Bike rack with tire swingout? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter CharlieS
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
The hanger style racks are so easy to load. I can hang all the bikes, do the security straps, and strap the front brake lever to the handlebar (so the wheel won’t spin) in about 30 seconds each. So less than two minutes for three.
I’ve got an Alta Racks vertical bike rack that I use for two +50lb e-bikes plus other family bikes for a big outing. It‘s build quality feels high-end, much like the 1Ups that I’ve seen. They also have an option for a small dirt bike/moto rack.
My homemade vertical abomination. Good up to 100 pounds of bike. At that weight I hit the swingarm design limit. The rack is around 50lbs of aluminum.
Last edited:
We have the velocirax for our daily vehicle and it’s my favorite bike rack ever. It’s a vertical style but holds the the bike by the front tire and will lower out of the way to access the rear hatch.
If you're made of money, there's this one. They frustratingly don't publish weight, but I bet it's around 35lb.
www.rotwild.com
ROTWILD R.X275 Pro
What makes it You make the difference. Because you take every climb personally as a challenge. You push the limit a bit on every descent. You can do that with the R.X275. When the hurdles come, you activate the boost button. It's the linchpin of our new…
I have a One Up HD 4 bike rack without the rack attach, and with 4 adult bikes it is easily the weight you are talking about. I'd get HD Two bike with the rack attach, as lowering the 4 bike one up with four adult bikes realistically takes two people. I can do it, but it's probably not a good idea.
I've got an Orbea Rise as well, and I wouldn't want to huck it up to the roof, even though it is only ~40 lbs. I have some roof mounts, and even 30lb bikes take a heavy duty step stool to safely lift up there, and I'm a very average 5'10" tall.
Also, my local shop just got in a few of the new Specialized Globe Haul STs, and for a bike path and errand running bike, it looks super sweet. I kinda want one to reduce my in town driving.
Globe Haul ST | Specialized.com - https://www.specialized.com/us/en/globe-haul-st
I've got an Orbea Rise as well, and I wouldn't want to huck it up to the roof, even though it is only ~40 lbs. I have some roof mounts, and even 30lb bikes take a heavy duty step stool to safely lift up there, and I'm a very average 5'10" tall.
Also, my local shop just got in a few of the new Specialized Globe Haul STs, and for a bike path and errand running bike, it looks super sweet. I kinda want one to reduce my in town driving.
Globe Haul ST | Specialized.com - https://www.specialized.com/us/en/globe-haul-st
Last edited:
Hey. I'm thinking of getting an alta rack. Which one do you have? You still like it? How difficult is it to load/unload? Got any pictures? Mine would be on a 100 series but pretty similar. I need to haul 4 bikes and the tray style racks are just too long.
Love it! I’ve had four heavy e-bikes back there and never catch myself sneaking a peak in the rear view to make sure that things are okay rambling down some rutted out fire road. I went for the De Sanchez model with their new swinger and six trays that I’ve reduced to five for clearance on the truck’s hatch. Loading is easy enough even with a 50 lb bike if you use the tilt procedure.
I also got their winter adapter that can carry my Thule roof box when the canoe is taking up the roof. We’re giving that a first test in Canada right now and it’s working great.
The whole thing was pricey. But it pales next to the cost of the gear itself and is worth the peace of mind. And being able to take everything to do anything the family wants is priceless.
Oh, on my own I’m 100% cheating! But with gremlins along we have one on a Kids Ride Shotgun jump seat and the other will catch a tow rope for big climbs. They’d done every mile of single track in our area by 3 years old on the jump seat!
@Millennial thanks for the pics and review! Couple questions for you.
1. I think my decision had come down to Alta or Velocirax. The videos from Velocirax make theirs looks so easy to load and easy to operate the tilt feature even with bikes loaded. I can't seam to find a video of the Alta rack where they operate the tilt with bikes loaded even though I'm assuming that is what is expected. Is the tilting feature easy enough to do? Even for my wife?
2. What size hitch from them are you using in those pictures?
Oh, and one more does the swinger operate as smoothly as they claim?
Thanks
1. I think my decision had come down to Alta or Velocirax. The videos from Velocirax make theirs looks so easy to load and easy to operate the tilt feature even with bikes loaded. I can't seam to find a video of the Alta rack where they operate the tilt with bikes loaded even though I'm assuming that is what is expected. Is the tilting feature easy enough to do? Even for my wife?
2. What size hitch from them are you using in those pictures?
Oh, and one more does the swinger operate as smoothly as they claim?
Thanks
foolforthecity
SILVER Star
I just got a velocirax and it is so much easier for me to transport 5 bikes than any other method I have used in the past.
I haven’t used the assisted strut on the Velocirax, but I find the Alta very easy to use. I suspect my wife would struggle a bit if you had 250lbs of e-bikes needing a push, but she can do it with two adult bikes and a kids bike easy enough. It moves smoothly and you can tune the friction in the system with the mounting bolts. The weight is probably less of an issue than the fact that when fully loaded you inevitably have a reach around a bike to get a good grip on the rack. I‘m a bigger guy and have never even thought about the lift weight even with the thing pretty close to max capacity. The Two Wheeling Tots people on YouTube have a good video: And with lighter bikes, honestly it’s easy enough just to toss ‘em up there without using the tilt feature. For the kids bikes, a dirt jumper, road bikes, etc. I’d never both to fold it down.
So in my pictures you’ll see two different hitches. The swinger came with a short hitch that’s perfect for the bike rack configuration. Plenty of clearance on a 200 series. I’m using the original longer hitch that came with the rack for the winter adapters that mount the Thule box. It’s nice having both since I can switch them without getting out wrenches, but not really necessary.
The swinger does live up to expectations! It really does swing as smoothly as they claim, even loaded right up to the limit. No play in the system compared to a Yakima version I was using, somewhat nervously, with two e-bikes previously. The latch hardware may not be as refined as some other companies (think the fancy latch from Rigd Supply), but it also seems like it would be user serviceable with a trip to any hardware store in the country. And it all works perfectly and feels nice. It’s just that you can tell you’re using a basic part with an Oury grip wedged onto it. Ultimately I’m pretty happy with that trade off.
