Mary C wrote:Welcome to the forum, I had the weight problem to consider also. My solution was to build out of foam. It is considerably lighter and to me has been easier to build. Good luck and please let us know what you decide.
Mary C.
S. Heisley wrote:You didn't give us your Jeep's capabilities; so, I searched and found that your Jeep Patriot has a towing capacity of 2,000 pounds. It's braking capacity is probably also 2,000 pounds as that's what my older Jeep Liberty has. That's not so awful. If you are careful, you can do a lot with that. For the most part, assuming you don't want to build a "whale"and are wood-weight frugal with your building, you can build something within that 2,000 pounds. However, please recognize that many states do not allow more than 1,000 or 1,500 without trailer brakes; so, you may want to stay within your state's limits to keep from the complication of adding trailer brakes to your build.
Abaker50 wrote:S. Heisley wrote:You didn't give us your Jeep's capabilities; so, I searched and found that your Jeep Patriot has a towing capacity of 2,000 pounds. It's braking capacity is probably also 2,000 pounds as that's what my older Jeep Liberty has. That's not so awful. If you are careful, you can do a lot with that. For the most part, assuming you don't want to build a "whale"and are wood-weight frugal with your building, you can build something within that 2,000 pounds. However, please recognize that many states do not allow more than 1,000 or 1,500 without trailer brakes; so, you may want to stay within your state's limits to keep from the complication of adding trailer brakes to your build.
Sorry - you're right that I wasn't specific. This Jeep's towing capacity is 1000 lbs, according to the manual
Andrea
S. Heisley wrote: Thanks for that. Since you have the manual, will you please check in the brakes section to see how much it will stop? Sometimes the stopping capacity is less than the towing capacity and that is a critical point.
Oh! And, we need to know what state you are in to see what the limitations are there.
Abaker50 wrote:S. Heisley wrote: Thanks for that. Since you have the manual, will you please check in the brakes section to see how much it will stop? Sometimes the stopping capacity is less than the towing capacity and that is a critical point.
Oh! And, we need to know what state you are in to see what the limitations are there.
Given the low towing weight, I kind of figure that anything we can tow - minus the trailer - isn't going to stress the rafters too much.
Can't find anything about stopping capacity, specifically. It gives tips for braking while towing, but no separate limits for stopping.
I live in Colorado.
Thanks - Your thoughts have been very helpful.
Andrea
WizardOfOdds - I did check with the local Jeep guys & they said that they couldn't install the tow package now
WizardOfOdds wrote:I didn't mean to suggest you have a Jeep dealer install a tow package, I was trying to say to see what the differences would have been had your Patriot been equipped with the 2000# tow option when it was produced. This might give you some confidence in making any tow decisions. For example, if the 2000# option uses the same brakes, then you have confidence that your brakes are pretty good. On the other hand if the 2000# package adds a transmission cooler, then you might want to invest in one. I installed one on my car myself at a total cost of less than $100 (but a lot of time and work).
My advise is that you keep your first building attempt simple and keep costs low so changing your mind is not out of the question. I spent years trying to decide what to build and never made any progrss until I finally decided to build a (not so) temp test bed to try different ideas. Best decision I made, because I am learning from my mistakes.
Abaker50 wrote:Wow - thanks for all the info.
We have decided to spend a little extra $ to get an all aluminum trailer. I've found some in the area within our parameters with weights listed as low as 450#.
My preference would be to just build the shell & put one or both beds on the deck. DH wants to do something with a collapsible dinette and bunks that convert to a couch like the Campster 12. I'm not convinced we can do that within our weight limits, but we'll see, I guess. I'm kind of a minimalist, but I have to share it with the fam, so there will be some give & take It would also be sort of cool to have a bunk for a 4th person so we could take one of DS's friends with us sometimes, but we'll have to see how that goes.
Lots to think about - so many options. It's kind of overwhelming & I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge and experience.
-Andrea
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