My Trailer

[rover]

[URL=http://s1134.photobucket.com/user/rovjer/media/trailer%20045.jpg.html][IMG]
Pics of my home built trailer. I have 2 spring/shocks on it. I can use 1 for empty and light loads, and both for heavier loads. I have hauled about 350 pounds with both shocks connected.

[motoman]

That oughta' follow your scoot around nicely!

[Blank Slate]

Big! Well done

[rover]

trailer

Hauled it over the western half of the USA, no problem. Held my camping gear

[CatatonicBug]

Be careful with that thing! A friend of mine had a home-built teardrop trailer (a bit bigger than yours) behind his HD on a trip. A lady pulled out in front of their group, and he laid on the brakes. The trailer swung around sideways and swiped the bike right out from under him, sending him sliding down the road!

[rover]

trailer

I must have pulled that trailer for 50,000 miles or more. The worst time I had with it was on I 90 across Minnesota. All the tar joints on the road were raised way up, and at 65 MPH the trailer would bounce and land a bit different each time. One steady up and down, and pull the bike different ways. I had to slow to 40 to get it where I could manage. I made emergency stops where it wanted to pass me. Up on Bear Tooth Pass, near the top, I came around a curve from behind a rock wall, the wind caught me, and almost took me over the edge. Going from Yellowstone towards Grand Teton, I ran into hail, several inches deep on the road. But, I still would do it again, having my comfy camping gear with me is worth all the scary times.

[Eveready1100]

Rover,
Can you put up some photos of your bike with the trailer hooked up?
If possible, some pics of the towbar setup too, please.

[rover]

trailer

If you want to pull a trailer, you will have to fab a hitch on the back of your bike. Look at the pics on MY BIKE to see a hitch. On the trailer, you use a 1 3/4 inch ball connecter, just like you would on a car. If you build your own trailer, make the tow bar long. a short bar will make the bike do squirrelly things. A matter of leverage. Mine is about 6 feet from the axle. There are those that will say the only way is to use a swiveling hitch, but that is bull. The automotive type hitch will not cause problems, as it will handle the lean the bike has compared to the trailer. Take a look at a Goldwing with a hitch. It must be connected to pull and to support the weight of the trailer tongue.

[Eveready1100]

Yeah, so do you have any photos of your bike with the trailer hooked up, mate?

I have a towbar on my SF and my trailer"s done a lot of travelling too.
Just wanted to see the different lines of thinking used over there.

( here in Australia, it's mandatory that a swivel coupling is fitted to the trailer to avoid it hanging up the bike in extreme circumstances)

[Jerry]

Like this:

My homebuilt trailer behind my XJ heading to a rally in Olympia, Washington in 2007. Also pull the same trailer behind my '06 Concours. Built in '99, I pulled the rig for 13 years, still have it but last two years I've stayed in hotels for the Brockville rally in '14 and this years rally in Michigan.

There are several threads about building trailers and hitches on this site. Do a search to look at some of them.

Some place I have a post about how I built mine - frame is tubular steel to save weight - and details on the XJ's hitch. The hitch for the Concours was a commercial product so I did not have to build one.

[ViperRon]

I do not have an issue with people pulling a trailer in certain conditions but there are things just like trailers behind cars/trucks that make them dangerous. First the design like was mentioned so that the hitch in no way can bind and that it is far enough away to not bind against the bike. Suspension and the weight load as well as tires become very important. First if it is dependent on just tires for suspension it can get into uncontrollable bounce and wobble quick. If it has too bouncy suspension or wobbly tires here comes the out of control again. If it is loaded too heavy toward the rear and places no load on the bike it can lift the rear taking half your breaking power. If you weight less than 150 and you think you can control the bike in a bad situation with a trailer think again. Good looking trailers guys but be safe because some insurance will not cover your accident if you are hauling one and I bet that Ferrari you hit isn't cheap.
I was on 81 one day when a Mercedes Suv hauling a tall camper trailer lost it in front of a tractor trailer and the tractor must have rolled that suv ten times cause it was like in a tube shape under the front bumper. On a positive note the trailer broke free and survived.

[Prisoner6]

... There are several threads about building trailers and hitches on this site. Do a search to look at some of them ...

Some really good info found here:

Trailer? for 1100

[Jerry]

Without going into the nitty-gritty details, ViperRon is correct on many points. However, a well-designed trailer and hitch is pretty safe to tow with an XS or XJ.

My trailer uses 230 pound capacity slipper springs, total capacity 460 pounds, and "dry" weight, with spare tire and jack plus car-top carrier, comes in around 120 pounds. Full loaded it comes in at around 180 pounds or just a bit more than carrying a passenger. It doesn't bounce around. This also keeps the weight under the XJ's GVW rating which I think is important if you do not plan to fit brakes to your trailer.

Hitch was designed so the drawbar is in line with the swing arm pivots when I am on the bike resulting in a towing force axis that is pretty low. Yes, you can feel the trailer pushing in corners, but no more so than riding double. I have never had a handling problem with this set-up.

One thing I will mention is that tongue weight is critical. To little and the trailer with fishtail. I ended up making a longer trailer tongue and mounting the spare tire on the front of the carrier instead of underneath, my original plan. A cooler was originally part of the original design which would have added some extra weight but it was soon removed and replaced with a small cooler I put on the XJ's luggage rack. (My original trailer tongue cracked under the weight of the cooler.) Most places suggest 15% - 20% of the over-all trailer weight be the tongue weight but I went a bit more, around 45 pounds on a 180 pound trailer with a full load of gear. Even at that I pack my heavy items in front of the trailer's axle. This works well for me, no problems with the trailer's handling empty or full, but it did take me a season to fine-tune this aspect of trailer design.

I do run a swivel hitch of my own design, build with 1/2 inch Heim ends. Hitch can rotate in 3 axis and does not bind in any situation. I went this route more from cost - cheaper to build - and curiosity but the choice of hitch is sort of like what oil is better...there is no definitive answer, although people on both sides hold strong opinions. Originally I used 3/8 inch Heim ends and one cracked so I went to the 1/2 inchers and have not had a problem since.

A trailer is an accessory and as such you need to look at the cost-benefit of puling one. it will cost you in reduced MPG, higher tire wear, and a difference in handling. The up side is that you can carry more comfort and convenience features, like a larger tent, camp stove, folding chair, air mattress, and other creature comforts. But if you decide to go this route, particularly with a home-built trailer, do your homework and research so you end up with a safe and roadworthy rig.