Date: Mon, 14 May 2007 10:16:51 -0700
Reply-To: Stephen Grisanti <bike2vcu@YAHOO.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Stephen Grisanti <bike2vcu@YAHOO.COM>
Subject: Re: Racks for Tandem Bikes?
In-Reply-To: <464893E4.70208@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
The cross bars I have dealt with (Thule and Yakima),
even if pushed all the way back in the gutter,
position the bar too close to the roof. Even if it
clears the poptop when down it may not clear when the
poptop is up, so when you look at the van from the
side with poptop up (and down) and hatch open you can
see the spot there in midair where the bar has to be
located.
I planned to investigate some general utility bars
(Quick & Easy, or the brands you find on electricians'
or plumbers' vans) to see if they can be modified.
Welding will likely be required unless I find exactly
what I want. Essentially, most of these hold the bar
directly above the base and in this application the
bar has to be above and offset to the rear. The base
or foot has to clamp to the gutter and the bar must be
about 6" above the gutter and 4-6" back from there.
Stephen
--- Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi Stephen,
>
> How were you planning to modify your crossbar mount?
> If it doesn't
> involve welding, I could give it a try. If it does,
> I'd be happy to pay
> you, or someone else, to modify one. But tandems are
> pretty heavy. If
> the tandem is hung from a fork-mount, the mount and
> the crossbar and
> mounting and gutter would need to be pretty darn
> sturdy, it seems.
>
> I agree with your post about bike being a total pain
> to deal with when
> you're not on them. I love riding, don't ride as
> much as I should, but
> with a tandem, Mrs Squirrel and I can have some fun
> jaunts.
>
> The bike is a no-big-deal Raleigh "Companion." I
> spotted it at a garage
> sale. Only been ridden a few times, but here's the
> thing: it's a small
> frame, and both Mrs Squirrel and I are short. When I
> gave it a test
> ride, it fit me perfectly, so that's rare enough to
> make it worth
> buying. The brakes are just crummy cantilevers, so I
> know we won't be
> doing long downhills.
>
> --
> Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
> 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
> 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical
> Banana")
> 74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan
> Capistrano
> KG6RCR
>
>
>
> Stephen Grisanti typed:
> > You could do what I plan to do on my van; a single
> > gutter-mount crossbar at the rear of the roof
> modified
> > so it clears the raised poptop and the raised
> hatch.
> > You then use a single fork-mount bike holder and
> let
> > the bike hang vertically on the back of the van
> with a
> > bungee holding the rear of the bike to bumper or
> tow
> > hook.
> >
> > Stephen
> >
> > --- Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
> wrote:
> >
> >> Hi Greg,
> >>
> >> Nah, I've never owned or considered getting a
> >> tandem, so the issue of
> >> hauling one has never come up. It's just possible
> >> that I may have asked
> >> about towing a small car with a Vanagon, or maybe
> >> towing the Vanagon
> >> behind a larger vehicle, towing a motor scooter
> >> behind the van, so
> >> trailers may have been discussed at that time.
> It's
> >> possible. But tandem
> >> bikes are an altogether different matter -- I
> know I
> >> haven't beaten this
> >> horse to death.
> >>
> >> The Draftmaster that Stephen pointed out looks
> like
> >> a fine rack. But at
> >> $800, it's four times the cost of this used
> tandem
> >> bike I just got. Gary
> >> Lee's stuff isn't cheap, either. Can't help but
> >> wonder if this was a
> >> plain silly purchase.
> >>
> >> --
> >> Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
> >> 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
> >> 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical
> >> Banana")
> >> 74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San
> Juan
> >> Capistrano
> >> KG6RCR
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Greg Potts typed:
> >>> Hi Mike,
> >>>
> >>> Haven't we been through this already??You need a
> >> trailer.
> >>> Happy Trails,
> >>>
> >>> Greg Potts
> >>> 1973/74/77/79 Westfakia "Bob The Tomato
> >>> www.pottsfamily.ca
> >>> www.busesofthecorn.com
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> On 12-May-07, at 2:22 PM, Michael Elliott wrote:
> >>>
> >>>> I just found a good deal on a tandem bike at a
> >> yard sale. I hope to hang
> >>>> it on the back of Mellow Yellow before our next
> >> camping trip and
> >>>> surprise Mrs Squirrel. I'm looking for a rear
> >> hatch tandem bike rack --
> >>>> not a roof rack, I'm too short to be hauling
> >> stuff up there, and tandems
> >>>> are very heavy. Mrs Squirrel is close to
> useless
> >> when it comes to
> >>>> hoisting heavy items.
> >>>>
> >>>> Does anyone have any recommendations for a good
> >> rack? I saw Gary Lee's
> >>>> stuff at
> >>>>
> >>>>
> >
>
http://www.telusplanet.net/public/gary2a/rack/4bike/tandem/tandem.htm
> >>>> Or maybe someone has a used one for sale, and
> >> could figure out how to
> >>>> ship it to Zip code 92008?
> >>>>
> >>>> --
> >>>> Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
> >>>> 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
> >>>> 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical
> >> Banana")
> >>>> 74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San
> >> Juan Capistrano
> >>>> KG6RCR
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
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> > Looking for earth-friendly autos?
> > Browse Top Cars by "Green Rating" at Yahoo! Autos'
> Green Center.
> > http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center/
> >
>
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