My Trailer project has begun.

[Flyinfool]

If it was in the garage it wouldn't be so bad.

Since I do not have a garage the trailer will be standing up against the storage shed. So I need to have it secured so that no kid or storm can pull it down on top of themselves and also against theft.

I just have 2 quick detach pads on the back of the trailer and will attach the tongue to the shed with a lock.

[ragtop69gs]

Since it will be outside you could still do it the way I do, just tip it up onto a few covered blocks to keep it off the ground and secure it to he shed. That's what I do with my second MC trailer. I had 1 and when I bought the RSV it came with a trailer too. Don't forget to take the wheels off and store them in the trailer to avoid UV damage over the winter.

[Flyinfool]

It just happened to work out that the trailer is on the north side of the shed so it will never see direct sunlight.

 

I did hook the trailer to the bike to verify the wire lengths and chain lengths before I put the bike back together from all of the wiring that had to be done. Everything works.

 

I just ordered a Swivel adapter from MCHitch.com. It is made to fit the non standard size tongue and coupler that are on the HF trailer. This is the only swivel adapter that I have found that is made to fit the HF trailer. It is a bonus that it is direct from the manufacturer and is also the lowest priced one out there. I had been hemming and hawing over extending the tongue on the trailer anyhow so this will extend the tongue by 6.5 inches. A good compromise I guess.

 

I have not pulled the trailer behind a vehicle yet but just in moving it around the yard that slipper spring rattles like crazy. I will have to find that thread that tells what was used to quiet it down. I know it used some rubber tubing over the bolt and I thought that there was some kind of pad used between the spring and the frame. The first pull will be behind my P/U truck so that if there are any issues the trailer can not cause me to crash, and if there is an issue I can just load it into the back of the truck to get it home.

[Flyinfool]

Welllllllll........

I have the trailer finished. BUT.

I took it for a test pull behind the truck and all seemed fine up to 90. I could not actually see the trailer but I did not feel anything weird, tires and bearings were cool.

 

So I hooked it up to the bike and ran down to the school to do some slow speed drills in the parking lot.

After I got a little used to it being there I headed for the highway. At around 60 it was causing the bike to weave slowly back and forth. Not enough that I felt it could take me down but enough to be a concern.

I am not sure if this was just because the trailer was empty, Maybe it just needs more tongue weight. I had the tongue weight at about 20 and the empty trailer is about 200 lbs.

Once I add the cooler to the tongue that should help if it is a balance issue.

[Guest tx2sturgis]

In my experience, if there is a small instability at moderate speeds with no load, it may get worse with high speeds and heavier loads. Testing the trailer behind a 4-wheel vehicle is not very relevant, unless you plan to always pull it behind that vehicle. But motorcycles weigh much less, they lean, (most do anyway) and 200-300 pounds pulling back and forth on a bike's hind-quarters creates many more problems than if the trailer did that to a 2000-4000 lb tow vehicle.

 

In other words, it should be inherently stable even with no load on board.

 

I think you may need to extend the tongue length. Measure the distance from wheel to wheel, (the axle length), and multiply by 1.5...the coupler to axle distance should be at least this distance, or more. Example: If the axle is 30 inches in length, the distance from the coupler to the axle should be at least 45 inches, minimum. 50-60 inches would make for an even more stable trailer.

 

BTW: I am not a fan of hitch swivels. They may save things at low speed drops but they can cause large problems when moving. Such as an inverted trailer if one wheel hits a pothole or you hit a rough railroad crossing at an angle.

 

Just my

 

[CaptainJoe]

I welded 1/16 diamond to the top of my 1200 lb HF 4'x 8' trailer and extended the tongue and went with a 2".

 

Made a cradel for my Seadoo RXP jet ski (900lbs.) and bolted to top.

 

This trailer is nice and light.

 

HF is pretty hard to beat price wise and can be made even better by welding together.

[Flyinfool]

Well I finally got a chance to pull the trailer fully loaded on a short trip to the WI MD.

The trailer pulled just fine up to 60 mph and then from 60 to 70 had just a hint of fishtailing.

I had plenty of tongue weight, I did not weigh it but it was around 50 lbs.

 

I have come to the conclusion that I need to extend the tongue.

I checked with harfor freight and I can buy a new tongue for less than I can buy apeice of square tube to make a new tongue. So I am going to get the HF tongue, and use a piece of it to make the extension. This way all of my accessories that mount to the tongue will still fit correctly. The only drawback is that the tongue is back-ordered till 7-15-11.

[Black Owl]

May have a section of tounge out in the shop. If I do, you are more than welcome to it.

[Flyinfool]

I guess I never thought of that option. With all of the people that have removed the tongue from a HF trailer to replace it with a longer 2" sq, there should be a bunch of loose tongues around.......

 

Let me know what you have. It will be a while before HF has them back in stock.

HA, shipping will be more than the new part is worth.

[Guest tx2sturgis]

there should be a bunch of loose tongues around.......

 

 

What? Loose tongues? On THIS board?

 

Say it isnt so...

 

 

 

[Flyinfool]

Well I just did the math for MPG for the trip to WI MD with the trailer. I only lost 2 MPG over what I normally get. I can live with that.

 

I was very conscious about keeping the revs up, on the 3 hour trip there, I never used 5th gear at all but it was all back highways where the top speed limit was 55, on the trip home I took the interstate and did use 5th once up to crusing speed but went back to 4th as soon as I got close to town and the speed limit dropped back to 55.

 

Now it has me thinking that I will try the higher revs in my normal driving to see if it helps mileage. But that is fodder for another thread.

[Flyinfool]

Well I met up with the Black Owl last night.

He gave me a chunk of trailer tongue for my trailer.

We also had a nice chat till the restaurant was just about ready to throw us out......

 

Thanks again Russell

[Black Owl]

Well I met up with the Black Owl last night.

He gave me a chunk of trailer tongue for my trailer.

We also had a nice chat till the restaurant was just about ready to throw us out......

 

Thanks again Russell

 

Boy, glad you clarified that the tounge was for the trailer. Get folks thinking I going around giving just anyone tongue and you never know where it will end.

Seriously though, was great to get a chance to meet up with you. Hate having to dine alone when I'm on the road.

Just hope the bit of tongue helps.

[Flyinfool]

A little bit of tongue always helps.

[BEER30]

I too had to extend the tongue on the BEERCART. I added 16" and it pulls like a dream now. The 12" radial tire lasted me well over 50K before the tires worn out to the cords. I was lucky enough to find a tire shop at MD that carried the radial tire to replace the originals. Plus they were cheaper that utility tires from Tractor Supply. Made the remaining 2,300 miles of our trip more pleasurable.

 

BEER30

[Flyinfool]

OK winter is here now so it is back to work on things.

I did extend the tongue 18 inches and it looks good.

I have not had a chance to take it out for a test pull.

 

Since the trailer lights are so close to the road I have decided that I will add a high mounted center brake light. I might even rig it to also be a running light.

Now since this is a 4 wire trailer, that means I will need to make up a circuit to get the brake light to work off of the combination brake/turn signal circuit.

I have looked at the modules that you can by for this but they do not work the way I want.

All of the modules that I have been able to find are nothing more than 2 diodes to give 2 wires in from the trailer lights and one wire out to the brake light. This will work fine to light up the center brake light when you are actually applying the brake. BUT, with the 2 diode setup, the center brake light will also flash with either turn signal. I do not want this as it may be confusing to someone following me.

 

Sooooo

I have designed 2 different circuits, one using relays and one using all solid state components. I will build both and see which one I like better. Either one of these will handle a 10 Amp load so you do not have to use a LED center light.

 

Yes I will post pics and details as I go. I have been reading up on how to make my own printed circuit boards using my laser printer. So I have some playing to do and that playing needed a project. This is it.

Edited December 30, 2011 by Flyinfool

[ragtop69gs]