest welds I've ever done though...
BIKE RACKS AND CARRIERS FOR CARS MEGATHREAD - all questions asked and answered here
- Thread starter THE Manik Man
- Start date
Not the prettiest welds I've ever done though...
moorey
call me Mia
You’re carrying one bike, and only driving on smooth roads, I can’t see an issue, but I certainly wouldn’t recommend emulating this with multiple bikes and going off road.The rack and the adapter held up under the weight of an Orange, so I'll go out on a limb and suggest its pretty robust
View attachment 394887
Haakon
has an accommodating arse
It's done two bikes plenty, including 8 hours bouncing down the Hume (with Kirsty's 16kg Soma and the Orange on it) and the back roads from Violet Town to Castlemaine. Its not something I'd recommend for crossing the Simpson, but its not breaking anytime soon.
moorey
call me Mia
I’m not saying it will fail, or not to like it. You do you.
Having had one of the most overbuilt and reputable racks fail on a highway after 12 months of light use, I’m firmly in camp cautious, and horrified at some of the setups I see at races.
$40-60k worth of bikes on a home made or cheap flimsy rack makes me wince. I don’t know if anyone’s insurance would cover a rack fail if one snapped and a car/motorcycle behind you hit it, but I’m sure it would be less problematic with a professionally engineered setup.
You’re not doing that, I’m just saying.
Sky_Collapsed
Not particularly enlightened
Haakon
has an accommodating arse
Me too, having the bikes on the road is a nightmare I’m super keen to avoid!!!
The clampy contraption I’d consider the weak point, so was sure to check I wasn’t loading it beyond it’s design brief. But it’s rated for use muchheavier than I’vegot it loaded in Germany - and if it’s going on an autobahn the authorities there are very very conservative!!
Haakon
has an accommodating arse
I have European cars with the euro style swan neck towbar.
Attachments
Stredda
Runs naked through virgin scrub
I think we all know the Alfa is the weakest link in this situationThe missing link between Orange and Alfa
It's not that I'd be worried about the rack mount breaking off, it would be the Alfa braking off the hitch
Haakon
has an accommodating arse
No worries with the Alfa braking - it doesn’t have the Brembos alas, but it still stops pretty damn well., it would be the Alfa braking off the hitch
Sky_Collapsed
Not particularly enlightened
for reference this is my system. i currently have the towball off so it doesn't rust on it again ><
would a straight towball mount work or should i consider a tow hitch adaptor ?
Haakon
has an accommodating arse
Up to you. There is no really good solution for these Australian design towbars. One of the reasons I don’t like them…
On my towbar, the ball can’t rotate. But yours can so you’re relying on the nut being bloody tight!! Which might be fine, but it would be in the back of my mind…
The rack company I listed is the best for those sort of towbars I’ve seen as their adapters (there are two or theee types I think) make the best attempt at addressing that issue.
Haakon
has an accommodating arse
Bike Racks & Carriers | Gripsport | Melbourne | Australia
Australian designed & made bike rack, full steel construction.
www.gripsport.com.au
Bother. This is the one I'd want on those tow bars as it deals with the rotation issue and it seems it only works on their older now discontinued racks...
If I had your tow bar style I'd still get this and break out the welder!
Sky_Collapsed
Not particularly enlightened
I don't even own a welder. is the main issue with something that mounts on the towball just the potential movement of the towball itself unlocking/dislodging the locking mechanism? or is it just an insecure system overall?
I can get the towball on tight as fuck and i bet it could doubled with some threading glue
I can get the towball on tight as fuck and i bet it could doubled with some threading glue
Haakon
has an accommodating arse
Issue would be the whole rack pivoting as the ball turned and smacking your bike into the back of the car.
I haven’t tried other ball clamping arrangements, but they’re standard practice in Europe and I think are a tried and reliable system.
Obviously you’re not hanging a vertical rack with 6 e-bikes off of one, but for a 2 bike platform rack they’re good.
blacksp20
Likes Bikes and Dirt
I had a Yakima FoldClick, which is similar to the JustClick. Was a good rack. Bit tricky with 4 bikes as all the support arms had to go back to one bar near the back of the car. Took a bit of planning on bike positioning but was sturdy and I never worried it would drop a bike.yeah that's how my current one attatches except its a platform design and weighs 90ton.
Anywho having a bit of a gander and just wondering what people think of this selection?
Thule Velospace XT 2 Bike Tow Ball Rack
Shop for Thule Velospace XT 2 Bike Tow Ball Rack (SKU: 938AU) and other Thule Accessories amongst Australia's best range of Towballwww.99bikes.com.au
Buzzrack EAZZY 2 Bike Towball Platform Car Rack
Shop for Buzzrack EAZZY 2 Bike Towball Platform Car Rack (SKU: BR-EAZZY-2) and other Buzzrack Accessories amongst Australia's best range of Towball
Yakima JustClick2 Two-Bike Towball Mounted Carrier Silver/Black
Buy Yakima JustClick2 Two-Bike Towball Mounted Carrier Silver-Black Now at Pushys. Lowest Price, Secure Shopping and Fast Delivery from Australia's Best Onwww.pushys.com.au
Thule VeloSpaceXT 2 Bike Tow Ball Bike Carrier
Buy Thule VeloSpaceXT 2 Bike Tow Ball Bike Carrier Now at Pushys. Lowest Price, Secure Shopping and Fast Delivery from Australia's Best Online Bike Store
Thule EasyFold XT 2 Bike Towbar Mounted Carrier
Buy Thule EasyFold XT 2 Bike Towbar Mounted Carrier Now at Pushys. Lowest Price, Secure Shopping and Fast Delivery from Australia's Best Online Bike Store
Edit: As discussed by others, I did have one instance of the ball turning in the receiver with the rack mounted. Didn’t turn enough to contact the car luckily. I had 4 dual suspension bikes on it and I was driving on a rough, rutted track for about 1km. After this incident I used a rattle gun and did the ball up to many ugga duggas but never used it off-road again. I think this Style of rack would be perfectly suited to regular roads but not off-road.
Last edited:
Haakon
has an accommodating arse
That’s an issue with my two bike rack - one vertical arm means some planning required to get them both in a position where they’re appropriately hooked…
Platform rack with a separate vertical shaft for clamping/hooking each bike is the go for sure.
Haakon
has an accommodating arse
It can be done, just a bit of faff. More of a faff with some combinations than others - the Trance has a distinct u shape to the top tube thats a pain when together with the Orange that has a similar valley, lining them up is tricky. Either mountain bike with roadie is ok as the roadie has a level-ish flat top tube...
Every combination is a bit of a puzzle challenge is all
blacksp20
Likes Bikes and Dirt
Mine was not fun with an XL Banshee Prime, M step through beach cruiser, XS Giant hardtail 26” and a Scott Scale Jr 20”. Eventually I succumbed to the Single Trail and my sanity thanks me for it every time.It can be done, just a bit of faff. More of a faff with some combinations than others - the Trance has a distinct u shape to the top tube thats a pain when together with the Orange that has a similar valley, lining them up is tricky. Either mountain bike with roadie is ok as the roadie has a level-ish flat top tube...
Every combination is a bit of a puzzle challenge is all