Hitch drop height

[Ray and Susan Huff]

We're trying to come up with a way to use our 1UP bike rack on the back of the pickup while towing our Oliver.  Found a hitch that will do the job, but it only comes with a 2" drop.

https://www.etrailer.com/s.aspx?qry=dual+receiver+hitch+adapter&furl=-vw-1-pg-Trailer_Hitch_Ball_Mount

We'll be towing with an F-350 Super Duty.  Receiver (OC) is 21" from the ground.  Is a 2" drop enough?  

Life just isn't easy sometimes . . . . . . . might have to let some of the air out of the pickup tires or get a different TV 😟 lol

[bhncb]

1 hour ago, Susan Huff said:

might have to let some of the air out of the pickup tires or get a different TV

Have you considered a front mount receiver?

[bhncb]

2 hours ago, Susan Huff said:

Receiver (OC) is 21" from the ground.  Is a 2" drop enough?  

 

So the top of the receiver opening is 22 inchs? Add 2-1/2" for the ball and your at 24-1/2" to the top of the ball. My LE II is 23-1/2" to the top of the coupler socket and 600# will drop my 3500 3/4".  If your F350 sag is similar, seems to me a 0-1"rise would be a good starting point.

[Ray and Susan Huff]

3 hours ago, bhncb said:

So the top of the receiver opening is 22 inchs? Add 2-1/2" for the ball and your at 24-1/2" to the top of the ball. My LE II is 23-1/2" to the top of the coupler socket and 600# will drop my 3500 3/4".  If your F350 sag is similar, seems to me a 0-1"rise would be a good starting point.

21" from ground to center of receiver, pickup unloaded and on flat ground.  Our pickup is 4wd, so that might make a difference, suspension wise; the suspension is stock - no upgrades.

It's beginning to sound like the dual hitch might work.  Front receiver would be a last resort for using the rack.  Not sure how the extra weight up front would affect handling and tongue weight.

Oliver seems to think a standard drop of 2-2.5" will do fine.

Edited September 17, 2020 by Susan Huff

[NCeagle]

6 hours ago, Susan Huff said:

21" from ground to center of receiver, pickup unloaded and on flat ground. 

My receiver is 22" from ground to center, 23 1/4" to the top inside edge.  Oliver has told me (and there are numerous confirmations on this forum) that 23.5 to the top of ball is optimal.  Just so happens that if I use a hitch without rise/drop, I'm super close to 23.5" unloaded.  I found through simulated load testing (using a 600 lb. tongue weight and several hundred more pounds worth of camping gear in the back) that my truck will drop about 1".  I have air springs, so I can just add air to bring my truck back up to 23.5".  If I didn't have the air springs, I could have used the longer shank ball with stacked washers or found a hitch with a 1" or so rise.

Using my example, you will be 1" low when unloaded and somewhere between 1-2" low when loaded.  If you drop another 2" with your receiver, you will be 3-4" lower than recommended.  I don't know if that's within specs - seems based on Oliver's response it may be fine.  I think if you used air springs (relatively inexpensive and easy to install for someone with basic mechanical skills) and some stacked washers on the ball you could get pretty close to level.  Another option is just get a camper shell for your truck and the bikes will stay nice and cozy in there.  That's what my wife and I do.

Edited September 17, 2020 by NCeagle

[Patriot]

Susan,
With an 8’ bed on your tow vehicle I would think it sure would be much easier to just use a extremely stable aluminum plate fork mount (pictured) and you would still have more than enough room for plenty of gear. I was able to carry all our gear in the short bed of our former TV with this configuration. Do you have a topper or camper shell on your F 350? With the new SD Tremor we will have more than enough room for cargo with a 6 3/4 bed and ARE topper and actually room to spare. 

The Pros I can think of - bikes are clean and out of the weather, secure bicycles, and you can just leave your bicycles In the bed and then take them with you when you want to ride and enjoy explore a local rail trail or town or park. Not unload off the Ollie or rack and reload them into your TV bed to take them somewhere...more unnecessary work IMO. 
Another plus is you won’t have to take the “bike rack” off the Ollie and add it to your TV. Just leave them inside the truck bed/topper until your ready to ride. It takes me maybe 8 min to remove two bicycles and remount the front wheels, not at all difficult. If your carrying cargo to fill an 8’ bed of a super duty you maybe want to rethink/reconfigure how much your carrying. In the attached pics I have loaded a Tundra bed with a Honda Handi generator,  adult XL and L bicycles, a Yeti Tundra cooler, 2 chairs, exterior pvc carpet, small table, Weber Q1200 and other misc camp set up gear. Not a whole lot of room to spare, but adequate. 

Once we take delivery of our new ARE Z topper  I will post up a few pics of our bikes and gear stowed in the bed under the new topper. Fooling around with tongue hitch heights, securing bike racks or baskets hanging off the Ollie or rear bumper is just not for me. Really another totally unnecessary checklist item. Again not to forget bicycles are high theft and easy targets.
With our new TV and the extra cargo room we opted to mitigate most if not all the above concerns when hauling our bicycles.
If your TV was an SUV than you would be even more restricted/limited in both cargo room, capacity and CGWWR weight limits, I would say you are back to square one with a rack hanging off the back somewhere.  That not being the case, your F350 8’ bed you are in fine shape. Naturally one size does not fit all. We choose the KISS principle. 😊Our bicycles are fairly expensive, professionally fitted and we take great care with them. Do you have a topper?
Best of luck in your decision. Just another view point for thought.

 

 

 
 

 

 

[Ray and Susan Huff]

3 hours ago, NCeagle said:

My receiver is 22" from ground to center, 23 1/4" to the top inside edge.  Oliver has told me (and there are numerous confirmations on this forum) that 23.5 to the top of ball is optimal.  Just so happens that if I use a hitch without rise/drop, I'm super close to 23.5" unloaded.  I found through simulated load testing (using a 600 lb. tongue weight and several hundred more pounds worth of camping gear in the back) that my truck will drop about 1".  I have air springs, so I can just add air to bring my truck back up to 23.5".  If I didn't have the air springs, I could have used the longer shank ball with stacked washers or found a hitch with a 1" or so rise.

Using my example, you will be 1" low when unloaded and somewhere between 1-2" low when loaded.  If you drop another 2" with your receiver, you will be 3-4" lower than recommended.  I don't know if that's within specs - seems based on Oliver's response it may be fine.  I think if you used air springs (relatively inexpensive and easy to install for someone with basic mechanical skills) and some stacked washers on the ball you could get pretty close to level.  Another option is just get a camper shell for your truck and the bikes will stay nice and cozy in there.  That's what my wife and I do.

Thanks for the detailed measurements . . . . .  

How does the camper shell work out for you?  How do you secure the bikes during transport . . . . . is it necessary to remove the front wheel?  One thing we really like about our bike rack is how quick and easy it is to load/unload the bikes.  We aren't real particular to them being exposed to the elements.  They are nice bikes, but not carbon fiber, custom built.  They get dirty, as do all off road bikes, but we keep them clean and maintained.

One reason we have shied away from a canopy is that the pickup is often used at home for tasks around the ranch and the canopy would have to be removed when we aren't using it to tow.  A folding bed cover is first on our list of possibilities, but we have to figure out bike transport before making that decision.

Thanks for the great advice.

[NCeagle]

6 minutes ago, Susan Huff said:

How does the camper shell work out for you?  How do you secure the bikes during transport . . . . . is it necessary to remove the front wheel?  One thing we really like about our bike rack is how quick and easy it is to load/unload the bikes.  We aren't real particular to them being exposed to the elements.  They are nice bikes, but not carbon fiber, custom built.  They get dirty, as do all off road bikes, but we keep them clean and maintained.

The camper shell works out great for the bikes.  I like the looks of Patriot's system, but I'm lazy so I just leave the front tires on and lean the bikes to get them through the back door.  Once in the shell they can stand up straight and I just use tie down straps to secure them there.  I have a hitch bike rack that I've used over the years when my truck bed was full and we still wanted our bikes - but I don't like that much because the bikes were always filthy after a trip - including fine dust and dirt in the chains, etc.  I like them inside for sure.

I've only had to take my shell off maybe a half a dozen times in the 14 years I've had it.  I have an easy system where I can take it off and put it on by myself - takes about 30 minutes for each.  I use a pair of 2' x 4's suspended from my garage ceiling by ratcheting straps.  I slide the boards under my topper and then ratchet it up off the truck and drive off.  Even so, I think if I had to take it off a lot more often I'd think twice about it too.  I see why you might be hesitating to get the bigger top...  not quite as easy to work with as the tonneau covers.

Good luck - so many options....  🙂

[Ray and Susan Huff]

2 hours ago, Patriot said:

Susan,
With an 8’ bed on your tow vehicle I would think it sure would be much easier to just use a extremely stable aluminum plate fork mount (pictured) and you would still have more than enough room for plenty of gear. I was able to carry all our gear in the short bed of our former TV with this configuration. Do you have a topper or camper shell on your F 350? With the new SD Tremor we will have more than enough room for cargo with a 6 3/4 bed and ARE topper and actually room to spare. 

The Pros I can think of - bikes are clean and out of the weather, secure bicycles, and you can just leave your bicycles In the bed and then take them with you when you want to ride and enjoy explore a local rail trail or town or park. Not unload off the Ollie or rack and reload them into your TV bed to take them somewhere...more unnecessary work IMO. 
Another plus is you won’t have to take the “bike rack” off the Ollie and add it to your TV. Just leave them inside the truck bed/topper until your ready to ride. It takes me maybe 8 min to remove two bicycles and remount the front wheels, not at all difficult. If your carrying cargo to fill an 8’ bed of a super duty you maybe want to rethink/reconfigure how much your carrying. In the attached pics I have loaded a Tundra bed with a Honda Handi generator,  adult XL and L bicycles, a Yeti Tundra cooler, 2 chairs, exterior pvc carpet, small table, Weber Q1200 and other misc camp set up gear. Not a whole lot of room to spare, but adequate. 

Once we take delivery of our new ARE Z topper  I will post up a few pics of our bikes and gear stowed in the bed under the new topper. Fooling around with tongue hitch heights, securing bike racks or baskets hanging off the Ollie or rear bumper is just not for me. Really another totally unnecessary checklist item. Again not to forget bicycles are high theft and easy targets.
With our new TV and the extra cargo room we opted to mitigate most if not all the above concerns when hauling our bicycles.
If your TV was an SUV than you would be even more restricted/limited in both cargo room, capacity and CGWWR weight limits, I would say you are back to square one with a rack hanging off the back somewhere.  That not being the case, your F350 8’ bed you are in fine shape. Naturally one size does not fit all. We choose the KISS principle. 😊Our bicycles are fairly expensive, professionally fitted and we take great care with them. Do you have a topper?
Best of luck in your decision. Just another view point for thought.

 

 

 
 

 

 

Thanks for your thoughts.  We carried our bikes with fork mounts in the back of the pickup when we towed a 5th-wheel.  When we traded the 5th-wheel for a camper van, we opted for an RV approved bike rack (1Up) which worked well.  We love the quality and ease of use the 1Up affords.  With the camper van, the bikes were with us wherever we went.  My husband's bike is not a theft target - stock Specialized hybrid.  Mine, however, is a Specialized mountain bike, customized for on road/off road use - $2,000+ to replace.  We do secure them to the rack when not in use.

I get what you are saying about having the bike rack mounted to the back of the Ollie, but our plan is to use a dual hitch adapter and mount the rack to the rear of the pickup; I believe there is enough clearance and this hitch meets the necessary specs to tow the Ollie and support 120# of bikes and rack, provided the 2" drop on the hitch will work; it's sounding like it might.  Using the rack in this way eliminates the problem of having to move the bikes and/or rack from the rear of the Ollie to the pickup; the rack is a 2" and would not want it on the back of the trailer anyway.

Canopy is not our first choice for pickup cargo protection; considering a Bakflip bed cover.

[Patriot]

22 minutes ago, Susan Huff said:

Thanks for your thoughts.  We carried our bikes with fork mounts in the back of the pickup when we towed a 5th-wheel.  When we traded the 5th-wheel for a camper van, we opted for an RV approved bike rack (1Up) which worked well.  We love the quality and ease of use the 1Up affords.  With the camper van, the bikes were with us wherever we went.  My husband's bike is not a theft target - stock Specialized hybrid.  Mine, however, is a Specialized mountain bike, customized for on road/off road use - $2,000+ to replace.  We do secure them to the rack when not in use.

I get what you are saying about having the bike rack mounted to the back of the Ollie, but our plan is to use a dual hitch adapter and mount the rack to the rear of the pickup; I believe there is enough clearance and this hitch meets the necessary specs to tow the Ollie and support 120# of bikes and rack, provided the 2" drop on the hitch will work; it's sounding like it might.  Using the rack in this way eliminates the problem of having to move the bikes and/or rack from the rear of the Ollie to the pickup; the rack is a 2" and would not want it on the back of the trailer anyway.

Canopy is not our first choice for pickup cargo protection; considering a Bakflip bed cover.

Will you need to remove the bikes or bike rack to access entry for cargo/gear in the bed? Will the bike rack and hitch clear the tailgate. You may have already thought about this....just thoughts to ponder. Our Trek 920’s are $2100 each, so we gotta lock em down outa sight. Those are specialized rolls in the photo..they are in the $650 range, still lockem down.

Edited September 17, 2020 by Patriot

[Ray and Susan Huff]

9 minutes ago, Patriot said:

Will you need to remove the bikes or bike rack to access entry for cargo/gear in the bed? Will the bike rack and hitch clear the tailgate. You may have already thought about this....just thoughts to ponder. Our Trek 920’s are $2100 each, so we gotta lock em down outa sight. Those are specialized rolls in the photo..they are in the $650 range, still lockem down.

Yes, I did think about that.  We have used our rack on the pickup.  It tips back so you can access the bed; the tailgate will open as well.  

I appreciate all your comments.  I'm sure there is something we haven't thought of.  No solution is perfect; just need to find what works best.  At least there are options  🚲  🚲