Jack It Tongue Bike Rack

[FeatherFam]

Anyone using the Jack It tongue bike rack? I do not want to use the bumper. I am a little concerned with how high the bike sit on this rack. DW will not be able to get to them, and it would be a stretch for me. Also, if you have it on your Jayco, what do you think of its quality and performance? I read where one user put folding pedals on his bike(s) to alleviate the tight, awkward fit of the bikes.
http://www.lci1.com/jack-it

[ctbailey]

I've got a buddy who installed a similar unit, not this lippert one. His carries 4 bikes, but we need to modify it all ready. The factory stantions are too tall, and loading/unloading the bikes is terrible. He needs a step ladder at home and his wife. At camp we use the bed of my truck to load unload his bikes.


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[dewey02]

I don't have the Jack-it rack, but I do have an over-the-tongue bike rack. While the bikes do sit up high, it is not all that difficult to load or unload them. I simply put the tailgate of my pickup truck down and stand on that when unloading the bikes. At that point, they are about chest level and within easy reach. And you can bring them down and put them on the tailgate, and then down to the ground. It also depends on how heavy your bikes are. My bike is a lightweight road bike and is easier to handle. My wife's bike is an old Schwinn that is quite a bit heavier and takes a bit more effort.

But I much prefer having the bikes on the tongue where I can see them and they don't bounce around, rather than having them on the rear of the trailer or inside the trailer where taking them in and out can bang up the walls and furniture.

[FeatherFam]

Originally Posted by dewey02

I don't have the Jack-it rack, but I do have an over-the-tongue bike rack. While the bikes do sit up high, it is not all that difficult to load or unload them. I simply put the tailgate of my pickup truck down and stand on that when unloading the bikes. At that point, they are about chest level and within easy reach. And you can bring them down and put them on the tailgate, and then down to the ground. It also depends on how heavy your bikes are. My bike is a lightweight road bike and is easier to handle. My wife's bike is an old Schwinn that is quite a bit heavier and takes a bit more effort.

But I much prefer having the bikes on the tongue where I can see them and they don't bounce around, rather than having them on the rear of the trailer or inside the trailer where taking them in and out can bang up the walls and furniture.

What brand do you have? What I like about the Jack It is its mount over the jack; I do not want more braces/brackets on the frame near the WDH brackets. Many of the models that I am researching mount that way.

Also, when you stand on the tailgate to reach for them how much of a stretch is that, and what types of strain does this put on your lower back? I have a few back and hip issues that I have to consider. For example, I can work from a ladder, but I have to be careful about over extend/reaching too far from the ladder -if that makes sense.

[nomad1010]

I just installed it today on my JayFeather 25BH. I have not towed with it yet, but the bike rack seems sturdy and well constructed. The bikes do sit very high , but I just lowered the power jack all the way down and it was a lot easier to unhook and unload them.

[FeatherFam]

Can the rack double as a rack on your TV 2" receiver? There is some confusion about it. Some say that it can, and others say that it cannot.

[nomad1010]

I'm not 100% sure. If you had a vertical receiver. It might work, but I don't know.

[dewey02]

Originally Posted by FeatherFam

What brand do you have?

Mine is one that I built using the Stromberg-Carlson Trailer Tray and mating it with a MaxHaul bike rack. The supports aren't very close to the brackets for the WDH spring bars, as the trailer tray supports are set further back.
To answer your other question, yes it does take a bit of stretching to get the bikes on and off, especially the one closest to the trailer. Here is a photo:



And here's the photo of the Maxhaul bike rack.
The bike rack can come off the Trailer Tray by undoing 4 bolts and then I can use the trailer tray to haul something else if I'm not taking bikes.

[nomad1010]

Sorry if the photos don't come out right. Really new at the posting photo thing.


I have to agree with dewey02. You will have to stretch to unhook the straps and lift to bikes off the hooks.

[Seann45]

Originally Posted by FeatherFam

Anyone using the Jack It tongue bike rack? I do not want to use the bumper. I am a little concerned with how high the bike sit on this rack. DW will not be able to get to them, and it would be a stretch for me. .
Jack-It Double Bike Carrier

drop the tailgate and stand on it to get at the bikes.

[sennister]

Originally Posted by FeatherFam

What brand do you have? What I like about the Jack It is its mount over the jack; I do not want more braces/brackets on the frame near the WDH brackets. Many of the models that I am researching mount that way.

Also, when you stand on the tailgate to reach for them how much of a stretch is that, and what types of strain does this put on your lower back? I have a few back and hip issues that I have to consider. For example, I can work from a ladder, but I have to be careful about over extend/reaching too far from the ladder -if that makes sense.

If you look at the photos of the Jack-It you will see how the bracket angles back for their bike rack but you have to watch this a bit if you are also looking at other brands. Not sure what you have for a TV but if it is a SUV or a pickup with a topper, if the bikes are too far forward over the hitch they may hit the truck when turning sharp. This is why the JackIt has that angle back.

Not sure what the other brands are that you were looking at but some are a design like the Stomberg A Frame Platform that I am looking at for hauling our generator. If the design is like this the round pipes are designed to pivot at points during install so it can be positioned in a manner to clear the WD hitch. Once everything is fitted, then you drill holes in the round bars and lock them in place to fit your camper.

[sennister]

Originally Posted by Seann45

drop the tailgate and stand on it to get at the bikes.

Doesn't work so well for those of us that drive a SUV that has a liftgate. I am 6'4" though so I should be fine reaching them. They can't be any higher than the roof rack on my Blazer that I used for years to haul my bikes.

[FeatherFam]

I think we are going for the Jack It. We can easily access our tailgate, so hopefully that will help. There is no perfect solution. We think that this will be the best option that we have. Thank you for your thoughts and contributions!

[SilverEscape]

Just be sure you can take the extra weight on the tongue and make sure you're not above your payload. Your trailer looks like it would be up to about 900# tongue weight, plus weight of cargo and people in the vehicle, could easily put you over 1500#. So check your yellow sticker to see what your payload is.

Also check the allowable tongue weight on your hitch and in your owner's manual or towing guide. My receiver allows 1150# max tongue weight on my half-ton and the manufacturer's towing guide for my vehicle says 1130#, so I have to go with the lower number. If you are already close to 900#, plus close to 100# for a bike rack and a couple bikes, you could be close/over a limit depending on what yours is.

[FeatherFam]

Originally Posted by SilverEscape

Just be sure you can take the extra weight on the tongue and make sure you're not above your payload. Your trailer looks like it would be up to about 900# tongue weight, plus weight of cargo and people in the vehicle, could easily put you over 1500#. So check your yellow sticker to see what your payload is.

Also check the allowable tongue weight on your hitch and in your owner's manual or towing guide. My receiver allows 1150# max tongue weight on my half-ton and the manufacturer's towing guide for my vehicle says 1130#, so I have to go with the lower number. If you are already close to 900#, plus close to 100# for a bike rack and a couple bikes, you could be close/over a limit depending on what yours is.

Yes - Thank You! The 23rbm stated dry is 460, but we all know that is nearly useless. On my last trip to the scales, my loaded tongue with WDH was 660. My current distribution has me light on the TT axles and the TV front axle, so my next adjustment is to get more weight distributed to the front axle and the TT axles. I am currently 80lbs over GVWR and the max payload. So I am also in the process of moving some items into the trailer where I am light. I am not beyond TV and TT, no where near. I just need to get things distributed better, and I will be fine. I am going to try lowering the WDH brackets on the a-frame to see where that gets me, fully loaded. I have several trips to the CAT scale for sure.

Here is the thread where I posted my last numbers: http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f3...ale-44602.html

[Robgm]

Just thought I would chine in here. My wife and I are living somewhat full time with 2 dogs in a 145RB towing with a Mercedes GLC SUV. With such a small trailer we were looking for a solution to tow our bikes around and keep them in sight. We really liked the idea of the Carlson mount as we could remove the bike rack and put it on the GLC while leaving the trailer behind (and we already had a hitch mount rack) but in the end the lippert jack-it was half the price of the Carlson on Amazon so we went with that. Installation was super simple and straight forward with no drilling (as required by the Carlson). The bikes are up pretty high and prevent full opening of the liftgate when hooked up to the trailer but the bikes are perfectly reachable for me (I am 5'6") but not as much for my wife (5'0"). The tire hook system makes it really easy to throw one tire on and then hook on the second tire. It did add some tongue weight to the vehicle but since the 145RB is single axle we just put on a taller ball mount (3" rise). Works great to have the bikes whenever we go camping at the beach in SoCal.

[01tundra]

Finally got to use our Jack-It bike rack a couple weeks ago, it worked great.

Took me a little trial and error to get everything set up because my bike frame is shaped so odd, but it all works well now.

[Isetta57]

Will this work on a Jayco x23b expandable? I know I would have to take the stand down to open the tent bed, but I want to be sure it will clear the bed.

[Robgm]

Originally Posted by Isetta57

Will this work on a Jayco x23b expandable? I know I would have to take the stand down to open the tent bed, but I want to be sure it will clear the bed.

It should. The post is held in with cotter pins so pretty easy to remove. it only goes about 6 inches back from the center point on your tongue jack.

[krcarter54]

I installed one on our 2015 Jayco 18 SRB. It was very easy to install. As stated previously it can be a little difficult mount the bikes but with practice it gets a little easier. I find it to be more difficult loading the inboard bike.The outboard bike is a piece of cake! It helps to offset the mounting cradles by putting one at the highest point possible and the other at the lowest point for the rear bike. Then do the same for the front bike - but opposite of what was done for the rear bike. This kind of makes a "X" with the two bikes. By doing this it helps tremendously with the opposing handle bars and seats clearing each other. I've towed several hundred miles now with absolutely no issues.I love the fact that I can see the bikes at all times and I don't have to tie up space in the bed of our truck with them. It's also very comforting that they're NOT mounted on the cheesy rear bumper! Hope this helps with your decision! Oh by the way I saw this racked offered on Amazon two weeks ago for $109.00 I paid full the full price of about $160.00 Keep in mind that the "other" bike mount requires that you will have to purchase a bike rack. It only provides a two inch receiver and NOT the actual bike mounting rack! Good luck!