rosefarts

Ever had a rack catastrophically fail? Not user error but death from rust?

Mine was kept on the back of a car for years before it was given to me. I have no capacity to bring it indoors currently.

FWIW, it still seems to work great. It does look a little scary. The hitch connection is thick, no worries there. The rest is much thinner and more corroded. What do you think?

Chuck M 

Are those three little holes just above the strap? If so I don't know how much I would trust my bike on it. Maybe it would be okay if it isn't rusted through and you did some rust mitigation and replaced the nuts and bolts.

wolfchild

It's only going to get worse, for now it may just be surface rust but eventually it will rust completely through and make this rack unsafe to use...You can take a screwdriver or a hammer and poke the rusted areas to see if it's solid or rusted through. It all depends how thick the metal is... The hitch area and the strap area are the most critical parts to keep an eye on.

KerryIrons

Go to the hardware store and get some rust preventer paint. It works great and you can protect all the rusty areas. Probably want to hit it with a wire brush first to get rid of the loose paint and rust dust.

wolfchild

Looking at the pictures I would say that spraying rust paint over this is just a temporary band-aid solution...it wouldn't take long before the rust came back through the paint, especially if the rack is left outside.

Germany_chris

Pull it and have it basted and powder coated

KerryIrons

You misunderstand what I'm talking about. An example is Rustoleum Rust Reformer. It chemically bonds with the steel and the rust to eliminate it and provide a primer layer that is painted over with normal paint.

tkamd73 

I have used that stuff before, numerous times. If you leave the rack exposed to the elements after treating, the rust will be back in less then a year.
Tim

rosefarts

It sure seems that once rust starts, pretty much nothing can stop it.

Im trying to decide if this thing is still safe (probably) and for how long (eh?).

I’m currently 2000 miles from my house and garage and won’t be back there for at least a few more months. Otherwise, I probably would take my twisted wire brush on the angle grinder to it, and see what’s left of it.

My best experience with rust was my old scooter when I lived on an island. This was 150cc and I’d gotten it up above 100km/hr. Probably a 200lb bike.

One day it got a little creaky. The next week the handling just felt off. I parked it and was flexing it around and bam, it broke in half. It (barely) didn’t fail on me riding.

drlogik 

It depends how many years you want to get out of this rack. If you want it until the end, then my opinion is you need to totally disassemble, sand/wire-wheel, treat the rust and repaint. Even better, take it and have it stripped and then get it powder coated.

If you just want to stretch it a few more years, then sand the rusty areas, treat with a rust agent, rinse, sand again and spray paint with Hammerite...first the Hammerite primer then the Hammerite paint of your color choice.

In either case, it would be a good idea to spray the inside of the tubes with a rust preventer wax like WaxOyl to help it from the inside out.

Update: In photo 5 is that a welded joint where those two pieces go together? Where the round bar goes through the square bar. If it is, that almost looks compromised. You'll only know if you can send all of the rust off to inspect it.


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Koyote

Ironfish653

A “rust converter” like Rustex and Enrust or a phosphorizing agent like Ospho would be the best option to extend out the life of your rack.

Scrape off the loose paint and any rust flakes , and apply liberally to any exposed metal. Wait 12-24 hours, then prime and paint. I’d use the brush-on Rustoleum, over a spray paint, because you can get more complete coverage and a thicker layer with fewer coats.

Like above, the best you can do is slow it down and buys some more time. I don’t think your rack is in danger of failing within the next couple months, but I’d Enrust it, and keep an eye on it until you get home and can properly overhaul it.

rumrunn6

I'll bet you'll be fine until then. what is your climate? can you apply some protectant of any kind? if it won't be very rainy a spray of wd40 wouldn't hurt it

rosefarts

Lots of rain here, like sooooo much. No salt though, which is what probably killed the scooter I mentioned earlier.

No holes through anything and nothing that I can flex around. So it probably is structurally sound. I recently drove across the country with it, between snowstorms, accidental potholes at speed, and one bout of emergency braking it held up fine. It’s hard not to worry though, considering what would happen to my bike and possibly to the drivers behind me.

I see the Audi’s with their nice shiny silver racks and get a little jealous. Then I look at the price of a double rack ($600-800) and mine looks a lot better suddenly.

Yeah, I’m not planning to keep it until the end of days. The balance is keeping it while it’s still safe but getting rid of it before it’s unsafe.

veganbikes

That was user error to a point. If you leave your rack on your car and constantly expose it to the elements it is not just a random coincidence. A car rack is a safety device realistically yes it also happens to hold bikes but if it fails it can be rather dangerous for those behind you.

The rust is somewhat concerning especially if it goes through to the inside but the real key is any plastic or rubber parts as those will certainly degrade a lot faster with constant exposure to UV rays and changing temps and all sorts of weather. If you do have surface rust you can strip it down and go and get the rack powder coated which will help last a while but if it is going to the inside then the rack is basically done. Yes you can do stuff and cut it out and weld in new metal and yadda yadda but that is expensive and you could just get a new rack from Thule or Küat or Yakima or someone like that.

If you are having issues carrying a rack inside because of weight maybe look at different racks that are a little lighter or find something that has wheels (Thule EasyFold XT is a nice choice) or find some sort of dolley to help wheel it into the garage or apartment or something. If you really have to let it sit out in the elements for some odd reason then try to keep rubber and plastic parts off the rack as you can and if there is exposure to the inside you some sort of anti rust coating like you would on a steel frame bicycle and that will help a bit. Check the rack and check all the straps and everything else regularly and if things change and become loose or seem less secure stop using the rack and have a professional look at it or reach out to the OEM and see what they say. Don't risk the lives of people behind you to "save" money be safe out there so we can all have fun : )

Ttom

Looks like a Rocky Mount rack. How long have you had it. Are you running on salted snow roads?

rosefarts

Not Rocky Mounts. I can’t remember whom, maybe cycle gear or rhode gear or something like that.

So this thing is quite old. I got it from my mother in law after I sold my truck last year. It’s been in her basement for a long time but she had it on the back of her car for years. Lots and lots of miles doing Colorado skiing things, I think that’s Magnesium Chloride but a true ‘Radoan might chime in to correct me.

Its gone from Colorado to Kentucky to Oregon in the last 6 months. Never so much as a hiccup.

I have to chuckle at the absurd suggestion to bring it inside an apartment after each use. Cause these things aren’t dirty or cumbersome at all.

Since starting this thread, I’ve bounced and flexed on it and I simply cannot make it perform in any way less than a new rack would work. That and some replies here have given me confidence. I may look into a more sturdy ratcheting strap for the wheels.

Ironfish653

Pretty much any rack system, the weak parts are going to be the flexible rubber and plastic bits like wheel straps that go first. You'll loose functionality before the frame breaks down structurally. I've had some THULE roof rack trays that saw 25 years of service before I sold them, scratched up and badly faded, but still solid and fully functional.

When I'm riding a lot, my hitch racks stay on the car pretty much full time during the season; makes for one less step for spur-of-the-moment rides. I also have inexpensive, secondhand racks, ( a Hollywood and a Yakima) so I don't mind leaving them exposed to the elements.

Regular checks and occasional P/Ms will give you a good idea what kind of shape it's in. And when it's time to overhaul or replace it.

rosefarts

For an update of sorts.

I spoke to my MIL about it, the rack is at least 20 years old.

I called a powder coat place and asked if they could blast and coat it, with the understanding that if they discovered a dangerous flaw when the paint came off that I’d pay them for the work done and we’d all walk away.

I disassembled it today to bring to them, I was a bit leery of the rust that fell out of the inside of the bars. When I got there, they looked at it and realized that it was going to be double the price they said over the phone. I think this is party because of the amount of rust and partly because there seems to be an awfully big chance of discovering a hard stop during the job.

This brought the price above what a significantly better used rack would cost. And not terribly far away from what a brand new rack would cost at this weekend’s REI sale.

Currently thinking about a KUAT NV 2.0 Base, but am doing a little research over the next couple days.

I’ll be giving away my old rack, if anyone in the Portland area is interested, give me a week or so to make sure I’ve come up with something and I’ll pass it along.

pdlamb

If you're planning to leave the rack on the car for months on end, a new rack is going to start rusting as soon as you put it on your car.

If this is for a limited time, say 3-6 months, I'd suggest attacking the old rack with a screwdriver or ice pick to see how deep the rust is (does it go all the way through one or more structural members?). If it's solid now, I'd leave it on until you leave that city, and only buy a new rack then. You can borrow a drill and buy a new wire brush if you want, clean it up, and hit it with Rustoleum or similar to keep the rust from progressing during that short time if you want. But I don't see any sense in giving rust a head start on a new rack.

ErinKeegan

This bike rack hasn't a very good condition, I also can recommend buying a new one e.g. Swagman upright, the first one https://rackadvisor.org/best-bike-rac...-suv-no-hitch/. I have this and have to admit I was a bit skeptical because of the cheap price. However, these bike racks have been great! I have about 20 hours on the road with these and they have performed well. I am waiting to see about durability and how long the plastic pieces will last.