Truck Bed Bike Rack

I love a good rack...

But I would probably lean to something home made.  Probably a 2x4 with the standard front fork type clinchers.  (So you have to take the front wheel off).  I would probably need to figure out a way to secure the 2x4 though, obviously.  I would just want to be able to quickly remove it if I need the truck to move wood or other big items that I don't want to rest on the clincher/brackets.

Either with one bike I lay it down on its side under the BEDCOVER and be done with it.

Or with two bikes I strap one on each side with simple racthed load ties (cover needs to be removed)

I have had my truck for about two years and have been using it to transport my bike to races and group rides.  I like the fact that it sits inside my bed so some tailgater won't mess it up.

I simply bolted a front fork clamp unit to the front lip of my truck bed far enough inboard so the rear tire cleared the wheel well  but not too far that I could not easily load/unload the bike from the side.

I drilled two holes down through the liner and the metal of the lip and used lock washers and lock nuts to make sure it would not shake loose.

It is a little tricky holding the washer/nut in place underneath the lip (I dropped it a few times so you want to do this on a flat surface so they don't roll away.

This way the clamp unit is always on my truck but it does not get in the way when I go to the Home Improvement store.

I also run a bungee cord from a rear tiedown over my seat post and attach it to one of my clip in pedals to prevent the bike from bouncing while in the bed.

I made a stand shaped like a U (a flat U) out of 2x4's.  Then I screwed Rocky mounts fork mounts into the 2x4.  I lined mine up with the long way of the bed.  And the bikes face the back end.  I only have two in there, but you could fit at LEAST three across.  And then you could probably have a second rack on the other side of the bed (say, close to the cab) and put a couple of bikes facing the other way...

I researched a lot of options and this was really the best one.  It's a bonus that you can take the 2x4's out easily and still use your bed to haul stuff.....

I will say that this only really works SECURELY if you have a camper top. My 2x4 isn't screwed into the bed at all.  So if I didn't have a camper top someone could come along and take the whole ensemble out.  If you're just using it to get from point A to B and never plan to leave the vehicle unattended then it would be OK to not have a topper.  I can't really think of a good way (other than making it permanent and screwing it down) to secure the 2x4 to the bed...

My buddy attached his with a steel bar underneath the bed cover to which the fork mounts are attached. It is reasonably secure (also has some hooks in the back where you can attach a lock to the rear wheels) for being out in the open. You also get to keep complete functionality of the cover so long as you don't mount them too close to the cab.

Ivthhme---what I do is take a 4X8 sheet of plywood and bolt as many Delta Bike Hitch Pro 2 Locking Fork mounts ($18. ea) I need to it.  Mine has 6 mounts on it.  That way when I need to haul lots of bikes I just slide the sheet of plywood into the truck bed. Rest of the time I just store the plywood in the garage. Hope this helps

I use Rec Rac. It takes me 10 seconds to load or unload my bike. You can also order some adapters to carry more than one bike.

Every race I go to, someone sees me unload my bike and said they have never seen anything like that before.

And to top it off, I even drive a mini monster truck!

http://www.recrac.com/

This is what I did also, can fit 4 bikes on my set up and it cost me about $25 bucks. Very sturdy.

Google "Thule".......they specialize in bike racks/mounts.  I think I paid about $260 CDN. for mine.  It will carry two bikes but can expand to hold a third/fourth. 

cheers