Hauling two dirt bikes on a hitch rack? (1 Viewer)

[1150A]

I'd say around ~500lbs for the bikes alone, not including the rack. Is this safe on hitch?

Really trying to avoid trailer cause I don't have the room to store it, but afraid two bikes would be too much for a hitch mounted rack.

This is on an LX470 with AHC. Not sure if that's a good thing or bad thing..

EDIT: Any thoughts on putting a hitch rack up front and one in the rear? FYI - this would be for my wife's bike, which is not a full size. Having this setup would also be awesome for putting mountain bikes up front and a Moto in the rear for the man trips

 

[45Kevin]

Get one of those folding trailers.
It probably wouldn't take up much more room than a rack when it is being stored.

foldingtrailers.ca - Canada's #1 Source for folding utility trailers & accessories

 

[joseywales]

One moto on a hitch rack is ok. Two, not so much. You’d be hanging the weight way out there and creating a giant lever. I don’t think your LX would like you very much.

 

[1150A]

Thanks.. I had a feeling two would be too much. Even it being one full size bike and one smaller (wife).

Really trying to avoid trailer if possible. What do you guys think about installing an additional hitch up front?

 

[oakback]

Get one of those folding trailers.
It probably wouldn't take up much more room than a rack when it is being stored.

foldingtrailers.ca - Canada's #1 Source for folding utility trailers & accessories

Is that the same as the Harbor Freight folding trailer? It looks exactly the same. I don't know if you guys have HF up there.

 

[Live to Ski]

Related ? (kinda sorta): contemplating 2 super light gas powered cycles (mini-bike or ?) for "life boat" duties.

Health issues (hopefully fixable) limit me from walking in rough terrain (including flat fire roads).

Can people pipe in on what they know/use in this regard (will cross post in general topics as well).

Thanks in advance!

 

[45Kevin]

Is that the same as the Harbor Freight folding trailer? It looks exactly the same. I don't know if you guys have HF up there.

We don't have HF up here but we have other places that sell mostly Chinese stuff at cheap prices.

If your main concern is the storage when not in use, these would be far more convenient than one, or even two hitch racks and far more versatile. And probably comparable in price.

Livetoski, with a handle like that this must really suck. Hope you recover soon.
A good bike to carry as a spare is a CT90 from the '70s. Light with fold-able handle bars to get it close to the hitch, and it has a high and low range transmission. They are hard to find though.

 

[bigredmachine]

Ultimate MX hauler that's what I use for when I go riding and its worth every penny, the bike is mounts solid to the hauler and dosnt move at all. its so solid I wouldn't have any issue doing some soft roading to get to riding spots. the hauler has a weight limit of about 400 so it wouldn't be able to handle 2 bikes, you would be better off with a small trailer.

if you do decide to go tithe the front hitch some things to concider would be will the bike be blocking the headlights and the weight that the hitch will be able to hold. I would plan n putting the smaller on the front and and the bigger one on the back

 

[joseywales]

We don't have HF up here but we have other places that sell mostly Chinese stuff at cheap prices.

A good bike to carry as a spare is a CT90 from the '70s. Light with fold-able handle bars to get it close to the hitch, and it has a high and low range transmission. They are hard to find though.

We have “Princess Auto” which is pretty much the same as HF, but with surplus stuff as well.

I bought a ‘69 Honda Z50 to use as my lifeboat on a 4 month trip to Mexico. I carried it on a hitch rack on the back of my BJ60. It was mainly for beer runs between surf trips. I sold it to a crazy Texan in Sayulita to pay for diesel to get home when spring hit.

 

[Live to Ski]

45Kevin, joseywales: Thanks for the suggestions. One of my concerns is weight. Those bikes seem to be north of 100 lbs. Thinking of mounting whatever I choose up high on a rear end dual rack w/o departure angle impact. I see lifting to height being a problem.

I'm thinking that the e-mtb world might work, depending on range. Plus, pedalling would be the last last resort

Speaking of pedalling, just remember that one of those older honda motorized bikes had a pedalling option. Any insight into which model that was?

I did cross post this into the bike forum. We'll see what pops there.

 

[45Kevin]

There was a P50 and a PA50 that Honda made in the '60s that had a pedal start.
Yamaha had a similar system but I don't have any info on them.

 

[Higgin]

Ultimate MX hauler that's what I use for when I go riding and its worth every penny, the bike is mounts solid to the hauler and dosnt move at all. its so solid I wouldn't have any issue doing some soft roading to get to riding spots. the hauler has a weight limit of about 400 so it wouldn't be able to handle 2 bikes, you would be better off with a small trailer.

if you do decide to go tithe the front hitch some things to concider would be will the bike be blocking the headlights and the weight that the hitch will be able to hold. I would plan n putting the smaller on the front and and the bigger one on the back

@bigredmachine Oh wow! That carrier looks awesome! That looks waaay easier to use than a standard ramp style bike mount. I have a 2009 KLX250SF supermoto that I've been looking for a carrier to transport it around on my LX470. This looks like the best one I've seen. I think I'll pick one up. Thanks!

 

[C6H12O6]

What about one on the back and one on the front?

 

[abuck99]

2 motos on the back of your 100 is doable- but it will really lighten up your front end, steering input will feel pretty loose. You may have to adjust the tbars down a few turns when you load up your carrier.

Putting some airbags in the rear springs will help offset some of the sag.

But personnally Id find a place to store a 4x8 trailer, so much easier to roll a bike on & off and towing is minimal load. I tried the hitch mounted Versahauler single, its a heavy chunk of steel, kind of wobbles around and never felt at ease with my moto back there.

 

[1150A]

2 motos on the back of your 100 is doable- but it will really lighten up your front end, steering input will feel pretty loose. You may have to adjust the tbars down a few turns when you load up your carrier.

Putting some airbags in the rear springs will help offset some of the sag.

Thanks abuck, just curious have you run two bikes on a hitch before?

 

[abuck99]

Thanks abuck, just curious have you run two bikes on a hitch before?

Not on my 100. Have a buddy that hauls 2 on his suburban hitch with the 2 place Versahauler and doesn't seem to bother his truck much- actually he also puts his 990KTM ADV (big tall bike just shy of 500lbs) on the single Versahauler. He's got a single and double carrier-(neighborhood covenants won't allow him to keep a trailer).

I needed to carry a bike out west on a 3000 mile trip so I tried his 1 place versa hauler on my 100 with my 240lb KTM. Between the weight of the carrier and bike it was around 350lbs tongue weight. I have uprated springs, a steel bumper, tire carrier and drawers and the back of the truck sagged a little and the front end was light so it figured it would need air bags for regular use. It wasn't the set up for me especially on a 3k journey. I'm sure it was secure, but it didn't feel solid. I bought a used 4x8 trailer instead.

 

[bigredmachine]

@bigredmachine Oh wow! That carrier looks awesome! That looks waaay easier to use than a standard ramp style bike mount. I have a 2009 KLX250SF supermoto that I've been looking for a carrier to transport it around on my LX470. This looks like the best one I've seen. I think I'll pick one up. Thanks!

the hauler is solid and dosnt move at all, the hitch pin is also a bolt so it keeps it tight in the receiver. theres two hooks that go around the foot pegs to lock them in and I use a strap over the tank to keep it from rocking side to side. there are chineese knock offs of the same design and I would stay away from them, some one that I ride with his china brand hauler dumped the bike on the parkway at about 70 . ive had my hauler for about 6 years or so and its still as solid as the day I bought it, and I got it used from someone else that I ride with