Bike rack suggestion

[funkendrenchman]

What is the best rack to hold DH type bike on top of the car? I know hitch mounted racks probably work better, but I can't afford setting one of those up. I looked at the Yakima King Cobra, but it looks like it constantly gets loose and the bike sways back and forth. Any stable roof racks for 45 lb bikes out there?

[biggins]

bigger car (read: not suv)

-not helpful, sorry

[altagirl]

What is the best rack to hold DH type bike on top of the car? I know hitch mounted racks probably work better, but I can't afford setting one of those up. I looked at the Yakima King Cobra, but it looks like it constantly gets loose and the bike sways back and forth. Any stable roof racks for 45 lb bikes out there?

We do a lot of shuttling/traveling with our DH bikes in King Cobras - they're great. Put a lock washer on top of the red thing you screw down to tighten them in and it's no problem. They're the best racks we've used. One of our friends have a hitch rack and the bikes wobbled and we ended up with broken levers, torn up seats and more damage than we did all year riding on one off-road shuttle run.

[scoober]

I know I have seen adaptors for fork mount rooftop trays that allow you to mount a 20mm through axle fork. The adaptor mounts to the front QR of the rack tray, raises up a little bit and has a 20mm QR type deal to mount your fork with. It was in one of the earlier issues of DirtRag this year, I'll try to find it when I get home.

[pube-in-my-taco]

i have a thule continuum.. granted, I don't have a 45-lb bike, but there is no sway whatsoever for my road bike.



solid as a rock.

[altagirl]

I know I have seen adaptors for fork mount rooftop trays that allow you to mount a 20mm through axle fork. The adaptor mounts to the front QR of the rack tray, raises up a little bit and has a 20mm QR type deal to mount your fork with. It was in one of the earlier issues of DirtRag this year, I'll try to find it when I get home.

We used to do that and it's great if you want to spend 20 minutes screwing around with your front wheel/brakes every time you go anywhere. King Cobra keeps the bike in one piece and takes 10 seconds to load.

And the ones like the Thule shown above are great if they work with your frame, but most DH bikes have large or odd-shaped frames that won't work with that. I have an anklebiter on my car that works for most bikes (including my DH bike) but some DH cranks (like Mr.AG's) are too thick to fit in that too. And the Cobra is more stable than the anklebiter anyway.

[pube-in-my-taco]

yeah, the clamp on that continuum opens to about 3".. it might be worth a try.

[CS]

What is the best rack to hold DH type bike on top of the car? I know hitch mounted racks probably work better, but I can't afford setting one of those up. I looked at the Yakima King Cobra, but it looks like it constantly gets loose and the bike sways back and forth. Any stable roof racks for 45 lb bikes out there?

I've had the King Cobras on the Suby for over a year and have taken a good deal of road trips carting around my big bike and have yet to have it come loose one time and really, it doesn't sway all that much. The key is to pull the front tire down as you tighten the red knob. Great, fast racks to get the bike on and off, just kinda bulky.

[Arty50]

Yuba Expeditions in Downieville uses the Sportsworks bike carriers. They love them, and from what I've seen they look like good stuff. They carry everything from XC rigs to full DH setups.

Thule just bought Sportsworks. Looks like they kept them exactly the same though.

http://www.thuleracks.com/thule/feat...sportworks.asp

[KarlHungus]

i've had the king cobra on my outback for about a year.... love it, no taking off wheels, not a thousand adjustments to make, no taking it on and off if you don't want a huge hitch one sticking out, it fits any size bike from road bikes to fat-tired DH bikes, and no swaying or loosening to speak of.

[scoober]

We used to do that and it's great if you want to spend 20 minutes screwing around with your front wheel/brakes every time you go anywhere. King Cobra keeps the bike in one piece and takes 10 seconds to load.

Yeah for shuttling that would be a pain in the ass, but I was thinking for longer road trips one would want the fork mount, because that still seems like the most secure setup to me.

(I myself will never get into shuttling, at least I tell myself that now, I've just been looking into this because I've been eyeing the Rock Shox Pike for general trail use, which only come with the 20mm option)

[bagtagley]

I've never been a fan of the Fork-Up. it sits high enough to create enough leverage to damage the bike carrier. I had Bullit on mine driving to snowshoe, and ended up bending the shit out of the bolt that holds the head of the carrier to the rack. Now I can't get it off the car.

[Particle]

Get this:

http://www.backcountry.com/store/SPW0005

we're out of stock but I have the same trays/arms on my hitch mount and it roolz. even easier than the king cobra...

[peterslovo]

I HIGHLY recommend the Rocky Mounts Noose SLX

You can fit fat tires in there no problem, they're cheaper than comparable Thule/Yakimas, and can mount on non-factory bars (if that's an issue - it was for me as I had factory VW bars). I find the mounting plate to be real beefy. Look and you can find them for much less than $85.

Plus, I've found RM to be great with replacement parts/warranty issues. My 0.02 worth...

[funkendrenchman]

I HIGHLY recommend the Rocky Mounts Noose SLX

You can fit fat tires in there no problem, they're cheaper than comparable Thule/Yakimas, and can mount on non-factory bars (if that's an issue - it was for me as I had factory VW bars). I find the mounting plate to be real beefy. Look and you can find them for much less than $85.

Plus, I've found RM to be great with replacement parts/warranty issues. My 0.02 worth...

But if you have a thru-axel, it would require too much work to take the wheel off each time.

I decided to give the King Cobra a try. Thanks everyone.

[KarlHungus]

hey, aren't you in like bellingham or western washington somewhere? if so, i saw a guy's ad on craigslist the other day, in the seattle bikes section... he buys/sells used racks. might be worth giving him a try, could save some $, good luck.

BTW...excellent choice on the cobra.

[phUnk]

Yeah for shuttling that would be a pain in the ass, but I was thinking for longer road trips one would want the fork mount, because that still seems like the most secure setup to me.

But some of us live where we have to drive to the trailhead, which would mean 2 wheel removals per ride.

Funken: I'm getting the King Cobra for my incoming ASX.

[Spats]

A fork mount rack puts a lot of side to side leverage on something that's really not designed for it. All that's keeping your bike on the rack are those two little bumps under where the quick release goes.

In support of this theory, everyone I've heard of who has lost bikes off their roof rack has used a fork mount.

I'll never use one. My bike goes in the back of my truck, or on a wheel-clamp rack like the AG's.

[Telenater]

All that's keeping your bike on the rack are those two little bumps under where the quick release goes.

If that's true of your rack..., then you really ought to tighten the skewer until it no longer is the case.

[Spats]

If that's true of your rack..., then you really ought to tighten the skewer until it no longer is the case.

That's the case no matter how far you tighten the skewer. They're open at the bottom (which is why they're called "dropouts"), so the only force holding them in is a pinch from the side, bolstered by the little safety bump.

When you've got the bike on a rack and are either making turns or driving on a rough road, the bicycle is getting rocked side to side with great force, alternately pulling *upward* on each dropout. This never happens when you ride, because any such force would mean your front wheel got stuck on something or is sideways to your direction of travel, and you will crash violently 0.05 seconds later. The front dropout is not designed to hold the wheel on against such forces: older bikes don't even have the safety bump.

[homerjay]

That's the case no matter how far you tighten the skewer. They're open at the bottom (which is why they're called "dropouts"), so the only force holding them in is a pinch from the side, bolstered by the little safety bump.

When you've got the bike on a rack and are either making turns or driving on a rough road, the bicycle is getting rocked side to side with great force, alternately pulling *upward* on each dropout. This never happens when you ride, because any such force would mean your front wheel got stuck on something or is sideways to your direction of travel, and you will crash violently 0.05 seconds later. The front dropout is not designed to hold the wheel on against such forces: older bikes don't even have the safety bump.

My brand new carbon fork on my road bike doesn't have a safety bump. WTF are you talking about? Similarly, the only force holding your seatpost in place is clamping it around the side, perpendicular to the direction of force applied to it.