Fender Luggage racks

[Konrad]

Has anyone thought about or actually mounted chrome luggage racks on the fenders of their trikes?

If so, what weight could they carry safely or how much weight will those fenders hold?

Or is it just a bad idea?

[Nana]

Konrad, take a look at the ideas on this thread: http://www.triketalk.com/forum/gener...ers-racks.html

[Konrad]

Konrad, take a look at the ideas on this thread: http://www.triketalk.com/forum/gener...ers-racks.html

Thank you, Nana - I went there and got some good ideas!

[1550vt]

I gave it some thought also and did some shopping around before I settled on a small custom-built receiver hitch cargo rack to use on those short trips when the trailer is not needed. One of my particular issues was....just having more parachute material hanging out in the wind. However, I don't see any reason at all why you can't come up with something that would hold a relatively small-to-medium gym-bag. Getting some that will fit the contour of your fender and still be large enough to make it worth the while is the problem.

[Konrad]

I gave it some thought also and did some shopping around before I settled on a small custom-built receiver hitch cargo rack to use on those short trips when the trailer is not needed. One of my particular issues was....just having more parachute material hanging out in the wind. However, I don't see any reason at all why you can't come up with something that would hold a relatively small-to-medium gym-bag. Getting some that will fit the contour of your fender and still be large enough to make it worth the while is the problem.

Good points! Tell us about the receiver-hitch cargo rack - how large a box will it hold and how much weight will it carry? Does it block the LEO's view of the license plate? Source and price?

Thanks.

[kj5ix]

I have seen them on GL1800, and a Harley, and think they are hideous looking, not to mention Ugly. They are functional and will hold a lot of weight, because the fender is one of the strong parts on the body, but Ugly.......
If a single strap or tiedown rope is loose enough to touch a painted area it will beat it up badly.

[1550vt]

I will agree with kj on the "beating the paint off issue". If a strap or buckle ever gets loose in the wind it will (at least) mar a painted surface and I have a couple of spots on my tour pack to prove it. Besides....you have to gut-up and make a serious decision as to whether or not you really want to drill those holes in that good looking fender.

As for the receiver hitch carrier...there are some folks out there that are hauling their power-chairs around on one of these things. The limits on what it will hold has a lot to do with the hitch and you need a good one. I did not want one as big as the routine auto cargo carrier, yet just large enough to carry that extra bag. I just could not find one that suited my needs, so I wound up building my on from aluminum plate and simply attached another tour pack rack to it. I can remove the rack and strap just about anything to it. Mine is not wide enough to interfere with the brake or signal lights and mounts low enough so as not to block the license plate. I have attached a couple of pictures of mine, but there are some folks out there (redneck ray comes to mind) that will build one to your specifications. I weigh around 215 and can stand on mine without fear. The wife weighs around 115 and she can jump up-and-down on it. It removes from my hidden receiver hitch when not in use and I can simply remove it from the hitch and take it into the hotel room. It's as handy as a pocket on a shirt.

[Konrad]

"As for the receiver hitch carrier...there are some folks out there that are hauling their power-chairs around on one of these things."

I had no idea they were that strong, so I imagine putting 20 - 30 lbs. on the rack is not going to raise the front wheel off the ground. But does one have to remove the rack before opening the trunk door to keep the door finish pristine?

[1550vt]

You could get out-of-hand with it. I have seem some pretty gaudy carriers that are entirely too large for the trike. You need to keep it as small as practical so you can navigate into motel driveways, restaurant parking lots, service stations, etc. without it dragging the pavement. I can strap a fully loaded tour pack bag, small suitcase, or a couple of gym-bags on mine and still open the trunk. Mine is built so the trunk lid will not extend downward to the point of hitting the rack. You can bump it against the bag you have mounted on the rack....but it's soft and you will be careful. Most trailer hitch tongues are rated at 50-pounds, but I usually don't come close to that....maybe 20-30 pounds at the most, but I do have a very strong hitch system and could stack all I could get on there...but then like you say, you need access to the trunk and can't hide the license plate or block the rear trike lights.

I don't feel-or-see any fear of raising the front end off the ground. You would have to get a LOT of weight on there before that would happen, or affect handling and you would have broken a frame or hitch by then anyway.

25 to 30 pounds is not any problem. It's usually where all of my stuff goes. The wife puts her stuff inside the trunk and the tour pack and mine rides "outdoors". I have made mine as light as possible from aluminum and the rack itself weights around 10-15 pounds. It's completely portable and it only used for those short trips when you need a little extra space. If I had to have one large enough to need lights, or carry bulky loads....I'd rather use the trailer.

I have a buddy that can weld aluminum and I purchased the material and cut the pieces to fit my design, then he welded them together for me. This could be done by bolting the components together also. The tour pack rack is the most expensive part of mine and it cost around $50 off e-bay. I have around $100 invested in this thing.

[kj5ix]

My tongue weight when I pull the camper is right at 75 pounds, and I regularly use the rack I made for carrying every thing under the sun, and have taken a 6'3" 240 pound guy about 4 blocks to pick up his bike once standing on the rack. Of course we were going real slow, but got him there. Here are a couple of shots when we went to MT to have a bearing replaced, and they didn't seem to think any thing about the extra 60/70 pounds of gear hanging off the rear.......

[1550vt]

Oh yes....if you know what your have "under the hood" in terms of a good hitch....you can load that rascal down like a rented mule. I built and installed my own receiver hitch and there is no doubt that I could carry a big man all across this country if he can hang on.

Yours looks good. I just think the ones that hang all the way out to the outer edges of the fender and 3-4 feet off the back-end are pushing things a bit too far.

My original objective was to avoid the use of the trailer, but I failed in that attempt. The wife would probably like for me to put a hitch on the rear of my cargo rack so I could take the trailer along too!

[Konrad]

Thanks to everyone for some very good, valuable and interesting information. I'm very much inclined to go with the hitch rack and once I get my completed trike in about 5 weeks, I'll probably be asking for some more specific particulars.

And gee, I didn't know my little town of La Grange was right at the intersection of so many states.

In Texas, south of San Antonio, there is a town that bears my family name: Poth. Try and find THAT in any other state!