TMS T-NS-MRC001 500-Pound Heavy Duty Motorcycle Dirt Bike Scooter Carrier Hitch Rack Hauler Trailer with Loading Ramp and Anti-Tilt Locking Device

Just finished a 1500 mile trip on the East Coast. Traveled everything from dirt/gravel roads in the mountains to I-95 during our trip. I was very impressed with the sturdiness of this carrier. With 4 tie-downs attached to the bike, there was very little movement. The anti-rattle hitch device worked very well and kept everything stabilized and secure. I have a 200cc bike with a curb weight of about 275 lbs. I used magnetic tail lights that I placed in the ramp as the bike did cover much of my tail lights - this definitely made highway travel much safer. My only two slight negatives would be 1.) it would be nice if the anti-rattle hitch piece were welded into the tube, and 2.) a slightly longer ramp. I have a Tacoma with a 3 inch lift and 32 inch tires, and the angle of the ramp is a bit steep. A full size pick up with any lift or oversize tires will probably be even steeper. However, during most loading and unloading situations, I was able to find a small hill that helped decrease the angle of the ramp making loading and unloading pretty easy. But honestly, for the security and stability this carrier provided me, those were very minor issues. I would highly recommend for anyone looking to haul a bike that is in the 300 lb range or lighter.

I mainly use this to transport my 1974 Yamaha TY250 and my 1965 Triumph T100SC which it does with ease. Just attach the ramp, fire up the bike, and stand beside the bike operating the clutch to pull the bike up onto the platform under it's own power. Easy on the little bikes!Now, bigger bikes are more complex. The rack I received will actually hold 600lbs. But, most "factory" tow packages only have a tongue rating of 500lbs, which is why they rate it at only 500. When it's attached to my lifted 2010 Toyota FJ Cruiser, loading the bigger girls is a little more tricky. The ramp is quite short, so if you have even a slight amount of lift, that ramp will be VERY steep. While I have pulled my 1973 BMW R60/5 up under it's own power, it was very sketchy. I've found parking on the street and loading from a raised sidewalk helps lessen the angle on the ramp.On the back of my wife's 2005 Chevy Tahoe (which is much lower than my FJ) it's a little easier to load. The hitch rating on the Tahoe is higher than my FJ, as well, so I can load my 1975 CB750F, which is getting pretty close to that 500lb Mark and could go over that in a "bounce" event. Now, even though the carrier is rated at 600lbs in the documentation you get, I wouldn't trust it for a cross country trek with a 550lb bike on it. So, maybe keep your Goldwing off of it.

I'm not much of a review writer, but I feel others may benefit from a bit about this product.I did receive the 1 page, single sided page of instructions 1/2 of page is images of hardware. Bottom 1/2 includes 4 images with a sentence or two about assembly. I found this product was virtually the same as another product, and it gives a more comprehensive review of assembly here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RruP_vp8G10The assembly which the bike actually rides on consists of 2 major arm parts which look like a large black U. These shapes are bolted to the center rail which slides into the hitch. In the video above, at the 0:29 mark you can see these holes being aligned with the mounting bracket on the center rail. The center rail is a large square tube with thick walls. The parts being bolted to is a square tube as well, but the walls are not as thick. When tightening the center 8 bolts (4 bolts closest to vehicle, and 4 bolts parallel but closer to mounted loading ramp) it is easy to compress the arm metal and have it buckle. The 4 center-most holes on both pieces started to bend w/ <5 ft/lb of torque. The outer 4 holes started to bend with <10 ft/lb of torque. The solution I am going to use is to stack several washers so I can create a cheap spacer about 1" thick. I am going to place it inside the square tube, and then thread the bolts into place. It will be tricky when attaching the second arm, and I will probably use a cardboard shim to hold the spacers in place so I can thread the bolt.Ultimately, I am expecting this will go together well.I believe the engineering could have been more solid with the center 8 bolts as the material is not as thick. This could just be my issue with overtightening, but my concern extends to long term use and my plans for long distance highway hauls. Specifically, I am concerned with fatigue across time if it can't take a cross load of 5-10 ft/lbs (I realize the bike force would be vertical). However, for my scenario, I believe internal support of the arms at the 8 bolt positions will reduce or eliminate this issue. I am not saying this is what you SHOULD do, but the manufacturers instructions do not say anything about specifications for how tight is tight enough. For me, if I am putting my bike on this thing, I'm going the extra distance, for an additional $5, to make sure the arms have a lower risk of fatigue reduction across time.

Couldn't be happier with the value you receive in this hitch (for the price you're paying.) I haul multiple dirt bikes and dual sport bikes that I own including KTM 300 XCW, KTM 450 XCRW, Suzuki DRZ400SM, Yamaha TTR125 and Kawasaki KLR 650 and have never once been concerned about the stability of the system or my bikes. Get yourself a decent set of four ratchet straps and possible four of the "loops" that you can wrap around handlebars, etc to create a good attachment point that won't scratch your bikes and you'll be very happy. The anti tilt feature is excellent and you'll experience very little if any "wobble" of you bike while going through turns or going off road (at a slower speed of course.) For added protection, you may consider wrapping a strap around your rear tire that will secure it to the carrier so that the rear suspension doesn't have a chance to bounce the rear tire off of the carrier frame. Very happy with the purchase and I'm sure you will be too. Highly recommended, several of my friends have also purchased these since seeing the quality I received for the small amount of money spent.