Rear Hitch for a Forest River 25 BRDS

[Iceberg462]

Hi All,

We have a 2020 Forest River 25BRDS and I want to put a hitch on the back bumper to mount a bicycle carrier and hold 3 bikes. I am not impressed with the ones that have the bolts going around the bumper and a receiver attached to it. I have seen a Mount-n-Lock RV and Camper Hitch - MNT37FR that looks substantially more sturdy but have also seen the 2021 with an actual hitch mounted to the trailer frame from the factory. I cannot find it on the web so far but just started my search.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated to get the right equipment for the trailer to haul our stuff.

Thanks, Mike

[Rover Podder]

How much weight can the bumper hold?

[Iceberg462]

I did not think of looking at that but that is a question I have to find out also.

[jimmarako]

Supposedly the rear bumper can not take any weight, including the spare tire they mount there. Thin metal and cheap welds. What many people do is use something like safety struts to reinforce the bumper. Or get a frame mount hitch that is bolted/welded to the trailer.

I don't use either so I can't give a first hand impression of either.

https://mount-n-lock.com/safetystrut...bumper-failure

https://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Fab-35-...0693454&sr=8-3

Jim M.

[Stevevermont]

Your bumper are not for holding bike rack. When I bought my Forest River camper, there was a sticker on the bumper that mention the bumper not use for bike rack and also during the walk through the dealership person mention it. My other RV that I used to have never mention not to have a bike rack on so I put one one, wish I never did, As you travel the bike rack will wobble and the handle part of the bike will put dents on the back of the camper. Have to have a right rear bumper for a bike rack.

[Kimber45]

Many Many threads about this topic and bumpers not being meant to hold weight, will void warranty and cant be done without proper support. Folks do it all the time.

[Dobbs]

I don't see what you are using for your tow vehicle but I put a front hitch on my F-150. Solid as a rock and I can keep an eye on the bikes. My Flagstaff 26FKBS has the factory hitch/accessory receiver. The last highway I was on would have tossed the bikes off in an instant due to the oscillation of the truck and trailer.

[bcramer]

There are two possible problems with putting your bikes on the back of the trailer: 1. The bumper is very thin and may fail, and 2. very few bike racks are rated for the dynamic loads of the back of a trailer (being "RV Rated" is NOT enough). The following thread discusses the bike racks in detail, including links to bike racks that are actually travel trailer rated (you will notice that they are much beefier than most):

https://www.forestriverforums.com/fo...rs-230393.html

I mounted the Ultra-Fab-35 on my Surveyor 243RBS. It is welded to the frame just forward of the bumper. I also mounted it on top of the frame instead of the bottom for easier access to the bike rack.

The tread above includes a statement from a bike rack manufacturer that explains the side-to-side motion of a trailer and metal fatigue that leads to so many failures.

One other note: Bike rack manufacturers don't advertise that their racks are NOT travel trailer rated. They often say on the web site they are "RV Rated", and when you get it out of the box there is a sticker on it that says it is NOT for use on travel trailers.

[benchmarks]

Where did you remount the spare tire?

[bcramer]

My spare tire was not on the bumper. It is mounted under the trailer forward of the axels. But, I have seen some people mount it on the tongue.