Roadtrek R&D found door, hinges & mounting post weren't strong enough to take the weight. All would need to be reinforced.

 

I guess i should stop adding crap to my left barn door! 5 gallon gas tank, ladder and internal custom 1/2 plywood cabinets loaded down seem to be doing fine though.

 

You're probably fine as you are. The wheels & tyres are heavy (had to lift the whole rack off to tow the RT last year). It took 2 of us to lift it into back of van.

 

Excellent input guys. Thanks so much for the ideas. now I'm torn between the homemade style and the fancy off-set hitch since I want to upgrade my baby hitch to a class 3 or 4 hitch anyways. what to do? Hmmmm?

 

So i have decided to get on with it and have a custom made dual swing out tire carrier and class 4 hitch fabricated much like the one i had made for my Jeep's rear bumper. I like the idea of a dual spare set-up for my long trips because i plan to also flat-tow my Jeep on occasion. There are plenty of great fabricators that can make it. Then i have to decide if i have it bed-lined or dipped in a colour to match the van. I figure approx. $1,000 for the set-up and around $250 to bed-line or dip it if i prep it. I want to have this done in time for my 3 week trip out East next summer.