Cabelas ATV Carrier

Has anyone had experience with the Cabela ATV carries? Looks like a modification of a tailgate saver.

ATV Carrier (http://www.cabelas.com/prod-1/0023679521428a.shtml)

Has anyone had experience with the Cabela ATV carries? Looks like a modification of a tailgate saver.

ATV Carrier (http://www.cabelas.com/prod-1/0023679521428a.shtml)

Just curious, are you thinking about carrying more than 1 atv in the bed?

ATV's will fit in the Ridgeline but of course it's a pretty snug fit. That thing looks interesting but not everyone has or has need for the trailer hitch to stick the thing into, and as one reviewer says you have to have a certain ramp to fit in the provided slots. Ramp I have is a tri-fold made out of steel instead of the fiberglass ones of today so it wouldn't work for me even if I had the hitch. Neat idea though.

My loaded Sportsman (http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13563&page=4)

This is my Polaris loaded in the truck. As you can see it is an extremely tight fit. It is also 715 lbs so I worry about over loading the tailgate, it feels like it's straining with the weight sitting on it.

My loaded Sportsman (http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13563&page=4)

This is my Polaris loaded in the truck. As you can see it is an extremely tight fit. It is also 715 lbs so I worry about over loading the tailgate, it feels like it's straining with the weight sitting on it.


Do you know what the axle weights are for your ATV? I would personally put a couple of 2 X 6's under the front wheels and a bathroom scale under the rear wheels and see how much weight is actually resting on the tailgate. If it's under 300 lbs, I wouldn't worry about it.

Have you tried loading it in backwards? It looks like your brush guard or winch is keeping you from putting it in the bed all the way.

PS. I see why you are worried. Having the wheels that far back on the tailgate gives the ATV a lot of mechanical advantage to bend the tailgate.

I just had an idea. Go to home depot and buy a 1" thick 4 X 8 sheet of plywood. Then go to harbor freight and but a set of their $39 special ramps.

Cut the plywood so that it is 5' long by 4' wide. Bolt the ramps to the plywood so that your ATV tires rest only on the ramps. Use the other 3 ft of plywood to make spacers under the original plywood sheet so that you have room for the nuts that are on the backside of the plywood sheet and bolted down ramps. Leave the remaining 1 foot of ramp overlap the tailgate. There should be a 2" gap between the tailgate and the ramps. This way there is no weight on the tailgate at all.

I'm not sure if my reasoning is sound but it will take all of the weight off of the tailgate. I'm not sure what it would do to the bed but theoretically it shouldn't do anything at all but I can't assure it.

Someone critique my reasoning. Am I full of crap or am I on to something?

I don't think that carrier will work with the Ridgeline. If you look closer at the picture, the truck where it is installed has the tailgate removed. You cannot remove it on the RL.

gonzo - take a closer look, the tailgate on this truck is still attached. this is the reason for the extremely long bar coming out of the hithc.

I just had an idea. Go to home depot and buy a 1" thick 4 X 8 sheet of plywood. Then go to harbor freight and but a set of their $39 special ramps.

Cut the plywood so that it is 5' long by 4' wide. Bolt the ramps to the plywood so that your ATV tires rest only on the ramps. Use the other 3 ft of plywood to make spacers under the original plywood sheet so that you have room for the nuts that are on the backside of the plywood sheet and bolted down ramps. Leave the remaining 1 foot of ramp overlap the tailgate. There should be a 2" gap between the tailgate and the ramps. This way there is no weight on the tailgate at all.

I'm not sure if my reasoning is sound but it will take all of the weight off of the tailgate. I'm not sure what it would do to the bed but theoretically it shouldn't do anything at all but I can't assure it.

Someone critique my reasoning. Am I full of crap or am I on to something?


No no that's a good idea but I though of that, but the ramps/plywood don't have as much friction as the tires. Would probably move around and scrape my bed.

I have tried to back it in but there is inch total clearance of the back wheels.
If I had portable winch it would be easier but a lot more expensive. One of thing is there is more of a hangover in the rear than the front.

My biggest thing is no damage to the truck. I wish Honda put a second cable on the other side and made it a removeable type setup. I have ideas but don't ask me if they would work.

Anyway thanks for the input and any future input.

I also worry about the tailgate while loading. Let's just say it's closer to 1000lbs than 900 lbs with me on it. That is a lot higher than the 300 lb limit.

Let me bounce this off you. Get one of those tail gate saver bars for using it to load and building a catch for the rear wheels using wood so you can brace it side to side inside the bed and attach a bracket to attach to the TG saver. I would look like a double trunked TT

I also worry about the tailgate while loading. Let's just say it's closer to 1000lbs than 900 lbs with me on it. That is a lot higher than the 300 lb limit.

Let me bounce this off you. Get one of those tail gate saver bars for using it to load and building a catch for the rear wheels using wood so you can brace it side to side inside the bed and attach a bracket to attach to the TG saver. I would look like a double trunked TT

I wouldn't worry about the weight on the tailgate while loading. The tailgate should be able to handle about a 2000 lb or better static load. The tailgates 300 lb rating is a dynamic rating.

I think I understand what you are saying in your second paragraph if you are talking about one of those bed extender bars that look something like the gadget you have pictured. If you would bolt a 1" piece of plywood to it and then let it extend the wood to the front wall of the bed, you may solve your problem aside from your concern about scratching the bed. You would literally create a 7" bed for carrying your ATV. (Try this is at your own risk though. I'm not a mechanical engineer, just a guy who always wanted to be like McGyver.)

The first few scrapes in my bed were painful. The next couple hundred were less painful. I am 100% sure that using a product like forever black will take all of the scratch marks out of the bed if I ever feel the need to not see them anymore. It makes the scratches in the bed a lot more bearable when I know I can make them go away at will without having to pull out a paint gun or visit a shop.

Do you guys have a problem with the brush guard hitting the rear window? With my Kawi 650 I had to bungie a small trailer tire to the bottom of my brush guard so it would rest the quad against below the window and than strap it in like crazy so the whole quad wouldn't move. Not to jinx anything, but while towing it upstate NY last fall I had a realization, what would happen if you got a flat tire in the truck?? LoL... :D

Not to jinx anything, but while towing it upstate NY last fall I had a realization, what would happen if you got a flat tire in the truck?? LoL... :D

I have a full size spare in the trunk as well as the OEM donut that I keep in my garage. When I have a bed full of crap I throw the OEM donut in the back seat along with the electric jack. I also have AAA.

On the ATV front, I was behind a guy in Richland MS (south of Jackson) this weekend who had a gizmo welded up for anchoring his ATV in the bed. There was a right angle square tube coming out of the truck hitch receiver with another bend at the top & a trailer hitch that clamped onto a ball mounted on the back of the ATV. I wish I had a photo -- probably old hat to serious ATVistas.

I've seen that. It hooks into the hitch of the ATV. I was thinking about that but it wouldn't help with loading weight on the tailgate.

On the ATV front, I was behind a guy in Richland MS (south of Jackson) this weekend who had a gizmo welded up for anchoring his ATV in the bed. There was a right angle square tube coming out of the truck hitch receiver with another bend at the top & a trailer hitch that clamped onto a ball mounted on the back of the ATV. I wish I had a photo -- probably old hat to serious ATVistas.

That is called a Louisiana Guard Dog and they also make one that can be mounted on a trailer and holds the ATV by the hitch ball also. Lots of places sell them including Cabelas, Bass Pro Shops, etc.
Call me old fashion but I still use 4 cinch straps. I don't want the ATV to pass me while traveling.;)

You could relieve some of the weight on the tail gait pretty simply with a sheet of 3/4 or 4/4 plywood cut to fit the bed and opened tail gate. The sheet would carry some of the weight of the back wheels forward to the bed and front wheels. To carry even more weight forward, you could use a pair of 2X10's cut to fit from the bed front to the end of the opened tailgait and center them under the ATV's wheels. Cover the bottoms of the boards with some cheap rubber carpet runner from HD and it wil protect your bed. You could even pop a couple of 2X4's between the 2X10's to act as spacers.

What's the piece hanging down below where the beam goes up from the slide in?