Using the versatile Black Box Bike Mounts custom made for the BlackBox carrier, bicycles can be moved and adjusted in a 3D space within the carrier to remove obstacles caused by protruding handlebars, peddles and seats. Though it can take some initial set-up, the Bike Mount fork skewers can be installed to so the long handle bars can be fully rotated up to 90-degrees within the carrier avoiding any contact with other bicycles or the edge of the carrier lid. Separately, the Bike Mounts brackets can also be adjusted up, down, or moved along the bottom of the carrier to help create space between bicycle handlebars, bicycle seats and the carrier lid.
Placement is key.
To fit two large 29in bicycles along with two carbon-fiber road bikes within the BlackBox, your first step should be to work out the placement of each bicycle. For any BlackBox bicycle set-up, it is always best to have the largest bicycles installed at the center of the carrier with the smaller bikes on the outside. In our example, we began by placing the 29in bikes centered in the middle of the carrier, alternating their direction for a close fit. Since the AerBike also has an adjustable track along the floor, we positioned the bicycles as close as possible to the hinge side of the BlackBox lid to avoid any clearance issues when closing the lid. We then placed the road bikes on either side, sandwiching the mountains bikes. We again alternated the direction of the front of the road bicycles and positioning the bikes as close as possible to the hinge side of the carrier.
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Make adjustments.
After figuring our placement, our the next step is deciding the angle and height of the fork mount skewers. Using the horizontally and vertically adjustable AerBike mount, the handlebars of the large mountain bikes were angled to give the maximum space possible to make room for the road bikes and avoid touching the inside wall of the carrier. We rotated the road bikes handle bars a full 90-degrees sideways to fit nicely on either side of the 29ers as well as to avoid contact with the side of the BlackBox lid. To clear any remaining contact between peddles, handlebars or bicycle seats, we alternated the height of the mountain bikes with the carrier to give us even greater vertical spacing between the bicycles.
Check your work.
After each bicycle is installed, we took a moment to close the BlackBox lid and engage the latches. We would highly suggest taking the time to make sure the box closes all the way in order to confirm there is no issues once the final bicycle is installed and ensure there is no contact with the lid from the bike seats, handlebars or tires. In some cases (especially with these larger mountain bikes), it may take several adjustments for each bicycle to make certain each one is in just the right spot. Common solutions for troubleshooting a bicycle fit include: repositioning the Bike Mount mounts to clear handlebars, lowering bicycle seats (on tall bicycles) for lid clearance, raising/lower the Bike Fork Mount Brackets for clearance between bikes, and sliding the Bike Mount back and forth to create distance between the bicycles and the lid.
Add some protection.
Having four bicycles within the carrier puts the bikes very close to each other. With all of the bicycles installed, we recommend adding padding between each bicycle to ensure there is no contact during transit.
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You're all set.
With the bikes secured and protected, you're ready to lock the lid and begin your journey with the peace of mind your bikes are mounted safely using the BlackBox Carrier.
Questions? Comments? Need Help With your Bicycle Fit?
Contact us via email or call our office at (719) 630-3800.
