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Reviews 1 - 8 (8 Reviews Total)
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Submitted by
Joe Schmoe
a Weekend Warrior
from knoxville, TN, USADate Reviewed: August 19, 2003
Strengths: Keeps tailgaters off your tail- gets lots of looks from passer by's- Occasionally good looking women ( could be ugly galute also) as the product sways from side to side being the smaller hitch - with C gasket to fill void for larger 2" hitch doesn not fit in receiver hitch correctly. Very poory designed.- Top part that holds bikes on works pretty well however velcro straps are too short.Weaknesses: Piece of Crap. - Waste of money sold by earth traverse who would not stand by the product and was very rude enven though I wanted to spend up to 2 x as much for a better rack. Go figureBottom Line: you must be kidding - Do not waste your time unless you are crafty and want to rebuild the rack. Teh company did, however send another rack at no charge- Now I can exchange it for a better one.
Duration Product Used: 2 Years
Price Paid:
$150.00
Purchased At: earth traverse
Similar Products Used: 3 bike rack from wally world straps to roof top- - much more stable - but will not hold 4 bikes
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Hemlock
a Weekend Warrior
from SE MichiganDate Reviewed: March 24, 2003
Strengths: Prevents other drivers from drafting.Weaknesses: Yes, yes it isBottom Line: I bought the 2 bike version, and while structurally its been fine, the rubber blocks and straps do not hold. I quickly learned to keep a length of rope with the rack so that I don't loose my bikes. Last year my friend tied our bikes down, but my 2000 Cannondale F-400 managed to hop off the rack at 80mph. You can imagine my horror as I looked in rear view mirror to see my bright orange 'dale scraping down the highway all by itself. I actually strapped the bike back on the rack and went for my ride and all was good in the world. Nothing will ever make me trust that bike rack though.
Favorite Trail: Poto
Duration Product Used: 2 Years
Similar Products Used: N/A
Bike Setup: Road = Trek 2200
Mountain = Ti Dream ride
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
ferd
a Cross Country Rider
from Raleigh, NCDate Reviewed: December 11, 2002
Strengths: Very heavy, would make an excellent boat anchor. Built-in cable lock.Weaknesses: Everything else.Bottom Line: I have the 2 bike version. bought new off ebay for $100 +sh I feel very sorry for anyone that paid $250(advertised price) for this piece of crap. I bought it because the marketing B.S. said it would fit both 1 1/4" and 2" recievers. It may have fit a 1 1/4" reciever when it was first made, but they coated it with thick rubbery paint so it will no longer fit in the reciever. Had to grind it down to the metal to get it to fit. Has a cheap plastic insert to make it fit 2" reciever, haven't tried it, don't plan too, don't trust it. As previously stated the instructions suck, parts don't fit together well etc,etc... The rubber straps are crap. Mine came out of the box already starting to crack. FWIW, the instructions did say not to use the straps as the only means of securing your bike. I use multiple bungies. The lock on the cable lock is more cheap crap. It is a very beefy rack(heavy, probably 40#, I didn't weigh it)I consider this a plus, but if you like to remove your rack frequently, this could be an issue. On the plus side, the rack is very tight, doesn't move or rattle like most racks I have seen, the arms fold down when not used and it does carry my bikes to the trail.I guess that deserves at least 2 flaming turds. Wish I would have read these reviews first....
Favorite Trail: all of them
Duration Product Used: 6 months
Price Paid:
$120.00
Purchased At: ebay
Bike Setup: Rockhopper
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Dave
a
from Bloomington, ILDate Reviewed: November 16, 2002
Strengths: Easy to use.
Cheap.Weaknesses: Weld broke and the carrier part came off of the rack.
Awkward mounting FS bikes.
Heavy.Bottom Line: Not sure if the weld breaking is a fluke or not, but I think I'll spend a little more next time and get a Yakima.
Duration Product Used: 1 Year
Price Paid:
$149.00
Similar Products Used: None
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
S Jordan
a Cross Country Rider
from Oklahoma City, OK USADate Reviewed: July 8, 2002
Bottom Line: The rack is a COMPLETE piece of crap! Mine came with velcro straps that break. They break because you have to tighten them down so hard to keep your bike from bouncing off the rubber "contol blocks." The straps get pulled open by the wind on the highway if you don't guess which way to thread them. I almost lost my bike going 70. Most kid's bike don't fit, no matter what the sales people tell you. The contol blocks slide around so your bike(s) wind up twisted on the rack in a way that allow them to easily slip off the blocks, and there goes your paint job. Thanks Rhode Gear for trashing our bikes. Your bikes would arive in better shape if you tie them to the bumper and drag them.
Duration Product Used: 3 months
Price Paid:
$140.00
Purchased At: The Bicycle Store
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Roger
a Cross Country Rider
from Raleigh,NC,USADate Reviewed: January 29, 2002
Strengths: Well made.Weaknesses: One of the worst installation manuals I have seen ever. Extremely heavy, bike mounts are too large so that I could not fit my wife's or kids bike on the rack.Bottom Line: I wouldn't buy it (I didn't !) The Yakima is much better with well documented user instructions.
Duration Product Used: Tested or demo'ed only
Similar Products Used: Yakima Terrafirma - much better and is the one I finally purchased.
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Tom Doyle
a Cross Country Rider
from Hayward, Calfiornia, USADate Reviewed: May 27, 2000
Strengths: Holds 4 bikes.Weaknesses: Rubber straps don't last long, and never seem to hold tight enough. The hitch tightening and locking mechanism does not work smoothly and you can never be 100% sure that the rack is secure in the receiver hitch. The rack arms are only BARELY long enough to carry 4 bikes. Odd frame sizes (full suspension, small frames) are diffucult to get on/off of the rack. This thing is just too damn heavy!!!Bottom Line: I don't care for this rack system. However when considering the purchase I did not wish to have a roof rack installed on my SUV, so I opted for the receiver rack. This was the only 4 bike receiver model I could find, and its definately not worth the $200.00 price tag.
Rhode Gear needs to redesign the tightening/locking mechanism. The crank arm never seems to get the rack locked into the receiver tight enough. Also it is very difficult to get the lock hole on the crank face to line up with the lock hole on the rack body. I can never do it the same way twice. If you are using one, I highly recommend getting some bungee cords to help secure the bikes. The rubber straps just don't cut it. I almost lost one of my friends bikes right off the back of the rack while on the freeway without using bungees! Lest we say that I learned my lesson really quickly. When I find a better 4 bike receiver system, I will be happy to buy it and be rid of this monstrosity.
Favorite Trail: Lake Chabot Loop
Duration Product Used: 6 months
Similar Products Used: Rhode Gear 2 bike receiver hitch (1998)
Bike Setup: 1999 Gary Fisher Paragon
1999 Trek YSL 200
2000 Trek 8000WSD
1997 REI Novarra Alight
1996 REI Novarra Arriba
1999 Trek Y3
All of the above have been used with this rack
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Justin Northcutt
a Weekend Warrior
from Northville, MIDate Reviewed: June 29, 1999
Strengths:
-components
-method of tightening to reduce rattling/sway
-ease of placing/strapping in bikesWeaknesses:
-knob on handle to tighten isn't attatched, I'm gonna loose it!Bottom Line: Very nice product, looked around, but this seemed the best built and had a nice, good working method of locating and securing the bike. Comes with two padlocks, one for the mount, one for one of the bikes. Removed the rear tire from my 2dr Blazer (one with the rear mount tire) and it worked fine without the extender.
Favorite Trail:
Maybury State Park
Duration Product Used:
less than 1 month
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