My bike carrier mod for a Roo 233s (should work on other models)

[Barney1]

I have been bouncing this idea around for a while and I finally didi it.
With four of us traveling around on a regular basis, sometime six if the kids bring a friend each , we find it hard to bring all our bikes only two will fit in the back of the truck without making a tangled mess.

So I thought why not mount fork clamps to the dinette seat plywood and carry the bikes in the TT?

First I needed to beef up the plywood from 1/4" to 3/4". This I already did to make the dinette cushions level when configured as a bed.

Next four - fork clamps @ $25 ea.
and eight - 1/4" bolts with washers and nuts @ $11
Total bike rack cost $111 +tax



Fork clamp:



Mounted 4 - two on opposite bench seats:



Flip plywood and replace cushion to use couch:



Four bikes mounted inside:

[ependydad]

LOVE IT! Nicely done.

[Cajun Po-Boy]

Great mod!!!

[Barney1]

The first comment out of the DW's mouth once the project was completed was, "I don't think I like the idea of bike tires touching the table we eat off of!"

This was after, "Don't you just have to go in there and drill 8 holes and tighten 8 bolts? What is taking you so long??"

Guest what DW stands for in this case.

[NewBerkFamily]

Brilliant! I just showed this to my husband so he can do this to our Roo too.

[biken201]

Awesome idea!!

[Barney1]

Quick report:

Just back from an 11 day trip (3 hours from home).
The bike carrying system works great - no shifting during travel. I did tie the bikes together.

[Road-King]

I'm sure glad you put something between the tires and the table. I was worried about that. Lol

[force]

This is genius, thanks for sharing!

[simplyrwc]

This is a great idea. I have 8 bikes to haul around. Going to see if I can do something similar on one of my bunks as well as the dinette. Thanks for sharing!

[castlemusic]

What a great idea for carrying bikes! I'm getting ready to attempt this mod myself.

This might be a silly question, but where do you keep the front wheels in transit?

Thanks for sharing, and posting pics!

Brody

[ChooChooMan74]

Thank you for the share. That is one Idea, although, our table area is usually loaded with bags and stuff.

[Barney1]

@castlemusic I usually throw the front wheels in the truck bed.
I do know that they sell mounts for front wheels too. They look like upside down front forks. They could fit at the ends or between bikes

[funfinder5]

Originally Posted by Barney1

@castlemusic I usually throw the front wheels in the truck bed.
I do know that they sell mounts for front wheels too. They look like upside down front forks. They could fit at the ends or between bikes

You put the front wheels in the back of your truck and the bikes inside your camper... ???

[Barney1]

Originally Posted by funfinder5

You put the front wheels in the back of your truck and the bikes inside your camper... ???

Usually yes.
The reason I made the bike mount system inside the camper is to keep weight out of my truck.
I am fine for the towing capacity with the Ram but I am borderline with the pay load. I try to keep the bed empty but 4 front bike wheels is minimal weight; whereas, 4 bikes with steel (not alloy) frames can get weighty.
I take the wheel off before carrying the bikes into the camper. It is easier just to get my son to put the wheels in the bed of the truck while I am mounting the bikes inside.
I have put the front wheels in the trailers cel or twice just between the bike frames and the run a tie though the grams and wheels to hold everything in place.

[funfinder5]

What all do you have in the back of that truck that thats taking up all your payload? 4wheeler, golf cart?

We bring 5 bikes with us all piled on a slightly modified hitch carier on the back of the motor home. Can't be more than about 200lbs for all five. Cheap box store steel mountain bikes are 40-45lbs (steel cost $$ so they use lighter gauge than they use to) older school steel bikes maybe 60lbs.

You don't have room for 160lbs of payload in your truck?

Totally cool mod for those who tow with an SUV though... My wife would never go for it. Outside things stay outside and inside things stay inside... That's why we don't tent camp and have an RV instead.

[Barney1]

Well with these 1/2 tons you can get to your payload limit pretty quick.
Four people and a dog, some personal gear, a full tank of gas and the tongue weight and I am almost there.

I ask the weight police how quickly a 1/2 ton can reach its payload max.

[Barney1]

Truck's payload: 1440lbs
Minus:
- 450lbs -4 people
or 700lbs - 6 people with kids friends
- 40lbs - dog
- 590lbs - trailer's tongue weight

That leaves 360lbs
(or 110lbs if my kids bring a friend each).

That is why I leave the truck bed empty

[simplyrwc]

Who called the weight police on a bike storage mod thread lol!


Just kidding!

[Barney1]

No one! and I want to keep it that way!