motorcycle pull behind questions Plus how do I make 360 swiv

[chev59_99]

I'm making a trailer to pull behind my Harley ultra.My Harley is lowered and very low to ground.I plan on putting tent sleeping bags etc. in a car top carrier bolted to trailer bed. Plan on it being 48 long 36 wide and using torsion half axles. Width does not count axles or tires and do not have them yet. Questions 1. what is a good size tire for this 8 or 12 . 2. What is a good tongue length from front of trailer to hitch. 3. what torsion axle load rate my choices are 425 550 or 900 lbs. would be good and where is a cheap place to get a good pair. . 4. will this be to wide frame 36 plus wheels sticking out. my top for this is about 34 wide but may want to put better one on later and don't know size. 5. Does anyone have a good design for a 360 degree swivel hitch. 6. Is there any other questions I should of ask for this kind of trailer besides wiring that I will ask later but I think I know what I doing with that. 7. I have never used torsion axles and don't think I need adjustable ones for this right or wrong ? Thanks now for any help you may give. Vic

[Rooky]

There is a lot of information on the net about trailers for bikes. I have been following a thread on the XLforum about a homebuilt trailer & hitch for a Sporty. Check it out and see if it will help with any of your questions. Good luck.

[B52]

Vic, welcome to the playground! There are as many ideas about motorcycle trailers as there are about teardrops, so you'll have to make a lot of choices. I pull a homebuilt sleeper with my '00 Softail Nightrain. My choices: I use 12" tires on 425# UFC half axles (I'd use lighter if any were available). Adjustment is good, but not cheap. My trailer body is 33" wide, which gives me an overall width of 46". I can't advise on tongue length, 'cause I've had to experiment with both tongue length and axle placement to get a good ride (there's nothing more uncomfortable than trailer wiggle at 60 mph!) Forget the swivel hitch unless you plan to lay it down or ride it upside down. A regular ball works fine.

More pics in my album.
Good info at: http://tinyurl.com/m-c-trailer-forum
and: http://www.motocampers.com/

[Rigsby]

Go for the largest wheel that you can, They will ride the bumps and potholes in the road better and are less likely to jump the trailer all over the road

[brian_bp]

Questions
1. what is a good size tire for this 8 or 12 .

Just about any size of trailer tire will have enough load capacity, so I think this comes down to ride/handling and appearance. With a Harley tug, I have to think that bigger will look better; to me, B52's trailer looks good and would not look as good with 8" wheels.

2. What is a good tongue length from front of trailer to hitch.

I don't think that dimension really matters. What matters are distance from the ball to the trailer axle (longer is better for stabilty), and weight distribution (centred a reasonable amount forward of the axle. The part of that length which is tongue (ahead of the body) just works out to whatever it works out to, from nearly zero (unlikely because less than 3' ball to axle will be too short to be stable) to a few feet if you want.

3. what torsion axle load rate my choices are 425 550 or 900 lbs. would be good and where is a cheap place to get a good pair.

I think that the lowest capacity which is adequate for the highest anticipated load is desireable, to have the softest possible springing, for the least jarring ride. Will this trailer be more than 425 lb when loaded?

4. will this be to wide frame 36 plus wheels sticking out. my top for this is about 34 wide but may want to put better one on later and don't know size.

I think that this is an air drag and manoeuverability issue; I don't think there's a right answer. Any width which fits the 34" wide box will likely have enough track width for a trailer of this height to be stable, assuming that the trailer is to be built as low as possible to complement the bike.

5. Does anyone have a good design for a 360 degree swivel hitch.

The off-road people, in addition to of course other bike people, are the experts in this. I tend to believe that the ball has enough rotation angle for a non-sport bike, but I would put a coupler on a ball to check the travel angle, and compare that to the lean limit for the bike, before making any decisions. European overrun-braking couplers seem to be routinely constructed so that they can rotate, which could be another solution, but they are not readily available here and would not be available in a 1-7/8" ball size.

7. I have never used torsion axles and don't think I need adjustable ones for this right or wrong ?

The adjustment is to allow ride height adjustment, which is great if you do not know in advance how high everything is going to come out, or if you want an angle which is not available in the fixed-angle designs. Personally, I think that I would prefer adjustment but would not take a heavier and stiffer axle (in a higher capacity range) than necessary in order to get the adjustment. Fortunately, the lightest readily-available rubber axle assemblies that I know of are the Flexiride units, which are available with adjustable arms in the lightest range; it appears that "-S" on the end of the model name (e.g. FR-425-S, rather than FR-425) indicates Splined, meaning adjustable.