invalid characters In: West Sussex
Posts: 647
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Always had a couple of trailers for my racing and chose the most appropriate for the meeting/distance. Not into touring or touring-bikes TBH, but my street-bike would-be suitable for where I wanted to go. So in agreement really and there's all the other reasons you mention.
When I was learning on my GP100 (a predecessor of your 125), me and my mates, some of whom only had 50cc machines, used to go to Flamborough and Brid for the weekend quite regularly. Used to pretty much take us the day to get there and then the next day to get back lol! Each trip was like a huge adventure with regular road side repairs made and numerous stops along the way for breaks and refreshments.
Amazing when you think that sometimes now I bob over after work for a doughnut or an ice cream by the seaside as a (admittedly quite large) diversion home.
invalid characters In: West Sussex
Posts: 647
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Never had any problems with a small trailer, just make sure it's mechanically sound and tyre pressures are OK. Carry a trailer spare as well.
Don't skimp on tie-downs, use the ratchet type not the friction ones. I always used the ones HD use in the shipping crates, have a word with the workshop peeps. I used 4/bike. And compress the bike suspension when you tie it down.
We use 6 per bike. 4 at the front and 2 at the rear. Bought 25mm and 38mm ratchet straps, 1500kg and 3000kg break load. The trailer also has wheel chocks that hold the front wheel.
How much to compress the suspension was the biggest thing to learn. Geoff was concerned about over tightening and blowing a fork seal.
We went for a dry run to his parents about 20 miles away. Must have taken us 2 hours to load these bikes and figure out where to put the straps so they didn't cause any damage. We stopped 3 miles down the road to check the straps and found 2 had unhooked off the back!! Bikes hadn't shifted though. Reattached them, tightened up a bit more and headed off down the motorway.
When we got to his parents he remembered a tip he read on a forum which was to sit on the bikes and then tighten the straps. Even with me sat on them both, the straps went slack so now we tighten them with Geoff sat on them as he weighs a little more than me.
As already mentioned, we've taken them to Ireland and Geoff does have a weeping fork seal now but he thinks that although the trailering has caused it to weep, it's more likely the 50k+ miles on the bike that is the real culprit.
We use a hitch lock too so the trailer can't be simply unhitched and we alarm my bike which has a very sensitive nudge sensor when they are parked up. Other things we do is tie off the straps over the ratchets so it's harder for them to be interferred with. Have seen some other bikes on trailers and they used duct tape over them. Another tip a friend gave was cable tie the hooks to the eyes so they can't detatch.
We also learned that if we back the trailer up to a kerb, that lowers the trailer so the ramp up is less severe. That means Geoff can load and unload the bikes pretty much by himself or with a little help from me.
A few hints for you here Roachy,... over doing the front tie downs WILL blow the fork seals, if possible try to move the tiedown points further apart, (sideways) and use one of them Oxford straps that fit over the bar ends.
I won't use ratchet tie downs, as they can fail, especially them chinese ones! I use the friction type, but tie the loose end to something, or to another strap end,.. this way you can see in the mirror if one has started to come loose or the bike has shifted.
The hooks that are fastened on the trailer, need securing with cable ties,.. wrap them round twice, so when you cut them you can use them again.
Yep, allways carry a spare wheel, (padlocked on) make sure that if it's allways in one place on the trailer that it doesn't perish, and that you have a way of lifting the trailer high enough with just your car jack!
I allways cable tie the front wheel in place too, just with one, to the frame,.. with my trailer the steering can move a little, letting one strap come loose.
In the past I've also used a piece of a strap from a curtain-sided lorry,. by tieing a knot/loop in either end and just wrapping it around the back wheel,.. hey presto, two more tying down points, (but leave it gear for that one). If you've got one of them trailers with the ramps that lift up like mine, and they are secured with the little 'T' pins, (they look like a letter 'T' when closed), stick a tie thru those too because over the years they will start to jump out all on their own, and then the ramps will fall down,... embarrassing!
RustyKnight In: Newton Aycliffe
Posts: 2462
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A lad at work just got back from touring the alps today. 5 lads and 5 bikes in a LWB Renault van with trailer to get to the ferry. They saved enough fuel money travelling from here to Dover to pay for an extra weekend abroad. For those that would prefer the 270 mile stint down the motorway to reach the ferry and have a shorter time abroad, happy holidays!
Cheers Paj for those tips.
Yeah Yama, it wouldn't make half as much sense if only the one bike.
Wow, RK, that's some saving. It really does pay the more bikes you can transport together.
It has been a pretty expensive initial outlay, easily the cost of a trip away but it's there now and can be used over and over again.
I'm really looking forward to going away next year with it. I don't think I'd manage to make it all the way down to the Alps unless I took a week to get there (and another to get back) so this is making a trip like this possible for me.
I'v driven 1,000s of miles with bikes on trailers, just tied on with rope and an elastic strap round the brake, no trouble at all just got to get the nots right. Even taken them inside caravans, laid in back of estate cars and in pickups but vans have got to be best safer and out of sight and cheaper then a car and trailer on ferry's. But suppose i'm lucky as i have a van
Blimey Bill...inside caravans? Can you do that? Hmmmmm *ponders*
You're right, a van is a better option than a car and trailer although I prefer the idea of going out in the evening in the car than a van lol! Buying, running and storing a van just for the bikes (and we'd have no other need for it really) would have been a much bigger outlay than the trailer.
When the idea first came up about trailers, we did look into hire costs of both vans and trailers but decided sod it, just buy one.
invalid characters In: West Sussex
Posts: 647
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When I was only running one race-bike Roachy, I used to-do it all the time.
I would also strongly disagree with comments surrounding ratchet /friction straps. My dad used to "borrow" straps when he was an aircraft loader, they were always ratchet type. Friction type are cheap n cheerful, HD don't use ratchet type because they're more expensive and more likely to fail. Through the shop we picked up countless numbers of bikes, always using ratchet type and NEVER had any fail. When was the last time you had a socket ratchet fail?
What Bill says ref' the front brake, very valid I think, something I used to-do thinking about it.
Also ref' fork seals one of the key factors in design/choice is the combined gas laws, defined by;
P1 X V1 /T1 = P2 X V2 /T2
Where, P = pressure, V= volume, T = temperature.
It can clearly be seen that the amount of suspension compression is well within design parameters.
In fact in racing the amount of fork oil is used to fine-tune suspension by alter the "free air", the main consideration being "hydraulicking". From a practical view oil should-be regarded as incompressible.
Even on road-bikes IMO you should use level not volume.
Absolutely regards volume of fork oil! No suspension engineer worth his salt would gauge the amount of fork oil in both legs purely on volume .. they have to be even.
And you, my lady, can stop thinking about caravans lol!
Black Saab sport saloons with Hirsch performance upgrade kits and fancy stereos do not tow caravans!
They can be legitimately used for all sorts of "leisure" activities including the carrying of mountain bikes, skis etc and I am even happy to confirm they don't look out of place towing a trailer with two very nice motorcycles on.
Glossing over bits of the posts above and moving on....
Geoff's parents have got a caravan - not sure how we'd get bikes inside it though plus the money pit isn't big enough to pull a caravan that big.
Don't worry LTGTR, I'll talk him into a caravan one day and maybe even a Goldwing (seeing how he loves his Hondas).
For small bikes up to TZ250 could lift the front wheel up and get it in but for big bikes had to cut a door in to panel under rear window. Some how don't think Geoff's parents will like that.
How about a Goldwing and trailer with bike on, errrrrrr think that defeats the object.
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