# scooter racks - which one?



## 93408 (May 1, 2005)

:?Hi, anyone help with my choice on what scooter rack to fit to my B Class Hymer? I have investigated on the net and found a product called 'Easylifter' a rack that fits directly on to your tow bar and is detachable when not needed. has anyone used this product, what is your view please?
John T - Hymerman


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## 88726 (May 9, 2005)

hi john
i looked at these at the york show the hydraulic jack one was quite a bit more expensive than the ramp one , i spoke to the guy who makes them and the quality seems very good and design was nice , think you have to check if youre axle can take the load though somebody here has the formula to calculate the effect maybe do a search as i posted prices and stuff last year .
cheers
kenny+stella


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## 88966 (May 11, 2005)

Hi John,
I echo what Kenny has said.
Check very carefully how much load carrying capacity you have and the effect of the weight with your overhang.
I don't know which model Hymer you have but I fitted a scooter rack to a 1991 B644 with the lightest scooter I could find and it practically lifted the front wheels off the ground!!
That model had very little load carrying capacity.
Please check very carefully before spending money.
BillD


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## patr (May 9, 2005)

*scooter racks*

John

See the Easylifter thread earlier on. I bought one at the Stratford show to fit on our B564 and am delighted with it. I fully agree with the overload points and had all the calcs done. We have a Piaggio liberty 125cc which weighs 106kgs and is well in the payload capacity. What tempted us was the sheer quality of the ramp and the ease in which it is mounted, loaded and then taken off. I like the fact that when not in use it can be stored in the garage. We were so impressed that we bought a platform to carry an outboard and inflatable dinghywhich has also been really useful in carrying for example an old machine to the dump. Its a cracking bit of kit and the fact that it is made in the UK is a real bonus. A true test was on a recent trip to Germany where it attracted enormous interest. Vorschprung durch Technik!

Pat and Sue R


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## DABurleigh (May 9, 2005)

Pat & Sue,

1) How rigid (engineering tolerance) is the fixing on the towball? What stops it lifting off?

2) Do you simply lash down the load on the platform and cover it with a tarpaulin?

Chris Harrison of Easylifter has offered to quote me for a detachable rear box to my spec.

Dave


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## patr (May 9, 2005)

Dave

The engineering tolerances are extremely tight and once mounted the rack is very rigid. The quality of the design and manufacture is first class and so adaptable. The main rack tower slides over the tow ball and two lugs connect to a mounting plate which is a permanent fit behind the tow ball. Once the lugs connect there is no lateral movement. Once mounted it is secured by a capped bolt which slides through the main tower, under the bottom edge of the tow ball, and is then held in place by an R clip. You cannot remove the rack unless you slide out the bolt.

The platform we bought has D rings welded all around the frame to take restraining straps and for protection we use a plastic tarp secured with bungees. The only mod we have made to the platform/scooter rack is to replace the supplied lighting board with a wider one fitted with a fog lamp.

It really is a clever design and I am delighted to have found a British product which, like Silver Screens, does exactly what it is designed to do.

Kind regards
Pat and Sue


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## DABurleigh (May 9, 2005)

Pat & Sue,

Thanks. Yes, that is heartening to hear. I saw Easylifter's scooter rack demonstrated at a show and was intrigued then.

Before deciding I'm trying to find out more about the Pro-line detachable rack on page 9 of:
http://www.leisure-solutions.co.uk/ELS.pdf
but they are being very incommunicative and 2 local dealers cited on their website don't even know of their existence! Irritating and frustrating.

But at least Easylifter is offering a sure-fire fallback.

Dave


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## DABurleigh (May 9, 2005)

Pat & Sue,

Regarding Easylifter, did you look up your towbar maximum vertical load? I've asked Easylifter before on this, querying whether towbars can take the 200kg specified, but on reflection I didn't get a straightforward answer.

For most towballs, I was under the impression that 75kg was about the limit. I hope I'm wrong.

Dave


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## patr (May 9, 2005)

Hi Dave

Its a good question and everyone has a different answer. Not being an engineer I do not know what the downward force is on the tow ball and whether it is as simple as the weight of the Scooter and the rack. But 75 kg is an oft quoted nose weight for a trailer for medium to heavy 
cars so I would assume that it is greater for a commercial vehicle. The towball itself must have an enormous breaking strain as the load exerted by a heavy trailer and load must be great. Clearly that strain is horizontal as well as vertical. I do not think that the Easylifter has German TuV certificate but I have seen various German scooter racks which have similar payload ratings with TuV and thus are proven. 

Patr


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## DABurleigh (May 9, 2005)

Pat,

Do the German racks with TUV ratings mount on the towball, or on chassis extensions? And I'm not sure what TUV means in practice. New EU legislation means that the maximum loading for a towbar should be labelled on it, but yours may precede this.

Dave


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## 90136 (May 1, 2005)

Dave, I don't know if it is any help, but when my Easylifter was fitted to the drop plate fitted by the tow bar manufacturer, this was needed in order for the platform to reach the ground, so that my chair could be unloaded, the weight of the whole unit bent the drop plate towards the front of the vehicle, making the load insecure. I got over this by refitting the tow ball to the tow bar, and getting Easylifter to supply a longer post, so that this overcame the problem.


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## patr (May 9, 2005)

Dave

The towbar on our Hymer is a Towsure product which, since 1996, have all been produced to EC approved standards. The mark is displayed on the tow bar. The German racks I have seen, and this includes a Dog kennel which can be mounted on the towbar, are mostly tow ball mounted which without exception are of the swan neck type. There are of course those that mount to chassis extensions but you would then have a permanent rack. The beauty of the Easylifter is that it can be removed from the MH and securely stored as well as the adaptability to take other platforms. The flange mount which is the most common in the UK is the only one which will take the Easylifter mounting bracket and, with the locating lugs and the towball mount, this spreads the downwards load . The German TuV is a testing authority which grants approval to products for sale in Germany. 
Patr


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## DABurleigh (May 9, 2005)

Patr,

This is the one I am currently pursuing. Quickly detachable, light and versatile, but connects to the chassis.

http://tinyurl.com/6or7h

I now see the EC directive for towbars says nothing about permissible vertical and horizontal loads.

Dave


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## patr (May 9, 2005)

Dave
Best of luck with your purchase, it looks a really nice piece of kit. Just check the effort needed to push a scooter up a ramp and then keep it steady whilst you secure it. My back thanks me every time I just wheel the scooter on at ground level, push the padded clamp down over the seat and pump up the rack into position. No ramp to store either plus I know where Easylifter live should it ever go t**s up!

Patr

Silence when you speak to an Officer!


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## 93408 (May 1, 2005)

*SCOOTER RACKS*

Thankyou everyone who replied to question regarding what scooter rack to buy. Since speaking to you last I have done some investigating myself and found the 'easylifter' comes second best to my purpose built scooter rack and towbar fitted by 'Towtal' Stoke. It seems very substantial weighing in at 40 kilos, I just hope that the extra weight plus the scooter doesn't alter the stability of the vehicle.
I have a 5 month old B Class 524 gross weight 3500 kilos, at present I have weighed the vehicle on a local weigh bridge [loaded minus the scooter rack] and find I have 150 kilos to spare, so I'm looking for a scooter [125 cc ] at least as my wife will be joining me hopefully as pillion rider, but with a running weight of around 110 kilos. I have found a scooter that may fit the bill? but would ask for your advise on this one. The scooter is a Piaggio Skipper'. Has anyone owning a Hymer B524 had experience of caring a scooter?
Many thanks - HYMERMAN [JOHN]


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## 89202 (May 16, 2005)

Hi,

before you decided to buy and install a scooter carrier look at this german link about it:

http://www.ahk-preisbrecher.de/2003/wohn/lmasse.htm

A weight of 80 kg just over the rear axle, has a weight already of 100 kg 1m behind this one, and so on...( physic lesson...)
I have an aluminium carrier ( weight 30kg ) for scooter till 135 kg...but than the rear axel is most overload, if you have a mh. with only max.3,5t...
Also look for your tyres if you can load so much...

kind regards,

duc ( leduc)


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## 93795 (May 1, 2005)

Hi Leduc, 'Indulgence please for my bad German'  but could you translate what the table in your link says, I can guess most of it but I, and I'm sure others interested, would like to have an accurate translation.
Many thanks,
Phil.


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## 89202 (May 16, 2005)

Hi,

I will try my best for translate:


A = overhang
B = distance between the 2 axle
C= the difference between max. authorised charge up the rear axle 
and the realy charge on a balance.

D = give the result what you can load on the scooter carrier.

You must give the measure in the cases and it will automaticly evaluate.

Attention: in Germany very often controlling mh. because overloading.. 

kind regards,

duc


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## 93795 (May 1, 2005)

Hi Leduc, thanks for the info, very helpful. the bit that I wasn't sure about was the 'C', my max rack load works out at 126kg and my motorbike weighs 105kg so it looks as if I'm OK. Thanks again.
Phil.


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## DABurleigh (May 9, 2005)

duc,

I must admit I do not understand A.

From the physics, the dimension from the load at D to the rear axle (C) would seem fundamental, but this is not what A is either shown, or described, as.

Dave


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## 93795 (May 1, 2005)

Hi Dave, we meet again, I too thought the diagram was a bit strange and when I worked out my loading I also used the dimension to the centre of the rack where the bike stands and still got an acceptable result but only just. I assume that the people producing the diagram know more about leverage etc. than I do, but I always thought that the distance from back axle to the load was the most important. Learn something new every day.
Phil.


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## 89202 (May 16, 2005)

Hi,

" A " means the end of the chassis, it is most shorter ( exeption ALKO chassis )as the upper cell.
It is easyer mounting a rack on the end of ALKO chassis because the overhang " A " is shorter.
On my old Fiat 280 chassis, the rack holder was 2m long... :evil: 

My rack is lightweigh in aluminium, weight 30 kg+ scooter 125cc with 110kg, in this case my rear axle is overload with more than 100 kg... :evil: 
But I most repeat : a mh. with 3.5t max. load and a scooter with more as 100kg weight, on a rack is often overloading...or you are lucky owner of a 3,85t mh...with higher possible weight on the rear axle...

If some one can read french or german, for me easyer to explain technical questions... :wink: 

with kind regards

duc = leduc


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## DABurleigh (May 9, 2005)

I came across this elsewhere, which seems clear, free of algebraic formulae and calculators:

Front axle unloading = Load*(overhang/wheelbase)
Rear axle overloading = Load +Front axle unloading

where overhang is measured from the rear axle to the center of mass of the suspended load. 

If the overhang is about equal to the wheelbase you'll unload the front by the added weight and put double that weight on the rear axle.

You can compensate a bit depending on how you redistribute the some weight inside the vehicle.

Look at your rear axle weight limit (on the mfgrs info plate) and actually measure it. Hanging a 100kg load off the rear can easily add 200kg to the rear axle.

Dave
indulgence please for only being able to write in a single language!


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