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Swagman Mounts Up New Roof Rack Mounts, Truck Bed Options, and Thru Axle Adapters

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Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (7)

When you think of bike racks, Swagman probably isn’t one of the first brands that comes to mind. That’s not because the company doesn’t have a history however, as Swagman claims to have brought the first hitch mounted bicycle rack to North America. Originally from Australia where everything in nature is out to kill you and you have to drive burly vehicles to survive the outback, the founders got the idea and brought it back to North America in 1989. After a good run the company was sold to Perry Grago in 2008 which started the process of refining their product and returning to a competitive place in the market.

Now with 17 new products, 2015 is their biggest launch of new models yet hinting towards great things to come. Based in Penticton BC, Canada, Swagman is expanding heavily with a new line of what they consider class leading roof mounts, truck accessories, and more…

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (6)

There are basically two categories when it comes to roof racks – wheel-on and wheel-off. To satisfy the wheel-on requirement, Swagman is offering their new zero frame contact Skyline mount. Holding the front wheel in place with a ratcheting arm, the rack will fit wheels from 20-29″ including 5″ wide fat bike tires. All of the racks shown here were still prototypes, but the final version will have an integrated locking cable to keep your bike safe. Thanks to a universal mounting system, the Skyline and other premium roof mounts from Swagman will fit everything including round, square, and 2.5″ oval bars but will not fit the Nissan roof racks with the large round bars.

Ratcheting straps at both end of the rack keep everything in place and also will have no problem fitting around fat bike tires. Available in April, the Skyline has a 35 lb max bike weight and will retail for $200.

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (8)

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (10) Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (9)

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (1)

In the same family of the upright, Swagman’s new Enforcer provides a smart solution for fork mounted bike transportation. Also a prototype, Swagman pointed out that all of the production racks will be black with green straps similar to the look of the Skyline, not the silver and black shown here.

While the Enforcer’s fork mount does not lock like some other racks on the market (the QR will be able to lock, the thru axle will not) , the design does include a simple but effective adapter system to fit QR and 15mm thru axle forks and will have a 20mm adapter sold separately. The aluminum tube spacer is held in place with a set screw in the center channel which makes changing it a breeze. This of course means future axle standards are easy to adopt which includes fat bikes. Swagman’s sales director Dave Michael tells us that fat bike adapters are planned, but they are still trying to decide on what size to produce.

Also fat bike compatible and universal in fit (45 lb limit), the Enforcer will come in at $150 and starts shipping in April.

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (15)

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (16)

If you already have a fork mount rack that doesn’t adapt to thru axles, Swagman has you covered with their new Spire. The Extruded aluminum design is super stout and fits right in to most fork mount carriers. Instead of choosing a single standard, the Spire uses threaded adapter cups which allow you to change from 15 and 20mm with future options available for fat bikes, etc. The Spire and 15/20mm cups will sell for $65.

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (4)

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (5)

Those of you looking for something to mount to your truck bed may want to check out the new Patrol locking fork mount kit. The telescoping design quickly fits to your truck bed and then is able to be fine tuned with the locking rotation dial. Once dialed in to nearly any size truck bed, the lock prevents it from being removed and the Impakt fork mounts have their own 9mm locking skewers which should keep your bikes safe (they also use the same adaptable design as the Enforcer for thru axles). All four locks are keyed a like, and while the rack includes two Impakt fork mounts, depending on the size of your truck additional mounts can be added.

The production Patrol will be black, and available in April for $240.

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (11)

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (14) Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (13)

Prefer to just toss your bikes in the truck? Anyone looking for a feature packed tailgate pad should check out the new Tailwhip. Available in mid size or full size, the Tailwhip offers improved coverage over other designs and features an oversized access port to reach the lift gate handle on most trucks. The waterproof outer is made from ballistic tarpaulin and the underside will have a soft finish to protect the paint as much as possible. Inside you’ll find high density foam to protect your truck from dents and the pad uses Nylon webbing instead of Poly for better durability.

If you plan on getting rowdy up the shuttle road (or off) the Tailwhip even has a built in daisy chain with Velcro straps to keep up to 5 bikes in the truck. Available in March, the well thought out Tailwhip will retail for $100.

Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (2) Swagman racks hitch roof mount truck pad thru axle adapter 2015 (3)

Swagman will also have some new options for more casual riders including the new Gridlock trunk rack. With a focus on ease of installation, the 3 bike rack has new anti-sway cradles and will retail for $140. Elsewhere in the line Swagman will be beefing up their fat bike compatibility with new trays for the Quad 2+2, G10, and XTC2 in March.

swagman.net

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Buddy
Buddy
9 years ago

I like the rack that holds the front wheel with the sidearm . . . . wait. . . . . sidearm . . . . Oh yeah, Thule already makes the exact same thing – and its called the sidearm. In fact, Yakima and Thule already make everything described above. Oh well, welcome to the party Swagman – I mean, welcome back?

john hansen
john hansen
9 years ago

Buddy,

As far as the truck rack goes thule and yakima make nothing close.
The swagman is far and above nicer looking than what others offer.
as far as you stating the others make everything described above…
lets look at the common cheeseburger.
McD’s, Burger King, Wendys, Carls Jr., sonic, whattaburger, white castle, jack in the box, the list goes on for days… its nice to have choices dontcha think?

mateo
mateo
9 years ago

Gotta agree with Buddy on that first rack. Looks like a near 100% copy of the Thule design.

bent
bent
9 years ago

the first rack is not a direct copy of the thule. swagman added another wheel strap for complexity’s sake.

bent
bent
9 years ago

i should have said something nice as well. the tailgate pad does look well thought out, and has some features i appreciate.

Judd
Judd
9 years ago

Got to agree with John. I have T2’s on my car rack and the T2 hitch rack. I also have the Yakima bed pad. While the arm looks very similar to the T2 the Swagman tray looks much more sturdy. How much different can you really get with the arm too. Its an arm that has to go over the wheel. Not a whole lot of options there. The arm pivot is much cleaner and I like the front wheel strap. Even pulling the arm down as tight as you can get it on a T2 there is enough wind force to pull the wheel up and make it dance around in the tray. Not enough to loose it but its not exactly comforting to look up and see the wheel moving around in the wind. The through axel fork mount is nice and the bed rack looks to be a long stronger then what Thule or Yakima have. I would also switch out my Yakima pad for the Swagman any day. I hate that my Yakima doesn’t have some tie downs. This one is even a step above the Dakine with the ability to change position. Its nice to finally be getting more options.

wobble
wobble
9 years ago

Bigger wheels rejoice. Thule and Yak max out with a 29×2.5 tire and 29+ don’t fit. I guess with racks size matters. The other big wheel grabber is made by 1Up.

Marty
Marty
9 years ago

I have been in the market for a new bike rack that would work for the summer XC/freeride bike and the winter fat tire bike. It’s great to see there are now more options than just Thule & Yakima racks that are now looking to incorporate mounting options for the wider wheel and/or different axles. So far Swagman keeps coming up as probably best bang for your buck for rack with multiple options that suit my specific needs between the brands that I have been looking at.

Marty
Marty
9 years ago

I have been on the search for a new bike rack that will work for my XC/freeride bike and the new fat tire bike. It’s great to see other companies other than Thule & Yakima providing more options that allow flexibility to use one rack for all bike tire widths and axle mounts. So far my search has me leaning towards the Swagman rack system. They probably have the best bang for your buck based on what I have been looking at and pricing out.

Buddy
Buddy
9 years ago

John H. – I should have added the tagline – it might of taken some sting out of my initial comment.

Nonetheless – options are great to have (per the burger comment) – I guess I would be more impressed and less sarcastic if the new options made transporting bicycles easier – more user friendly – cheaper – or was just generally a different take. For me (emphasis on me – only) the ideal setup for all my rides is a roof top fork mount for quick drives and the Yakima Holdup (hitch) for longer drives. These two options covers everything for all my bikes: road, tri, mountain, fixie. So when I see yet another roof top generic rack – I yawn a little. Too be fair, I yawn at Yakima and Thule as well.

Buddy
Buddy
9 years ago

Correction: That tagline would have been (sarcasm implied).

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