DIY In-Bed Mountain Bike Mount

[mcnasty]

Only 2,000 miles on my '23 XLT 302A 3.5L EB 157wb . Still absolutely loving it. Outstanding truck.

With mountain biking season upon us, I had been looking for the right solution to transport our bikes to the trails. I really didn't want an above-bed mount, or a trailer-hitch mount, because I'd like to be able to keep my rig in the garage with the bikes loaded, ready for our early morning departures. Plus, it just seems like I should be able to use the bed of my truck. Side note: @Ford Motor Company should offer an integrated rail system in the front of the bed! Would be so useful for so many things.

I wasn't looking for a cheap solution, just looking for the right solution. That said, it is very nice to save hundreds of dollars.

I decided to find a way to use the boxlink brackets for carrying the bikes. There are a few posts out there where people mention something similar, but all are short on details, so I thought I would share my solution with the community. Nothing special, but it's perfect. Very solid (no movement), inexpensive, easy on/off and easy storage.

1. Get some E-track 2x4 sockets to fit into the boxlink plates. These fit loose in the boxlink plates, but are secure. You will want to find something to wrap around / wedge behind the back of the socket so they aren't so loose. I tried a few different ideas, but landed on wrapping a bungee cord around the sock (wrap it behind the socket). This made the sockets fit very snug with zero play. I was hoping for a more eloquent solution, but this gets the job done and is very easy on/off. That said, I would love to hear anything that other people may have had success with.

I got mine for $18 for 4: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06VVRGPGQ?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

2. Get a couple fork mounts for your bikes. These are perfect, $20 each: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06VVRGPGQ?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

3. Cut a 2 x 4 to length to fit into the sockets. Attach the fork mounts to the 2x4, ensuring your handle bars won't interfere with each other when mounted. Our bikes have wide handle bars, and I attached my fork mounts 14" from the ends of the 2x4 and have roughly 3" space between the handle bars when mounted.

I painted the 2x4 black.

Side note: You can see in this photo that I cut a relief notch at the top of each end of the 2x4. The sidewall of the truck bed has some contours that interfere with easily dropping the 2x4 into the sockets, and this notch makes it super quick and easy to insert the 2x4 into the sockets.

4. A bonus on this set-up is there is space between the front of the bed and the 2x4 where you can store the front bike wheels, leaned up against the 2x4 with only the tire contacting the 2x4. I used mini bungees around the 2x4 to secure the wheels, and they hold secure, zero play. You can see this in the photos below.

5. In an odd stroke of luck, my 15 ft bike lock cable is the perfect length to thread both bikes + wheels and lock to a bed tie-down. I wouldn't leave it like this overnight, but it's perfect to prevent theft when running into the gas station or grabbing lunch.

The full solution cost about $70 ($17 sockets + $40 fork mounts + $6 2x4 + $8 stainless hardware). The bikes are held stable, no movement or shifting, even when going over rough terrain. The bike mount is very easy to take on and off. When removed, it is super simple to store, just lean the 2x4 against the wall in the corner of the garage. And best of all, I can park in the garage with the bikes loaded.

Another bonus, when ski season arrives, I will add a second 2x4 to the rear boxlink plates, then install removable dowels to create raised slots for the skis.

I hope this helps someone. And with that, you can expect some photos from Moab in a couple weeks!

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[UGADawg96]

Hella cool project and writeup!!!

 

[Zyvin]

Nice set up. I think you spent less than the tax I paid on my Ride 88 rack.

 

[Yves]

When I was in Kissimmee last Feb, one person on the site had a custom made one. I thought it was pretty cool, so I asked him if I could take pictures.

 

[crazywayne311]

this is an awesome thread with an awesome write up!
its funny this popped up bc i've been trying to figure out something like this. i was close to caving in to builtright industries stuff but man that stuff is pricey!

very cool idea!

 

[gtotco]

I like it! Question though - are you not a fan of tailgate pads? I’ve just rolled with one for the last 3 years and found it generally is good solution though did rub through the frame tape on my Yeti but took a few years. My wife has a Roubion and the protector goes higher and that is what makes contact so not an issue. I just switched to an SJ Evo (looks like you have a Stumpy?) and getting some rub again but not too bad.

When we drive long distances I throw a hitch rack on for extra bed storage and figure it’s probably a bit better for wear but otherwise have found tailgate cover to work well. Would prob look for one that has a bit better fit than my Dakine cover which I think is part of the issue.

 

[turbospartan]

Question though - are you not a fan of tailgate pads?

I was going to ask the same. I hate taking the front wheel off to transport, even though its quick.

 

[mcnasty]

Question though - are you not a fan of tailgate pads?

While I've never used a tailgate pad myself (this is my first truck), I didn't seriously consider it because the only two people I know who've had them had problems and stopped using them altogether.

I'm sure they're fine if used properly, but the issues they had are:
- One friend had trail dirt get between the pad and the tailgate and caused a lot of scratching and swirling in his paint. He said he was always careful to ensure it was clean when putting it on, and believes it was caused by dirt kicked up while driving on the dirt roads.

- Another friend had issues with the front wheel shifting / banging around on the tailgate with minor damage. I don't know how the bikes are secured with a tailgate pad, but I suspect he didn't secure it properly, so perhaps user error?

Regardless, I didn't want to risk tailgate / paint damage, so no.

 

[bfastr]

I like what you have done here. I wish somebody would make a reasonably priced attachment for the box link. otherwise they are a useless item.
the builtright bar is very nice, but its overkill if for what I would do with it, and its expensive.

the adjustable load bar idea is ok, but every cheap adjustable load bar I have wobbles and is a sloppy design. I want to use the wheel fork mounts. plus if there was a way to have a bar bolted in it helps slow down the parking lot thieves.

a very nice write up.

 

[gtotco]

While I've never used a tailgate pad myself (this is my first truck), I didn't seriously consider it because the only two people I know who've had them had problems and stopped using them altogether.

I'm sure they're fine if used properly, but the issues they had are:
- One friend had trail dirt get between the pad and the tailgate and caused a lot of scratching and swirling in his paint. He said he was always careful to ensure it was clean when putting it on, and believes it was caused by dirt kicked up while driving on the dirt roads.

- Another friend had issues with the front wheel shifting / banging around on the tailgate with minor damage. I don't know how the bikes are secured with a tailgate pad, but I suspect he didn't secure it properly, so perhaps user error?

Regardless, I didn't want to risk tailgate / paint damage, so no.

I have to say I’ve never had issues with either but could maybe see the first happening. I drive on a lot of dirt roads and get a fair amount underneath the pad but haven’t had any paint issues. I’m also not super precious about my truck though as I plan to own it for a long time, street park it in the city, take it off road and regularly load the bed up with shit, so I’ll admit not the best person to ask on that.

I will say though that as someone who does beat on my truck the Ford paint is pretty resilient. The only real noticeable damage I’ve had was a neighbor who scraped the bumper and took off some paint, other than that have definitely had pretty good luck. Even been scraped by a few other cars on the street on the side where they left paint and I was able to get it off with just a clay bar.

Either way I get it and you definitely came up with a good solution. Personally I like a tailgate pad because of simplicity and because I can (and have) carried up to 6 bikes. The negatives I’ve found are
1. Potential damage to carbon on downtube. Like I said before I rubbed through tape on one bike - I think a better pad than what I have would secure things better
2. Rear parking sensors blocked (not really an issue but can be annoying since I park in tight city spots when at home and have learned to rely on them somewhat)
3. Pain in the ass to put on feeding the straps underneath - especially with automatic tailgate. I’ve learned to do it but took a while. A buddy has a ridge line where you can swing the tailgate out and it makes me jealous with the pad since he just slides it on and off. I usually just leave it on all summer.

Like I said also throw a hitch rack on sometimes when we are heading to our mountain house but that’s mostly to free up the whole bed for storage and be able to close tonneau if it’s raining. Otherwise parking with that thing on sucks since it’s so long. Someone cut through tonneau so need to replace it been thinking about going Retrax for ability to add some bed rails to throw bikes or skis on top when needing to close the cover but TBD. Skis in the short bed are kind of annoying since they need to go in diagonal…

 

[crazywayne311]

after this thread i decided to do some looking.

I found over on the other F150 forum some cool idea.

Im now thinking maybe grabbing a boxed stick of stainless or aluminum and attaching that to the factory box link cleat. either spray painting the metal black or with some bed liner paint. the wood is fine and i'm not judging but the metal wont splinter or wear out as bad as wood if left to the elements. i dont know this is such a cool thread haha

 

[vidwiz]

Nice, but requires the 6.5' bed. I screwed a 2x6 to the front bottom of my drop in bedliner as my solution.

 

[bfastr]

Nice, but requires the 6.5' bed. I screwed a 2x6 to the front bottom of my drop in bedliner as my solution.

AAAHHH !!! good point. I knew there was a reason I hadnt explored the box link much.
I really need a bar across the front , I'm going to fabricate one from steel and have my buddy weld plates on either end. then I will send it to my powder coater. and in the end I will probably spend close to what Builtright gets for theirs !!!!

 

[fwunder]

All good stuff! I needed a bed mount that allow me to transport two ebikes covered with room for more camping gear ( we tow our camper ).

My prerequisites:

1) I'm old so bike mount needs to be manageable - getting bike into bed.
2) Needs to work with my BAK 4s cover and soon ladder rack for kayaks.
3) Bikes to to be covered for extended trips towing.
4) Need to maintain as much bed space as possible for gear.

My solution was probably over engineered due to too much free time, but it works great. With front wheel removed I can pretty easily attach foot and bike will remain steady until I feel like lifting into truck bed. Once there, it easy slides into its socket and I can strap it down and cover with plenty room for camping stuff.

Sorry for all the pics, but they tell the story better than me.

 

[EricR]

All good stuff! I needed a bed mount that allow me to transport two ebikes covered with room for more camping gear ( we tow our camper ).

My prerequisites:

1) I'm old so bike mount needs to be manageable - getting bike into bed.
2) Needs to work with my BAK 4s cover and soon ladder rack for kayaks.
3) Bikes to to be covered for extended trips towing.
4) Need to maintain as much bed space as possible for gear.

My solution was probably over engineered due to too much free time, but it works great. With front wheel removed I can pretty easily attach foot and bike will remain steady until I feel like lifting into truck bed. Once there, it easy slides into its socket and I can strap it down and cover with plenty room for camping stuff.

Sorry for all the pics, but they tell the story better than me.

My apologies in advance for heading off-topic with this.

You speak of trailer + ebikes + cargo + BAK 4s + ladder rack + kayaks.

What is your truck's payload, and how are you not exceeding it?

Do you have a XL with HDPP?

Maybe some of this could be shifted to the trailer? Say the cargo inside and a bike at the rear?

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