Flea

I'm about to order the order the Maximus-3 tire carrier, and I was curious if anyone else was using one. I'm going to order one without the mast, so the brake light is mounted behind the wheel, rather than above it. Looks to be a solid product.

Maximus-3 Rubicon X/10A Modular Rear Tire Carrier | Wrangler JK

kbp810

I'm running their carrier on mine, along with a couple others in our group. I did the same setup without the mast - Maximus 3 is practically down the road from me, good group of guys, and Joe (I think that was his name? I'm terrible with names) has a real passion for engineering, and likes to go on, and on, and on (lol) about how they do things and why.

It's a solid and well made carrier and the available accessory attachments makes it pretty versatile. I haven't had any issues, no rattles, powder coat issues, etc...

It is a very simple install except for one seemingly innocent step... for the bolts in the hinge, they welded the nuts to the bottom of the hinge; which wouldn't be a problem, except its a very tight tolerance, and seems like the welding process ever so slightly distorts its alignment. One will seem to go in and line up just fine, then you go to do the second, and before long you'll be cursing, pulling hair out, and threatening to box it back up and give it back to them... but with enough turning, twisting, manipulating, it will eventually catch and start threading. I've installed two, and had the same experience both times, as well as hearing the same story from a third. Doesn't seem like it would be a big deal, but it really turns into a pita. We gave them feedback that they should change this to a pin setup, or leave the nut detached and do a locking nut or something of the sort; they seemed to be in agreement with our suggestion, but to the best of my knowledge they're still being made the same way.

Here's mine, with optional bracket for CB antenna and light:

Flea

Thanks for the info! Also, thank you for the picture. That light was something I was considering adding at some point.

Question about the third brake light. When I talked to someone at Rubitrux, I was told that the light would mount behind the rear wheel. I see yours is in front of the wheel. Is yours the typical position?

kbp810

Yes on the brake light, that is the correct intended position. The main bracket is behind the wheel, but the light itself is on the outside; attached by a thumb screw (and plug connectors for detaching the wires). You'll need to detach the light and wires when pulling your spare, but it comes off/on very easily.

Flea

Great, thanks. I think it looks cleaner like that, than with the mast. I'm not worried about having to remove it to get the spare off, especially if it's a quick/easy removal.

Why is this carrier not more popular? Seems like most people are using the Teraflex one. I was considering that one also, but liked that this one seemed more complete (I believe the Teraflex requires reusing the factory brake light after cutting it), liked that it mounted the brake light down low, liked that it costs less, and I also liked that it was something not seen as often. I didn't know if there was a reason this carrier wasn't chosen, or if it's just that Teraflex is such a trusted company and a "safe" decision.

And how do you like that reverse light? Looks like it would light up the world behind you when backing up.

kbp810

I think the name is just not as well known, they don't seem to do much advertising.

Love the backup light. We tend to do a lot of night runs paired with hill climbs, and I like being able to see behind me whenever I don't quite make it and have to back down, lol. It and the bumper LED's are ran off a separate switch, so they're not tied in to the reverse lights.

pross

[QUOTE=kbp810;4158567]Yes on the brake light, that is the correct intended position. The main bracket is behind the wheel, but the light itself is on the outside; attached by a thumb screw (and plug connectors for detaching the wires). You'll need to detach the light and wires when pulling your spare, but it comes off/on very easily.[/QUOTE

Do you access the third brake like thumbscrew from the outside or inside? Can you include a closeup photo showing it? I think you have had the carrier for about one year now. Still happy with it? And rust to touch up?