Pin Box Bike Rack Source

[flyfishing48]

I have seen bikes carried on pin boxes. I have searched the forum here and found several people who posted pictures but only found where one person made there own mount. Are they any available commercially ?

Thanks in advance for any insight.

[RollandB]

Thanks SailongOn for the information. Also, a little dirt after a 6000 mile trip is a badge of honor:)

[SailingOn]

I have a 6.5' bed. From the back of my cab to the closest face of the front cap is 44". Determining in advance what will hit first in an overtight turn with the bikes mounted is tricky, and depends on where the receiver is mounted, the design of the rack, size of the bikes, shape of the cab etc. I held the bike carrier up on the pin and guessed how it would turn out.

I put the receiver as far back on the pin box as I could while still having clearance between the front cap and the upright part of the bike carrier.

The 6" receiver I got from Harbor Freight. The angle irons were welded on by a local shop. I bolted it onto the top of the pin box.

A little dirty after a 6000 mile trip, but works great.

[RollandB]

SalingOn, do you have more pics you could share than just the one in your signature? Without the bikes on the front, what is the distance between the front cap and rear of your cab? Thanks!

[jaycocamprs]

I can't see the 4 1/2 holes weakening the pin box. Most will bolt into the top, and that has less stress than the sides. I even cut a 4" hole in the bottom to reach the front nuts. After 2 years it showed now signs of failure. I plated the hole over with 1/8" plate and #8 screws.

[Cummins12V98]

Fire19 wrote:
Does the drilling of 4 holes in you pin box weaken it at all ? I have a 2002 Gulfstream Seahawk 32' fifth wheel and do not know the manufacture of the Pin Box but it is a Venture Frame.

I am confident where I drilled my holes I did not weaken it at all.

[Fire19]

Does the drilling of 4 holes in you pin box weaken it at all ? I have a 2002 Gulfstream Seahawk 32' fifth wheel and do not know the manufacture of the Pin Box but it is a Venture Frame.

[Cummins12V98]

cbari wrote:
I'll have to let Ron (Cummins12V98) respond to that - I was posting info he sent to me by email - he had trouble getting the pictures on the forum.

cbari

cbari

Thanks for posting my pic's that I can't figure out how to do!

The Swagman XTC-2 shipped to me from E trailer.com was $192.60.

The set of 5 Master Lock padlocks was around 20- $25. I use two on my B&W hitch and 3 on the bike rack.

The hitch was all basic mild steel stock sizes. Metal, bolts amd paint cost aroud $20.

To load and unload I leave my tailgate down and leave a bit of space between the tailgate and the carrier to have room to lift and lower the bikes. To make it faster I have the wife bring the bikes to the tailgate when loading and remove them when unloading. By my self I just get up and down one bike at a time.

The rack really holds the biles in place well.

Keep checking the knobs thay tighten the tire saddles to the carrier. They continued to tighten more as time went on. Now they seem to stay tight.

Really with the complete setup. The bikes just sit there going down the road. Nice to be able to keep an eye on them traveling down the road.

[cbari]

I'll have to let Ron (Cummins12V98) respond to that - I was posting info he sent to me by email - he had trouble getting the pictures on the forum.

cbari

[Lantley]

cbari wrote:
I bought Masterlocks keyed alike for the bikes and my hitch. It was a fun project, I may have $20 in parts and paint. Feel free to copy if you want.

Any questions just ask.

Ron"

That looks like a real nice set up. But $20.00 in parts is a bit misleading. What do you estimate the total retail value of your set up is. Including cost of bike rack. I imagine it is a bit more that $20.00.

[cbari]

Posting pictures for Cummins12V98: pin box bike rack receiver for TrailAir

"In the third pic it looks like the device I made is not at a right angle to the top of the pin box but it is.

The top and sides are 1/4" X 3.5" flat bar the receiver tube is 2" X 2" square tube 1/4" wall. The back piece is 1/4" X 2" bar. The bolts are 1/2" grade 8 1 1/4" long. I ground down the two bolts closest to the air bag on each side so the bolt was the same length as the nut for clearance. The vertical dimension of the side PC along the front edge is 6 3/4". The top, sides and back are all separate pieces. I welded the outer corners and then ground a radius on the outer two edges.

I did have to cut off the end of the part that goes into the receiver. This is because the depth is only 3.25". The reason I did not use 4" or wider bar is because I still need to be able to get to the air fill valve for the air bag fill.

I bought Masterlocks keyed alike for the bikes and my hitch. It was a fun project, I may have $20 in parts and paint. Feel free to copy if you want.

Any questions just ask.

Ron"

[Lantley]

JohnBoyToo wrote:
do you have a lift to get the bikes UP there ?!? 🙂

or is that part of the "excersize" regimen !!! 🙂

In general you do have to lift bikes vs. a rear rack.
Depending on the site the lift can be minimal or it can be quite high.
If things get to hectic you can always stand in the bed of the truck and reduce your lifting by loading and unloading bikes from the truck bed.
Lifting is really not a big deal for me, I don't consider it an issue.
Rear bumper area mounted racks can increase the overall length of a rig 2'-4'. But I really don't consider that a big issue either

[JohnBoyToo]

do you have a lift to get the bikes UP there ?!? 🙂

or is that part of the "excersize" regimen !!! 🙂

[Don___Linda]

Lantley wrote:

doctarie wrote:
Lantley:
Where did you get the bike cover or what are you using ? Do you travel with the cover on ?

That is an ATV cover. Yes I travel with it on. I use bungee cords to secure it when traveling as shown in the photo.

We use a HD grille cover on our bikes. Cheap and easy to find at any Home Depot or Lowes. Bungee down during travel. On our 3rd yr(1 cover), but we only use the cover while traveling during high bug times.

Our bike rack is a receiver type. I made a bolt-on, angled adapter that the vertical tube of the bike rack slides into.

Hardware - $6.00
Welding supplies - $4.00
Plate and sq stock - $12.00
The new words, I taught the neighbor's kids during assembly - Priceless

[Lantley]

Merlot wrote:
I'm makinviewplans to install a bike rack and am curious as to why you all decided to put the bike rack on the pin box versus putting a bike rack on the rear of the coach?

1. Bikes are always in view.
2. Less bounce on pin box than rear of trailer behind axles.
3.Pinbox mount does not increase overall length of rig.