Saris Bones 3

40sheds · October 2010

Hi,

I'm thinking of buying the above but I have a question.

Are they any good for kids Bikes? I know that I will be able to get mine and the wifes hard tails on them but will I be able to get the daughters bike on too?

She has got one of these

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165630

And I'm worried that it won't go on. I can't seem to find anywhere local that stocks them so I can't go along and have a look.

Thanks

andy46 · October 2010

good rack i highly reccomend it. you may need to get a saris bike beam as well.

it's a bar that goes from the stem to the seatpost creating a longer crossbar.

i got one due to the shape of my full sus, about £30 from Evans.

Halfords do a cheaper version but does not look as strong so i didn't trust it, may be ok for a childs bike though.

hope this helps

Anonymous · October 2010

the kids bike should be ok, the arms that hold the bike are towards the innermost of the rack, so they're fairly close together. You may well need the bike beam as Andy points out though.
I suspect that if a child's bike is too small to fit it, then it would go in the boot of any car no bother at all.

Highly recommend the Saris, great rack, and it fits pretty much any car!

40sheds · October 2010

Hi,

Thanks for the responses.

I'm trying to avoid putting bikes in the boot as I will putting the sons trailer in there along with all the other stuff that comes with taking two kids out for the day.

We have a shogun but I could only put a roof rack on that, due to rear wheel being on back door, and putting the bikes on the roof was a real bind, it was also bloody painful and have lost many layers of skin due to acrobatics required.

Any how I have now bought a focus for running around in with the thought that I can get a boot rack, the whole process will be easier and I will get out on the bike more - happy days.

I have read good reviews about the bones I was just worried that the arms would close enough together before I splashed out.

I have seen them on Amazon for £111 including delivery which looks at bit of a bargin to me.

Anonymous · October 2010

If you want, I'll measure the distance between the arms for you tonight.

But seriously though, a bike that's too small to fit it should have NO problem fitting in a boot.

40sheds · October 2010

Thanks for the offer, that would be great, I will hold off buying them for the time being.

apreading · October 2010

The kids bike will almost certainly be too small to fit on it as intended - with both arms inside the main triangle of the frame. And the bike beam would not help with that necessarily. I found with mine that I was able to rest the bike with the back overhand of the saddle on one arm and between the fork and downtube on the other. A bit of lashing with ropes/bungees or something similar makes it secure.

Not ideal but pefectly doable.

I use the bike beam on my wifes bike because the top bar is very low to give good standover and the bike beam effectively provides the top bar which should normally rest on the bike rack by running from seatpost to headset.

The bike beam wont help if the geometry of the bike is too small to start with - you will be stuck with bodge and secure it with ropes but as long as you do it right this will be OK.

Anonymous · October 2010

There's another alternative, if it doesn't ft.
Make your kid follow you on the bike. No good raising lazy kids now is it?

40sheds · October 2010

I like your thinking, it would probably end up in the divorce courts though. At the minute I'm struggling to see a down side

I think a 'bodge' may be in order, it isn't really that suprising as that's what I normally resort to.

I shall await the measurements though.

Thanks again for the help.

Deputy Dawg · October 2010

I've seen a kids bike hung upsidown with the rack going through the wheels before. No idea how secure it was but the car was doing a good lick down the motorway

Anonymous · October 2010

Sorry, didn't get home till very late last night, and been at work again today.
The distance between the outer edges of the bike-carrying arms on my Saris is exactly 11 inches.
They could be set closer together as well, if you want. However, I reckon Deputy Dawg's idea of hanging it through the wheels is a great one if you run into problems.

40sheds · October 2010

Morning,

Thanks for all the help and advice, I think I will get one ordered this week.

If all else fails hanging it by the wheels is a belting idea, just got to decide what colour now!

Thanks again

squiggs1982 · July 2018

Evening all

I realise this is a long shot given the thread is 8 years old (!) but did anyone ever manage to get a kids bike successfully (and safely) attached to a bones 3?

My 4 year old just took possession of a batman bike (https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/ ... e-16-wheel), which he is over the moon with and I picked up a cheap carerra to get me into the biking habit, understanding it's addictive!

I've also got a Bones 3 as we intend to actually go places with the bikes and our 6 month old, who has a fairly sizable buggy and the various additional parts of the baby ensemble, which takes up our boot space.

The Batman bike won't obviously go on due to the nearly complete lack of space in the frame. Any thoughts or suggestions greatly appreciated!

Cheers
Squiggs

Saris Bones 3

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