Hitch Receiver on rear of Cargo Trailer?

[Gonefishin]

Who has installed, or had installed, a hitch receiver on the rear of a cargo trailer. I want to see if I can tow my drift boat behind my 6X12 with my F-150. It tows the cargo with ease. The drift boat weighs 270 pounds. The trailer about the same. I can roll it around by hand, so its light. Tongue weight is 40 pounds or so, and can be easily adjusted. My concern is a trailer hitch on the back of my cargo with a light boat attached. A triple-rig connected with a couple hitches and 2" balls. (don't go there)

So, who has done it? Bolted or welded, or both? Are you towing anything or just using it for a bike rack? how much to install one? Who did yours? Any kind of sway bars needed? I have no idea how well this would work, or even IF it would work, but can't see why not. I leve on a large lake, and I see heavy boats towed behind fifth-wheels all the time. Never seen any boats behind cargos or travel trailers towed with hitches though. I'm calling around a little, but this is where the expert opinions are!

Mine is a 6X12 Haulmark.

[pbmazda32]

I would get some 2inch tube and weld it in myself. As long as your comfortable towing it, I don't see a problem with it. Plenty of folks do it. Do you get much sway just towing the cargo trailer? If you do, you might want to eliminate it. Sway will be amplified to the boat trailer. If you don't have any sway now, it shouldn't get any worse.

[mikegt4]

Before you start the project check your state's rules. Most states do not allow double trailers and of those that do most require the first trailer to be a fifth-wheel (as you have observed). Even if Utah allows it you still won't be able to travel in states that don't.

[Rainier70]

You might talk to Joni and Alan (BFT). I think they tow a camper and a boat trailer.

[Gonefishin]

Well, from multiple on-line resources I've checked, the 4 states I fish and travel in (UT, ID, WY, MT) all allow double tows. I have police friends in UT and WY, so I'll double check with them too. Freedom still rings in ID and MT, so not too worried there. I'm not a welder, so I'll be looking for someone who has done this before to install the hitch. I live in a rural area with lots of empty roads and empty spaces, so I can hook up the whole mess and tow it around to see what it does. I've seen a couple pictures of larger "rigs" than I'm talking about. Just never seen a boat trailer behind a cargo camper. I guess if nothing else, I'd have one hell of a sturdy bike rack receiver!

[hankaye]

Gonefishin, Howdy;

Here's a link that might help you find your answer...

http://towingworld.com/towinglawsbystate.cfm?state2=UT

hank

[angib]

Hitch receivers are strong items, but I think it's easy to forget that they need to be attached to something every bit as strong. Look at the structure of a typical trailer hitch.

As an approximate rule of thumb, I would want to see the receiver connected to the main frame of the trailer by cross-members as strong as the trailer's main rails. In many cases the cross-members will be subject to torsional loads from the receiver, so 'open sections' (angles, C-channels, etc) should be avoided in favour of round/square/rectangular tubes.

And remember that thickness is not often a good measure of strength - the size of a section/tube is much more important.

[Mountain Cur]

I just saw a three vehicle combination pulling out of Walmart parking lot last week. Pickup and cargo trailer pulling a trailer with utv on it. I wasn't close enough to see what kind of cargo he had but the combination looked to doing just fine.

[OverTheTopCargoTrailer]

I say go for it


http://www.hankstruckpictures.com/pix/trucks/martin_phippard/2008/10-03/slides/file016.jpg

[bc toys]

I have a hitch welded to the back of my cargo I also have a rack I put in it to haul my smoker with works great

[roadinspector]

We used to pull a boat behind a 5th wheel all the time. No prob!! Go for it.

[KGwood]

5th wheel fine, bumper to pumper pull = bad things. Had, a friend that did that for a few mouths no problem. Remember the back trailer has to have the brakes and weight to stop every thing.
My friend and his wife were killed when someone pull out on the highway in front of them. He tried braking only the trailer, but the small trailer with 12' aluminium boat jack knifed the other trailer. The 24' trailer then rolled lifted the 3/4 ton Ram with small camper off the road and tossed it into a field were it landed on it's top.
I would not try it.
.02
KG

[roadinspector]

KG, my heart felt condolences for your lose. The way I was taught was it is a combination of all brakes that stops your rig. Never just apply the rear trailer brakes because it causes all kinds of problems. It will start sliding all over the place as you said. The rear trailer also needs to be the lightest. This way the heavier front trailer controls the rear trailer. I do know of several folks that pull bumper pull campers with a boat behind that & do fine. They do use a stabilizer hitch also. If you are not used to pulling trailers, I would NOT double up. You can get into some trouble you can't get out of.

[KGwood]

Let me add my friend was a retired truck driver and he did have a load leveling hitch. I will also add that my brother was shop foreman for "Equal-i-zer Hitch" So I have learned from him that not all hitches are the same. I got to see all kinds of wreck photos that show how things went wrong. A 5th wheel has pivot point/hitch over the axle so there is no need for load level and or sway control. A bumper pull is 3 to 4 feet behind the axle witch give the trailer an advantage like putting a 3 foot pipe on a breaker bar. This is why a sway control is used on bumper pull. Some load leveling hitches use chains on the end of the spring bars, this can also induce sway. So they put a sway bar on too. An Equal-i-zer has no chains and uses the weight of trailer on caged spring bars to control sway. Now take the 2nd trailer, if hitch is say 10 feet from 1st trailer axle center it has a 10 times advantage. So a 500lb boat plus a 500lb trailer now has the power of 10,000 ft lbs of torque to push the 1st trailer around = bad thing happen. If most states do not allow this, ask why. Some states require that all trailer axles must have brakes. It's not what you can pull but what you can stop safely in an emergency.

Now reread this.
The 24' trailer then rolled lifted the 3/4 ton Ram with small camper off the road and tossed it into a field were it landed on it's top.

How much force does it take to toss 7000 lbs 40 feet?

[Gonefishin]

Well, Ive been getting mixed reviews and opinions here and elsewhere, and I haven't done it yet. Since I live and fish/travel in a part of the country known for high speed limits, deer in the road, hills and curves, and frequent high winds (Wyoming, etc), I'm not yet sure the convenience is worth the added risk. I have found shops that will weld on a hitch with reinforcement, and the weight would "work" being that the boat and trailer together are under 5oo lbs, but the sway when passing other vehicles or driving in cross winds make me think otherwise. Stopping is less of a concern since I keep speeds lower with the cargo trailer anyway (But still roll on the straight and level!) However, KGwood's story is certainly attention-getting and sad. We all do seem to concur that "it can be done," but it isn't the best idea either. I have other options including taking two vehicles and/or storing the boat at the next destination in advance, which would be a good excuse to have to return to move or get the boat later!

For now, the hitch for towing the boat is on hold. Thanks everyone for your input. Keep it coming if you're just reading this and have an opinion or experience.