For downsides, we were disappointed to find that Yakima didnt utilize enough padding on the straps for both the bars and wheels. Was planning on waiting for the Quik-Rack Mach 2 but he has had some material delay issues and just haven't gotten around to spending the money on the 1Up QuikRack (OG version). At $49 and $50 for the Yakima and Thule adapters, these are not cheap accessories and should be taken into account as youre choosing a rack style. HighNoon FC Solo 1.25/2in Hitch Rack. One of the more technical considerations of the hitch rack puzzle is the clearance between the rack, your bikes, and the vehicle. Quick View. As an example, heres a link to a technical drawing for Kuat's NV 2.0 hitch rack. I just made a deal on a slightly used, but fairly new Sherpa! The T2 Pros user-friendly tilt feature is best-in-class, providing quick and easy access to the rear of the vehicle, and its versatile carrying system accommodates everything from fat bikes to 20-inch kids models (no adapters needed). One thing the MonoRail has going for it is its moderate weight. What's not to like with the hanging-style RidgeBack 4? Zero buyer's remorse with it. Haven't even picket it up yet! That makes it a solid choice for fat bikers and fans of e-bikes. The rear wheel cradles need to be attached to each tray and the ratcheting straps also need to be slid into position on each one. For reference, most standard mountain bikes and road bikes are under 35 pounds, but e-bikes can easily exceed 50 pounds. Thules latest addition to their platform hitch collection is the high-end Helium. In getting the Dr.Trays weight down to an impressive 34 pounds, Yakima did unfortunately have to compromise the stout feeling typically associated with platform racks. While not necessarily inexpensive, a quality hanging rack like the Yakima RidgeBack 2 comes in at about half the price of a platform model with the same capacity. Priced at a reasonable $469 for the four-bike version, the RidgeBack offers double the capacity of the Thule T2 Pro above for hundreds less. Rockymounts Monorail Solo can be adjusted to fit various bike sizes. The MonoRail comes mostly disassembled in the box so before you attach it to your vehicle and go for a ride you'll need to put it together. It tips the scales at 44lbs 2oz, putting it right around average for the hitch mount platform racks we tested. His seemed solid and he's been very happy with it. As long as youre hauling regular road or mountain bikes (the rack maxes out at 40 pounds per bike and 3-inch-wide tires), the Sherpa 2.0 has a lot going for it. The MonoRail is similarly easy to remove and store as most of the other hitch mount platform racks in this test. It should be noted, however, that this cable lock system is far from theft-proof and is more of a theft deterrent than anything else. It's highly adaptable, with well-designed wheel trays and included ladder strap extenders that can accommodate everything from narrow road tires to 5-inch fat bike behemoths. Other racks share this attachment style and it isn't especially challenging to use, though the tool-free knob designs on the Thule T2 Pro and the Yakima Dr. Tray are much quicker and more user-friendly. A cable lock is also included to secure the bikes to the rack. But despite a growing number of competitors in this categoryincluding Yakimas HangTight, Lolo Racks, and North Shore Racks' NSRthe 1UP's combination of build quality, ease of use, and compatibility with a wide range of bike styles makes it our favorite vertical hanging rack.See the 1UP Recon Rack 6. RockyMounts GuideRail FROM: $849.95 Pick a Style Compare 4 Options By Kuat Kuat NV 2 Bike Rack FROM: $849.00 Pick a Style Compare By Yakima Yakima FullSwing Bike Rack $698.95 $699.00 Add To Cart Compare 2 Options By Thule Thule Helium Pro Bike Rack (Member Deal Available) FROM: $424.96 $499.95 Pick a Style Compare By Thule This unique hitch-mounted rack takes a different approach to carrying bikes: its baskets hold the front wheel high while the rest of the bike hangs below. Type: HangingWeight: 35 lbs.Number of bikes: 4 (available in 2- and 5-bike versions)Weight capacity per bike: 40 lbs.What we like: Proven, affordable way to haul 4 bikes.What we dont: Bikes are very close together when loaded; needs an adapter to carry step-through bikes. Read our full review below for all the details! 1 color . But if youll only be carrying standard mountain or road bikes, a 1.25-inch receiver will work great. You help support OutdoorGearLab's product testing and reviews by purchasing from our retail partners. The big news here is the included ramps that allow you to push your bikes onto the platforms rather than having to lift them off the ground. In addition, the EasyFold is among the simplest to store: the platforms sides fold upwards in half and an integrated handle allows you to carry the rack short distances with one hand. Like most hitch mount platform racks, the MonoRail takes up a fair amount of space. The T2 Pro XT takes up a lot of space when stored, and moving it around on a regular basis is not all that enjoyable since it weighs 51 lbs. Platform-style hitch racks also are among the most expensive options on the market, with prices of leading designs like the Thule T2 Pro XTR and 1Up Heavy Duty Double clearing $600. The majority of riders stick with the two-bike design, but families or those that anticipate carrying bikes for group rides should consider getting a higher-capacity hanging model or one of the platform add-ons to start. Platform Racks If, like most cyclists, you plan to keep your rack on your vehicle for extended periods of time or just want to retain access to your rear cargo area, youll want to get a hitch rack with a tilt feature. For the price, the Rocky Mounts Monorail seems to be the best price, next closest is going to be between the Thule X2/Yakima Hold-up 2 and the 1Up QuikRack. How can we improve GearLab? Our favorite platform-style models are in the 45 to 52-pound range, which can make installing and removing them a challenge. A quick check of our list above will show that most of the hanging-style racks have ended up at or near the bottom of our rankings. The tubing and trays have a durable metal construction, though there is a fair amount of plastic on this rack. Among platform-style racks, its best to choose one of two basic designs: a ratcheting arm that locks in over the front wheel and a strap through the rear wheel (featured on the Thule T2 Pro XTR, Kuat Transfer v2, Kuat NV 2.0, and others) or a dual-arm design like 1Ups Heavy Duty that tightens over the front and rear tires. JavaScript is disabled. Sure, you can flip the bikes around and hang them by their handlebars, but North Shore Racks doesnt recommend this tactic. 1Ups Heavy Duty Double and Recon Rack 6 are among the most expensive racks in our round-up, and both feature high-quality, all-metal constructions that have excellent lifespans. With a premium build and price tag to match, this rack is feature-rich, designed to work with a wide variety of bike styles and sizes, and has proven to be durable and reliable even Weve been a fan of Thule bike racks for yearstheir T2 Pro XTR is currently our top-rated modelso we were pretty excited by the release of the premium Helium Platform. Quick View. If youre searching for the best way to transport bikes, hitch-mounted racks are the way to go. This limitation is what pushes the Beta down our list, but among two-bike hanging racks, we think the Beta has a best-in-class mix of weight, build quality, and functionality.See the Kuat Beta 2.0. I'll second the Saris Superclamp EX2, I've been using one all year and it's great! At the risk of sounding like a broken record, its yet another reason we prefer the platform rack style. The appeal is clear: By hanging the bikes from their handlebars verticallyand securing them below at the rear wheelyoure able to carry more bikes closer to your vehicle. The locking hitch pins that are included with the rack are probably the least durable feeling part of the whole package. Despite the complaints, the HangTights ability to carry various bike stylesas well as its all-around solid buildearn it a spot on our list Read in-depth reviewSee the Yakima HangTight 4. The mounting brackets for the trays are snug, so once you position the trays it holds them securely while you insert and tighten down the hardware. This rack costs less and outperforms than many racks that cost more. Assembling this bike rack is fairly easy and will take you less than 5 . The RockyMounts MonoRail 1.25 Inch Bike Rack is one of the few racks which provides full vehicle rear-access with all your bikes locked and loaded! Weve also been impressed with the Heliums build: even loaded down with two 30+ pound mountain bikes on very bumpy forest service roads, the rack and bikes stayed in place with only minimal movement. This handle is located on the bottom of the main arm of the rack and is incredibly easy to access with the rack in either the up or down position. All that said, it's hard to overlook the beauty and level of craftsmanship of the 1Up. And a final pitfall of the hanging rack is how it secures bikes to the rack: it holds them in place by rubber or plastic straps that wrap around the frame. Second, the cradles make direct contact with your bikes fork crownthis leads to significant scuffing and loss of paint over time. GearLab is founded on the principle of honest, objective, reviews. RockyMounts MonoRail Review A versatile hitch-mount rack that provides a high price to performance ratio $500 at REI Price: $540 List Manufacturer: RockyMounts By Jeremy Benson Apr 29, 2019 78 OVERALL SCORE RANKED #3 of 17 Ease of EveryDay Use - 20% 8.0 Ease of Removal and Storage - 20% 7.0 Versatility - 20% 9.0 Security - 20% 8.0 For hauling a lot of bikes with relative ease, the HangTight is a great option. In the end, all have their merits, but no other bike rack type can match the versatility of a hitch mount.Back to Our Top Hitch Bike Rack Picks Back to Our Hitch Bike Rack Comparison Table. If you want a do-everything rack, we recommend the brands T2 Pro XTR above. First, you need to purchase separate adapters to carry fat bikes, and cable locks are not included with the rack (a hitch bar lock does comes with it). That's because RockyMounts isn't trying to reinvent the wheel with its Monorail lineup. But its hard to ignore the RidgeBacks track record of reliable performance, which makes it our top hanging hitch rack.See the Yakima RidgeBack 4. At the very top of Yakima's expansive hitch rack line-up is the Dr.Tray. For those who tend to keep a bike rack on their vehicle at most (or all) times, the Yakima HoldUp Evo folds up and out of the way. The Superclamp 2 is very easy to use. Vertical Hanging Racks Code: RKY10004 234 reviews Our Price: $499.95 Quantity: Product Specs: Hitch Bike Racks Platform Rack Tilt-Away Rack Fold-Up Rack Carbon Fiber Bikes Heavy Bikes Fits 2 Inch Hitch RockyMounts Splitrail LS Review RATING: Exceptional MSRP : $599 BEST FOR: Garage with minimal floor space. Kuat figured the problem was too much tire sticking out side of my small car and sent me extra wheel straps. RockyMounts WestSlope 3 combines a user-friendly tray design and generous three-bike capacity at a reasonable cost. The good news is that Kuat provided a replacement with their excellent warranty, but this experience leads us to think its worth upgrading to the burlier NV 2.0 if youll be leaving the rack on the back of your car most of the year.See the Kuat Sherpa 2.0. This is an excellent reasonably priced option. And its worth noting that this functionality still isnt available from big hitters like Yakima or Thule. 15-20 minutes later and you're ready to go. $5.00. Comparing common bike-carrying alternatives, there isnt a style that offers as much convenience, capacity, or compatibility with such a wide range of vehicles (provided you have a receiver hitch). The main shortcoming of the design is it that the bikes are placed very close together and it can be a pain to limit side-to-side contact. The finish seems to be improved with almost no surface rust at this point (wish we could say the same for the hardware), it carries most of your every day bikes super fast and easy, and is capable of holding 4 bikes with the HoldUp 2+ (2 inch . The mounting brackets for the trays are on the top of the main arm of the rack. There are obvious downsides to the vertical hanging style, however. The well-designed wheel trays have a narrow groove in the middle to hold skinny tires securely and can easily fit fat bike tires. . And compared with traditional hanging models, you dont have to worry about issues with a bikes top tube. It was one of the first platform racks to incorporate a side-swinging mechanism into the design (think of an arm that swings away from your vehicle to allow for total access to the rear of your car). Compare RockyMounts MonoRail vs Yakima HoldUp Bike | etrailer.com Select Make RockyMounts MonoRail Bike Rack for 2 Bikes - 2" Hitches - Wheel Mount Mouseover to zoom. Our favorite bike locks are those that are integrated into the rack, which makes it very convenient to quickly deploy them when needed. And what we like most about the SuperClamp is its minimalist and relatively lightweight build that takes up a surprisingly small amount of space behind your vehicle and is easy to store in your garage. Carries 1 bike, up to 60 lbs. Wisconsin-based 1Up may not be a household name like Thule or Yakima, but the company has a dedicated following among hardcore cyclists. All that said, for those who will utilize their high carrying capacity, a vertical hanging rack can be a worthwhile investment. $549.00. This premium design checks all the right boxes: its materials have a high-quality feel, the rack stays solidly in place even on bumpy forest service roads, and the adjustable wheel cradles make it easy to avoid bike-to-bike contact. It does have padded arms, but those only help so much, and frame scuffs are inevitable. Youll mostly find swing-away racks in the hanging category, including Yakimas FullSwing 4 above, but the aforementioned RockyMounts BackStage platform rack is one notable exception. A versatile hitch-mount rack that provides a high price to performance ratio, Sits slightly closer to vehicle than some. Manufacturers oftentimes have a technical drawing available of the rack in question, and you can use the measurements for assessing whether or not youll run into any fitment issues. The vertical orientation also means you have to reach up to load them, and their tall profiles take up a lot of real estate on the back of your vehicle. In terms of design, think of the Sherpa 2.0 as a pared-down version of Kuats other racks, while still retaining a good number of the design features that make this brand so popular. If you have any interest in carrying a fat bike, the primary selling point for me was that it carries everything from fat to road bikes with no modification. Let us know! Platform racks dominate this round-up, and in our opinion, are the best way to transport your bikes. This cable isn't permanently attached to the rack in any way so it's quite easy to loop it through your bike frames. The SuperClamp EX 4 is one of their leading platform-style racks that differs from our top picks above with its ability to carry four bikes on a set of two platforms (rather than having only one bike on a platform). And as with the RidgeBack above, a top tube adapter is necessary if youll be hauling bikes with irregularly shaped top tubes (which unfortunately is most full-suspension bikes nowadays). There can be big differencesfor example, the Kuat Sherpa 2.0s max wheelbase is a fairly short 47 inches, while the 1Ups Heavy Duty Doubles max capacity is 54 inches. RockyMounts LoBall Track Bike Locking Truck Pick up Quick Release. Saris may not be as popular as Yakima and Thule, but theyve carved out a nice segment of the market with their competitive prices and creative designs. Solid! Further, the Recons burly build is extremely heavy (the two boxes that ship to you exceed 100 pounds total), which makes it difficult to set up and remove. The only boat-rocking standouts are the single-bike version and the aftermarket one-bike add-on. During testing, it rained and snowed quite frequently and this rack lived on the back of our tester's truck for over a month. 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