Perfect for hauling eBikes
Is this the best hitch rack for electric bikes? The 1Up Super Duty hitch rack is the most burly, well-built bike rack we’ve ever used. Rated for up to 100lbs per tray in either a single or double tray orientation, with room for two add-ons.
The Super Duty is the durable bike hauler we’ve been waiting for. What’s new? With some redesign here and there the user experience is elevated and operation is 10x easier to load and unload. There’s plenty to learn about the new Super Duty rack from 1Up and we’ll share our thoughts.
OUR SETUP
The Lab
The New Super Duty rack has key upgrades from it’s predecessor. The most notable being the quick release lever to release the arms. To us, this is the most important update and the primary reason we struggled with being all in on 1Up racks in the past.
Ease of use is a crucial detail when using racks, especially after a long ride and you’re trying to load things up quickly to get home. This new release lever allows single hand operation of the arms. By pressing the red lever in and rotating the mechanism upwards, it releases the ratch mechanism to allow the arms to slide freely out of the way.
When assembling the Super Duty you can choose between different wheelbases to accommodate longer or shorter bikes. Equally adjust the height of the wheel bar on the arms is just as easy. This allows for tire sizes from 16″ up to 29″.
The Super Duty not only can fit up to 5″ wide tires, but each tray has a capacity of up to 100 lbs in single or double tray orientation. As you increase the trays, each tray beyond the second one will see a payload decrease.
Nice and snug. Tension on the arms holding the tires is very tight preventing bars from bouncing back and forth and allow the bikes to hit each other. Additionally the Anti-Wobble mechanism in the hitch keeps the rack very snug with very minimal bounce while driving.
The Super Duty is made of an all aluminum construction for a very clean and precisely machined look. It’s robust and sturdy while presenting rather minimally.
Down the road
Starting at $600 for the single tray option, the Super Duty rack quickly starts increasing in price. This shouldn’t be the target of focus when looking at 1Up for a new rack. We find plenty of quality bike racks all in the same price points.
1Up does a great job at offering plenty of accessories to ensure ease of use and security. We opted for the V Style Ramp and wheel chock to accompany our double tray with single tray add-on.
Now most of the time our bikes are around 50lbs and typically we aren’t shuttling more than two around. However, we are no stranger to 60+ lbs eBikes and using the ramp and wheel chock are almost essential to load and secure the bikes in place.
Up front I found myself not convinced on needing a third tray. I have a truck if I need more space. However I found that when using my Four Wheel Camper, I wasn’t able to take advantage of the first tray on the rack. Now my choices were either a hitch extender (which is less the ideal), or mount the third tray to still be able to travel with two bikes. I found this to be a great hack and effective way to utilize the single tray add-on.
1Up has other Add-On options as well, not exclusive to hauling bikes. One that makes the most sense to us for many people is the Cargo Add-On. While we haven’t had a chance to try it out, it’s hard not to comprehend how practical and valuable it could be as an Add-On to the rack.
When it comes to loading and unloading the Super Duty, the new ratchet release mechanism is the real talking point. Previously on 1Up racks to release the arms it was a required two hand operation. Now you can easily release the lever and freely move the arm out of the way. Freeing up one hand to hold the bike in place.
While driving down the road the bikes stay snug in place and the wheel chock only keeps things tighter for the heavier eBikes we’re hauling around.
All in all, the Super Duty rack is significantly overbuilt. In a good way. Machined aluminum construction, quality hardware, and a quality finish, the Super Duty is a work of robust art. Starting at $600 we urge you to not get caught up with the sticker price when considering your next rack. When it comes to hauling heavy (and expensive) eBikes around the last thing you want to deal with is a flimsy rack that can handle the weight.
Price: Starting at $600
Capacity: 1 – 4 Bikes; 100lbs per tray
Colors: Black, Silver
Website: 1up-usa.com
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