BUFFALO, a gentle looking and also strong, solid and reliable, just what you need from a tow bar bike carrier. The Buffalo is really a decent piece as well as being the best designed and most user friendly bike carrier. Better design, better quality, better safety, overall ease of use.
- These carriers are supplied ready to go; no assembly work is required.
- The patented conical tow ball clamp fits onto all 50mm diameter tow balls.
- Fitting is a matter of spinning a hand-turning wheel, a really quick, easy and ergonomically satisfactory thing to do. Turn the key in the tightening wheel and the carrier is then locked to the tow ball. Another nut is tightened with an integrated handle and then the carrier is held really firmly.
- It’s fine engineering, and strong – the Buffalo has been TÜV approved for 4 bikes to the proposed ISO standard R18-904-4, a standard some way tougher than current requirements.
- Tilting is safer than with most hang-on racks, because you can take the weight of the bikes as you push down on the foot pedal, and there is double tilt stop – a steel loop as well as the reinforced plastic foot pedal. When you lift the bikes back to the vertical, the foot pedal springs back to its closed position, holding the bike weight. A safety bolt, with a hand turning knob, needs to be removed before tilting, and replaced when the carrier is vertical again. This really requires two people when bikes are fitted – one to apply gentle pressure on the bike load so that there is no strain on the safety bolt, and then it can be easily turned.
- The tilt stop is at the optimum angle to allow most tailgates to open, including most vertical tailgates.
- The bike frame holders usually need to be adjusted on the support arms first time out – distances between bikes may vary – before being tightened in place (tool supplied). They have properly padded cradles and long notched straps with a rubber protection for the bike frame. Each strap has a hole in the end, so it’s easy to hold it and pull the strap tight; there’s a quick-release to loosen it again.
- There’s a really neat integrated locking cable; the cable slides into the tubular upright when not in use
- The support arms are 34.2cm apart, outer edge to edge, a distance which will suit the majority of modern frames; we supply a telescopic cross bar for use with non standard frames – see ‘frame adapter’ below.
- There’s a Velcro-fastened sleeve on the upright to protect the first bike, incorporating a tough closed-cell foam pad.
- Two top quality 300cm safety straps are also provided (buckles sewn not crimped). One of these should be threaded through all the bike wheels to prevent swaying and friction damage – it’s up to you to provide any extra protection required – and the other should be passed through all the bike frames and then looped around the carrier.
- The bike holder arms are easily moved from the horizontal to the vertical – ideal for storage or when the vehicle is parked up.
- Dimensions = 84.5cm high from the centre of the ball and 67.0cm deep from ball centre.
- Weight = 9.8kg.
- A lighting board will be needed – see below – there’s even one designed specifically for the Buffalo.
- The build quality – tube bending, welding, rust proofing, painting, component quality – is exemplary.
- Please note that if your vehicle has a rear mounted spare wheel this Buffalo rack is not suitable.
- The maximum permitted load you can carry is also determined by the tow bar nose weight; you will need to check you don’t exceed this before using any tow ball mounted bike carrier.
- Requires 65mm clearance from center of tow ball to rear of vehicle.
- Not suitable for trailers, campers, or RVs
- Capacity: 4 Bikes
- Fitment: 50mm Towball
- Weight: 9.8kg
- Max Load: 60kg
- Bike Weight: 15kg
- Locks: Rack and Bikes
- Dimensions: 84.5cm high from the centre of the ball and 67.0cm deep from ball centre.