Best Truck Bed Bike Racks
Truck bed bike racks are very useful equipment to use for carrying your bikes from place to place in your truck. To find the best truck bed bike racks can be difficult. This article will include all the best and different truck bed bike racks available for you to use.
I have been riding trails away from the urban jungle for many years. My truck has proven to be a loyal companion just like my bikes. Suddenly, taking just one bike on a weekend trip was not enough and it is quite difficult to transport more than one bike with a truck. There is no better way of safely transporting bikes without a truck bike rack.
Why a Bike Rack?
The biggest problem I had when transporting my bike is that it was difficult to tie down and secure. Usually, the bike will get some scratches in the cargo compartment and it was very difficult to load more than two bikes. The rack makes it possible to load more bikes, still have some cargo space for gear and protect the bikes.
Best Truck Bed Bike Racks of 2020
Thule Insta-Gator Truck Mount
Manufacturer: Thule
This product is rather new and different and it can be used to carry your bikes with other stuff as well. It increases the space in your truck and makes it easy for you to carry other things as well.
The usage procedure for the rack is simple and there are no tools required for drilling and making holes as well. The pros are that it increases the space and is lightweight.
Thule Insta Gator has a ratcheting arm that slides up and clamps your tire into the tray so there’s no contact with the frame so it is not gonna ruin your paint.
It’s really simple to install the rack, just reduce your tailgate put two little ratchet straps and sit right in the groove, shut your tailgate now you just ratchet these down push arm down and now what you need to do just grab your bike.
Nice thing you can leave your wheel on the front, the wheel goes into ratcheting, the arm goes through clamps right behind your fork and your bike is not going to go anywhere.
Now what you wanna do is get a pack of locks, insert a lock into the hole in the arm and lock it. That way no one’s gonna be able to squeeze this when I can able to take your bike out now. It’s a pretty secure system you know there is not much movement, it’s great you can actually put two of these bike racks in any truck bed.
Thule Bed Rider XTR
Manufacturer: Thule
This truck bed bike rack is easy to use and carry since it is not the big one and can carry two bikes at the same time. The rack is not huge so you can handle it easily. The rack needs your truck bed to be at least 50 inches wide so that you can place it in there.
It comes in black color and the shipping weight of the rack is just 10 pounds. The pros of the rack are that it is smaller and lightweight and because of that, it does not cost more to ship. The con is that it can carry only two bikes at a time.
Thule bed rider xtr truck bed bicycle carrier is made of aluminum telescopic material with multiple points of adjustability just simply by pressing in the detent button. So the detent button has somewhat of a mushroom shape on it.
When it’s under compression it can’t be pressed in which is part of the security and we’ll go into more detail about the security of this design.
So it can go anywhere from full size to a compact truck and then it’s fine-tuned on the end by turning it which you will compress it further to get it just right.
There is a variable adjust you can position them anyway along the length of this bar that works for your vehicle. They’re held on to the telescopic bar with that tamper-resistant fastener that is a hollow point Torx.
It offers a very high level of security when you’re with once you have that in place that in addition to the actual key block quick-release levers here that gives you excellent security for the bikes to the carrier as well as the carrier to the truck.
Also, at the opposite end once you have tightened into the truck bed you close the lever and then here it locks as well. It locks under compression which offers a good level of security however if you have more expensive bicycles that are more sought-after it’s advisable to supplement with additional security.
Installing process
When you’re installing this it’s best to first take a measurement of your truck bed with a measuring tape from side to side of the truck bed. Then I can transfer that measurement over to the carrier itself so I’ll just measure from the end of the bracket to the other end.
We can take rack back over to the truck, extend it over and drop it down, lift the lever and now we can go ahead and start turning it goes inward and it’ll slowly compress. There’s an important note to make here is that to lead does not recommend this truck bed carrier for trucks that have a bed rail cap.
Unfortunately, pretty much every truck on the market that sold nowadays has a bed rail cover. It’s really up to the user to decide if they feel that there is any risk to perhaps deforming the plastic bed rail cover.
Next, I will grab a key and at this point, I can lock it and now it’s locked under compression making a good stable secure foundation to add. In this case it’s set up out of the box for two bicycles. should you want to add a third bicycle Thule offers an add-on.
At this point, we can go ahead and load up a bike. To do that the first thing I want to do is make sure I have the lever opened and there’s plenty of space here to accept the tips of the fork.
This is a fork-mount file requiring removal of the front wheel so with that front wheel removed all I got to do simply is lift the bike into position drop the tips on the fork down into the fork block and then flip the lever. It’s just not tight enough then you just make your gear adjustments until you get a good firm grip.
Heininger Advantage SportsRack BedRack Elite
Brand: Heininger
This one is rather bigger but it has so much with it. It can carry up to 4 bikes at a time in either a full size or a compact truck. That is because of the adjustable option included in the rack. It has a carrier as well.
The pros of the rack are that it has rubberized pipes which do not ruin the paint of either your truck or the bicycle, it does not need any tools to fix it and can be fixed quickly, and of course, this one that it is adjustable to different sizes. The con is that because it is big enough, it has to be handled with care and is rather difficult to carry.
Heiniger has several different types of racks and I ended up getting one from them. The Advantage SportsRack BedRack Elite bike rack, not only has an obnoxiously long product name but also fits the bill when it comes to short and long trips with up to 4 bikes loaded in the truck.
What I Like About Rack
The very first thing that needs to be mentioned is that it is very easy to install. In just a couple of minutes, the rack is set and ready to go. It does not take all that much space and does not add a lot of weight since it is made mostly out of lightweight aluminum tubing
In terms of capacity, the rack can hold 4 bikes with 2 securing points for each bike. The locking mechanism is quite simple, and the upper part of the rack is adjustable so that it works with bikes that use 19 inch wheels. The cable locks are included in the kit.
Last but not least, the rack is adjustable. It was made to extend from 52 inches all the way up to 68 inches. The ones that want to fit it inside a van should be able to do so without much difficulty.
What Could Have Been Better
The only concern about the rack is the width of the clamshells that hold the tires of the bike. They are wide but not all types will fit properly. Wider tires might be a problem but for a regular trail bike with typical tires, they fit just fine. The straps that secure the wheel in place should be able to hold even bikes with wider tires even if they do not fit all that well
Could I Find Better?
Surely it is not the perfect rack but it does the job quite well. In fact, it is impossible to find something better from my point of view. The rack is lightweight, easy to install or remove, can hold 4 bikes without wiggling around and has a very secure locking mechanism with adjustable straps that tie down the bike in two points.
All in all, it is well worth the money despite the higher price tag. Thinking about the convenience it offers and the protection for the bikes, the rack is basically an accessory that I do not see myself without
Saris Kool 2-Bike Truck Bed Mount Rack
This one is the easiest to use with its pipe fitting to any size of bed from 50 to 74 inches. The truck bed mount rack holds the bikes firm and releases them faster and without taking much time.
It is rust free so it does not have any cleaning issues. The truck bed mount rack comes in silver color and has a very lightweight of 3.8 pounds which makes it cheaper to be shipped.
The pros are its lightweight and easy installation and the con is that it can carry lesser bikes than the other racks.
Pipeline Racks Truck Bed Bike Rack
The rack is quite simple to use and does not need any kind of tools to fix it and can hold 3 bikes easily by ensuring the safety of the bikes and the truck.
The rack needs the truck bed to be 58.5 inches wider to carry it in the bed. With an easy release of the bikes, the rack does not take much time to be used. It comes in black color and weighs 30 pounds. The pros are that it is easy to use and the con is that it is very heavy.
Adjustable Truck Pick Up Bed Bike Rack Carrier Stand Box
This rack is adjustable and carries four bikes easily in normal or full-size trucks. Because of its adjustable nature, it can carry 4 bikes of different sizes easily and can be separated as well to carry less number of bikes at one time.
The rack carries 4 bikes with ease and does not damage the bikes because of its rubber edges.
The pros of the rack are its adjustability and that it can carry 4 bikes the con is that the rack weighs a lot and is not easy to carry and costs more when shipping.
Swagman PATROL Pick Up Truck Bike Rack
The rack can carry two bikes at a time with having the option of carrying an extra bike with an extra fork mount. The rack has four locks that hold the bikes to the rack and the rack to truck. The rack holds the bike firm and is very light to handle.
The pros are its lightweight and option for an extra bike.
Conclusion
These are some of the best truck bed bike racks available in the market which can be bought easily are perfect for your use. These are different kinds of racks and you can choose the best one that fits your needs.
They are easy to use and each one of them has some unique feature which makes it different from the others as far as it is concerned.