Hi! I’m a real noob with bikes and kids trailers.
I’m trying to install the hitch adapter to my bike, but it doesn’t fit as the instructions say… It seems I may need an adapter for it, but I’m not quite sure which adapter to get. Or another hitch.
Could someone be so kind and help me?
Thanks!
by No_Helicopter8246
2 Comments
Is it a thru axle? You can likely get a suitable axle from Robert Axle Project https://robertaxleproject.com/
I used one of those axles for a while and it was fine, though more recently I’ve had a follow-me hitch axle, which obviously doesn’t come with a Thule hitch as well. With that I have to simply clamp it with a suitable fat spacer to lift the Thule hitch away from the frame recess.
To be honest, having done both, I feel that a spacer with a suitably calculated over-length axle would work just fine. You will get an increase in the torque on the axle, but I assert that this is easily countered in the thru-axle case at the threaded end.
It is pretty unlikely that you’ll be able to use this bike for towing this trailer. The Thule hitch, as you’re finding out, requires a dropout (where your wheel goes in your frame) that is relatively flat – it does not work with “hooded” dropouts like you have.
Thule does sell a product called the [“3D Drop Adaptor”](https://www.thule.com/en-ca/bike-trailers/bike-trailer-accessories/thule-3d-drop-adapter—10mm-spacer-_-1688844) which spaces the hitch away from the dropout and is designed for hooded dropouts. This *might* solve your problem, it’s worth trying as it’s really the only solution as far as I’m aware.