mistersouthpaw
Well-known member
that makes sense
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Loan me a loading ramp for a 12 pack?
- Thread starter mistersouthpaw
- Start date
that makes sense
I think a Trailer is your best option
As it will be easy to attach the bike and easy for towing.
A cube van might eat through fuel like crazy
Why not give your brother ur car for the day
Or time it in a way that you will drive to Quebec over night and be there first thing in the morning You should be back here by mid day
U less your brother needs his truck in the middle of the night.
This will be your cheapest option as it should only cost you the price of fuel.
As it will be easy to attach the bike and easy for towing.
A cube van might eat through fuel like crazy
Why not give your brother ur car for the day
Or time it in a way that you will drive to Quebec over night and be there first thing in the morning You should be back here by mid day
U less your brother needs his truck in the middle of the night.
This will be your cheapest option as it should only cost you the price of fuel.
Think I could squeeze two bikes on this thing? Trying to find a way to get mine to a friend in Cambridge. I've got a hitch but no light controller.
Yes it is very light. It’s max towing capacity is about 1200lb. Although I do think I have exceeded that
I actually have a spare trailer hitch for a grand caravan. Came off of a 2016 model I think. That’s if you have that vehicle.
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I have not tried to put 2 bikes on it but I think it could work depending on the size of the bikes
You need a standard (4-pin?) wiring harness to hook up the trailer for proper light functionality.
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I built a manual light controller for trailers. Plug it into the lighter and it has switches for lights/brakes/turn signals and a cable back to the trailer. Very helpful for occasional towing where you dont want to pay for a vehicle specific harness or where a manufacturer allows hitches for bike racks but prohibits towing in NA.
Is each function (turn signal, stop) operated manually.
Meaning you have to activate the switch to the corresponding function as you perform it while driving?
Or is it hooked up to the car somehow to do this automatically?
Either way that’s neat.
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mistersouthpaw
Well-known member
my car is not technically mine, I thought about that.. not going to happen. And the trailer hitch for a lincoln mkx involves removing the whole exhaust, the heat shield and then drilling into the frame rails. I think that I have decided to go with a cube van.
Entirely manual. A three position toggle for blinkers, two position toggle for power, two position toggle for lights, momentary pushbutton for brakes, indicator lights so I can see what it is doing, a dimmer for the indicator lights for driving at night, a flasher in the box and a fuse holder. Mk1 was made in a hurry so it can't do brakes and blinker at the same time but meh. The key is flashing lights to let people know something is happening (and the vast majority of the time, the trailer load doesn't block the vehicle lights). I'll try to get a picture later, it's in the wifes car right now.
Mk2 (if I get around to making it) will solve the brake/blinker problem, replace the fuse with a circuit breaker and include an ammeter so I can troubleshoot trailer problems faster.
Very cool
Is this in production for sale or a one off for personal use only
I would be interested in seeing a picture of it.
Well, I would feel bad selling Mk1. Paying customers would expect brakes and blinker to work concurrently. Parts were ~$50 and it took a while to build (not much room in the box and it is all point to point wiring). Although I love having it, I doubt that I would buy it for the ~$150 it would have to sell for.
If I wanted it to be a commercial product, i could probably have it made on a pcb which would slash production time and costs, but that is very far from my career and I don't want to end up with 1000 trailer controllers in my garage until I die.
I can't imagine it is technically legal but I didn't bother checking. If a cop gives me a ticket for it, obviously I was doing something really dumb to get their attention. I think it would have to be sold as a device to check trailer lights/wiring and if you want to use it while driving, thats on you. Again, this probably limits what people would be willing to pay.
Once (if?) I figure out wiring for Mk2, I have no problems posting a schematic for anyone to use if they want to build their own. Schematic for Mk1 got chucked because anyone can figure it out easily.
ScorpionT16
Well-known member
if you go with a van, get a wheel chock and return it when done with it. If the bike is from a dealer, ask if they can just hold it till next year and better weather, then ride it back
Considering I assumed I could probably use a trailer for a day and not even get pulled over this is far more legal than that, lol. I see trailers and cars with no working back lights all the time.
I put the front wheel against the back of the seat, using the seat as a wheel chock, attach the tie down straps to the seat frame, as close to the floor as possible, and away we go. Been doing this for 30 years, works great.
... sometimes with a big bike that doesn't tie down well, I'll put another tie down from the side of the bike to the side of the van, behind the door to steady it. (When you tie the bike to the seat, the "outside" tie down is at a steep angle and could use some help).
yeah, yeah, kickstand is down, blah blah blah
mistersouthpaw
Well-known member
I thought about that, but decided I want to get it right away.
This is how tow trucks always tow my bikes even when I ask them not to.
Can you use a centre stand (f you have one) for hauling or should it also be up?
I don't really know.
My first reaction would be centrestand up, but whether it's up or down, the rear suspension is still being compressed equally on both sides regardless of the weight being on the centrestand or on the rear tire, so it shouldn't matter, right? And you have two contact patches in the rear instead of a single one, so it should be more stable. So maybe centrestand down is better?
Only drawback I can think of is if the floor of the trailer is wood, then the metal centrestand is going to gouge a hole in it when the rear is ratcheted down.
I would be inclined to do stand up. The stand is designed for the weight of the bike sitting over the center of it. Something like a speed bump can probably double or triple the weight (for a short time) and corners would put all sorts of strange forces into the center stand. The rear wheel is designed to support pretty much anything you can throw at it.
How are you compressing the rear suspension when it is on the centrestand? Front wheel in the air? That seems dodgy. Are you thinking track stand?
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