General Cycling Discussion - Bike Mount Questions

Hey Guys I am a student in the Industrial Design program at Auburn University and have just gotten into the sport of mountain biking. This semester I am taking and open design studio and have chosen to design a new type of bike rack for trucks. I have put together a few questions and topics to aid my design. If you don't mind taking a few minutes and discussing these topics I would greatly appreciate it.

Don't feel obligated to respond to all the topics or questions any information will help.



Which would you prefer a quick release mount or a permanent mount to the body of the truck. Why or why not

What are you thoughts on having to take the wheel off vs. leaving the wheel on.

Bed mount vs. Hitch mount style carriers.

When loading a bike in the back of a truck what problems might you face or do you face?

Are there any security concerns of leaving mounted bike and unattended?

If a piece has to remain on the bike frame during the ride is this a negative (will not interfere with rider during ride and will be light weight and small)?

Thanks for your time

My preference would be for a secure and lockable quick release type of rack. It would probably always be on but would need to come off quickly for other needs in the back of the truck. Leaving the wheels on would be a plus but not a deal breaker. Bed mounts make more sence to me. I would not want any extra parts on the bike at all.

Hey Guys I am a student in the Industrial Design program at Auburn University and have just gotten into the sport of mountain biking. This semester I am taking and open design studio and have chosen to design a new type of bike rack for trucks. I have put together a few questions and topics to aid my design. If you don't mind taking a few minutes and discussing these topics I would greatly appreciate it.

Don't feel obligated to respond to all the topics or questions any information will help.



Which would you prefer a quick release mount or a permanent mount to the body of the truck. Why or why not
I'd like a QR, because I use my truck for other things, but it doesn't have to be instant. Something I could install/remove in a couple of minutes would be fine.

What are you thoughts on having to take the wheel off vs. leaving the wheel on.
Doesn't matter to me as long as there's a secure place for the wheel.

Bed mount vs. Hitch mount style carriers.
Bed mount. A hitch mount means I need a hitch, which I don't have and don't want to pay for. Also, bikes hung off the back are susceptible to damage and vandalism

When loading a bike in the back of a truck what problems might you face or do you face?
None in my mini-pickup. Guys who drive Compensators (jacked-up, fire-breathing weenie supplements) probably have issues with liftover height and reaching to the middle of the bed.

Are there any security concerns of leaving mounted bike and unattended?
Sure. I always worry when the bike's hanging out in public. I don't see a way to eliminate that at an acceptable cost in money, convenience and weight, though.

If a piece has to remain on the bike frame during the ride is this a negative (will not interfere with rider during ride and will be light weight and small)?
A negative, but maybe not a big one if the rest of the system works well.
Thanks for your time

And there you go...

... 1 Which would you prefer a quick release mount or a permanent mount to the body of the truck. Why or why not

2 What are you thoughts on having to take the wheel off vs. leaving the wheel on.

3 Bed mount vs. Hitch mount style carriers.

4 When loading a bike in the back of a truck what problems might you face or do you face?

5 Are there any security concerns of leaving mounted bike and unattended?

6 If a piece has to remain on the bike frame during the ride is this a negative (will not interfere with rider during ride and will be light weight and small)?
...

1 permanent - it must slide completely away when not in use similar to this, be lockable (secure front and rear wheels AND frame) and have space for bikes for ALL passengers (no. of seats = no of bikes)

http://cache.gizmodo.com/assets/resources/2006/10/opelbike.jpg

2 Leave the wheels on - minimum inconvenience/time when loading/unloading the rack

3 hitch mount - bed/trunk should be clear to carry anything other than bikes (cooler, spares, bags, pets, etc)

4 not many/any - unless it's a really tall truck/car and the bike wieghs more than 25kg

5 as long as all major parts can be locked securely to the body of the truck then there should be no security concerns beyond removing QR seatposts

6 absolutely - no extra bits, especially anything that could potentailly fall off and be lost resulting in a either a bike inside the car or a wait for some help from someone with a bigger car

Which would you prefer a quick release mount or a permanent mount to the body of the truck. Why or why not

Removable. It doesn't have to be "quick release" but I use the truck for hauing dirt, mulch and other nasty stuff that I wouldn't want fouling up my bike rack if it were a permanent fixture of the truck.


What are you thoughts on having to take the wheel off vs. leaving the wheel on.

Depending on price, I'm flexible.


Bed mount vs. Hitch mount style carriers.

Hitch mount. "My" truck really belongs to my grandmother (it was my grandfathers before he passed away) but I am seriously considering adding a hitch to my company car (4dr. Stratus) because I think a hitch rack would be much better than the trunk rack i use most of the time right now. If you are looking to actually bring this product to market there are lots of cars, SUVs, vans, and RV's that have hitches so yu'd have a wider consumer base than strictly truck driving cyclists.


When loading a bike in the back of a truck what problems might you face or do you face?

ofte the bike is muddy if I've been mountain biking. I cant really think of any other problems in this area?


Are there any security concerns of leaving mounted bike and unattended?

My bike is worth a lot of money* and people might try to steal it.

*by "a lot" i mean it would be a financial hardship on my family to replace it if it were stolen.


If a piece has to remain on the bike frame during the ride is this a negative (will not interfere with rider during ride and will be light weight and small)?

Depends on the part. I own several bikes, can I get the part for each of them?

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The only other thing I would offer as a sugestion to someone wanting to "build a better mousetrap" is to remember that many people do multiple types of riding so making your product too specific (just MTB riders who own trucks) will severly limit your 'market'.

I'd prefer the bike rack to be easily removable or not to interfere with other uses of the truck. I'd also like for it not to leave marks or scratches on either the truck or bike.

I don't have a problem with removing the front wheel. A good system that left me leave the wheel on the bike would be better.

I'd prefer bed mount. Actually, I'd prefer a system that let me store the bike inside under a cap or camper shell.

Can't really think of any significant problems with loading a bike in the back of a truck. If you're carrying several bikes, you have to consider handlebar interference among them and it might be necessary to tip the bike to get the saddle in through the rear opening.

Security is one of the reasons that I prefer to carry my bikes inside. It gets them away from the weather and road grime too.

I don't want to have anything extra attached to my bike frame.