Want to help a friend out with putting up a proper hook for his bike. He's got one of the standard budget hooks from a hardware store--the large, rubber-laminated c-hook with threading on the end. Before I chew up his plaster wall with my drill, I thought I'd check here to see if these are good enough for wall-hanging a bike (NOT ceiling). Do these thing bend if weight is put on them laterally? I realize attaching them to a 2x4 can be better, but can I get away with doing it straight into the wall? Anyone done this with or without problems?

If he has wood studs, this will be fine. There's plenty of strength so bending isn't the issue, but make sure you drill and screw into the center of the stud. A stronger attachment would be to use a foot of 2x4 placed vertically on the wall to spread the load, with the hook attached in the lower quarter. The 2x4 can be screwed to the stud, or mounted with hollow wall anchors.

Alright, thanks. His wall's solid plaster, so I can't tell where the studs are at all--the plaster might be over concrete or brick, I'm not sure.

Curious, though--if I use a vertically-hung 2x4, I'm going to have to account for space for the hanging wheel to contact the actual wall, right? Perhaps it'd be best to use a piece of wood that's relatively short...

So it seems you'll need either solid wall anchors (rawl plugs) or hollow wall anchors but you won't know until you drill. And you'llm almose definitely need the 2x4, except if it's a solid wall and you have the right expanding anchor to match your hook.

The reason for the 2x4 is two fold. One it'll reduce the jiggle on when the bike is mounted and removed which may eventually loosen the hook, and it nicely spreads the load cutting the chance of an anchor pulling out.

As far as the effect on the wheel touching the wall goes, either mount the hook as near to the center as possible while still allowing clearance below, or lengthen the 2x4 to extend to where the wheel touches the wall.

Huh. Alright. This all makes sense. Thanks.

Why not buy a stud finder instead of guessing.
Just my 0.02 cents

I'll send you a bill for my design fee. BTW- it might be easier to buy a ready made hook made for this job, with two mounting holes like one of these. I have a few (new) and can give you a great deal if you're interested.

May or may not help depending on the walls. Stud finders work great with sheet rock walls, but are virtually useless with wet walls that use steel lathe, or wet walls over cinder block or the like. The OP thinks he has wet walls either solid or hollow.

If his wall is hollow with wood lath behind the plaster, you really need to screw into a stud. The wood lath will only be about 1/4 in thick, not enough for the hook to anchor into even if you are lucky enough to get the hole into the lath and not into the gap between them. Another problem is that the wood lath will flex a little from the bike's weight and the jarring of hanging the bike. The flexing will eventually lead to the lath separating from the plaster. The result is that the plaster cracks and pulls away from the wall. If you have plasterboard behind the plaster the plaster won't pull loose from it, but the plasterboard won't hold the hook. The better way to solve the problem is to use a 2x to bridge across two studs. If all else fails for locating the studs, drill a small hole behind where the 2x will be located and insert a small diameter stiff wire (coathanger) to feel for the stud location. Measure distance left and right of the hole and you'll locate the inner sides of the studs. Be sure to allow for centering the hole into the stud. Also, for safety's sake, borrow a studfinder that also detects live electrical wires. You really don't want to drill into a live wire inside the wall. Even if you don't get shocked or start a fire, it becomes a major headache to repair.

Walt