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The ultimate 6 bike rack.

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#22 ·
Way to go plummet!
Ive started two companies by using and seeing what was out there and critiquing those ideas or designs.
My first company, Hurricane Components, we had a product called the Fork Up, which is a product that is used so you could mount a thru-axle fork into any fork mounted rack. The Fork up is still sold today( invented in 1996) and Yakima and Thule both use the design for their product. I sold Hurricane in 2003 and worked as a design engineer/ consultant until 2013.
My current company, Exodux, produces a truck rack which carries bikes( or lumber, ladders, kayaks, surfboards,etc) over the tailgate as to where the gear you are carrying does now contact the tailgate. The bike mounts fit into the steerer tube and use an expanding collet which locks( actually has a lock mechanism) to secure your bike.
I've used the popular tailgate pad and the deficiencies of those are many like, damage to both bike and truck, blocks your back up camera, no security of your bike and they just look stupid.

Anyway, good luck with your venture.
 
Discussion starter · #23 ·
Hurricane Jeff said:
Way to go plummet!
Ive started two companies by using and seeing what was out there and critiquing those ideas or designs.
My first company, Hurricane Components, we had a product called the Fork Up, which is a product that is used so you could mount a thru-axle fork into any fork mounted rack. The Fork up is still sold today( invented in 1996) and Yakima and Thule both use the design for their product. I sold Hurricane in 2003 and worked as a design engineer/ consultant until 2013.
My current company, Exodux, produces a truck rack which carries bikes( or lumber, ladders, kayaks, surfboards,etc) over the tailgate as to where the gear you are carrying does now contact the tailgate. The bike mounts fit into the steerer tube and use an expanding collet which locks( actually has a lock mechanism) to secure your bike.
I've used the popular tailgate pad and the deficiencies of those are many like, damage to both bike and truck, blocks your back up camera, no security of your bike and they just look stupid.

Anyway, good luck with your venture.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the props man.

Is this you?
https://exodux.com/shop?olsPage=products
If so, I like it!

Your steerer tube bike holder design is a cunning stunt!
 
Discussion starter · #25 ·
Hey team,

Check out my bike rack.

Currently in 5 bike mode. I've been using it for a month or so and it is freaken awesome!. Load and unload speed is fast AF!

In the design, I wanted to address a couple of issues I didnt like with the vertical racks on the market now.

1) I designed the basket so I could install a rubber tube to protect the tyre and rim. This means dirty tyres wont wear vibrating against a steel basket bar. Also if the tyre goes flat (common for tubless tyres) on a steel basketbar there is a chance the rim be damaged. Thats deal breaker particularly if you have carbon rims!

2) I heard stories if bungies breaking and bikes bouncing out of these styles i racks. I added some slots to run a 1" wide strop if you want additional security for a long journery. You can run bungy and strop at the same time if you want

3) I wanted a rear-wheel cradle that was going to locate the rear wheel but not point load the tyres. So i have gone for a v groove style cradle that holds the read wheel securly while not point loading.

4) Quick removal. I want to be able to take this rack on and off several times a week. So I have developed a system where the trunk and branch assembly detaches from the tongue assembly for quick removal.

5) Garage storage. Once the trunk/branch assy is removed it can then be dropped into a garage mount and the rack can then be used for bike storage..... Oh yeah.

6) Corrosion resistance. Since i live by the sea stuff corrodes quickly. I wanted a duplex protection. All parts are galvanised/zinc plated prior to powdercoating. If the powder coating gets damaged then the zinc plating will protect the steel.

What do you think?

Oh if you have any funky idea's on where to install a numberplate/ lights i'm all ears.
 
#26 ·
How close is that RM's rear tire to the ground? Looks like first logging road I hit I'll smash my 29ers rear tire.

Anything below receiver height is risky for me once I'm off paved surfaces (hit a hitch basket once). The mast would have to be taller for me.

I'm assuming you're making it modular so you can easily do 2-6 racks.
 
Discussion starter · #27 ·
The photo is a bit misleading height wise. RM rear tire is 400 off the ground. So ground clearance is good. I do have a trunk that's 130 higher. Yep. It's all modular. So easy to adapt.

One other thing I forgot to mention. I hate slop and rattling. This is designed so nothing rattles or flops around. This includes bolting up to a flogged out reciever. Its slop free.
 
#28 ·
plummet said:
The photo is a bit misleading height wise. RM rear tire is 400 off the ground. So ground clearance is good.
Click to expand...
But what's your hitch receiver height? Surely the Isuzu has a hitch higher than 400mm.

If you look at NSR even with long slack 29ers the rear wheel is above receiver height. Anything lower is going to really affect departure angle on the vehicle. Heck, receiver height affects departure angle since it sticks out the back of the vehicle.

Anyhow, if I'm going to hit anything I want to hit the rack first.

E.g. one of our vehicle was hit by some idiot, I was taken to the hospital while my vehicle was towed without removing the bikes. The rack ended up scrapping the ground when they lifted the vehicle but the bikes were fine.
 
Discussion starter · #29 ·
Isuzu's hitch is exactly 400 high. Its interesting how everyone has different requirements.

One of my testers wanted the rack lower so it would fit into his garage. He doesn't do any offloading so supreme ground clearance is not an issue for him. But parking in the garage after a ride is.

So I guess you can't please everyone with one product.
But it's real easy to smash out a customs part.
 
#30 ·
plummet said:
Isuzu's hitch is exactly 400 high. Its interesting how everyone has different requirements.

One of my testers wanted the rack lower so it would fit into his garage. He doesn't do any offloading so supreme ground clearance is not an issue for him. But parking in the garage after a ride is.

So I guess you can't please everyone with one product.
But it's real easy to smash out a customs part.
Click to expand...
Wow, then the pictures truly are misleading. A profile pic could be useful. Once you are actually producing a product that would definitely be advisable for the marketing.

Yep, can't please everyone.

By the pics it looks like the baskets are angled so that the bar and tire are approximately the same height, so that's good. You are minimizing height there.

Adjustable mast height would allow people to prioritize ground height vs garage clearance / ease of loading.

If you really want to please everyone a version that works with a 1.25" hitch would be good. The NSR 2 seems to be popular around here for people with sedans, wagons and smaller crossovers. Personally I don't think I'd buy a vehicle that can't have a 2" receiver, but not everyone is in that position. NSR only produces that model in a 2 bike due to weight. 125-150lb tongue weight is pretty common for vehicles with class 1 hitches (despite class 1 being up to 200lbs.. the vehicle's suspension isn't rated for it).

The NSR 2 is stated to weigh 42lb and have a capacity of 120lbs, but on a small vehicle with 125lb tongue weight you can only legally carry 83lbs. Plenty for two enduro or even modern downhill bikes but cutting it close. Anyhow, point being weight becomes quite important if you consider doing a 1.25" hitch version (and it may rule itself out quickly with back of the napkin calculations).

E.g. on my wife's vehicle I could carry 3 bikes with an NSR 4 and only 2-2.5 with an NSR 6, my truck I can carry the full amount on either.

Sorry, NSR as an example since that's the common one around here. NSR definitely has some downsides (mainly issues due to carrying by the fork crown).
 
Discussion starter · #31 ·
Hey, that's great info cheers. I've never seen a 1.25" receiver. But am working on a tongue option for smaller cars which typically have a 75kg max download rating.

There's no profile pick yet as there's some IP I dont want to release onto the internet yet. So for now its angled photos hiding detail. ....
 
Discussion starter · #32 ·
I've been busy making vertical racks for mates.

There's a 3 bike, 4 bike, 5 bike, 6 bike and garage stand.

I've settled on a 5 bike rack personally. It suits my family of 5 plus the spacing is more generous than a 6 bike where the bikes have to be closer together.


What do you think?
 
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