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towing a trailer

R

red1100

Forum Mentor
I'm looking at a tent trailer to tow cross country and back that weighs 800 and will tow with my 86 Cavalcade. Too heavy? IDK. Never done it. Any rule of thumb for touring bikes towing?
 
red1100 said:
I'm looking at a tent trailer to tow cross country and back that weighs 800 and will tow with my 86 Cavalcade. Too heavy? IDK. Never done it. Any rule of thumb for touring bikes towing?
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Are you sure you got the weight right on that? 800lbs looks to be about double anything I've looked into! For what it's worth, the Goldwing guys say 300lbs max behind my 1100.
 
Yep, manufactures weight is 730 plus my gear and a battery.I'm not getting a new one cause they are too much money and I have a 38 ft MH for that kind of duty. But that would put the gross weight at ~ 1600.eek Really want a small one that is less than 300# but they want a fortune for them.
 
Rich82GS750TZ said:
Paging Steve. Where are you Steve?
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Steve, reporting for duty, Sir! :encouragement:

Red, you have two options in my opinion.
1. Look for a (MUCH) lighter trailer.
2. Find a different tow vehicle.

Sorry, but there is no practical or safe way to tow a trailer that heavy with a bike. (Not sure I would even consider that with a trike. :oops:) I went a bit overboard when I loaded up a trailer to about 475 pounds (behind a fully-dressed KZ1300) and let's just say that it was NOTICEABLE. It was properly-balanced and all that, but the trip was interesting. Went from Dayton, oHIo to the Lost Angeles area, so we had the "pleasure" of doing this for several days.

Just out of curiosity, can you provide other dimensions (width and length) and maybe even the manufacturer and model of the trailer?

You imply that your budget is a bit limited. How much are you willing to spend?

.
 
I towed a Harbor Freight 4x8' folding trailer weighing 265lbs. unloaded and then put 300lbs. on it and towed it with a 1982' GS450T mostly on the Interstate I80 at 60mph keeping the 450 in 3 & 4th gear with the rpm's between 5500-6K the whole way.This was my first time towing a trailer and I wasn't scared:I just was determined to get the 450 and the 125 on the trailer I had just purchased from a CL seller in St. Clair Shores,Mi. to my residence in Davis,CA. and I didn't have the $ to do it any other way.I thank God for member 'Rusty Bronco' who attached a GL1000 custom trailer hitch to my 450,he welded it up then helped me check my valve clearances. ! I drove one-way West from MI. to Davis,CA. and stayed mostly on I80;once I was rolling,I had momentum,no problem:starting and stopping the rig was a challenge,but manageable.I learned 'trailer' on that journey ! Many members here thought I was crazy including the CL seller Dan And 'Rusty Bronco':well I hope by now they realize that,on that particular journey "Necessity was the Mother of Invention" Lol. :rolleyes:
 
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absolutely YIKES!,grcamna...in a world of behemoth pickups (and so many empty), " Pickup?I don' need no dam pickup!" There must have been a lot of smart phone pictures taken!
 
Gorminrider said:
absolutely YIKES!,grcamna...in a world of behemoth pickups (and so many empty), " Pickup?I don' need no dam pickup!" There must have been a lot of smart phone pictures taken!
Click to expand...

This was in July 2018',it was one-time adventure and it worked-out ok, Lol. I had my eyes and ears tuned-in to the rolling rig and didn't notice the others passing me.. I imagine they were curious.I was thinking of sticking a sign on either side of the little 1982' Honda CB125S with my information and my asking price.I bought the little 125 for small $ and sold it about 6 months after I got it here to CA.
 
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Rob S. said:
How much can the bike lean?
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I have owned two cargo trailers and towed them with a gl1500 Goldwing. Both trailers had an integral swivel hitch built into the tongue. So helped with lean angle and handling. There was a cooler for grub on the tongue as well. Hauled lots of camping gear and a couple of trips through the mountains. Towed very well and hardly noticed it on the back.
 
Rob S. said:
How much can the bike lean?
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I have never had a commercial "swivel hitch" on any of my trailers. To answer your question, I could put the bike on the side stand (so it's leaning a bit to the left), then lift the left-side trailer wheel far enough for the trailer body to touch the ground on the right. WAY more than enough. By the time the hitch would start to restrict any leaning, your bike would already be low-siding.

.
 
The one I was looking at was an Alpine pop up made for a car. Looked small enough till I looked up shipping weight. The motorcycle only one don't come around too often for cheap so I may be on hold for a bit.
 
I remember you posting almost daily about that trip. What an adventure that was. I was rooting for you but ... wow! I still think of you when I see motorcycle clothes and helmets for sale at the Salvation army. Hope all is well.
 
Steve said:
I have never had a commercial "swivel hitch" on any of my trailers. To answer your question, I could put the bike on the side stand (so it's leaning a bit to the left), then lift the left-side trailer wheel far enough for the trailer body to touch the ground on the right. WAY more than enough. By the time the hitch would start to restrict any leaning, your bike would already be low-siding.

.
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My hitch is installed but I've yet to pull anything with it. The conclusion amongst the "Sane" riders is that a swivel really isn't needed although I HAVE heard of guys shorting corners and having the trailer run over a curb casing some hair raising experiences.
 
When I got my first trailer (in 1978), I talked with a guy that said NOT having a swivel hitch saved his trailer. :-k

He hit something with the left trailer wheel that tipped the trailer up. When the hitch bound, there wasn't enough momentum in the trailer to flip the bike, so the bike actually brought the trailer back down. A rare occurance for sure, but it IS possible.

.
 
Rob S. said:
How much can the bike lean?
Click to expand...



The hitch was just a ball hitch on that one,a 2" standard trailer ball.I would have liked knowing something about a swivel-hitch then,but at that time I didn't have enough information.. I leaned the bike slowly and carefully on my trip.When I attempted to turn it sharply in parking lot maneuvers,it resisted my efforts at leaning too far;I muscled the bars a bit and took slower and more calculated maneuvers.I imagine if I had a swivel-hitch,I would be able to lean it as much as needed?
 
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