Hitch Racks

[Thatwaspontus]

A thread for the superior bicycle carrying method. Who is running what, issues encountered, solutions found, etc... 2 bikes, 4 bikes, 6 bike shuttle run mega racks welcome. Leave your moving blankets, tailgate pads, roof racks at the door. If you just let it slide around the bed, please come be educated!

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[Thatwaspontus]

Thule T2 Pro XT here. This thing is a tank and this is the third vehicle it's been on. Been offroad plenty of times, tons of clearance sitting on the back of the Ranger. Hauls stretched out gravity sleds, fatbikes, curly barred road bikes, pretty much everything two wheeled and pedal powered.

So far the only issue I have with it is specific the Ranger and the high factory tow receiver. Tailgate does not open completely, coming into contact with the tilt mechanism. While not a major issue at the moment, I would like to put a set of drawers/sleeping platform in the back eventually.

So far solutions I have kicked around in my head have been a drawbar extension (cheap), a swing away mount (expensive) which will both compromise the stability and offroad capability of the rack currently. I guess a third option would be to ditch the Thule for a similar Yakima or 1Up but then there is no confirmation that equivalent racks from either company would clear the tailgate. Anyone with a similar heavy duty, tray style, frameless contact rack care to comment?

 

[EJH]

The 1Up hitch racks will pivot down and allow the tailgate to open. As far as I know, this is the only rack that will allow the tailgate to open on our trucks. I researched and measured prior to buying my hitch rack. I use a Kuat Sherpa 2.0 on my other vehicles, which I like also. The 1Up is more secure though, for rough roads.

 

[khyros]

I use the RockyMounts SwingAway. It swings out of the way of the tailgate as needed, but I am a bit annoyed that it's about 2 inches away from allowing the tailgate to open with just the tilt feature. I've contemplated getting a hitch extender, but the shortest one I can find is 7'', and that's quite a bit too long. I might see about bringing it to a machine shop and perhaps redrilling/tapping about 2'' further away from the receiver such that it will clear.

As for the rack itself, I do have a few complaints with it, but I've learned there's no such thing as a perfect rack. 1) The locking mechanism is to just wrap a cable around your bikes and they provide you a stud to lock the cable onto. I really wished it had the Kuat styled built-in locking system. 2) In order to swing it away, you have to loosen a bolt - they give you a handle to do it by hand, but you still have to spend 30 seconds spinning it to release it, then you have to lift up on a locking pin that prevents the rack from turning. I don't think I've ever done it without getting chain grease on me somewhere. And then 3) would be the issue I stated above with it not quite letting the tailgate drop.

 

[dr7ski]

The 1Up hitch racks will pivot down and allow the tailgate to open. As far as I know, this is the only rack that will allow the tailgate to open on our trucks. I researched and measured prior to buying my hitch rack. I use a Kuat Sherpa 2.0 on my other vehicles, which I like also. The 1Up is more secure though, for rough roads.

+1 for 1UP, the best and last rack you will buy. Just make sure you get the heavy/super duty double to start so you can add two more later. Fat bike spacers for only ~$35 as well.

 

[Thatwaspontus]

Very aware of the good things about the 1Up, glad to hear it shouldn't interfere with the tailgate. Anyone have photos? Plan on keeping the Thule for the time being anyways, looks like the 1Up is sold out for awhile.

 

[Deleted member 8247]

Get a 1up rack. They are aluminum construction so they will last FOREVER and if parts break they sell replacement parts since everything is modular you can quickly swap out parts in seconds.
Yes they are expensive, but they are well worth it as an investment. Run the Equip-D if you plan to get one. You can easily run a 2.3 mtb tire and even have room for Mid-Fat tires.

The racks will tilt down away from the tailgate so if you have a bicycle in the rack you can tilt the bike back at the 45degree angle and you can still drop your tailgate with zero issues.
It is also nice that when not in use you can fold up to a 90 degree angle vertically so the rack doesn't take up too much space behind your truck.
*Just know if you do not have a bike on the rack you have to fold it down at the 45 to drop open the tailgate, but that is with all racks across the board.

I've been running their racks for years. If you do decide to sell the rack down the road their resell value is pretty high as well. You can't lose with one.

 

[Zaph]

Thule T2 Classic with matching wheel, frame and hitch lock kit. I wasn't about to pay $500 or whatever for that so I waited until one showed up on Craigslist used for half that.

That said, Kuat is just as good and costs less. Had I known more about that brand when I was shopping I would have bought that instead. Thule thinks their racks are made of gold and that's their downfall - not only are they not the best, they cost more.

 

[armoredpig]

 

[j1mb]

I have a rocky mounts split rail hitch rack I throw on to carry extra bikes for trips. It’s decent but hits the tailgate even when angled down. Will be going to 1up rack out back to match my “roof” trays eventually

 

[AdamHarris]

Great pics but what is it?

 

[Thatwaspontus]

Thanks for the pics @armoredpig. Super low profile, now I'm on the waitlist!

Great pics but what is it?

1Up USA Super Duty Single I believe.

FWIW I don't get the argument against 1Up in that they are expensive. Any half decent tray style rack from Thule or Yakima is in the same price range. Current exchange rate, I'll be paying about the same for a Super Duty Double (~$760Cdn) as I did for my T2 Pro XT ($750Cdn) and the current T2 Pro XTR ($800Cdn) or Helium ($950Cdn) racks from Thule are even more. The NSR 2 is about the only 2-bike rack that comes in cheaper ($560Cdn) and doesn't carry road bikes (officially). Of those, only the Helium is aluminum like the 1UP. The only negative to me is I'll need to order a space kit to fit my fatbike.

 

[armoredpig]

Thanks for the pics @armoredpig. Super low profile, now I'm on the waitlist!



1Up USA Super Duty Single I believe.

FWIW I don't get the argument against 1Up in that they are expensive. Any half decent tray style rack from Thule or Yakima is in the same price range. Current exchange rate, I'll be paying about the same for a Super Duty Double (~$760Cdn) as I did for my T2 Pro XT ($750Cdn) and the current T2 Pro XTR ($800Cdn) or Helium ($950Cdn) racks from Thule are even more. The NSR 2 is about the only 2-bike rack that comes in cheaper ($560Cdn) and doesn't carry road bikes (officially). Of those, only the Helium is aluminum like the 1UP. The only negative to me is I'll need to order a space kit to fit my fatbike.

Hey if you pay for expedited shipping (14$) they were letting you skip the wait. I got mine in about a week and a half!

 

[Thatwaspontus]

Hey if you pay for expedited shipping (14$) they were letting you skip the wait. I got mine in about a week and a half!

In Canada and they ship exclusively with FedEx so it will be a bit pricier than that, not to mention it's out of stock/can't even add on to the cart, hence the waitlist.

Not in a big rush anyways, the Thule works fine other than the tailgate interference, have a 3 week work trip coming up & I exploded the driver in my hub the other day.

 

[EJH]

Here is the 1UP and tailgate open.

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