Bike rack receiver

[M&M]

Hi

Our camper came with a frame mount receiver for a 2 bike rack, which I think was supplied by FunFinder. The receiver sits about 6.5 inches below the rear bumper, which seems too low. It looks a little odd, and the bike rack can drag on the ground if we go through a dip. I am thinking about raising the receiver up so it sits just below or touches the bumper. I have also thought about joining the end of the receiver with the bumper. Has anyone else tried this? Is there a good reason why the receiver is mounted so low?
Thanks

[webslave]

I purchased the frame mount receiver for my 210WBS... Didn't think to order it when we ordered the trailer, duh

I, too, upon fitting it, didn't like the way it "hung" down. I took the receiver and cut about 2 inches off the ears and redrilled the holes. That brought it right up close to the (~1.5 inches down). I then took some threaded rod, some flat plate and made a support sling from the bumper down to the receiver proper and tied it all together...three point support with the frame taking most of the weight and the bumper offering some "anti-torque" stability. Worked for carrying our two hybrid bikes for more than 28,000 miles before trading it in this week on our new 5ver.

[M&M]

Hi Don,

Thanks for the reply. I had a very similiar fix in mind for the receiver. Do you have a picture of the receiver as modified?

As I remember, you used a E-2 hitch and a Prodigy controler for your FunFinder. Did you like them?

I was looking at a used E-2 hitch for our camper, but it was for 1,000 tongue weight camper and thought that might be too heavy. What weght rating was your hitch and how did it work?

Thanks again.

Mike

[webslave]

I wish I did, but, I never took pictures of the hitch specifically and the pictures I have that show it, it isn't the focus of the picture; i.e., it shows the receiver barely poking out from under the bumper, not anything that would convey the setup of the supports.

I'd go out and take some pictures for you, but, I traded my beloved 210WBS in on a Cougar 318SAB 5th wheel on Tuesday...

I can describe the additional support better though... I went to Tractor supple and they have 5"x1/2" pressed steel plates, I think for fencing or barn door hanging. I bought 8 of them and some 1/4x20 threaded rod and a boatload of nuts and washers. I put two of the plates across the top of the bumper, dropped the threaded rod through them and then ran 2 more plates up the rods with nuts to sandwich the bumper them. I then put two more of the plates at 90 degrees to the bumper's plates so that they rested on the top of the hitch receiver with nuts on top of the plates. Ran 2 more up so that the receiver was sandwiched just like the bumper. Adjusted the nuts so that the tension between the bumper and the hitch was "neutral" (neither hanging from nor pushing up) in respect to the bumper. The frame actually took the weight of the bikes, but, the bumper prevented any bouncing/flexing of the frame's attachment without having to take the full weight of the bikes. Hopefully that makes some sense!

I used the 1K/10K setup from Equal-i-zer...worked just fine for my 210. I towed heavy and was right at the 5800-5900 mark with a 721 lb (Shurline weighed) tongue weight. Towed fine, handled great and didn't suffer from "Semi Push" any more than the tow vehicle did...the same gentle push you would get towing or not.

[M&M]

Don,

I think I understand how you built the support, but a couple more questions to be sure.

You mentioned putting the plates on the receiver at 90 degrees to those on the bumper. Were the plates you got at Tractor Supply 5 inches square or were they rectangular?

Did you use a total of 4 threaded rods or were there more?

Thanks again.



Mike

[webslave]

Tractor Supply...they were more like straps, but, heavier steel. ~5" long by ~1/2" wide with a single hole at each end (the 5" spans the 4" bumper). The right angle refers to going across the bumper, I didn't really need to say that, on hindsight, if parallel, it would fall off

I used just 4 threaded rods (1/4x20) for the whole shebang (you'll probably need 2 - 36" rods cut into ~10-12" pieces to cover the distance from the top of the bumper to the bottom of the hitch - measure and cut to fit as yours will probably a little different from my measurements)...all the plates were "stacked" on those four rods with nuts supporting them in the appropriate orientation to "pinch" the bumper between the top four plates and, again, "pinch" the hitch receiver between bottom four plates with everything locked together in a "static" load position.

Clear as mud, right?

[mykidsrv]

webslave you are not going to abandon us of your wisdom now that have moved on from the Fun Finder Family are you? Try to remember all of us little people when you are rolling down the road

[webslave]

There are no "little people"...from the backpackers to the tag-axle diesel pushers. We are all in a "family" of folks that enjoy the "world at large" for various and, gratefully, abundant reasons. We're as delightful and varied as the wondrous landscape we travel.

I'll stick around I like this forum and the folks here are a good bunch. Wisdom...don't know if I've got that, but, experience, yep, got that and the T-shirt to prove it Experience; Don's definition: Making mistakes and living through them.

It is going to be strange now, not to be the "littlest guy in the park"...just don't go blowing your horn as you come up on the big Cougar getting down the road at a "leisurely pace" (I never towed my FunFinder faster than 63 mph either come to think of it...ST tires don't ya' know, the Cougar's are ST, too ).