Sea Biscuit Rear Basket and Storage Boxes

[Steve and MA]

We were in Hohenwald this week and saw some new products made by SEA BISCUIT METAL DESIGNS on display in the Oliver showroom.  One product caught our attention, so we decide to visit Johnson City.  The rear basket carrier and storage boxes are very well crafted. We already have the OEM rear bumper receiver option so installation was simplified. Since we weren't using the bumper receiver on this trip, we replaced one for the other.  We're very pleased with the quality and the design. The lockable boxes increase the secure outside storage, and they're easily removed from the basket in case we want to use it to carry odd shaped/sized cargo.  We went with two separate storage boxes, but they also have a larger single "coffin" box that spans the width of the basket.  The low profile doesn't cover the original license plate location, so no need to move the plate and rewire its light.  The CNC cut "Oliver" name on the carrier is also a nice touch.

[jd1923]

1 hour ago, Steve and MA said:

The rear basket carrier and storage boxes are very well crafted.

Can you buy just the rack, less storage boxes? I’d like a 12VDC fridge/freezer back there, locked down, very nice given it fits in the receivers on our old hull. TY!

[Steve and MA]

7 hours ago, jd1923 said:

Can you buy just the rack, less storage boxes?

Yes, the basket and boxes are sold separately.  If you don't already have the dual receivers for the OEM bumper hitch, then you'd have to get those too. The basket is very solidly mounted.  There is no free-play.

[Golfnut]

Sea Biscuit had the rack and other stuff at the rally in May….  Nice stuff, put very ,$$$$$..  talked to the owner , dont have front basket yet for Elite I..   stay safe out there… 

[Rolind]

The basket and the bins looks great. What are the weight limits of the basket?

[Patriot]

On 9/5/2024 at 9:31 PM, jd1923 said:

Can you buy just the rack, less storage boxes? I’d like a 12VDC fridge/freezer back there, locked down, very nice given it fits in the receivers on our old hull. TY!

Give David Hess a call he and his wife Kristine are the owners of SeaBiscuit. They are fine folks and they will get you set up with exactly what you need. https://seabiscuitmetaldesigns.com/product-category/oliver-travel-trailer-accessories/  As for weight limit, the good folks at Oliver may provide guidance on that. Naturally a caution flag on any excessive weight which could really impact the overall handling of the trailer under way on the super slab. 

Made in the USA.🇺🇸

Edited September 7, 2024 by Patriot

[Boilermaker Chemist]

How is access to the sewer hose termination fitting?  Looks like it might be rather difficult. 

[jd1923]

3 hours ago, Boilermaker Chemist said:

How is access to the sewer hose termination fitting?  Looks like it might be rather difficult. 

Do what I do. Always leave the sewer hose attached while on the road! 🤣 

Put the cap on the end of the hose. It must still be a reach with a big-a basket like this one. Nice product, but the back of my 8 ft pickup truck bed would have to get awfully full, for us to spend this kind of money for extra storage, and with the extra weight behind the trailer.

[Mike and Carol]

20 hours ago, jd1923 said:

Do what I do. Always leave the sewer hose attached while on the road! 🤣 

We always leave the sewer hose attached.  No reason not to…. It makes life so much easier!  

[rich.dev]

On 9/6/2024 at 11:27 AM, Golfnut said:

 

Sea Biscuit had the rack and other stuff at the rally in May….  Nice stuff, put very ,$$$$$..  talked to the owner , dont have front basket yet for Elite I..   stay safe out there… 

 

FYI…Oliver quoted me $1500 for the rear receiver assy including installation, just checked and the Sea Biscuit Oliver rear basket is $1050 including hardware to mount the basket to an Oliver without receiver assy! My intention was to get the Oliver receiver assy, remove the 2” receiver and side aluminum rails then add longer side aluminum rails in order to mount an aluminum basket on the rails. So $1500 for the Oliver receiver, $350 for a UWS basket plus modifying the Oliver receiver….then I saw the sea biscuit basket which is exactly what I was looking to do…and cheaper, so for me definitely worth it!😊

Here’s the sea biscuit basket and link


Now I just have to decide if I want it in bare aluminum, or powder coated for an additional $250. 🤔

[Steve and MA]

We've been very pleased with the basket and boxes. Now that we've had them for almost 6 months we can give more feedback. 

First, many have asked about their weight limit.  As @Patriot mentions, this is a question better answered by Oliver. Sea Biscuit doesn't provide a weight limit, but the basket and boxes are very robust.  Oliver has a 150 lb limit on their optional bumper receiver.  Our unladen receiver weighs 26 lb, so we're looking at a maximum of about 176 lb hanging on the rear bumper.  The Oliver receiver could probably handle more weight, but you also have to consider front/rear weight balance.  Our Sea Biscuit basket and empty boxes combined weigh 74 lb.  If we observe the Oliver weight limit, we can carry 102 lb maximum in the boxes.  We only carry about 30 lb of bulky/dirty items in the boxes: chocks and blocks in one rear box and a (very) small grill in the other. We also have the Oliver front basket, sometimes loaded with 70-80 lb of gear (e.g. generator and fuel) which helps offset the weight on the rear.

Access to the dump hoses stored in the bumper is a minor inconvenience, but less so if you keep the hoses attached.  Since we have the Nature's Head, we only have to deal with gray water. If we had a black tank, then we wouldn't want to troubleshoot a leaky hose or connection while the basket is attached.  

That brings us to another access issue. The basket must be pulled out about 4-5 inches to remove the spare tire cover. This isn't a big issue though.  We can just pull the pins holding the basket on the bumper and slide it back a little without removing it from the mounts. No tools required.  Fortunately, we haven't had to use the spare, but the basket won't be a problem if we do.

Besides the convenient storage, especially the easy access to the chocks and blocks, an unexpected big benefit is that the boxes are at countertop height when parked on level ground. We always have an outdoor table set up. The boxes are also strong enough for a 225 lb person to stand on, making it easy to visually check things on the roof.

Steve

Edited Monday at 06:39 PM by Steve and MA