Bike racks are a lifesaver, especially for long drives. 1UP USA is one of the most popular brands for bike racks. But even their racks aren’t free from having issues.
Discoloring issues, weight, and load capacity limit, weak welding, and selective corrosion are the common issues 1UP USA bike rack owners face.
Bike racks are very convenient if you don’t have a pickup vehicle. But you’ll need a strong enough rack to hold your cargo. 1UP USA racks are good, but are they worth it? How bad can the issues get? Here’s a detailed answer to your questions.
Common Problems 1UP USA Bike Rack Users Face
No bike racks are perfect – this is something you’ll have to remember through all of this. Most 1UP bike rack issues are manufacturing problems. User-specific or case-specific issues happen, but they’re rare. So this article will focus mostly on manufacturing ones.
The most common issues 1UP bike rack owners face are discoloring, problems with heavier bikes, welding snapping off, and corrosion in specific parts.
Here’s a detailed breakdown of how these issues affect the racks and how bad they can get.
- The Rack and Levers Discolor Quickly
This is one of the rarer cases but it is still pretty common. A lot of 1UP bike racks lose their color really quickly.
Sometimes the rack is fine but the levers lose color.
A lot of people chalk it up as weather issues but there’s more to this.
Sometimes the 1UP rack units lose their coloring surprisingly fast.
Think 2 months out of the packet. The whole rack just loses its initial color and retains the original metallic coloring.
Discoloration can be selective, but complete discoloration is more common.
This mostly happens to the black racks (regardless of the models). White racks are much better at retaining color. This discoloration happens when the aluminum anodizing isn’t up to the standard. Sure, all anodized material loses color (eventually) but not this fast. And with the high price tag of the racks, this is a valid concern.
It isn’t just the rack body either, sometimes the levers for handling the rack arms can also lose color and they’re even faster in that.
1UP USA claims to have pulled all defective versions off the market but some of them still slip through.
Also Read: Differences Between Magic Mary And Assegai Tires.
- They Are Heavy and Don’t Work Well with Heavy Bikes
Sounds ironic, right? But it is true. 1UP bike racks are heavier than their competitors, you’ll feel that when you unbox the unit. The problem is, they don’t really work well with heavier bikes like the E-bikes.
1UP bike racks are pretty heavy, thanks to their all-aluminum build. Compared to its competitors, the racks stand heavier regardless of their models.
So you’ll have to be wary of your vehicle’s load capacity. Plus they need extra care while installing.
Ironically enough, the rack doesn’t do good in handling heavy bikes. If you’re using a 2-4 slot rack and you load heavier bikes on them, the front fork tends to start twisting and turning.
This causes the other slots to lean backwards toward the road. It may not cause physical damage but it weakens the safety of the bikes.
And there’s no solution to this either except not loading heavy bikes on 1UP racks. If you do, you’ll have to check the racks frequently throughout your whole drive.
- The Arms Have Weak Welding
Some of the rack joints, especially the arm joints on the rack have weaker welding compared to other parts of the rack. This is a pretty big deal considering the arm joint and even the hitch plate can come off because of the welding.
The 1UP bike racks have an all-aluminum body. Naturally, there has to be some serious welding job to connect every part. Unfortunately, the welding isn’t always serious enough.
The whole rack can do better in this department but the arm joint specifically needs a whole upgrade. The welding is the weakest there.
The arms are what secure the bikes so suddenly snapping one can be drastic for your bikes. It is even worse if the hitch plate welding is the one breaking.
This is a surprisingly common issue with 1UP bike racks. Considering how dangerous it is, this might just be the dealbreaker for a lot of people.
- Corrosion Issues with the Spacers
1UP bike racks have a spacer kit for wider bikes. This is the only way you can carry the bikes on the rack.
But this spacer kit also causes corrosion in some cases, especially in the aluminum plate area.
1UP racks aren’t wide enough for regular wide or fat tire bikes. So they have a spacer kit that lets you make more space for wider bikes. That way you can easily carry them on the rack.
The spacer kit is an extra expense, but that’s not the only problem. They can also cause corrosion around the mounting arms.
You won’t have any problems using the spacer kit.
But if you ever take it off and want to go back to the default width, that’s when the problem will start.
1UP USA powder coats their aluminum racks after they cut the threads.
So the bolts get tight and sit in the same place instead of chasing the threads.
They also don’t use anti-seize when they’re doing the rack assembly. So when you install the spacer, you pretty much take off the powder coat. This results in galvanic corrosion.
If you know how fast corrosion can spread, you know how big of an issue this is. Surprisingly for 1UP USA, this doesn’t qualify as an issue.
Are 1UP USA Bike Racks Worth It?
Well, you know what kind of issues you can run into. But besides them, how good are the 1UP bike racks? Are they worth it?
1UP USA is one of the best bike rack manufacturers you’ll come across. Their racks are full of aluminum and you can carry up to 4 bikes with their racks. 1UP racks are sturdy and have better accommodation for bikes.
The best part of the racks is the securing arms. Unlike most racks, they don’t go over the bike’s structure. The securing arms only press on the tires so the rest of the structure stays safe. These racks are also very easy to install and they last a long time.
The problem with 1UP bike racks is the slight wobbling. Since the securing arms only press on the tires, the rest of the bikes are prone to wobble more.
The overall movement of their racks is also pretty stiff and they’re horrible for full-fender bikes because of the pressing on tires.
Overall, the 1UP bike racks’ pros outweigh the cons. So, are the bike racks worth it? Yes, definitely.
Also Read: Differences Between Lolo And VelociRAX Bike Racks.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
The super duty racks have better load capacity (75lbs) than the heavy duty racks (50lbs).
Yes, the wobbling in bike racks is caused mostly by road friction. So it is completely normal.
Not unless you end up with a bad unit or try reverting to a regular spacer after using the spacer kit.
1UP now comes with a hitch pin for extra security. Other than that, you can use a padlock around the hitch plate area to secure the rack.
Final Verdict
1UP bike racks are one of the best racks you’ll come across. But they still have room for improvement.
If you’re looking into 1UP USA bike rack problems before getting yourself one, this list is a good place to start.
