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Bike rack idea...


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I've been continuing to think about how to best bring along my mountain bike on my camping travels.  There have been some pretty elegant solutions here on the forum.  I got to thinking about the bike rack I used with my Wrangler pretty successfully in the past.  Yesterday I pulled off the spare tire cover to investigate.  

Looks to me like it could be done.  Simple - maybe not as much as I'd hoped, but I'd love to hear your thoughts.

I'd need to fabricate a spacer to place between the wheel and the mount in order to push the spare about an inch rearward.  Doing so would then allow the 'hook' part at the forward top of the rack to grab the tire.  I think I could find attachment points for the strapping.   I'd also have to be able to re-mount the license plate and light elsewhere, as well as cover the license plate section of the spare tire cover for those times I'm not hauling the bike and want the tire covered, specifically during storage.

I think it might work.  What are your thoughts?  Thanks in advance.

bike rack ollie.jpg

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Chuck, my only concern would be how much stress the bike and rack would put on the hull in addition to the tire.  There's a substantial aluminum plate behind the tire mount which spreads the load, but ultimately it will still be the fiberglass that's taking the stress.  Will it be too much?  No idea, but it's something to put some thought into.  

_JDA3199.thumb.jpeg.78a32862c0366f688c3504bd92cdfffa.jpeg

Edited by Overland
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It sure looks as if it would work. I suspect that you haven’t removed your spare tire yet..... or you would understand that your idea is not prudent.

The clamp tightens onto the inside of the wheel, but the clamping force is actually between the other sidewall and the gelcoat. The aluminum bracket is only supporting the wheel and tire weight vertically, it doesn’t really do anything else. It is beautifully manufactured and a joy to look at, but IMHO it is a really bad piece of engineering. At the very least, there needs to be a much larger base plate with an extended flange with a couple of fixed studs to go through the bolt holes, so that if the spare goes flat it won’t start flopping around. And while you are at it, make the outside of the wheel face the back so you can get to the valve.

A heavy spare tire and wheel clamped to a pretty fiberglass hull via the RUBBER sidewall just makes me shake my head in wonder. Do any other manufacturers do this?
 

https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/2643-how-to-protect-the-gelcoat-under-the-spare-tire/

John Davies

Spokane WA

Edited by John E Davies
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SOLD 07/23 "Mouse":  2017 Legacy Elite II Two Beds, Hull Number 218, See my HOW TO threads: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/john-e-davies-how-to-threads-and-tech-articles-links/

Tow Vehicle: 2013 Land Cruiser 200, 32” LT tires, airbags, Safari snorkel, Maggiolina Grand Tour 360 Carbon RTT.

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