I have a bike rack that I personally fabricated out of a combination of parts I had at my house. I had a 10 year old HD cargo carrier (rated for 500 lbs) that I never used anymore because it was so massive but has a very cool feature of being able to swing away for tailgate access and also fold up when not in use. Can't find that specific cargo carrier online anymore but it's sort of like this one: http://www.etrailer.com/Hitch-Cargo-Carrier/Rage-Powersports/SC500-AL105.html
I also had 4 bike trays from U-Haul (called Saferacks, now discontinued) that I've used for years on Yakima cross bars and these I bolted onto the modified cargo carrier.
Basically I cut the steel mesh and outer edge off the cargo carrier so it only had the frame including the 3 steel bars that supported the cargo carrier and bolted them on.
I don't believe there's anything like this available on the market today which is why I went this route since I needed the swing away option and it had to handle downhill MTBs so the traditional swing away bike rack like the Thule Apex wouldn't cut it.
Neither the cargo carrier nor the U-haul Saferack trays are still available for sale though the bike trays are remarkably similar to the ones 1UPUSA makes http://www.1upusa.com/product-rooftray.html. As far as a cargo carrier the closest thing I've found is that one in the link above from etrailer.
The rack is very sturdy (and heavy). The original cargo carrier alone was 110 lbs, after cutting off the steel I cut and putting the 3 aluminum bike trays on it's likely 80-90 lbs. Not something my wife would be taking on and off the vehicle but since it folds up it's rather simple for me to pick up and put onto the hitch. It's solid steel which accounts for the weight and has a massive grade 8 bolt where it swings away so it can be swung out with all 3 bikes on it and I'm talking 3 downhill bikes which are 40-45 lbs each. The trays are also adjustable to fit 24" or 20" kid's bikes or even road bikes and wide enough to fit a 3" wide MTB tire which is very big. Probably can't fit the newer balloon tire MTB since those tires are 4-5" wide. The bike trays also only touch the tire on the bike so no worry of any scratches or component damage to your nice bikes. Total weight of rack plus 3 DH bikes would be 210-220 lbs which is in the tongue rating of any 2" hitch receiver, not sure if I'll need an extension to clear the spare tire when I move this to my wife's Jeep. Here are some pics:
Here are some pictures of it on my truck:
I also had 4 bike trays from U-Haul (called Saferacks, now discontinued) that I've used for years on Yakima cross bars and these I bolted onto the modified cargo carrier.
Basically I cut the steel mesh and outer edge off the cargo carrier so it only had the frame including the 3 steel bars that supported the cargo carrier and bolted them on.
I don't believe there's anything like this available on the market today which is why I went this route since I needed the swing away option and it had to handle downhill MTBs so the traditional swing away bike rack like the Thule Apex wouldn't cut it.
Neither the cargo carrier nor the U-haul Saferack trays are still available for sale though the bike trays are remarkably similar to the ones 1UPUSA makes http://www.1upusa.com/product-rooftray.html. As far as a cargo carrier the closest thing I've found is that one in the link above from etrailer.
The rack is very sturdy (and heavy). The original cargo carrier alone was 110 lbs, after cutting off the steel I cut and putting the 3 aluminum bike trays on it's likely 80-90 lbs. Not something my wife would be taking on and off the vehicle but since it folds up it's rather simple for me to pick up and put onto the hitch. It's solid steel which accounts for the weight and has a massive grade 8 bolt where it swings away so it can be swung out with all 3 bikes on it and I'm talking 3 downhill bikes which are 40-45 lbs each. The trays are also adjustable to fit 24" or 20" kid's bikes or even road bikes and wide enough to fit a 3" wide MTB tire which is very big. Probably can't fit the newer balloon tire MTB since those tires are 4-5" wide. The bike trays also only touch the tire on the bike so no worry of any scratches or component damage to your nice bikes. Total weight of rack plus 3 DH bikes would be 210-220 lbs which is in the tongue rating of any 2" hitch receiver, not sure if I'll need an extension to clear the spare tire when I move this to my wife's Jeep. Here are some pics:
Here are some pictures of it on my truck:
