Question: How to carry bikes on trailer

[Climber]

Hey yall,

I'm in the planning stage of a trailer build and something I'm struggling with, is how to safely bring along 4 adult sized bikes. I'm going to build a 4x5 or 4x6 trailer with heavy duty axle and 2 foot closed box with drawers. I already have a Yakima 4 bike carrier that is very heavy and with 4 bikes, I'll be pushing 200lbs hanging off the back.

The trailer will have a RTT on top so I can't carry them there unless I extend the crossbars and have one maybe two bikes there as well.
If I fab up enough support on the rear hitch, do you see any issue with hanging 200lbs off the back? I know I'll have to balance out the front of the trailer with battery and/or water but I'm still unsure of hanging that much weight off the back of the small trailer.

I have spent hours looking through threads and googling pics and there's not much out there showing bikes. Some of the high end trailers have a few pics (Moby1) but I have not seen many DIY builds.

My other option is to leave the trailer open and carry the bikes under the RTT. I would prefer to not got this route as I will lose my lockable dry storage. Also do not want to carry them on top of my vehicle so just looking for a trailer solution.

Any help you can provide is appreciated!

 

[pyrotyro]

Im dealing with this same issue. We have a kuat 4 bike rack currently, but building a camp trailer (basic box with rtt style) for traveling. Not crazy about having the bikes way off the back. Im currently thinking about using regular roof mount style mounts on the tongue (obv make the tongue longer to compensate). Adding 2 foot to allow room for the bars to clear while turning shouldn't be a big ordeal, and Im not concerned about the weight of 2 mtbs.

Kinda like what VCeXpedition did on his build with a moto:
https://overlandbound.com/forums/threads/next-phase-expedition-trailer.7627/

I know thats not super helpful to you, carrying 4 bikes would be a challenge. Maybe two on the tongue, and one over each fender?

 

[Climber]

Thanks and that's a good idea for a build and I have considered it but don't want to make the front basket area too big. I may do two off the back and weld another receiver to the front tongue. I remember seeing a pic somewhere that had an angled bike carrier that may work.


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[adventure_is_necessary]

Something like this would be a cheap and easy way to mount bikes without being very invasive over the space on the trailer or have all sorts of hanging off of it.

 

[Anchor Mtn]

It isn't the strength of the attachment point so much as the balance that's the problem. We have found that a 2 bike tray style carrier is pretty easy to compensate for but 4 bikes gets difficult. The combination of weight and distance behind the axle really takes its toll on tongue weight and drivablity. If you have to carry 4 bikes, look at the North Shore style upright carriers. They keep the weight much closer to the trailer.

If you are set on using the flat 4 bike carrier, move your axle back 6" or so be prepared for a learning curve to get the balance right fully loaded

 

[vegasjeepguy]

I run a spare on the rear of my trailer and have a Yakima Spare Joe bike rack. If I needed to take a bike or two with me I’ve considered running that on the trailer spare.





Have you considered putting a 2” receiver on the rear end of the trailer and using a bike rack that fits in the receiver?

 

[phxdsrtrat]

I've seen trailers with the option to put a 1 1/4" hitch on each of the four corners. This would allow a 2 small bike carriers to be used on each front side and a larger 2" receiver on the back for a larger carrier for 2 bikes for a total of 4 bikes. This could provide balance for drivability and might even look cool.

-Curtiss

 

[Climber]

I run a spare on the rear of my trailer and have a Yakima Spare Joe bike rack. If I needed to take a bike or two with me I’ve considered running that on the trailer spare.

I've seen trailers with the option to put a 1 1/4" hitch on each of the four corners. This would allow a 2 small bike carriers to be used on each front side and a larger 2" receiver on the back for a larger carrier for 2 bikes for a total of 4 bikes. This could provide balance for drivability and might even look cool.

-Curtiss

I had not considered the 4 corner mount option @phxdsrtrat and will look in to that option. I would definitely balance the trailer!
@vegasjeepguy, If I end up doing a receiver hitch in the rear, I would probably mount my tire near a fender to keep the weight off the back.

Thanks for the ideas so far!