I want to bump this thread to get everyone's current sense on hitch extenders. As I noted in this thread
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/vie...=13214&start=0, we added a 1UpUSA hitch mount bike rack to our SMB and are carrying it on the front of the vehicle. While we're quite happy with the new system, there are times it won't work, especially if we're traveling through brush or could otherwise damage the bikes as the front ride leaves them quite exposed.
I'd love a second 1Up rig on our Aluminess swing arm but can't see my way to the $$$s it would cost. Plus, Joyce is in love with the fact that she can get to the bikes with a hitch mount. That raises the possibility of a hitch extender for the rear end. The 1Up can drop back to about -30° but we probably couldn't open the swing arms with the bikes mounted and would need to remove them to access the back of the van or he Aluminess box. That's a disadvantage of the rear mount that we'd have to live with. Plus, there's the hassle of moving everything from the front to the back. OTOH, we'd save several hundred Georges. So, I'm looking at alternatives. There are lots of posts on this topic, mostly several years old, and scattered across various topics; hence, this bump.
I see two key issues wrt a hitch extender: length (to clear the Aluminess gear on the rear) and sway (in the extender itself). What do folks think?
Don