Tow bar carriers

[TmMorris]

It's the bracket itself that is set at an angle in the housing so as to foul a tow plate.

It's actually a really silly little thing as just a couple of degrees would prevent this and actually create more clear space to operate the tightening mech.

I'm pretty sure that the upright isn't required for this bag with a pair of straps in both directions and I suspect you can get a more robust tie without using the limbs on the upright which do flex.

It's comfort to know someone else has gone down this road (without a boat falling off)

I cobbled a simple wrap for it just to keep the worst of the road dirt off and to make it more visible/obvious to following cars:

[Trello]

The BuzzRack Pro P10 looks like a really useful piece of kit.

Would it also be able to double up as a bike carrier? (When not loaded with a SIB/F-RIB, of course).
And if so, how many bikes?

[Old seahorse]

Hi Trello. When I bought my buzz rack, it was principally for loading my sib bags, but I asked the same question about bikes. In reality, since I bought it, I haven’t tried( I already had a basic bike carrier).
Have a look at the spec sheet for the buzz rack on The roof box company website. ( and the picture on this post).The tall central post , and wrap around arms, shown on the pictures, are able to be used horizontally or vertically, or completely removed. This gives some flexibility in how you use it. There aren’t any bike specific fittings, but it’s certainly strong enough, with plenty of attachment points for straps. You might need to be inventive, especially if carrying several bikes.

[Trello]

Thank you, Old seahorse.

I found the spec sheet.

I'm VERY keen on the idea of a carrier which can be used alternatively for a boat and for bikes - that would be both economical and save space in the garage.

I'm collecting some information on various towbar mounted carriers that could potentially perform both roles, and I'll report back in this thread with useful findings (if any).

[Trello]

Originally Posted by Trello

I'm collecting some information on various towbar mounted carriers

...

...and, to that end, Nasher, are you able to give any more details (manufacturer, model number) about the bike carrier that you have pictured?

[Trello]

I said in November (the previous two posts), that I would report back after investigating towbar mounted carriers which could double up both as boat transport or bicycle transport. The ones that seemed to me to be possible (by no means a comprehensive list!) are:

- the one shown by Nasher in post 18.
- the BuzzRack BuzzPro P10 as shown by mm289 in post 19 (£174.95 from The Roof Box Company).
- the Halfords 4-Bike Towbar Mounted Bike Rack (£220 from Halfords).
- the Halfords Advanced 4-Bike Towbar Mounted Bike Rack (£400 from Halfords).

the one shown by Nasher in post 18
This looks like a great bit of kit - but I haven't been able to find out any details about it. Nasher: you are lucky to have found this item!

the BuzzRack BuzzPro p10 as shown by mm289 in post 19 (£174.95 from The Roof Box Company)
Again, a great bit of kit. I don't have one, but people on this thread have given reviews - although no-one seems to have actually mentioned using it as a bike carrier. I mention it here because it looks from the pictures as if it could certainly carry bikes without a problem. There doesn't seem to be a dedicated bicycle carrying accessory, though (at least not on the Roof Box Co website).

the Halfords 4-Bike Towbar Mounted Bike Rack (£220 from Halfords)
I have recently bought one of these.

[Trello]

I have fitted it to my Discovery 3. It attaches to the towball surprisingly firmly - it is rock solid.
The part which attaches to the towball has two "beams" which jut back from the car - roughly 70cm.

[Trello]

There are four "joists" which are attached equidistantly across the "beams" - the bike tyres sit on these joists, and there are some uprights (rafters?) which stabilise the bikes. As a bike carrier, it is excellent: reasonably easy to get the bikes on and off, and very stable. If the joists were further apart (which would mean that the beams would have to be longer), it would make it easier to load the bikes, as the handlebars do get in the way.

[Trello]

However, the way I have assembled the rack to carry a boat is different.
As you can see from the previous picture the joists tip downwards at their ends - for the boat, I have assembled the joists upside down, so that their ends tip upwards. And I have not attached the uprights, which would only get in the way.

[Trello]

My boat is a FRIB 360, which has a nominal packed size of 110X90X45 cm. I initially tried lying it on the carrier horizontally, as shown.

[Trello]

I wasn't very happy with this, however, as the FRIB did jut out beyond the end of the beams (although, when fully fastened down, the boat was very stable in this position). It also meant that I would have to find some ad hoc way of attaching the light board (as opposed to the designated position on the end of the carrier frame). Another thing that worried me about positioning the boat like this was the potential of a considerable levering effect, as a reasonable proportion of the load is far back from the tow ball. I did drive it up and down the road with it positioned like this, and the drive felt absolutely normal, and the boat was stable.

I then repositioned the boat so that it stood vertically on the carrier, strapped to the back of the car. This, again, was very stable when I drove it up and down the road. This seemed to me to be a far more tolerable position.
There is some considerable space between the boat and the end of the carrier, and it occurs to me that it might be worth placing a flag at the end of the carrier. Had I bought a 2 or 3 bicycle model, the beams would have been shorter, relieving this problem to some extent, but I was in the market for a carrier for four bikes.

[Trello]

I haven't yet taken the boat on a long journey on this carrier.


Finally,

the Halfords Advanced 4-Bike Towbar Mounted Bike Rack (£400 from Halfords).
My brother happens to have one of these bike racks, so I commandeered it to see whether I could adapt it for use to carry a boat. However, on this model, the uprights are permanently fixed in position, and so there is no room for a boat.

And even more finally, the reason I have split this post into several separate ones, is that I can't work out how to attach pictures such that they stay inline with the text - they just seem to end up at the end of the post.

[Nasher]

Originally Posted by Trello

the one shown by Nasher in post 18
This looks like a great bit of kit - but I haven't been able to find out any details about it. Nasher: you are lucky to have found this item!

Unfortunately I can't shed any light on it.
I purchased it used off I think EBAY in @2010.
I have a vague memory that it's an early Thule item, but can't be sure.

[Nasher]

Found it.

It is/was made by EUFAB:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/EUFAB-11437.../dp/B001C43W9Y

I can't find any for sale currently, but haven't looked very hard.

[Trello]

Originally Posted by Nasher

I can't find any for sale currently, but haven't looked very hard.

I've looked reasonably hard, but can't find it either.
A shame, because it looks very versatile.

I think these kinds of carriers are probably more useful for SIBs, which are in bags which can conform to the shape of the carrier, than my very inflexible FRIB.

Trello.

[Trello]

Originally Posted by Trello

the reason I have split this post into several separate ones, is that I can't work out how to attach pictures such that they stay inline with the text - they just seem to end up at the end of the post.

Does anybody know how to do a post with in-line pictures?

[Nasher]

It can be done, but you need to use a third party hosting site and add their link which will drop the image in the position you add the link.

I use Postimage, but can't prove the point and demonstrate as they are blocked by our work servers.

I did it in this thread:
https://www.rib.net/forum/f19/new-toy-83646.html

[Trello]

Thanks, I'll try that next time.

[Easedalenovice]

I have the Buzrack that I purchased from Excell. I have loaded it up with my Honwave T38 ie2 and it was very solid. I felt worried about it however and have never used it and bought an Erde trailer instead with a bike rack on the top on load bars

[Trello]

Originally Posted by Easedalenovice

...an Erde trailer instead with a bike rack on the top on load bars

I don't understand. Do you have bikes AND the boat on the trailer? Do you have pictures?

Trello.