Bike & 'yak mount

[Lighthawk]

Moving into our second summer with our 08 Hawk, we are fine tuning the various ways to lash gear to our camper. Our camper came with one set of Thule Hullivators, which are complicated, but do the job. Bikes were still a bit of a mystery, so we put them up top on our last foray into Yosemite, but I had to carry a six foot ladder to get them up and down

As with all things FWC, some online research was in order. I noticed DD had a nice rig for bikes, hanging them off their forks from the rear bar of the Yak rack system. Not bad. I had a spare Yakima Boa kit, so I tried it out, but not being able to deploy the top (pop the top) with bikes attached was a limiting factor. Somewhere in the archives, Stan had posted a shot of a guy in Utah (Canyon Creek?) with two bikes mounted vertically on the back wall. Hmmm.
To be fair there are some other shots of this mounting system at WTW. Thanks for all the good ideas!

I purchased a front fork mount similar to the Bike Tights I have used in the past. This brand is Delta. I chose it for the ability to put a lock on it. Scoping out the mounting locations I found that if I removed the drawer above the refrig, I could access bolts that come through the FWC frame and the 5/8" plywood cabinet panel. I considered SS bolts, but went with 1/4" x 2 1/2" std galvanized bolts with nylocks. Strong enough to support a bike I think. I put the nuts on the exterior, so it's easy to visually check or tighten on the trail.

The other side I could only drill the frame, so I backed the bolts with a piece of aluminum. All four holes were caulked with Silapreme (FWC recommends) and between the bike tight and the siding.

Loading the bikes is pretty reasonable. I have a nice three step ladder with wide steps, that we use with the camper (see my trick mounting system in other posts). So I can lift the bike fork into position, then clamp it down. Locking optional, but maybe a good idea for rough road?

My only concern is that the bikes somewhat obscure my tail lights. I'm thinking maybe I should get one of those hitch-mounted brake lights.

Still figuring out the strapping of the rear bike tires. I have a custom gas can / junk box mounted on the right side, so I will probably customize a short strap to that. Left side will likely just strap to the ladder when it's mounted. A cam strap will do the trick.

More to follow as I explain my solo kayak loading system next

 

[Lighthawk]

Stealth mode while not carrying bikes.

I simply pull the skewers and stow them until we want to mount up a bike (or two )

 

[billharr]

Stealth mode while not carrying bikes.

I simply pull the skewers and stow them until we want to mount up a bike (or two )


Thanks for the post, I have the same Delta mounts, just have not got around to mounting them. I am looking at making a U mount for the rear tire with a strap to hold them in place.

Bill

 

[chnlisle]

I got a Brand New Bodiak front hitch on eBay for $100. It will be perfect for the bicycles.

LightHawk I'm guessing you know that the security lock on the fork mount doesn't amount to much more than an inconvenience to someone that wants your bike. At least it didn't to the thieves that wanted mine. I use a thick cable with a large lock now and that probably won't stop someone who's motivated.

 

[Lighthawk]

Continuing on with ways to mount gear to the Hawk . . .

We like to kayak. We're not river runners, just like touring lakes for photography, swimming and just taking in the natural beauty in a quiet way. We've got a favorite beach on Tahoe that we like to visit several times a year. Our area is full of lakes between 3,000' and 5,000' of elevation, making it a mecca for boating. I just heard some good info on Snag Lake, up in the Gold Lakes basin, but suspect it's campground still buried under snow.

But I digress. The issue is how to get 'yaks up there and down safely from the Hawk. I mentioned we have a Hullivator system. I would never buy a $500 kayak lifter, but it came with the camper from the PO. It's a complicated, but functional way to get one boat up there. The boat rides high with this system. And I only have one of these expensive toys.

I bought a used Hully Roller kit with front saddles for half price on Ebay to see if it worked for us. Last night I mounted it up after bolting the bike tights thru the back of the camper. I set the back bar about six inches from the end of the track so the rollers were accessible. I was able to set the nose of a 12' long, 50# kayak into the roller by myself and using my camper steps, walk it up and roll it into place with relative ease. Yeah!
This is much easier than our other system.

And it's a much more reasonable (tho still expensive) cost. Retail on the rollers and saddles is about $90 per set. Now that I have one set, I'll be shopping for another so we can manage two boats. Then I'll be selling the Hullivator, hopefully for half retail which will pay for the roller investment.

Hope this helps someone else as they figure this stuff out. It took me a while to sift through the various posts and trying different methods until I decided this is what's best for us. I'm happy that I can now carry both bikes and 'yaks without too much fuss.

We'll be heading over to Caspar Beach in July for my birthday and it will be great to leave the truck in camp and hop on bikes or go paddling. The bike mounts are permanent (through bolted and sealed), but the rollers/saddles are modular, so they can come off seasonally.

 

[Lighthawk]

Thanks for the post, I have the same Delta mounts, just have not got around to mounting them. I am looking at making a U mount for the rear tire with a strap to hold them in place.

Bill

I should mention that where I mounted the Delta's leaves the handle bars of the bikes sticking past the camper about six inches. In heavy brush, this could be an issue. I did it because I have a porch light and a buckle on the right side, leaving only space to mount outboard of the buckle. That's vertically right above my tail lights, although I can swing the bike body inboard a bit (hope that's clear ). On the left side, I could have mounted inside of the buckle, but that would be pretty close to the camper door. As it is I'll have to bungie the door open since it can't meet the door stop with the bike mounted.

If you are concerned with extra width, you might want to play with the idea of mounting the bikes farther inboard than I did.

 

[Lighthawk]

LightHawk I'm guessing you know that the security lock on the fork mount doesn't amount to much more than an inconvenience to someone that wants your bike.


Sorry about the bike, Jay. I've got a cable too. I just figured a lockable fork mount is one more way to slow down a thief. I'm thinking more along the lines of running into a convenience store or other errand. I also like the security of locking off the mount while driving.

 

[DLN]

Hawk, if you are worried about brush or snags just turn the bars 90 degrees while traveling.

 

[sdmarkus]

Thanks for the write-up LH, I been wanting to go this route for some time.

"I put the nuts on the exterior, so it's easy to visually check or tighten on the trail."

Could the entire mount be removed by a would-be thief with the nuts on the exterior...just a thought.

Happy trails,

Mark

 

[HIKEMT]

Andy, nice write up. Let me know if you decide to sell the Hullivator.

 

[Lighthawk]

Andy, nice write up. Let me know if you decide to sell the Hullivator.

Yes, sent you a PM.

 

[camper101]

Greetings, I realize this is an old topic, but I'm thinking of doing a bike mount like yours and wanted to check in with you and anybody who's done the same.

Has it held up well over the past few years, and is there anything you'd do differently if you were going to do it again?

Thanks for posting the photos and information - it's really helpful.

 

[Lighthawk]

Welcome Camper101

It's been almost three years since the bike mounts / yak system was installed on our Hawk. Everything works great!

I see many other vehicles with the roller/saddle combo. Like everything else, you tend to notice other rigs that match yours.

The bike mounts have held up to 60+ miles of DV dirt roads and worse without fail. Hanging the dropouts of the front fork does require (for me) our three foot ladder we travel with, and some upper body strength. Sometimes I drop it in perfectly, other times I have to hold the bike up with one arm and fiddle with the other hand. It helps to have the cam lock open and centered, before attempting to mount the fork.

The only other location I would consider with a rear door camper, is a front hitch mount. I think others here have gone that route, so you might do a search and get feedback on that method of bike mount.

 

[camper101]

Thank you, that's good to hear and exactly what I was hoping to hear!

Hopefully I'll have a slightly easier time because I've got a Tacoma/Eagle so it might sit a bit lower.
The main challenge I'm having with planning/prep is finding Silaprene. FWC seems to recommend the Silaprene with the green label (HAPs free) but all I can find online is the red label. If you happen to have an opinion on if it matters which one I use I'd love to hear it.

When I get close to actually drilling the holes I may start a new thread with all of those questions...

Thanks again and happy camping.

Edited to add: FWC seems to use the green labeled Silaprene, but I wonder if that's just to make it easier for handling/labor/storage since that product has less hazardous stuff in it. Since I'll probably only use the stuff once I'm fine with something a little hazardous.

 

[mitch h]

We have a bike rack on the front of our chevy. Easy to load and but blocks light from headlights a little. We remove seats and lower handle bars too. A little bit of a pain in the old kester

 

[camper101]

Thanks Mitch, good to know. I've considered it, and we also used a rear swing-out hitch rack last year, but I like how minimalist the rear wall mount is: there's nothing to put on or take off before/after a trip and no storage space needed. And if we really want to break things down to be as small as possible we can just stick the bikes in the camper and not have a rack to deal with.

If our situation was different I think I'd enjoy a front mount rack that holds the bike by the tires (not the frame) but that's not a great fit for us right now.

 

[Bread]

Anyone using the Delta fork back of the camper mounting system have any issues with too much stress being put on the front fork shocks? Granted, I noticed a fluid lead in my front fox shocks before I started using this mounting system, but after driving around a while with my bike mounted up there, the shocks started leaking fluid profusely. I love the system, but am starting to get a little concerned about damge that might be caused after many a mile of bumpy dirt roads and such.

 

[camper101]

My wife's bike leaks but mine doesn't. I think it might have something to do with the type of shock, but I don't know enough to offer any more specifics than that. We've had her seals replaced and overhauled and it still leaks, but I remember somebody saying something about how her shocks are built differently. Something like "oil bath" maybe.

 

[kmacafee]

Front shock seals don't like being in any position except the one they are designed for. Hanging them upside down or on a wall typically causes the seals to eventually leak.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Wander The West mobile app

 

[Lighthawk]

Good points, kmacafee. But I doubt a few hours would cause shock seals to give up the ghost.
Typically, I mount up the bikes for a trip. Then upon arrival, take them down for riding.

But, if I was on a long term tour, I might very well consider the effect of mounting the shocks horizontally while using a bike tight mount on the rear of the camper.