Bike racks/carriers?

Was able to finish up the rack today. Ordered some aluminum spacers from ebay and bought some square tubing from home depot. Need to do a little touch and paint but I like the way it came out. I found the Yakima frontloader rack on Facebook marketplace for 100 and the only mod I did to it was cut the slot a little bigger to fit the rail nice and snug.

 

Custom mount I just finished. I wanted to keep the cover on and the bikes facing forward.

Just need a couple of lashing straps to secure the 2x6 on top of the cover and a coat of paint.

 

nice! how did you secure the spacers to the stake pockets? I have the a similar setup but i used pop rivets to secure the tracks on the side bed rails

 

Thanks. I just bought some 4" long 3/8 bolts that went through the spacer, plate, and screwed into the anchor clasp. Just replace the ring bolt.

 

Absolutely love this setup. I was thinking the other day about something like this, but uses the bed rail system. Thoughts on something like this?

 

Simple way to use the bed rail system. These work with round or square tube.

$118 INNO Racks - Truck Bed Rack System - Set of 4 Pickup Truck Rack Stays with C-Channel Track Systems

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002MZSON...olid=2VMDE4NZ8FFRZ&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

 

The FrontRunner gets your racks up a little higher which is nice for big coolers and whatnot.
I’m not too terribly keen on the bolts the FrontRunner use to secure inside the rail though.
I can do 2 full size MTBikes facing forward on OneUp racks, and one full size facing rear (With front wheel removed) on a Yakima Forklift, along with a 16 Yakima Skybox. Love the setup! I can carry the family of 4, the dog, 3 MTBikes, and all my gear in the back for 4-6 nights camping.

 

Wow this is exactly whta I had in mind. I've read your build thread before but never really noticed this. This is a super nice setup!
If you don't mind, I might send you a message to ask you a few more questions about your setup.

 

Yep - anytime.
Not sure I updated the bike stuff in the build thread. I should do that.

 

Just finished mounting my Kuat Trio on the @KB Voodoo crossbars. I'm not in love with the idea of a fork mount rack, but it's definitely more secure, and it really helps with clearance and ease of lifting.

I LOVE the crossbars. I have bought a lot of stuff from folks that call themselves fabricators over the years. Most of the time I'm not too impressed (C4 would be an exception). These are super clean, simple, and so thoughtfully engineered. No awkward positioning required for installation, no unnecessary add-ons, no complicated clip assemblies. Just simple, strong parts that fit together well and don't require any modification to mount whatever you want on them. Stoked

It's so nice to have things positioned over the bed instead of on a roof or hanging off the back. Kuat and 1Up make some nice tray racks, but I don't see myself going back to a hitch mount any time soon.

 

1UP-USA just sent us one of their roof racks to try on our Outboard Bike Mounts.

https://www.1up-usa.com/product/roof-rack/

https://www.max-modular.com/shop-max-modular/max-modular-outboard-bike-mounts

It works pretty good, but I have to be honest, I strongly prefer taking the front wheel off and using a fork mount. It only takes 6 seconds to pop the wheel off, it holds the bike much more sturdy, and it lowers the height of the bike (I worry about drive-thru clearance).

 

Looks great!!

Some info on 1Ups and my setup.
I’ve done right around 100mph for a decent amount of time with my setup and the 1Up’s did just fine. I’ve found if you roll the rear rack more over the back tire than over the front it’s more secure. I then hop on my Tundra rear tire and bear hug both tire racks to get them really tight.
The seconds taking the wheel off aren’t that much of a big deal, but making sure your axle is in position perfectly was a pain for me - especially for the 2 inside bikes. I was bent over awkwardly trying to position, where with both wheels on you can just roll the bike either way.
I can make it through the Dutch Bros drive-ins, I’m exactly 8’11” at the highest point of the bike.

 

Are your bike mounts $100 for a pair or $205 for a pair? (Per bike)
(For others, understand you need a set of $220 1Up racks as well)

I also noticed you didn’t use 1Up’s special key’d bolts for the mounting (theft prevention).
Were those not an option?

 

1UP sent the rack to us to try on our bed racks. I guess they didn't include the locks.

On the other side of our rack, we have our Outboard Bike Mounts and Rear Tire Tray along with a RockyMount Driveshaft HM fork mount.

That is our go-to setup, it's the best way to carry a bike, hands down.

 

I previously ran the RockyMount Driveshaft fork mount and it was solid (still have it), but not the best for me.
I personally wasn’t crazy about removing wheel/tire.
I do short trips sometimes 3-4 days in a row on some local trails and it got old really quick just for a 10-15 min drive each way. I didn’t mind when you’re driving 3hrs to a destination or on vacation.
I don’t want to toss the bike in the bed and have it bouncing all around either.
1Up was perfect solution.
Mine are mounted behind my cab though, maybe mounting on the sides of the rack take on more wind or something.

 

Also while we’re on rack topics, do you have any pictures of Tundras with these bed bars?

 

I don't think we do. We don't sell many set of Load Bars, most people go for the full rack.

 

Have a 1Up but greatly prefer the security and functionality of the Kuat ... can anyone confirm tailgate clearance with the Kuat NV (NV flat/level with tailgate down)? Thanks!

 

I had a Kuat NV 2.0 and the tailgate would touch the plastic of the wheel tray.

It was barely touching so I used a sander to reshape the wheel tray to give more room.

 

That's what I was afraid of. Thanks!

 

I'm considering mounting my bike on crossbars over the bed or as an alternative just throwing it on a 1up hitch mount. I have a need to pull a camper sometimes, which is why I am considering the crossbar set-up, but will be hauling just my bike around without a camper 10x more than with the camper.
So I'm curious to those who have used both, is the crossbar set-up more aggrivating to use in real life? Part of me feels like the cheaper hitch mount might make more sense 90% of the time but that crossbar mount will be super helpful when towing. I don't really want both...

 

i bought a cheapie maxxhaul 4-bike hitch on Amazon for $50ish. Perfectly adequate, although a slightly sloppy fit which doesn't instill confidence seeing the bicycles flop from side to side. a $10 hitch tightener makes it all rock solid.

 

When I used to ride road bikes a lot (5-6x a week), I preferred the tray style hitch mount. That was on the 4Runner though, which is a shorter vehicle (obviously). Here is why I prefer the bed rail/fork mount now:
1. Doesn't make the truck any longer - I can still park it anywhere.
2. I don't have to worry about anyone running in to the hitch mount rack (happened to me before, ruining rack).
3. The bike feels much more secure both while driving, and secure from theft while parked.
4. I don't have to worry about where to store a rack when I don't want it on the truck.
5. I can use the rails for a RTT or cargo box if I want.
6. Can carry bikes while towing.
7. Could easily fit 3 bikes on the rails if I wanted.

The only con really is that I have to take off the front wheel to put a bike on. That would be more of a PITA if I was still carrying a bike almost every day, but I'm older and fatter now and live in a place where I can ride right from the house, too. I drive with bikes less frequently, so it's well worth the brief inconvenience of removing a wheel. Now that I think about it, Yakima does make a single mount that allows you to keep the front wheel on. Not sure about 1up. Good luck!

 

All of this, but 1Up you don’t have to remove front tire
With a 3.5” lift on 35’s it’s a tad more challenging to lift up onto bed racks, doing it daily might suck. But once a week is nothing.
I have a hitch mount as well and prefer bed racks.

 

This:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Sunlite-Bike-Block-QR-Alloy-Fork-Mount-Pickup-Truck-Bed-Rack-Carrier-Holder-NEW/291899043961

Plus this:

Plus these:


Slide the t-nuts into the factory front bed rail (or mount unistrut). Bore out the fork mount holes and bolt into the t-nuts. You can fit three bikes at least in the bed and they’re pretty sturdy that way.

 

I have an older 4 bike Kuat but I'm planning on adding some 1UP roof mount racks (I have a Diamondback HD and some Yakima bars in the bed.)

Most of the time, I'm not transporting more than 2 bikes and being able to just leave a couple of racks on the tonneau is a lot better than the hitch rack. With the hitch rack you either leave it on and loose your backup camera and what is left of your visibility or you have to take it off/put it on all the time. And lets face it, a Tundra is long enough with enough blind spots without adding an extra 5 feet of rack blocking the view. Even tilted up you've lost your rearward view and your camera (although only 1.5-2 feet out from the bumper.)

 

Great answer! Thank you for the detail, exactly what I was looking for.

 

Thanks @Boosted4runner ! Glad to know you prefer the bed mounts. In my case, I don't need to remove the front tire. I'll use something like the Yakima Frontloader or a roof rack 1up on the cross bars, so I don't have to remove the tire. If the tire removal is the only con, then I guess crossbars is the obvious answer.
I hear you on the height of the truck, but I don't think it's too high for me to lift.

 

I didn't even think about the back up camera. That pretty much solidifies my decision. Thanks!

 

1up - highly recommended!