"First things first- for the price, you can't go wrong with this. If you're willing to put a little more effort in installing this onto your bike, do not hesitate to purchase! That said, here are things to consider when purchasing. PUTTING ON: The U hook on one end has rubber. However, the locking mechanism on the other side with the pin bolt does not have rubber. For some bikes, this will cause rubbing damage (har har) and possibly peel your bike's finish off. For me, I preemptively wrapped a small hand towel around my bike, and this remedied the issue very easily. Looks silly, but whatever; I'm hauling bikes around on an I30; I'm not really caring how it looks. People are worried about the pin mechanism; it's not the best thing out there but I have no worries of it popping off; if you're really concerned, one rubber band is all you need to make it super secure. I don't bother though. TAKING OFF: I have a bit of an issue taking the bar off after putting it on. I'm a bit gangly armed though, so maybe this won't apply to you. But after a while I found a trick (which may just be common sense to those of you who are good thinkers unlike me). Pull the non-rubber side a bit out, undo the pin and let the entire thing close up. Then just wriggle the unit until the rubber releases its stubborn death grip and tada! THE BUILD: You may be slightly skeptical about this build, as it seems a little.. squeeky. But after several trips, two being round trips of 350 miles with lots of bumps, it's still going strong. Yay bikers!"
Allen Sports Tension Bar Bicycle Cross-Bar Adaptor (Compare Deals from $15.77)
"I bought two of these because they are cheap and I haul around 5 bikes at a time (several womens' frame bikes, too). These adapter bars do the job adequately. The open hook end is a little tight on some seat posts and I've broken more than one rear reflector trying to get it on/off the bikes. Speaking of the open hook end, it can feel a little scary leaving it open like that. I've taken my bikes across the state (300 miles) at highway speeds. No problems. Between the tight opening of the "hook" and the tension in the adapter, you'd have to hit some major bumps just right to have this thing come off. Also, you will need to make sure that the distance between the seat post and the handlebar stem is sufficiently far enough that you are extending the adapter at least a little. With some childrens' bikes, the distance is too short and this adapter bar won't work on those. The tension in this adapter is fairly strong, so be careful not to get your fingers pinched. Also, you have to be careful about location placement of the end with the retainer pin. It will scratch your bike unless you take measures to prevent/avoid scratches. Put a cloth, foam, or rubber something where metal touches metal and you'll be fine."
"I have a hitch type bike rack that is not compatible with ladies/commuter bikes. Tough luck for me I didn't realize this fact before ordering my bike rack as they're mostly commuter bikes without the "traditional" triangular frame with crossbars. In order to make my bike rack useful, I ordered this product with some doubt initially about whether this "bare-bone" product would be heavy duty enough to withstand all the vibration using my bike rack on a sports coupe. Per receiving the product I find it be very well-built and works just as described without all the bells-and-whistles like other products on the market that work the same but look just prettier. Functionality is what I was looking for and I needed these adapters at a good price(I had to buy 4 of them for all the step over frames that I have) so I went ahead and ordered these. I feel that this is a great product and it has all the contributes to make it a great product (functionality, durability, ease-of-use). Definitely recommend to anyone looking for a crossbar adapter but want to stay away from the high price, sugar-coated name brand ones. I didn't find application to be of any difficulties and haven't snapped my finger/hand once. Pay attention when using it you won't have to worry about the tension bar design hurting you at all."
"I was looking at other tension bars that were a bit more in price but decided to get cheap and get this one since I really won't be using it too much. I have an Allen 4-bike carrier and works well with it. I have used this once so far since buying it last month and traveled about 900 miles. I used it to carry my wife's heavy cruiser bike and worked well. The hook end goes to the seat post and the locking end goes to the neck or stem portion of the handlebar. Because the cruiser's stem angles towards the front of the handlebars, I was concerned that due to the weight of the bike, it may slide down and extend the tension bar further up the stem. But, that didn't happen. The spring's tension was enough to keep the tension bar in place. Although the bar is coated with plastic/rubber material, the locking part does not have it. And so I had to put a homemade plastic tube between the lock and the neck or stem to avoid any scratches. For easy installation, install the lock portion first, then pull the other side to hook it in the seat post. For easy removal, reverse the direction. Hope this helps."
"Some reviews have commented on pinching and scratching. (Yes, we're still talking about bike adapters.) I haven't used this to carry a bike yet, but it seems both concerns are minor. If you attach the front end first, then pull the back portion rearward to hook it, your hands are in no danger of getting pinched. (I'm guessing some people try to extend it before attaching, which is not necessary.) The pin that closes the front "U" is indeed a concern. It's bare metal and because the hole it slips through must be closely matched, it can't be cushioned and still fit through. But you can easly slip it through a piece of strong vinyl tubing or something before slipping it through the opposite hole and securing with the attached clip. My solution has been to take a small strip of industrial carpet (dense and not real thick), fold it back on itself, and cement the ends with contact cement (top of carpet outward). This creates, in effect, a padded loop that I slip the pin through. We'll see. Whatever your solution, stop from time to time to inspect your rack, bike and bar, which you should do in any case."
"HORRIBLE product with a VERY misleading "how to" video. I'm sure this product is fine if you have a small bike. MEASURE your bike from seat to handle bars. If its 22" like my bike was, DO NOT GET THIS PRODUCT. The extension mechanism is a spring release the requires the strength of 5 men to keep it fully extended. Try to do this, while balancing your mountain bike between your legs and good luck! It snapped back and hurt my hand. The company was friendly and all but this adaptor is not great if you need to extend it. Secondly, I also bought the allen sports ultra compact bike mount. Again though the video is VERY VERY misleading. They show a woman's bike being ridden up to the car, she unfolds the rack seamlessly and then when you get to the close up, THE COMPANY SWITCHED BIKES TO A MALE BIKE. ( which of course doesn't have the step through frame) . I am trying another adaptor now, but it would be really nice if the bike companies realized there are a huge amount of women who ride, and didn't make us spend extra money, extra hassle and extra time."
"This bar is made to fit between the handlebar stem and the seat post. If you have a bike that is configured such that you need to attach it to a structural tube, it's going to scratch your bike and it's not the product you want. If, however, you can use it the way intended, it works very well, may lightly scratch the metal handlebar stem which is bare metal on most bikes and so isn't going to cosmetically ruin the bike. It works very well on both my wife and my hybrid bikes, seems very strong and durable and not sure how some people were bending it while in use (perhaps over extending the length?). My only complaint is that they should have spend another few pennies to rubber coat the C end of the unit rather than just the hook, that would have cut down on the metal to metal contact. I'm sure there are better products out there at two and three times the cost and if you ride a $1000 bike, you probably want one of those higher end units. If you ride purely for recreational purposes on a low end bike, it's perfectly fine and an economical solution."
Allen Sports Tension Bar Bicycle Cross-Bar Adaptor (Compare Deals from $15.77)
