Tacomas and Mountain Bikes

[bitflogger]

Funny how this is such a YMMV thing.

I'd bought a Kuat NV 2.0 without the trail doc bit and just didn't much care for it. Didn't really fit my wife's ebike well, plus it was tough for her to put on or take off of her SUV. Returned it an got her a 1UP single that's light enough to be easy for her to manage on her own. We have an Add On for anytime we're taking both bikes somewhere.

Single tray mode is another nice 1Up advantage. I know others are good too, but a chuckle to me is a bike shop owning friend. Direct sales mean he doesn't sell 1Up. He sells Saris and Kuat. On his personal time they still have a 1Up in the family and use it most.

I can't answer re Saris after their reorganization and prices, but they've been really good for customer service on modestly priced stuff.

I've had other makers replace rusted and broken parts but the main thing so obvious with my so used (since 2012) 1Up is the stainless steel and aluminum just don't corrode like steel and don't break like plastic. That and versatility FTW.

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[gpburdell]

Single tray mode is another nice 1Up advantage.

That's really what sold me - most of the time I just need to carry one bike. Sometimes I carry two, but it's infrequent. Being able to add/remove the 2nd tray quickly is great.

Plus the tray sides fold forward for (relatively) compact storage.

 

[lawn_wrangler]

That should be edited to be you just can't beat a 1Up. Friends only let friends get them. Mine is having its 14th winter exposed to road salt. There are parts when you need them. Unparalleled versatility.

Most racks are made of steel and plastic and do not have every single part replaceable. Another beauty is how I meet up with friends and on the spot we turn a 1 or 2 carrier rack into 2-4. If you use stuff a lot and keep things, in reality getting some steel and plastic contraption without those aspects is maybe a 17 on the 1-10 scale of being dumb.

We have a lot of kids and a lot of bikes. (I sometimes travel with road, gravel and MTB, if time allows different kinds of riding).

We've had two Saris SuperClamp 4-bike racks for the last 8-10 years and have no complaints with those either. I haven't needed to replace any parts, but FWIW my friend had a great experience with their customer service getting a replacement part. (https://saris.com/products/superclamp-ex-4-bike)

They are a little heavy to lug around the garage and you can't change the configuration from 1-4. But they are pretty compact when loaded because of the staggered arrangement--4 bikes on 2 cross bars (compared to some Yakima/Thule/Kuat with 1 cross bar per bike). They fold up and out of the way when not in use and tilt down for trunk/bed access. They are INFINITELY configurable for different styles/sizes of bikes. Our kids have grown with them from little 12 inch single speeds w/coaster brakes to full size MTBs and hybrids.

I have not had a chance to load it on the Tacoma yet, but here's our old Odyssey in 2017 locked and loaded for a road trip to No. Mich. (w/Yakima HighRoads--I think this was the last trip we took all in one vehicle and right before buying another Saris rack.)

 

[lawn_wrangler]

I’m new to trucks and mountain bikes. I have a long bed with an oem trifold tonneau cover. I will need to transport 2 mountain bikes come spring/summer. Will a tailgate pad be sufficient? Or should I think about other methods to stow and go?

I am wondering about tailgate pad as well: I'd like to pair one with the Saris SuperClamp 4-bike (I menitioned above) for family trips. BUT I definitely don't want any damage to the tailgate, so it will take some research.

 

[bsquaredMTB]

I actually have a write-up on one here: https://www.tacoma4g.com/forum/threads/trumgeta-tailgate-bike-pad-installed-review-photos.15410/

Hope that helps!

 

[lawn_wrangler]

I actually have a write-up on one here: https://www.tacoma4g.com/forum/threads/trumgeta-tailgate-bike-pad-installed-review-photos.15410/

Hope that helps!

Yeah, thanks! I found that after posting (of course) and this one on the Raceface: https://www.tacoma4g.com/forum/threads/raceface-t3-tailgate-pad-bike-carrier-installed-look.6907/

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