When we think vacuum sealed bike racks, our thoughts immediately go to SeaSucker. That’s because the brand has been doing the suction cup thing for years, and for the most part has had very little competition. But now, a new start up called Kupper Mounts is pumping up their own vacuum-based rack system.
Simply called the Kupper Mount, the rack won’t quite challenge the Sea Sucker Hornet as the “world’s smallest bike rack” (which has been updated quite a bit since we last posted about it), the Kupper Mount is a very compact way to transport your bike. Unlike the Hornet which carries your bike upside down by the handlebars, the Kupper Mount is an upright carrier with a fork mount up front and a simple wheel strap out back.
The finished products will ship with a case (not the one pictured above), the two rack pieces, a pedal-stay velcro strap for securing the crank, a cam strap, and a security tether.
Like SeaSucker racks, Kupper Mount attaches to a flat spot on your vehicle by pulling a strong vacuum by using the integrated pump. However, it should be mentioned that while the Kupper Mount does use a larger 10″ vacuum cup up front, it still is just one cup. SeaSucker doesn’t sell an upright bike mount that uses less than three cups up front which gives the racks a wider bracing angle for more support (while also adding redundancy in case a vacuum seal fails).
Remember that these racks usually rely on the strength of your vehicle’s sheet metal, so you might be limited to where you could place the Kupper Mount without buckling the roof – however, it can also be used on a window to be used on the back of the vehicle as well. They also state that it’s only good to elevations of 5,000 feet, which would put a lot of mountain dwellers in the danger zone.
If those concerns don’t bother you, the Kupper Mount could be a convenient way to carry your bike without resorting to a permanently mounted rack. Pull it out of your bag, pump it up on the roof, and attach your bike and go. The Kupper Mount should be compatible with thru axles as long as you add the correct fork-mount adapter, and the rear wheel strap is said to fit most wheel and tire sizes up to 3.0″.
Currently available through a Kickstarter pre-order, pricing is $99 per single bike rack at the moment, with the finished product expected to be delivered by December. At the moment, Kupper Mount still has roughly $23,000 to meet their funding goal, with 15 days to go.
