Hi All, Newbie with Questions on Towing Trailer

[mhud]

Hi Everyone, I from the mountains of NC and I'm very excited to have stumbled on this site. I read for several hours yesterday and found it very informative. I've been riding motorcycles and camping for many years but not normally together. I have a 36" fifth wheel but it's difficult to use it and ride my bike so now that I have more time (recently retired) I am researching the purchase of a tent trailer to pull behind my 08 Harley Road Glide. I hope to travel across country and back this spring/summer. I have a couple of concerns that I hope some of you can help with.

1. What's the impact of pulling a trailer on the enjoyment of the ride? I have nearly 40K miles on my 08 and have enjoyed them all but they have nearly all been l solo and I have never towed anything. My fear is that pulling a trailer will make the ride more stressful which would diminish the pleasure of the trip. I would hate that.

2. I'm confused about the right trailer to purchase. Most likely 90% of the time I will be solo but there may be an occasion my wife will join me for a weekend. The brands that seem to be most popular are RoLL a Home, Aspen, Bunkhouse, Timeout and Leisure Light. I have checked out the web sites of all but there are no dealers nearby for me to see the units in person. What brands are the best value, quality, towability, features, etc?

3. Is there a big difference between pulling a 250 lb. trailer vs a 350 lb unit?

Any other suggestions are welcome. Thanks all!

[Papa Ritch]

:hi1: Welcome. Can't help on the trailer, but I am sure you will get a lot of good help. I will be watching to see what they have to tell you . Ritch :fire2:

[DILLIGAF61]

Hi Everyone, I from the mountains of NC and I'm very excited to have stumbled on this site. I read for several hours yesterday and found it very informative. I've been riding motorcycles and camping for many years but not normally together. I have a 36" fifth wheel but it's difficult to use it and ride my bike so now that I have more time (recently retired) I am researching the purchase of a tent trailer to pull behind my 08 Harley Road Glide. I hope to travel across country and back this spring/summer. I have a couple of concerns that I hope some of you can help with.

1. What's the impact of pulling a trailer on the enjoyment of the ride? I have nearly 40K miles on my 08 and have enjoyed them all but they have nearly all been l solo and I have never towed anything. My fear is that pulling a trailer will make the ride more stressful which would diminish the pleasure of the trip. I would hate that.

2. I'm confused about the right trailer to purchase. Most likely 90% of the time I will be solo but there may be an occasion my wife will join me for a weekend. The brands that seem to be most popular are RoLL a Home, Aspen, Bunkhouse, Timeout and Leisure Light. I have checked out the web sites of all but there are no dealers nearby for me to see the units in person. What brands are the best value, quality, towability, features, etc?

3. Is there a big difference between pulling a 250 lb. trailer vs a 350 lb unit?

Any other suggestions are welcome. Thanks all!

1.....if you are super duper anally retentive pulling a camper may not be for you I happen to love it nice warm dry bed off the ground place inside to sit or cook if its raining out and a place to bring along more stuff than you really need

2....Aspen and Bunkhouse are the top two sellers followed by the others Roll a Home and a couple others have a "hard" floor in their vestibule area that some people like (don't ask me it seems like more weight to me) I have a Kwik-Kamp they are no longer made but they come on the market every now and then for around $800. and up all the "name brand" campers are about equal in value personal preference is the deciding issue

3... yeah about 100 lbs my camper is #325 empty loaded -#525 a lighter trailer lets you carry more stuff you really don't need after 3 days of camping find a ups store and ship home everything you haven't touched get rid of all that dead weight

4.....most of all just have fun


:ChopperEmo: :fire4: :grill1: :oh2: :shower1: :tent8: :java1: repeat

[bobalou]

Not to blow my horn but here is my story:
I began pulling a cargo trailer (for tent) I guess in '95. Quickly got a Timeout then a Bunkhouse. The Timeout was <s p a c i o u s>, a little bit of an issue to put up. The Bunkhouse was smaller, seemed to carry more and easy to set up. Both weighed the big Wings down that I had (GL1200 then a GL1500). It seems like everyone pulled out in front of you on the road, why? The cargo trailer that I built was great. Even carried a kitchen sink as they say. Had to look back there and see I was still pulling it!
Currently, I have a '84 Lowrider that I have camped with but it was more of a chore to strap everything down on. So I cut back on the 401K payments and bought a '08 Wing GL1800. I've got a hitch on the way. Am looking at a cargo trailer purchase in March. Since I love camping I want to get a bigger tent with luxuries (cook table & set-up) screen porch (for reading and studying) etc. I have been known to carry a small AC unit in the hot Summer so the cargo is the way to go for me.
Oh, I like the ground camping (tent) more as it is much more stable.

There's a host of really great ideas on this site. You should read what others do before forming your own opinion.

[SidecarMike]

1. A properly loaded trailer tends to be something you forget is back there. There have been occasions where I actually turn down the right mirror to remind me it's there. It doesn't affect the ride, with the exception of maybe braking a heavy trailer on wet pavement. It takes a little more distance to come to a complete stop but otherwise you won't feel it. This is true, even when pulling a trailer through the Ozarks at a brisk rate of speed. :D

2. Over the years, we've owned a Time Out, a Bunkhouse, a Kamparoo (now called Leisure Lite), and a Napper. These things are really subjective, everyone likes something different. I hated the Time-Out, was claustrophobic in the Kamparoo, the Napper is probably the best built of the four but the add on room takes 3 men and a dog to erect, and the Bunkhouse is the only one I would buy again if I could start over.
3. I once hauled a weight bench and 600 pounds of Olympic weights in (and on) an old Breeze cargo trailer. The roads were dry and I didn't have to panic stop, but the trip was uneventful. I don't think you'd notice the difference between 250 and 350 on a bike like yours.
Of course, YMMV

[GoldWingGL]

1.
I have never found a lack of enjoyment while Pulling any of my Trailers. The fact that I am out on the road knowing that I am going to be camping that night has just added to the enjoyment of having the Trailer.



2.
There are Positives and negatives to all the Trailers; for the most part it is a matter of personal preference.
There are 3 hard floor Trailers on the market.
TimeOut being the largest when set up but that is about the end of the positives on that one. It has very little storage and it pretty much has to be removed when setting up as it sits in your floor space. Setup can be done by one person but takes awhile. While the bed space is very large, it can be very cold on a chilly night. This is because the bed is just wood panels and exposed to the outside; it pretty much requires an inflatable mattress and both radiate the cold like crazy. If you like a large living area, pack very little and camp only in warmer weather, then this Trailer can be very nice. I know, I used to have one.

Leesurelite is another hard floor trailer that has 2 models. The Cycle model that is 48” wide and the Excel that is 54” wide. Nice Trailer but yet again the storage is entirely on the bed and has to be removed after setup. I always like to (jokingly) refer to this picture on the LL storage because it pretty much describes it. http://www.leesurelite.com/images/gallery3.jpg Again, like the TimeOut, it has a hard bed area that requires an inflatable mattress and radiates the cold like crazy as it is an outer panel of the Trailer and exposed to the outside. The floor/living area is smaller than both the TimeOut and the next Trailer, the Roll-a-Home.

The Roll-a-Home has 2 Models. The Standard and the King Slide out. The Standard has a 48x78 bed with mattress and a 48x78 Floor area. The Floor area being the same, the King Model has a King size slide out bed. Of the Hard floor Trailers; the RH is the only one with a Separate Storage area. This can be accessed one the road or while setup. The RH Standard Model is the only one of the 3 Trailers where the bed is completely insulated from the outside by the storage area. I say this as I have owned 2 of the 3 Trailers and slept in the other one. This factor does make a difference.

Other Types/Models of Trailers on the market include but are not limited to are, the Bunkhouse and Aspen types. These have the soft floor that sit on the ground, full storage areas and queen to king size beds. These trailers are all pretty much the same in design with slight differences between them.

3.
As far as the weight issue. There is always an issue with more weight but if handled properly it becomes less of an issue. My Bikes have always been able to handle the load and my Trailer, the RH, rolls about 620 lbs on the scale when loaded for a trip. It’s all in the use of common sense while pulling and I have never had a problem.

[Ironheadziggy76]

mhud, welcome to the site! I can't offer any insight on pulling a trailer yet, but I'm in the process of building a small cargo trailer to use for larger events so I'll let you know what I come up with in a few months.

[Jeff in Ferndale WA]

I only started doing this in September,so don't have a lot of experience.
There have been two times that I felt the trailer impacted the joy of the ride.
Once on some really tight twisties on Highway 1 in California.I could really feel it on tight downhill turns.The other time was in some heavy crosswinds in central Oregon.The combination of all the plastic on the Goldwing and the trailer,sometimes the wind would hit pretty hard. Neither time was uncomfortable,just not as much fun.
My Bushtec that I pulled last fall fully loaded was about 400#.
My Roll a Home is about 550# loaded,and doesn't feel a whole lot different.
There is a pretty good discussion on the GL1800 riders board that helped me make my decision:
http://gl1800riders.com/forums/showthread.php?t=221346

[mhud]

Thanks gents for your insight!

[tourusaon2]

I have been pulling a trailer for at least 20 years. Once you start pulling one you kinda forget it is back there. I found out I started using the bike a lot more once there was a trailer there. Last year I spent some time and checked out most of the camping trailers. I bought an Aspen Classic and I am very happy with it. It has a HUGE storage area that is easy to get to while set up or on the road. The tent stays on top of the cargo area. It has a full frame and a straight tongue. The outside poles make 1 person set up easy. I was able to use it a lot this year and it performed flawlessly. You can check it out at www.trailmasterinc.com

[G wizz]

I have been pulling a trailer for at least 20 years. Once you start pulling one you kinda forget it is back there. I found out I started using the bike a lot more once there was a trailer there. Last year I spent some time and checked out most of the camping trailers. I bought an Aspen Classic and I am very happy with it. It has a HUGE storage area that is easy to get to while set up or on the road. The tent stays on top of the cargo area. It has a full frame and a straight tongue. The outside poles make 1 person set up easy. I was able to use it a lot this year and it performed flawlessly. You can check it out at www.trailmasterinc.com

I belive you mean INSIDE poles ... Aspens all have their poles on the inside ...
Gotta love those Aspens. P^

[Scott in PA]

Try not to forget the trailer is back there. That can be a bad thing too. The most common place I have heard people get into trouble is at the fuel pump. You cut the turn close to the pump like you always do but This time the trailer catches the curb around the pump. I did not see it, but my Sister witnessed a trailer with a swivel hitch flip completely upside down when that happened.
.....don't do that....



Scott