Camping trailer

[ViperRon]

With that Goldwing pulling the camper I bet they had no braking on the trailer and that can make a big difference especially with a load. However get in a slanted road or a condition where max breaking and too big a load and nothing works. Sometimes even without a trailer someone stopping short and you are in real trouble no mater what you drive.
What you pointed out is exactly what I am saying about big loads and traffic is, other peoples problems become yours and it can be tuff to survive.

[Wildkat]

Bike pulling car?

I LOVE the car!!!

[madmax-im]

Just for the record..the bike in that video is a Honda ST1300...

[3Phase]

I like the part of the video where Clown Boy is talking up how easy his trailer pulls and using the grade to slow for corners. He's going to need all the help he can get when his trailer tries to run him off the mountain on the way back down and his brakes overheat.

[Wildkat]

This is an old picture,I use a soft suit case for a back rest and I have larger soft bags now.

I was getting close...

[Jerry]

A couple of observations about trailer towing in general with any bike. These are based on my experiences, YMMV.

First, the trailer I built uses 5.80 x 8 tires. This keeps the center of gravity pretty low. The trailer has (IIRC) a 40" axle plus the with of the tires...the trailer is wider than it is tall. In the 13 years I pulled it regularly (2000 - 2013) I never had it fishtail even under hard braking conditions. The trailer never tired to roll over.

When I built my rig I designed it so the tongue, when I was on the bike in full gear, was in line with the pivot shaft of the rear wheel. This helped reduce, I think, the "torque" or "pushing" effect of the trailer when going through corners and curves. If you look at most commercial hitches (HitchDoc, for example) you will see the ball is mounted fairly low for the same reason. If you are going to build your own rig look at what others have done for guidance in building your hitch.

The biggest problem I had was not getting enough tongue weight on the trailer. This leads to fishtailing. Over the first few years I lengthened the tongue, used heavier steel, and mounted the spare on the tongue to get the balance correct. (Part of this was "tuning" was due to a design change; originally I had a cooler mounted on the front of the trailer that added weight. I removed this in favor of a smaller cooler used on the XJ's luggage rack that could be used when the trailer was not hooked up.) Various guides say you should have 1/4 to 1/3 of the trailer's loaded weight as tongue weight for a small trailer, less for larger trailers. This is where the air-adjustable suspension on the XJ came in handy; I would jack up the shock pressure by about 4 pounds when towing and reduce it again for normal riding. (The Concours also has an air-adjustable rear monshock.)

I tried loading everything on the bike and did not like the feel of it. This is a personal choice, but I was much happier pulling a trailer than packing all my stuff on the XJ.

Keep in mind that Yamaha never intended these bikes to pull anything. There is always a risk that pulling a trailer will be less safe than not; this is a trade-off each has to decide to take or leave.

The trailer allows me to carry more stuff such as a larger tent (One I can stand up in) plus a few luxuries, such as a camp chair, that I would not otherwise take with me. I am now in my early 60s and creature comfort has become a bigger factor for me now than it was say 30 year ago.

There are drawbacks, of course. Rear tire wear increases, fuel economy drops, and there are costs associates with trailer license plates and insurance. Storage could be another issue for many people. You don't take the same line through curves and your acceleration suffers. Breaking patterns change.

In the 13 years I pulled my rig to camping spots and rallies I really enjoyed having the extra capacity to bring stuff along. For me the decision to trailer worked out very well. But, as I said, my rig is very light, good width-to-height ratio, has a low center of gravity, and is designed to have the bulk of the weight in-line with the bike's center of gravity. YMMV.



Photo was taken at one of the California rallies. Note trailer in upper left.

[dbeardslee]

I just tripped over this video on Youtube, and immediately thought of this thread. Check it out - Idaho Bedroll

[Wildkat]

Thank you much!
The tips and advice have been greatly appreciated!

Doug, that's pretty cool!!
Talk about a no pressure sales tactic. lol

[BA80]

Saw this here at XSSE. I thought it was pretty cool.



[URL


Manufactured by BF Enterprises.

[Wildkat]

Okay

Now that is VERY cool!
Any comments on how it pulls?

[BA80]

The couple had nothing but praise for it. I asked him what it weighed and he said it was about 500# with the storage area empty. That's not bad. They were towing it with a Hardley.

BTW that storage is under the bed when it's set up and can be accessed by simply lifting the bed. It's on hinges.

[Wildkat]

Nice

Thanks Greg
I appreciate the info!

[STEPPENWOLF]

I was getting close...

We have a competition going on

[RODS454]

Now that is VERY cool!
Any comments on how it pulls?

Kat, I have that trailer with the electric/hydraulic brake package. There is no way I would try and pull it with an XS11. I got it to pull with my Goldwing before I crashed. Never got to pull it with that. But in my opinion, I wouldn't attempt to pull anything with the XS. JMHO. I've pulled 2 different types of trailers with two different Goldwings many miles. Two up running 80 and above with no problems, and just think the XS is not suitable for pulling a trailer. Again, that's just my opinion.

[Wildkat]

Many thanks for that info. That pretty much firmed up my decision.
I think, after looking at how much I got packed on my bike in that pic, I really don't need a trailer. I need a kitchen sink, just to complete the package. lol