Saris Bones 3 or Bike Porter

swardchill
swardchill Posts: 86
edited September 2012 in MTB buying advice
I need a bike rack and it has come down to these 2, obviously the Bike Porter is quite a bit cheaper but having watched the installation video, it looks a little flimsy (though I may be mistaken), Also do these racks hold the bikes well enough that they don't bang into each other? The bottom line is, is the Bones worth the extra money? Cheers

Comments

  • YeehaaMcgee
    YeehaaMcgee Posts: 5,740
    I've used the Bones for several years, and it's the sturdiest bike rack I've ever had. Admittedly, I haven't used the Bike Porter to compare it, but I can at least tell you some things about the Saris.

    One slight problem with it, is that the seat tube strap that is intended to stop the bikes swaying doesn;t really work with the geometry of most mountain bikes, so what I do is to use a bungee cord around the big aluminium beam in the middle of it, and wrap it around the bikes to stop them swaying. The bikes do therefore touch each other, but they're practically immobilised.
    One really handy thing about the Saris is that it seems to fit literally any vehicle.
    My photos
  • rockmonkeysc
    rockmonkeysc Posts: 14,774
    I have the Bones 3. Never managed to actually fit three bikes on to it though.
    It should fit almost any car but the strap around the seat tube won't fit all bikes though I have managed to come up with other ways of securing bikes using a couple of heavy duty cable ties.
    It carries two 40lb+ downhill bikes with no problems at all, nice & solid.
    Transition Patrol - viewtopic.php?f=10017&t=13070235
  • .blitz
    .blitz Posts: 6,197
    The Bones doesn't work if your hatchback has a plastic roof spoiler. Although most of the weight is carried through the feet that rest on the bumper, two of the straps that stabilise the Bones hook over the upper edge of the hatchback and if there's a roof spoiler it will be under load.

    Works OK otherwise with one conventionally-shaped bike but if there's anything weird going on with your bike frame/shock you will have to comprise and watch it all swaying from side-to-side and bouncing up-and-down in the rear view mirror.
  • YeehaaMcgee
    YeehaaMcgee Posts: 5,740
    .blitz wrote:
    The Bones doesn't work if your hatchback has a plastic roof spoiler. Although most of the weight is carried through the feet that rest on the bumper, two of the straps that stabilise the Bones hook over the upper edge of the hatchback and if there's a roof spoiler it will be under load.

    Works OK otherwise with one conventionally-shaped bike but if there's anything weird going on with your bike frame/shock you will have to comprise and watch it all swaying from side-to-side and bouncing up-and-down in the rear view mirror.
    Worked fine with my old 306, which had one of those funny little hard rubber spolier things on the top of the hatch.
    And we've got 3 very peculiarly shaped bike on it, nay problem. Just use the bungee cord like I said to stabilise them.
    My photos

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