OzSTOC
Farkles, Gear & Accessories => Trailers & Towing => Topic started by: ST2UP on July 15, 2015, 07:25:05 AM
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Well we have gone and done it now....something I said I wouldn't do....and I mean EVER DO !!
We have stayed up to 2 weeks on the road and could perhaps longer in paid accomodation with the bike alone.....even with some of Pockey's creature comforts along :butt
But times they are a changing.... we came from a camping and camper trailer background with the 4WD and the kids, but with the cost of paid accomodation escalating and not being in the exact locations you want your lodgings we have made a new addition to the STable along side STig.
We have dropped a bag full of dimes on an Elite Camper trailer..... :eek
The camper was previously owned by Sicman :-++ who has aquired a new toy to compensate.......
The Elite camper which we have nick named "STung" as it sits on the tail of our bike STig is a 2006 model that has had very minimal use by its previous 2 owners. STung has a 360 deg coupling, disc brakes, 10" wheels, draw bar pod with Ice Box and 12v to 12v Redarc charger to a 105A/h deepcycle battery in the trailer.
The tent section is 1.5 x 2.7 mtr with 4 screened windows and a screened door. The bed base is a folded Queen size with a 4" mattress. Attachable awning (when used) is 2.7 x 2.7 with 3 screened walls.
We will carry all the usual camping gear but more along the light weight hiking line of products in relation to cooking, chairs, tables etc.
So stand by for loads of bike trailer related questions from these bike camper virgins.... :nahnah
(http://i1355.photobucket.com/albums/q717/ST2UP/8304fdf0063f2a404a67ff54a884148b_zpskb77s5st.jpg)
(http://i1355.photobucket.com/albums/q717/ST2UP/280e3312fb18dca84a0b6eff965590df_zpsuxusdfmb.jpg)
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So my first question....
I intend on replacing the tyres (5.00x10") as they are now 10yrs old.....the trailer has a spare mounted under the rear and may be helpful for weight distribution :think1
But I'm considering disgaurding the spare to save weight, jacks etc and putting slime or similar into the 2 tyres in use.....the tyres are tubeless and I do carry a tyre repair kit and compressor on the bike.
Tell me your thoughts trailer guru's :blu13
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(http://www.rzrforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=82883&d=1378351910)
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I scrubbed a 10" trailer tyre on the road to Blackall, ripped the sidewall. I then had to ride north to Barcaldine then east to Rockhampton to get a replacement. Lucky I had a spare with me. Just sayin'
Also lucky that a passing cage stopped and lent me his jack.
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But I'm considering disgaurding the spare to save weight, jacks etc and putting slime or similar into the 2 tyres in use.....the tyres are tubeless and I do carry a tyre repair kit and compressor on the bike.
This should be fine. ++
I only carry a spare on my trailer in case a wheel bearing lets go out there somewhere. The bearing is pressed into the rim on my model.
My (much lighter) trailer could probably run with no air in the tyres (to get me to the next town or a safe spot to pull over) - but I'd say your tyre issue is sorted and you won't need the spare. Just consider the wheel bearing side of things. ;-*
Especially once Pampered Pockey Packs Perishables and Personal Property Prior to Putting Posterior in Pillion Position. :wink1 Phew!
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:dred11
lQQks ++ Chris and Pockey,, :thumbs I definitely recommend waiting for warmer nights,,
my AungerPro trailer is light and I haven't needed my spare but I have it under the trailer out of the way. juST in case..
as newby's to bike towing I'm sure you wont take long to be 'confident and competent. ++ :clap
Enjoy getting STung in the outback :grin
Especially once Pampered Pockey Packs Perishables and Personal Property Prior to Putting Posterior in Pillion Position. :wink1 Phew! :crackup Glad you said that Diesel
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Our first trailer (bought used) had a puncture when we first used it. We just got one of Holt tyre repair cans and used that. They were tubed tyres and the tyre never went down again until a few years later at which time I replaced all three tyres.
The Classic I have now doesn't have a spare wheel but it came with a spare tyre. No issues with punctures on this one after 4 years but the tyres will need replacing before the trip to WA.
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just remember you have all that space under the tent ..... the first rule of space is .... use it!
lol.
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Looks good Chris, enjoy the camping :thumb
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Chris just loves camping it up
Looks good Chris, enjoy the camping :thumb
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:grin :grin
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Snap
Ive got one almost just like it
dont forget to drop a couple of extra pounds in your rear tyre when you tow
otherwise youll chew out the rear in no time (the tyre that is)
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Looks great, you're gonna love it :grin
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Classic Industries are nor making tow hitches for the Trophy so have to see all these setups in actions. Maybe a ride to camp for a trailer showdown :beer
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Classic Industries are nor making tow hitches for the Trophy so have to see all these setups in actions. Maybe a ride to camp for a trailer showdown :beer
You can check ours at the Border.......but looking at the Classic sight they do one for a Trophy SE 2013 series whether that's the same as yours is another thing.
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SE 2013 on are all the same, the only change has been black is now available as a colour (not that defective speckled black :rofl ). The first batch they made were wrong, as one of the struts was not bent mirror reverse as it should have. The one who found the error was putting it on a Trophy in the USA and it would not fit.
I am not in a hurry as no plans to use a trailer as yet.
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Fitted up the Towbar today, everything fell into place nicely.....only thing I may change is the permenant power to the trailer plug.....may yet change that to ingnition power with a relay.
Fitted new tyres and decided to go with cross ply as the originals but fitted without tubes and glued to the rims.....left them for a couple of weeks now for the tyre glue to set, plan now is to deflate and add the ride on sealant :like spare under the trailer is still fitted with a tube......tomorrow's job is to fit a new slave cylinder and change the fluid.
Thanks to Malcolm for the Towbar and Icman for the fitting instructions :like
(http://i1355.photobucket.com/albums/q717/ST2UP/42c7ddeb222d47f96a8d3b844cb5ad5a_zpsbdqy172n.jpg)
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Looks awesome mate :clap :clap :clap
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Woo hoo!!!
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Icman :think1 - Is he that new bloke? :whistle :grin
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Icman :think1 - Is he that new bloke? :whistle :grin
Just seeing if you read every word.....Scman :Stirpot :Stirpot
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No probs S2UP :grin
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New Tyres with Ride On sealant - Check
New Slave cylinder - Check
New brake Caliper - Check
New DOT3 fluid throughout - Check
New brake pads - Check
New wheel bearings - Check
Leaf springs lubed with graphite grease - Check
Spanner check all over - Check
Only one thing left to do now having never towed with a bike.....Practice, Practice, Practice !!
(http://i1355.photobucket.com/albums/q717/ST2UP/078354f1ecf2bb5345b1aa4a74fb3ae8_zps523cjiad.jpg)
Rode about a 100k's yesterday over and hour and a half.....everything from rough single lane country roads through to Highway riding and slow speed around town and into and out of gravel driveways, car parks etc.....I really wanted to work on towing technics before adding Pockey to the equation......trailer while obviously in tow was predictable.....no obvious weight distribution issues with 20-22kg on the Towbar and 22psi in the tyres.
Now to add Pockey and go out and play some more :like
:beer
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good to see you doing practice runs first :thumb
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Very good idea to practice.
I hope you enjoy many safe miles together.
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We took our first 2UP ride yesterday with wardrobe in tow :p knocked out 240k's of various roads and rode into silly places to put us and the setup to the test......driveways, roadside rest areas with heavy gravel, even thick mowed grass.....all this to see if we could cope with a variety of terrain. The thick grass was very uphill in one spot and nearly needed Pockey to get off to put the hubs in :Stirpot
So we were for the most part happy with handling and re-educating the way I rode, gearing down earlier, braking earlier being more proactive with riding lines and were the trailer wheels are.
But it is rear tyre pressure/temp/wear on the bike that is my greatest concern now.....I'm some what anal about tyre pressures on our vehicles and have had good results with the "4 psi rule" on bikes, cars, 4x4's.
Our normal 2UP touring cold pressure in the rear is 48psi.....yesterday towing the trailer that was 50kg off its touring weight (icebox contents, clothing, food) and bike that was less 20kg of its touring weight (pannier contents) had a hot rear tyre presume of 59psi and a tyre that just felt excessively hot. This was on a 24 degree day.
IMHO this heat and temp rise is from the friction created on a smaller tyre surface patch of the rear tyre pulling the extra weight of the camper (200kg) so while the towball weight of the camper (20-22kg) is crucial to how the trailer tows its virtuality irrelevant adding this little extra down on the bikes rear tyre.
So first plan is to increase rear tyre pressure a little to see if I can combat the dramatic pressure/heat rise to increase tyre life....will go to 50psi cold and don't really want to go any higher :think1
And now the next step.....something I never thought I would consider :eek Darkside :eek
I need to find/borrow/buy a ST1300 rear wheel :popcorn 205/50R17 passenger car tyres are easily purchased and made by a variety of manufacturers.
There is loads of info out there about the pros and cons of Darkside tyres......but I think I need to try for myself :think1 most of the time STig will have his bike shoes on but swapping out to a Darkside might be the answer for long distance towing like the trip to Perth in March :think1
:popcorn
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This is a most interesting thread. I have nothing to offer, other than my thanks for the comprehensive reporting of your experiences. :popcorn :popcorn
What's the "4 psi rule" ?
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I dont think the temp rise is too bad, it (according to my calculator) is only a 5C increase.
48PSI at ambient seems a bit high to me but..
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In essence the 4psi rule:
To find the optimum tyre pressure for your vehicle in regards to longevity, comfort etc
Take a starting cold pressure of (blah) and go for a drive for at least 30 mins of highway driving to heat the tyre up to operating temp then check your pressure while the tyre is hot.......if the pressure measured is greater than 4psi your starting cold pressure was to low, if it didn't reach 4psi it was to high.
Use the same gauge naturally.....and although it is a controversial method with some ppl I have had success with it particular on cars/4x4's. Worked on the ST until the trailer came along on the bikes rear......works on the camper too.
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Well Pockey's mobile wardrobe is about to received a major make over :eek
When we first considered a trailer of any description our primary concern was weight and tow-a-ability.....before we bought the Elite we consulted their website and gained all the info we required......or so we thought :H
As you can see above we have been out and towed with the ST and we where reasonable happy with the experience.....I have never towed with a bike but have done considerable towing with all manner of trailers behind cars/4x4 etc......but somthing was niggling away about weight even though the gear we added to the trailer was light weight hiking equipment.
So off to the weight bridge to put this concern behind us.....so the camper was weighed loaded, minus esky contents, and a sports bag of cloths.
And the magic number was......330kg's :H and :cuss
The classic industries tow bar is rated for 230kg :think1
So we needed to considerable lighten the package and see where our research went wrong......
After some calls to Elite campers all was revealed......in the interim I removed the camper top and weighed all the pieces individually.....
The trailer which is all alloy with a steel chassis reinforcement with spare tyre comes in at 110kg. The gear inside the trailer which includes a 105AH battery (30kg) comes in at 70 kg's......so camper top alone is 150kg.......
Elite was adiment that the camper top was 85 kg's as they had shipped them all over the country.....when I asked about the canvas used they stated that it's 8oz rip stop canvas top and sides......problem solved. I have one of their early campers made prior to this owner of the company, previous manufacturer use 15oz Australian bradmill canvas all over including awnings and awing walls......even thought the rest of the camper top was alloy in the poles and bed base that 15ounce canvas is very heavy duty and the reason the company changed prior to the new owner taking over.
So watch this space to see how our plan evolves.....
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Well done mate..... :popcorn
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Well Pockey's mobile wardrobe is about to received a major make over :eek
When we first considered a trailer of any description our primary concern was weight and tow-a-ability.....before we bought the Elite we consulted their website and gained all the info we required......or so we thought :H
As you can see above we have been out and towed with the ST and we where reasonable happy with the experience.....I have never towed with a bike but have done considerable towing with all manner of trailers behind cars/4x4 etc......but somthing was niggling away about weight even though the gear we added to the trailer was light weight hiking equipment.
So off to the weight bridge to put this concern behind us.....so the camper was weighed loaded, minus esky contents, and a sports bag of cloths.
And the magic number was......330kg's :H and :cuss
The classic industries tow bar is rated for 230kg :think1
So we needed to considerable lighten the package and see where our research went wrong......
After some calls to Elite campers all was revealed......in the interim I removed the camper top and weighed all the pieces individually.....
The trailer which is all alloy with a steel chassis reinforcement with spare tyre comes in at 110kg. The gear inside the trailer which includes a 105AH battery (30kg) comes in at 70 kg's......so camper top alone is 150kg.......
Elite was adiment that the camper top was 85 kg's as they had shipped them all over the country.....when I asked about the canvas used they stated that it's 8oz rip stop canvas top and sides......problem solved. I have one of their early campers made prior to this owner of the company, previous manufacturer use 15oz Australian bradmill canvas all over including awnings and awing walls......even thought the rest of the camper top was alloy in the poles and bed base that 15ounce canvas is very heavy duty and the reason the company changed prior to the new owner taking over.
So watch this space to see how our plan evolves.....
what on earth are you planning to run with a 105AH battery - Melbourne ??? :grin
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:crackup it was in the camper from the previous owner who ran a Waeco in the front box, the Icey tech box will serve our needs......we only use the battery for lights and charging phones etc......although the battery was heavy it was on enough twin core flex that you could move around in camper for ballast :thumbsup
Have replaced with a 28AH that I had here :thumb
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great pick up there Chris, not something I would have thought of.
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......we only use the battery for lights and charging phones etc......although the battery was heavy it was on enough twin core flex that you could move around in camper for ballast :thumbsup
If you are only using the battery for lights and phone charging, is there any reason why one of this class of device could not be used? I'm sure it could be charged from the bike when travelling, and if using you're using LED lights, you would have plenty of capacity. There would be a massive weight saving.
http://www.carbatterychargerscentral.com/car-starter-top-7-compact-battery-jump-starters/ (http://www.carbatterychargerscentral.com/car-starter-top-7-compact-battery-jump-starters/)
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Latest upgrade or downgrade depending on how you look at it to Pockey's mobile wardrobe......
The Canvas camper top is just to heavy.....fortunately for us Steve at Elite campers had a second hand hard lid at the right price that fitted up and will work with the next stage of the transformation......from Camper to Cargo trailer to carry the camping gear. The weight saving now that I have individually weighted all the components on and in the trailer puts us back in the safe zone.
Modified Rhino racks will be the next farkle to be added..... ;-*
(http://i1355.photobucket.com/albums/q717/ST2UP/82904230ec6e38b127ee9b3840703dce_zps2tdcrcv2.jpg)
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Interesting side effect of ditching that brilliant camper :'( was the tow ball weight....with the camper top in place I had a ball weight of 20-22kg as per the manufacturers recommendation, however with the camper off the ball weight is now up to 30kg due to axle location and the fact that 70% of the trailer weight is forward of the axle.
Bought back to 20-22kg with weight distribution etc
Cheers
Chris
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Reduced height, less wind resistance and a slight gain in fuel economy. Lower centre of gravity so trailer should be a little more stable.
I haven't needed to use the rack on the lid of my trailer so I've marked that as a place to mount a solar panel should we need to go down that path.
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I just towed Old Red 2700kms and returned an average figure for fuel consumption of 17.3km/l or 49mpg.
That still gave me a theoretical range from 28 litres (being the usable fuel capacity of a 13) of approaching 500 clicks.
The above average was taken on a run down the Newell Hwy at around 31*C and an indicated speed of 117km/h (110 actual). I pulled in for fuel in Gilgandra with 442 kms on the trip meter. Happy bout that!
You can see that Old Red is quite low and small - weighing in at 100-150kg gross.
(http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag42/dieselst1300/20151109_103608_zpsv10yvkru.jpg)
You should enjoy a lot better fuel economy now ST2UP and have an all round better towing experience. :thumb
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Also it looks awesome :grin
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk
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Wind back the clock to May 2013 and see Pockey's comments about a trailer. http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=4089.0 (http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=4089.0) :grin
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Modified a rhino bar I had in the shed to take the OzTent and fitted an awning.
The awning bag I had had made a few years ago for the rear of the 4x4 but never used, we found a 3m Sq fly and had a mate sew into the bag, fly, poles, ropes and pegs are all in the bag for a quick shade or overnight stop etc. The tube behind the awning is our fishing rods.
(http://i1355.photobucket.com/albums/q717/ST2UP/8bb3adaf5200f3395bb29f975f5e2564_zpsc4ftyact.jpg)
(http://i1355.photobucket.com/albums/q717/ST2UP/b5af1b04f9fb62f906785013958c8b23_zpsqppgcf1t.jpg)
:beer
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([url]http://i1355.photobucket.com/albums/q717/ST2UP/8bb3adaf5200f3395bb29f975f5e2564_zpsc4ftyact.jpg[/url])
What sort of kg's are you (well not you, the trailer - you know what I mean) at now?
I notice that even on your Elite, a later model than mine, it still has the pretty crappy jockey wheel, arrangement. Even my now 25 year old Classic trailer had a better arrangement (whilst it was a bit clumsy, it was - probably still is - adjustable for height).
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I still need to do a final weight when loaded, but in the mean time I'm keeping a running tally of the individual weight of items added to the 105kg of the trailer dry.
The awning complete comes in at 2.7 kg :eek
Racks complete at 3kg
The total weight when loaded with everything to be self sufficient will be between 220-230Kg's.......100+Kg lighter than with the camper.
The weight distribution is more difficult though without the camper top in place and not being able to move the axle forward more than the 10mm I already have. Elite have the front pod for the Esky etc, we have moved it to the rear for weight and access reasons.....with the OzTent (21Kg) in place you cannot open the pod, so the pod has all the light weight items (sleeping gear etc)
Yeah the jockey is painful ++ only saving grace now is we wont need to unhitch from the bike to setup a camper each night, so jockey is mostly redundant when travelling.
:beer
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It's coming together well mate.
I saw it on the weekend and the fittings are all top notch. :thumb