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Cobra VS Bob Ratchet

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Shmoe

Monkey
Oct 23, 2001
216
0
Calgary, Canada eh?
So i'm planning on putting a roofrack on my car in the near future. I put my V10 on a King Cobra and it fit fine. The whole thing looked a little bit unstable and the tray was just barely long enough. Ive been hearing lots of talk about the bob ratchet, but I couldn't find all that much with a search here or google.

Im wondering if anyone keeps big dh bikes on the bob ratchet and how it works? I dont run tires bigger then maxxis 2.7.. so I imagine the trays will be wide enough. Both work out to be approx the same price, so I'm having some troubles picking one out..
 
lonewolfe

lonewolfe

Monkey
Nov 14, 2002
408
0
Bay Area
I was in the same predicament as you about a year ago. I really like Yakima products and the roof rack on my car is in fact, a Yakima. As for the bike carriers though, the Bob Ratchet is superior in every way over the King Cobra. The trays are plenty long and I fit a 2.7 Maxxis in mine with no problem. The Bob Ratchet is incredibly easy and fast to use and it is extremely strong. I never worry about loosing a downhill bike on my car. I have two of the Bob Ratchets attached to my Yakima roof rack and carry two downhill bikes on top of my Jetta on a regular basis. The only advantage the King Cobra has is the built in locking cable for your bikes. Albeit, the cable would be really easy to cut through and I'd never feel safe leaving my bike on my car with only that flimsy cable set up. I use heavy cables and a disc lock if I am leaving my bike on my car and even with that, I am never far away. Read the reviews on mtbr.com and nsmb.com for more feedback.

Good luck with your decision!
 
Monkeybidnezz

Monkeybidnezz

Turbo Monkey
Dec 16, 2003
1,212
0
Pac NW
I second the Bob Ratchets. I've use both extensively, and personally like the ratchets a lot more. They are more stable, hands down faster loading and easier to use. I agree that you don't want to leave the bikes alone for an extended period of time and always lock the bike to the cross bars.
 
Echo

Echo

crooked smile
Jul 10, 2002
11,819
15
Slacking at work
I use the King Cobra, and I've used the Bob Rachets on a hitch rack. I like both, but I think using the Sportworks on a roof rack would be a serious pain in the ass...
 
MikeD

MikeD

Leader and Demogogue of the Ridemonkey Satinists
Oct 26, 2001
11,698
1,749
chez moi
I bought some King Cobras to use on my (crappy factory) roof rails on my new Subaru. Installed one; put the bike on. Found that the King Cobra was really slow and awkward to use with that red knob needing to be unscrewed and re-done every time a bike went in or out...and much worse, the bike, a short 35 lb hardtail, was unacceptably unstable. Returned the Cobras ASAP and bought a Sportworks hitch rack, bob rachet style, and am 100% happy with it. Even cost less than the Yakima overall, once all the pieces were considered.
 
B

banj

Monkey
Apr 3, 2002
379
0
Ottawa, Ontario
Echo said:
I use the King Cobra, and I've used the Bob Rachets on a hitch rack. I like both, but I think using the Sportworks on a roof rack would be a serious pain in the ass...
Click to expand...

Why do you say that? The bobwratchet is really easy to use on a roof rack. The only "hard" part is the same as with other roof racks...getting the bike onto the racks.
 
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