Rear bumper bike mount!

[hybridlife]

I know this is probably one of the biggest "Hot Button" topics and everyone is going to get their popcorn and prepare for fireworks! Here's my questions:

Has anyone used the product safety struts? www.mount-n-lock.com

While I won't add a bike rack to the rear of my stock bumper, I'm thinking about it while using this product...it's only going to carry two kids bikes.

I have a 2014 Shamrock 21SS and my bumper (steel 4") has two pieces of 2x3 square channel welded to the bumper(they are about 5" tabs) and then those tabs are welded to the 6" frame.

Thoughts? Thanks...I think!

m

[fella10]

Originally Posted by mfeeley

Has anyone used the product safety struts? www.mount-n-lock.com

yes, these struts have been discussed in length in the past, the link below is one of the most resent threads, ..... you'll see there is both praise and condemnation of them, ..... but if I remember correctly, none of the naysayers have ever used them, .... and as far as I remember, everyone who has experience with them love um, ...

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ts-118783.html

[jonshonda]

That looks like a REALLY good solution to utilizing the rear bumper. Transfers the torsional load from the welds on the paper thin bumper to a much larger surface area (the brackets).

I was going to have a fab shop weld up a receiver, but now I think I am going to try these safety straps.

[donanddona]

I have used a similar clamp device for seven years. With two bikes, have for years. Only concern is the bounce. I now tie the lower area of the bikes (handle bars/frames/wheels) to each side of the bumper to limit the bounce.

[extremebike]

Originally Posted by mfeeley

I know this is probably one of the biggest "Hot Button" topics and everyone is going to get their popcorn and prepare for fireworks! Here's my questions:

Has anyone used the product safety struts? www.mount-n-lock.com

While I won't add a bike rack to the rear of my stock bumper, I'm thinking about it while using this product...it's only going to carry two kids bikes.

I have a 2014 Shamrock 21SS and my bumper (steel 4") has two pieces of 2x3 square channel welded to the bumper(they are about 5" tabs) and then those tabs are welded to the 6" frame.

Thoughts? Thanks...I think!

m

I usually put my bikes inside the trailer in a cloth cover my wife made, but if its my old mountain bike I remove the pedal on one side and loosen the steering post bolt, turn the handle bars to the side and lay it in the truck bed. My full size mountain bike fits behind the 5th wheel hitch.

Just another option.

[doc73]

I've had the struts now 1.5 seasons and they seem to work well. I had a reinforced bumper to start with but wanted a bit extra. Very solid and seem to be good people, met them at an RV show when I bought them.

[Retiredtwo]

I was somewhat impressed with the extra effort FR did to secure the rear bumper on our Wildwood 171RBXL. I feel confident I can install my 2" hitch receiver and bike rack without adding the extra 4 square brackets. However my main concern is the I-Beams the bumper is attached to. Very marginal at best. The spare tire and the 2 bikes with hardware probably max out the suggested weight rating. I'm not familiar with how the box is attached to the frame but I suspect that they incorporate that into the frame structure to complement it's lacking frame components. I will see when I get ours back from the dealer on Monday and have some time to inspect it better. I wish there was a place to see the blueprints for these things.

[crash3]

I had a welder weld on a hitch that ties into the frame rails of the trailer. It works great. I have a 4 bike hitch mount bike rack. I also use 2 ratchet straps to stop the bouncing. The welder charged me $150 and I got the rack on one of those bidding sites for $20. This way I don't have to worry about how clean the bikes are when I put them away. I can post some pics when I get home.

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by Retiredtwo

I was somewhat impressed with the extra effort FR did to secure the rear bumper on our Wildwood 171RBXL. I feel confident I can install my 2" hitch receiver and bike rack without adding the extra 4 square brackets. However my main concern is the I-Beams the bumper is attached to. Very marginal at best. The spare tire and the 2 bikes with hardware probably max out the suggested weight rating. I'm not familiar with how the box is attached to the frame but I suspect that they incorporate that into the frame structure to complement it's lacking frame components. I will see when I get ours back from the dealer on Monday and have some time to inspect it better. I wish there was a place to see the blueprints for these things.

Same as crash3 did, I've had beefed up receivers put on both my Roo 19 and Mini Lite 2503S. See Post #2 for the Roo and Post #12 for the Mini Lite here:

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...oo-107358.html

I had my dealer put these on before I even picked the TT's up.

You can get the spare tire off the bumper using a BAL Hide-a-spare, see here:

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ite-91088.html

[dmdomokos]

Originally Posted by mfeeley

I know this is probably one of the biggest "Hot Button" topics and everyone is going to get their popcorn and prepare for fireworks! Here's my questions:

Has anyone used the product safety struts? www.mount-n-lock.com

While I won't add a bike rack to the rear of my stock bumper, I'm thinking about it while using this product...it's only going to carry two kids bikes.

I have a 2014 Shamrock 21SS and my bumper (steel 4") has two pieces of 2x3 square channel welded to the bumper(they are about 5" tabs) and then those tabs are welded to the 6" frame.

Thoughts? Thanks...I think!

m

I have them on my trailer and I carry 2 adult and 1 child bike. Haven't seen a crack on any weld yet. Been about 10K miles with it.

[Drenjoey]

Originally Posted by mfeeley

Has anyone used the product safety struts? www.mount-n-lock.com

The OP is asking about that type of mount and nothing else.....It would be nice if folks stick to the question asked and not providing other solutions.

Maybe I'm getting old, but it frustrates me when people don't have a straight answer to a question !

My opinion
Dre

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by Drenjoey

The OP is asking about that type of mount and nothing else.....It would be nice if folks stick to the question asked and not providing other solutions.

Maybe I'm getting old, but it frustrates me when people don't have a straight answer to a question !

My opinion
Dre

Well, unfortunately, you'd better get used to it, because I'd say 98% of threads ends up like this. In fact, YOU'VE just caused this one to take another tack!

[crash3]

Originally Posted by Drenjoey

The OP is asking about that type of mount and nothing else.....It would be nice if folks stick to the question asked and not providing other solutions.

Maybe I'm getting old, but it frustrates me when people don't have a straight answer to a question !

My opinion
Dre

People who have used this product will give their 2 cents. The OP might not know of any other options out there, that's why we who have not used that product give our experience on what has worked for us. But thanks for your input.

[doc73]

Anyways.. I'd be worried those U bolts will fail as they are probably not really designed for any load.. I AM SURE SOMEONE SMARTER THAN ME WILL CHIME IN MAYBE?

[Drenjoey]

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

Well, unfortunately, you'd better get used to it, because I'd say 98% of threads ends up like this. In fact, YOU'VE just caused this one to take another tack!

So.....what you're saying is 98% of answers don't answer the OP specific question......

I give up ! This is definitely not the forum for me !

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by Drenjoey

So.....what you're saying is 98% of answers don't answer the OP specific question......

I give up ! This is definitely not the forum for me !

NO. That's NOT what I said. Read the post again.

I said 98% of threads can get off on a tangent. That doesn't mean there are no answers to the specific question. Also, as crash3 said, we often offer other options/solutions that the OP may not be aware of.

I guess you've never been in a conversation that ended up discussing something other than what it started with. You must be a better man than most of us.

So, what I AM saying is: if you aren't willing to learn something new, simply because it turned up in a thread that started differently, than I guess you're right - this ISN'T the forum for you.

But if you can find a forum that doesn't do that, please let us all know where it's at.

[crash3]

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

NO. That's NOT what I said. Read the post again.

I said 98% of threads can get off on a tangent. That doesn't mean there are no answers to the specific question. Also, as crash3 said, we often offer other options/solutions that the OP may not be aware of.

I guess you've never been in a conversation that ended up discussing something other than what it started with. You must be a better man than most of us.

So, what I AM saying is: if you aren't willing to learn something new, simply because it turned up in a thread that started differently, than I guess you're right - this ISN'T the forum for you.

But if you can find a forum that doesn't do that, please let us all know where it's at.

^This.[emoji106]

[hybridlife]

Thank you for all the input...both on track and off track!!

I will keep the group posted as I continue to explore this product and/or other options.

m

[itat]

Many forum members seem to like those SafetyStruts. If I were to use them, I'd probably want to first sister a piece of steel against the "I" beam's vertical web for added strength. Those "I" beams are not actually a rolled structural steel beam but three thinner plates welded together in that shape. That might not be needed but it would make me more comfortable to have a strengthened connection to the frame.

[sonic2]

I'm open to knowledge, new ideas, improvements and innovations. But, I cannot get past the laws of physics. Sometimes we want something and justify to ourselves it's right regardless of the consequences. This discussion is the same as justifying our towing/payload abilities. It's all a gamble; we make the choice what we do and live with it. I offer no opinion either way.

I originally posted loading of an RV which shows what happens when adding weight to the rear of an RV: http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ml#post1527671


Driver has a lucky escape when bike falls off back of 4x4 | Daily Mail Online

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nd-hUX8memY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyagKzvJwYw