utctscanr75
New member
Anyone use their spare tire hitch mounted swing out system? Thoughts? Opinions? It's way more reasonable in price than the Rigd or Wilco options.
https://detoursofmaine.com/
https://detoursofmaine.com/
Detours of Maine Spare tire hitch mount system
- Thread starter utctscanr75
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tomb_rnr
New member
I found this video that may help you out.
YouTube
I actually like it over Wilco and RIGd. Here is my reasoning in the following order...
1) Price
2) Adjustability on how far or near you can set the tire
3) I like how the tire is angled
One last point. Anything over $600, you might as well save up for a rear metal bumper. I'm not knocking the other two brands. I think they are great and very robust. I'm just a bargain hunter.
YouTube
I actually like it over Wilco and RIGd. Here is my reasoning in the following order...
1) Price
2) Adjustability on how far or near you can set the tire
3) I like how the tire is angled
One last point. Anything over $600, you might as well save up for a rear metal bumper. I'm not knocking the other two brands. I think they are great and very robust. I'm just a bargain hunter.
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utctscanr75
New member
Any photos? Instagram?
RedRunner_87
Senior Member
I ran this on my Dodge Ram, and it is a very nice carrier. It is my plan to use one on my 4Runner as well. Very well made, great price point and great communication.
Untitled by redrunner87, on Flickr
Untitled by redrunner87, on Flickr
RedRunner_87
Senior Member
He will make it fit your vehicle. He had me send a bunch of measurements including the hitch size.
Motory
New member
I've posted before in the other thread, but I love mine. No issues besides the wedge lock bolt that holds it to the hitch coming slightly loose after driving on bumpy roads for a while. Not a huge issue as long as you're running a solid hitch lock. Also probably my fault for not tightening it enough.
Get a Rigd if you want something closer to the body and not be a total waste of money like the Detours of Maine carrier.
I had a Wilco that worked well but i wanted something to sit closer to the body. Saw the Detours of Maine carrier and thought it be exactly what i was looking for…. I was wrong.
Detours of Maine is a terrible tire carrier. DO NOT GET IT.
Pros:
- Tire sits closer to body
Cons:
- Cannot easily mount a front runner table onto it
- Does not sit level when you open it so if you did manage to mount a table, everything will roll off it
- Anti-wobble device doesn’t work
- The hex key adapter used to tighten the anti-wobble device is softer than warm butter and strips with little to no effort
- Carrier wobbles to the push of a finger
- Squeaks like crazy when you open it cause the swing out arm has a portion that sits directly on top of the main support, metal on metal and just eats away at any paint.
- Waited 10 months, originally 10 weeks…, for it to come with just primer on it
- there is about .15” of spacing all around the hitch part making this thing loser than anything else I’ve seen
- Tire mount piece came damaged so i could only use 3 out of the 4 bolt holes. I contacted them and they suggested i find somebody with a vice to try and straighten it out…
Conclusion:
- Should’ve just bought a Rigd or rear bumper
- Installing the Wilco back on before the next trip so i won’t have to worry about the carrier swinging like a dingy in rough waters even while just driving in a city…
I had a Wilco that worked well but i wanted something to sit closer to the body. Saw the Detours of Maine carrier and thought it be exactly what i was looking for…. I was wrong.
Detours of Maine is a terrible tire carrier. DO NOT GET IT.
Pros:
- Tire sits closer to body
Cons:
- Cannot easily mount a front runner table onto it
- Does not sit level when you open it so if you did manage to mount a table, everything will roll off it
- Anti-wobble device doesn’t work
- The hex key adapter used to tighten the anti-wobble device is softer than warm butter and strips with little to no effort
- Carrier wobbles to the push of a finger
- Squeaks like crazy when you open it cause the swing out arm has a portion that sits directly on top of the main support, metal on metal and just eats away at any paint.
- Waited 10 months, originally 10 weeks…, for it to come with just primer on it
- there is about .15” of spacing all around the hitch part making this thing loser than anything else I’ve seen
- Tire mount piece came damaged so i could only use 3 out of the 4 bolt holes. I contacted them and they suggested i find somebody with a vice to try and straighten it out…
Conclusion:
- Should’ve just bought a Rigd or rear bumper
- Installing the Wilco back on before the next trip so i won’t have to worry about the carrier swinging like a dingy in rough waters even while just driving in a city…
SteezRunner
New member
I'll buy it from you if you still have it.
YellowSnow
Banned
Buy once, cry once! Or just post in here so we can laugh at you and purchase your mistakes for a considerable discount.
daytonaviolet
New member
MaddoxPics
New member
I had both of his tire carriers. The original drop-down tire carrier, and the swing-out tire carrier. Had none of those issues that he talked about. Drove with both of them probably a good 45,000 miles if not more. Not even sure how much of that was dirt, but I'd say a good couple thousand, and I'm not talking forest roads.
I'm thinking he didn't install the device correctly, and is trying to put it off on DOM, among the other options. Main reason I say this is a lot of the things he complains about, wobbling, not sitting level, etc, is all due to it not being installed correctly. You must install this with another person to ensure that it sits flush, level, and tightens fully. If you don't do this you will have wobble.
One person needs to push in and towards the vehicle, while you tighten down. This ensures it sitting correctly. If doing this by yourself it won't be installed to the point of no wobble. Obviously anything like this will wobble to some degree. My rear bumper tire carrier will wobble a bit.
If he had extreme wobble he would have installed the wedge lock backwards. I've seen that happen and the wobble is bad, and doing so CAN strip the hex tool. I never had issues with that. Curious if he impacted with too much torque.
The other stuff seems to be mostly preferences, such as not being able to accept a table. Nowhere is it advertised to be able to...Though if you put your mind to it you can. I figured out a way to, but then changed to a rear bumper when the opportunity approached.
The paint is advertised as primer so complaining about that seems worthless.
Obviously damages should always be taken care of IMO, so that was a goof on their part, but depending on what it was, if it wasn't actually anything that messed with integrity, he might have been trying to say it would be quicker to fix than wait another week or two for a replacement. Especially if there was a trip deadline.
daytonaviolet
New member
Thanks for your feedback. Yes I believe your comments are spot on. There’s no way a company like DOM can exist snd be this busy without having a good product.
I’m currently waiting 4.5mo for the RidgeRunner. This is the first time I’ve seen a bad review. I’m just hoping it was due to a non-experience user.
I don’t care for any foldout table, just a sturdy close fitting adjustable carrier.
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MaddoxPics
New member
Obviously, I could be wrong, but I've had a ton of experience with his products and I 100% swear by them. They are quality-made and will handle just about anything you throw at them. At the time I bought it these didn't even exist for the 5th Gen's. I actually helped boost his sales by nearly 200% for Toyotas. Then RIGd and the others slowly came around.
Obviously, the RIGd is nice and has a lot of features, but again, at that point, you're better off spending $700 more and get a rear bumper and not only have better clearance, but more options for carrying things.
I'm not one to tell someone how to spend their money, but I believe you made the right decision, especially if you plan on getting a rear bumper in the future.
Motory
New member
+1 for all the positive feedback.
I posted in this thread two years ago about mine and still have nothing but good things to say about the product. It was initially supposed to be a temporary spare carrier until I bought a full rear bumper, but it's done everything I've needed it to so I ended up keeping it for much longer than expected. Its been offroaded a ton, smashed on various obstacles, been in rain and snow, and i've had zero issues with it. Even the $30 rattle can job I did 2 years ago looks great still. Honestly, I still can't figure out why people are paying $1400 for these carriers when this one exists for literally a fraction of the cost.
I posted in this thread two years ago about mine and still have nothing but good things to say about the product. It was initially supposed to be a temporary spare carrier until I bought a full rear bumper, but it's done everything I've needed it to so I ended up keeping it for much longer than expected. Its been offroaded a ton, smashed on various obstacles, been in rain and snow, and i've had zero issues with it. Even the $30 rattle can job I did 2 years ago looks great still. Honestly, I still can't figure out why people are paying $1400 for these carriers when this one exists for literally a fraction of the cost.
