My custom in-bed bike storage solution

[ATXTACOS]

OP I really like the set up and will likely duplicate it. The fact that you don't need locks is brilliant.

Tailgate pads are legit. 13 hours from Austin to Angel Fire all bikes and tailgate fine, NM roads are horrible.
I have a hitch rack for my ebike but agree about the camera, parking and such.

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[Skifletch]

Yeah, in order for the tailgate pad to fail holding a bike, you'd need to have the truck rear end jump close to 26" in the air... physics and such.

 

[entheogen]

Why not just get a tailgate pad?

Personally, I won't be using one due to concerns I have about shuttle wear and lock ability. Granted, the importance of that is down to personal preference and situation. My trails are largely at the end of washboard gravel roads. Without regular cleaning, that dust and dirt is going to get behind the pad and rub the tailgate-- I recall that the Mav has notoriously thin paint as it is. Plus, the bike is a bit more susceptible to the bounces of the truck with a pad. I know some people will chime in they've never had issue with it, but hey, I spent enough on the bike I can justify a couple hundred more on a nice way to move it around.

 

[Jack Crockett]

Why not just get a tailgate pad?

They're perfectly fine options in a lot of ways but they will rub the paint on the bikes and the truck over time. Another big reason was aesthetics, when the bikes are on or off the truck just looks better without a rack or pad. As for taking the wheels on and off, yes it's slower than putting them on a hitch rack or tailgate pad but it's the difference of loading the bike up in 30 seconds versus a minute and 30 seconds. Totally get why my solution wouldn't be for everyone but I'm super happy with the way it looks and functions.

 

[tom_tucker]

I had been wanting to come up with a way to ditch the hitch mounted rack for a while. The hitch rack works well but obscures the back-up camera, makes parking more difficult, hurt mpg with bikes loaded and messed with the aesthetics of the truck on a day-to-day basis. This solution was fabricated using a couple of the Delta Thru-Axle Hitch Pro adaptors and some stock steel pieces from tractor supply. Unintentionally the thru-axles can not be removed from these forks without the tailgate down, so locking the tailgate works as a kind of lock for the rack. Decided to paint the bar black instead of silver as I plan to get a spray-in bedliner soon.

Looks really nice for short to mid range drives. Thanks for sharing, very creative. Overnighters need the bed for gear so use the hitch rack.

I already had a nice hitch rack, so I use that for most trips. Looks like you used the D ring mounts for your setup. I have D rings there on a painted bed with rubber bed mat and tailgate liner. I have been dropping the tailgate and laying the 29er down flat. Then I strap 'er down tight front and back. Unsophisticated but works well for one bike and a short drive.

 

[KenJ45]

Why not just get a tailgate pad?

Because his method is better? lol

Good job on the fab. Its a cool idea. I just don't want to have to pull my wheel every time I go somewhere.

Most decent brand bikes, like his Specialized, it takes literally 15 seconds to remove the front wheel and same to put them back on. So it's not a big deal at all.

 

[azmotoxxx]

I had been wanting to come up with a way to ditch the hitch mounted rack for a while. The hitch rack works well but obscures the back-up camera, makes parking more difficult, hurt mpg with bikes loaded and messed with the aesthetics of the truck on a day-to-day basis. This solution was fabricated using a couple of the Delta Thru-Axle Hitch Pro adaptors and some stock steel pieces from tractor supply. Unintentionally the thru-axles can not be removed from these forks without the tailgate down, so locking the tailgate works as a kind of lock for the rack. Decided to paint the bar black instead of silver as I plan to get a spray-in bedliner soon.

what size bikes are those. Not sure an XL enduro bike would fit?

 

[KenJ45]

I had been wanting to come up with a way to ditch the hitch mounted rack for a while. The hitch rack works well but obscures the back-up camera, makes parking more difficult, hurt mpg with bikes loaded and messed with the aesthetics of the truck on a day-to-day basis. This solution was fabricated using a couple of the Delta Thru-Axle Hitch Pro adaptors and some stock steel pieces from tractor supply. Unintentionally the thru-axles can not be removed from these forks without the tailgate down, so locking the tailgate works as a kind of lock for the rack. Decided to paint the bar black instead of silver as I plan to get a spray-in bedliner soon.

Any chance you can post some parts lists and fabrications instructions for this? lol.

 

[bgn]

Really cool. Great idea. I wish I had the fabrication skills and space to do something like that.

I also use a Raceface T2, used it today in fact. I also used a cheaper pad for a year before this. I don't see any scratches, but the Maverick is an adventure vehicle for me so it's already got quite a bit of them anyway.

It's a cheap Ford at the end of the day, and I'm not going to leave it spotless.

 

[Jack Crockett]

what size bikes are those. Not sure an XL enduro bike would fit?

I don't know but I kinda doubt it. The white is a medium and the blue is a large epic Evo, you could go bigger than the large if you didn't need two bikes back there but this is just about at the limit. You could take your front wheel off and just see if you put it from corner to corner if it'd fit in your bed, that's what I did.

 

[LM42]

Because his method is better? lol



Most decent brand bikes, like his Specialized, it takes literally 15 seconds to remove the front wheel and same to put them back on. So it's not a big deal at all.

I don't disagree. My SantaCruz is the same. I just don't want to do it. I had a bar like that in my F150 and Ram. But when I got the Mav I just went to a tail gate pad.

 

[Jack Crockett]

Any chance you can post some parts lists and fabrications instructions for this? lol.

You could do this many different ways, what we decided on was a 4ft long piece of 1/4 or 3/8inch thick steel bar 2 inches wide from Tractor Supply. Then it was welded to two pieces of angle iron cut to act as L-brackets, three inches tall. What is not shown is inside the wall of the bed, a second piece L-bracket similar to the one welded to the cross bar, but with nuts welded to it, that is what the bolts go to on the outer angle iron. We made those first, cutting them narrow enough to pass into the space through the wiring door directly above. Held them in place and outlined the existing holes in the bed to center the holes where the nuts would go. We used M8 bolts and had to drill out the existing holes to a larger diameter. Once we had the plate inside the wall of the bed lined up and drilled we determined where the hole in the outer plate would need to be to pass a bolt through snugly. After that we welded the cross bar to those (you could use bolts here instead, or if you had a longer bar and were careful perhaps you could bend the cross bar to 90 degrees on both ends instead). The Delta Thru-axle pro hitch mount is aluminum, so we made a L-bracket to bolt to that, so that we could weld it in place. You could just bolt the delta part down to the crossbar, but you would need to raise it further from the bed to fit the bolt head or nut. Lastly we attached the thru-axle pro hitch mount to the bike, and put the bike in the bed with the cross bar installed, found out where we wanted it positioned and marked the location on the crossbar, took everything apart and welded it in place. The Delta Thru-axle parts could absolutely be fabricated as well if you wanted, but I had already bought them. The other materials totaled around $60-80, the delta parts were I think $60 each. The most time consuming parts of this was definitely fitting the two L-brackets.

 

[DesertSweat]

Very cool.

But I have a hitch mount if need be (stays on my HR-V) and a Raceface pad for family trips. Can fit 5 bikes, and because the wheels are over the tailgate, still room for luggage in the bed.

That's just my preference. But it's good to see different options.

 

[AutobahnSHO]

The most time consuming parts of this was definitely fitting the two L-brackets.

Someone could probably sell a lot of these bars and L-brackets, without the bike attachments- for people to do custom stuff with them. Plus build another width for the front of the bed, too!

 

[billbillw]

They're perfectly fine options in a lot of ways but they will rub the paint on the bikes and the truck over time. Another big reason was aesthetics, when the bikes are on or off the truck just looks better without a rack or pad. As for taking the wheels on and off, yes it's slower than putting them on a hitch rack or tailgate pad but it's the difference of loading the bike up in 30 seconds versus a minute and 30 seconds. Totally get why my solution wouldn't be for everyone but I'm super happy with the way it looks and functions.

I get your point, and agree with most of it...but I don't think I could get a wheel from the back of the truck, drop the tailgate, undo the mounting thu-axle, get the wheel aligned with the disk inside the pads, put the thru-axle in and properly torque it in 90 seconds.

Maybe you can...I couldn't though...

Your method does look slick, but me-thinks it also requires some welding skills that many of us don't have. Also think 3-bikes is out of the question (which is what I need when I take me and both kids out.)

Thanks for sharing though...I'm sure it will inspire others.

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