Bike rack options

[erdvm1]

I have a kodiak 172E 2014
I am looking for options to carry bikes in the bike of the trailer
Here is a link that has pictures that shows the bumper and the spare tire.

What options will work without potentially damaging the trailer
I've seen some after market 2 inch receivers that bolt onto bumpers but warned "do not use on travel trailer"

I've also seen bike racks that drape over the spare but am uncertain how strong the attachment of this small HTT spare is.

Advice and or pics are always appreciated.

[Habs33]

I too have spend a lot of time on this, and here is my solution. I have 4 teens so 6 bikes to figure out. I had a 4 bike rack which I tried on the rear of the trailer, it is an older (2004) that has a hitch welded to the frame. I only put 2 bikes now due to the weight and bouncing issue experienced by others. I use a ratchet strap to hold these in place which reduces the bouncing. For the other 4 I have built a custom rack modelled after the arvika rack which has these sit above the propane tanks on the trailer tongue. It is a 2x4 wooden rack that has 4 thule bike racks attached. I am really pleased with how this turned out, the bed can be retracted with the rack attached with just enough clearance. There are some pics of it in the mods section. Good luck

[Campfire_Time]

We carried bikes inside our old Jayco Kiwi 17a, very similar in size to your Kodiak 172E. Its doable but a bit of a pain. The bikes have to go in last and come out first. The smaller trailers typcically have a smaller door so you have to be careful taking them in and out.

I temporarily put up the kick stands as I put them in. Then gently tilted them sideways and strategically placed old throw pillows at "scratch" points, like wheel bolts and pedals. Then I wrapped a couple of bungee cords around the frames and wheels to pull them tight together. I made sure the tires were up against the bottom of the cabinetry to minimize bouncing around. It worked well but as I said it was a pain.

That was when we had an SUV. We have a PU now and the bike will travel in the bed of the truck. Besides, my wife doesn't want them inside the new trailer. She's concerned they might damage the couch. And so am I!

[jfkmk]

Especially with a light trailer, you would be putting a lot of weight on the extreme back of the trailer. Besides the issues with voiding the frame warrantee you would be lifting the tongue up a bit. Bumper mounted racks will tear the bumper off. I'd go for roof mounted racks or a front receiver rack. I tried a roof rack but my factory cross bars are curved, so the bikes tilted, and I needed a ladder to get them on. So I bought a front receiver for 200 installed it in less than an hour and use my existing bike rack with it.

[bikendan]

as was said, this is discussed daily and a quick search will give you weeks of reading.

but here's a summary:

your hybrid has an ultralight frame and bumper. bikes mounted to the bumper will shortly break the cheap bumper welds, due to the physics of the bouncing and pulling back of the bikes.

so, the only safe way to do this, is to have a 2" receiver welded AND braced to the frame.
but doing this, will void the frame's warranty since it's not designed for this.

so, if you insist on carrying them on the rear of the trailer, then you'll have to be willing to throw out the frame's warranty.

if you have a trailer whose frame warranty has expired, then go for it!

personally, i would NEVER carry my bikes on the back of the trailer, where i can't see them until they are bouncing down the road, still attached to the bike rack that broke off. they are not cheap bikes.

[Hoosierdaddy47]

We manage to jam 4 full-size bikes inside our camper. That works out pretty well.

[PAThwacker]

Put a front hitch on tow vehicle or roof of tow vehicle. This issue is repeated ad nauseam. I have two bikes, bargain basked, specialized rock hoppers. That's $1,000 in cheap bikes. Those bikes are carried either on a roof, rear hitch of truck, or front hitch of truck while towing. Spend some time looking at campers in tow. Do you see bike racks? Only the ones falling off.

[dewey02]

There are many posts on this issue.
In summary, some people do have bike racks on the back, but most have a hitch attached to the frame of the TT and not a bike rack attached to the bumper. Most TT rear bumpers are weak and there are many horror stories of losing the bikes, losing the bumper, and potentially injuring other motorists following behind.

The over the tire adapter looks incredibly unsafe to me. I don't know if I've ever read a post about someone who has one, but I haven't really looked because I would never choose that option.

Some people have posted that they've had good luck with RV ladder bike racks, but others report the ladders pulling loose. It may be a function of tightly securing the bikes to eliminate bounce. I personally wouldn't risk it.

In my opinion, the only real and safe options are:
RV factory installed and supported rear bike rack.
Rear bike rack attached to a heavy duty hitch attached to TT frame.
Over the tongue bike rack - either by Arvika, or Bike Bunk/Trailer Tray, or homemade knockoff as shown in the mods section of this forum.

Of course you could also carry on the TV roof or truck bed, or simply haul inside the TT itself.

[erdvm1]

I did see this but I am looking for ideas to carry them on the back of the trailer.
I appreciate the reply however……...

[DutchmenSport]

Here's a link to another post on these forums from a couple days ago. I was really impressed with this set-up. Unfortunately, I don't have the room to do this: click here!, because of the way my camper is configured.