Bike rack hitch suggestions

[cpaharley2008]

Originally Posted by Effie

My 1up setup on my Escape 19 with an extension, without it the bike's handlebar comes in contact with the back window. Used it for several thousand miles mostly with one 40 pound bike, sometimes with a second 30 pound bike. Note this is an older version without a slot in the hitch bar.

Your picture seems to indicate a weight on the rear of the trailer to be how far away and how much? Seems you would be stressing that receiver without reinforcing it.

[Fox hunt]

what is the weight difference between the one up and swagman?

[John in Santa Cruz]

when I drove a Volvo 740 wagon, and various cars before that, I too was a big fan of roof racks, although mine were mostly the tray style where you leave both wheels on the bike.

not very practical with my F250, the roof is about 6'4" off the ground, I am NOT lifting my wife's 50 lb ebike (sans battery) up that high!

[SkipperClyde]

+1 for the 1up. I relocated the spare tire on my 5.0 the tongue, it allows the bike rack to fit a few inches closer to the back of the trailer.

[Effie]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Your picture seems to indicate a weight on the rear of the trailer to be how far away and how much? Seems you would be stressing that receiver without reinforcing it.

That's a valid point, the thing is we don’t know how far from the bumper is too far. Every bike carrier or another accessory you may use in the hitch receiver have different dimensions. The 1UP bike carrier have about 9” between the first and second tray, about the same as the extension, so if you carry two bikes without any extension it actually applies more force on the hitch than one bike with an extension. Most of the time I carry one 40 pounds bike, with the 1UP (in single configuration) and adding the locking chain it is around 76 pound, in two bike configuration with another 30 pounds bike it goes up to 125 pound. Do I stress the receiver beyond its design parameters? Not an easy answer, opinions are welcome.

[Sean Murry]

I am not an engineer for sure, but wouldn't putting an extension into the receiver to accommodate the 1UP defeat the purpose of the 1UP in the first place. One of the reasons the 1UP is good for the back of trailers is the way the bike rack fits into the receiver and has zero movement. Wouldn't the extension have movement within the receiver causing the bouncing effect the 1 UP is supposed to minimize?

[Effie]

The extension I use have a build in tightening screw that prevent bouncing.

[JumpinJoe]

Yes it is. I use the 1 up, 2 bike rack on my 2016 5.0 and it goes all the way in the receiver. I also use the same rack for my 2013 civic with a 2" receiver !
Nice bike rack in all sense.

[John in Santa Cruz]

for sure, putting that 100 or so lbs of weight farther out from the bumper HUGELY increases the torque on the welds at the receiver.

I recall someone on here showed his Escape bumper reciever to a friend who was a certified master boilermaker or some such, and got an unofficial opinion that 150 lbs is a /really/ conservative rating for the gauge of steel and welds in use, even allowing for the trailer violently bouncing over railroad tracks and such.

I do think a rack that does NOT have the sort of anti-wobble clamp the 1Up has would amplify this force as it flops up and down in the receiver. The 1Up's ball clamp seems much more effective than the threaded bolt-in-the-side-pin-hole I've seen other racks use.

[sleepy]

Originally Posted by SkipperClyde

+1 for the 1up. I relocated the spare tire on my 5.0 the tongue, it allows the bike rack to fit a few inches closer to the back of the trailer.

SkipperClyde, Could you please share a photo of the spare tire mounted on the tongue ?
Did you buy a mount for this or make your own ?

Thank-you!

[Tom&Joan]

Tried to order a 1up rack today - Ha, lots of luck, go on waitlist, wait 3 to 4 weeks for a response, then I can order.

[cpaharley2008]

That seems to be the norm these days, even overnight delivery is taking 3 days!!

[John in Santa Cruz]

I ordered mine Feb 21, and received it on March 12.

[Stu]

I went with the Swagman Escapee. No problems so far and I store it under cover in the winter.
Try ReRack in Renton, very knowledgeable and less expensive. Call them or look on Craigslist.

[abezzoclark]

Originally Posted by Tom&Joan

Given that the spare tire on our 5.0TA extends past the face of the receiver, is the shank on a 1Up rack long enough to go in to the receiver a sufficient amount?

I have the same question.

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by Tom&Joan

Given that the spare tire on our 5.0TA extends past the face of the receiver, is the shank on a 1Up rack long enough to go in to the receiver a sufficient amount?

pretty sure the 5.0 has the same bumper+spare as my 21 Classic.

and yes, it fits just fine without an extension. you can not fold the rack up flat against the trailer, but there's little need to do that.

2 fairly heavy and clunky ebikes on our E21 with the superduty 2-bike 1Up...

[C&G in FL]

I do not always take bicycles on my trips, but when I want them with me, I use the 1UP rack on my 5.0TA. Unlike John, I am able to fold it up when installed. I am not really a fan of the method the 1UP attaches to the receiver (it may never loosen, but….) and wanting to have a secure “back up,” I purchased a length of steel threaded rod, cut it to the appropriate length, and JB Welded an acorn nut on one end. It is essentially a long bolt. The 1UP has horizontal holes bored through the length of the part that is inserted in the receiver. I also made a “rectangular aluminum washer” that spans the opening at the front end of the receiver. I typically install the 1UP in its folded up position where it does not contact the spare tire, and lock it in place with the Allen wrench. I then insert the fabricated bolt, which I mostly covered with a long segment of shrink wrap tubing to prevent galvanic reaction, through one of the horizontal channels, put the “washer” over the end of the “bolt” and butted up to the receiver, and secure it with a nylock nut. It provides peace of mind, although perhaps not necessary, but I’m not taking any chance that the rack could slip out of the receiver when going down the road.

[JoanP]

Unless you have e-bikes with fenders then the 1Up doesn't work.

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by JoanP

Unless you have e-bikes with fenders then the 1Up doesn't work.

Actually, they now have attachments for fender bikes. There's a little half circle thing that holds the back wheel that you attach to the tray and use a strap to keep the back wheel from bouncing off, and you shorten up a bit on the spool on the front wheel so that it engages the wheel before it hits the fender. I haven't tried them yet, but I never ride my e-bike in the rain so I took the fenders off. I realized some of these new e-bikes come with integrated fenders that have the lighting permanently attached to the fender, so you can't remove them, that's kind of a bummer

[Ron & Sandey]

I have had a one up for several years now and would not buy one again or would not recommend it. I find that my mountain bikes wobble a great deal on the back of my escape and am worried that one day they are going to shatter the back window of my escape.