HF Utility Trailer For My "T" GS750TZ

[GSXR7ED]

Work Horse

Had one that I gave away when I left Michigan in 2011. I welded it flat at the center hinge where the guides met the rest of the frame. Had a ramp to push bike up on it. Hauled lots of stuff with that little guy and it was one helll of a work horse for what it was.

Never had use of the tilt bed option and the safety pins actually rusted themselves in the holes. Hauled a bike up every weekend up to my 35 acres so I had a bike when up there. Hauled Rustybroncos Penelope back on the trailer as well.

I'm very satisfied with my HF trailer...I won't be welding it since it limits the option of folding it. Some minor improvements and I will be ready if the call comes to do a roadtrip again.


Ed

[GSXR7ED]

Solid Piece of Plywood

Anyhow, that looks like a single sheet of plywood, with e-tracks on top. It's not going to fold very easily. I'm thinking GSXR7ed may was well remove the bars holding the casters.

I keep the plywood as one-piece. It's tedious to remove and replace but it keeps the whole foundation more solid (In My Opinion). And it weighed quite a bit dragging it into my apartment. Plus the weight of the wheel chock provides 40 lbs up front which is where I need to shift a little more weight to.

Like I mentioned before, I had no problems trekking my bike back home from New Mexico. I made sure I re-greased the bearings before each long trip. The 55 mph limit on the tires was on the back of my mind...but when I needed to pass those big rigs in excess of 65 mph, this trailer handled it with a solid feel.

Love my trailer!


Ed

[Steve]

Looking good, (R)ed.

With the detailed pictures, it is apparent that it is built a LOT better than the cheapie unit that I had. It was cold-rolled angle around the perimeter, and the plywood set inside it. I don't remember right now whether there was any cross-bracing or not. I think I might have added some before making our cross-country trip, but can't say for sure.

Enjoy it, it looks like it is ready to do the job.

.

[chuck hahn]

I ran 70 and 75 MPH all the time with mine and it never gave me any tire problems nor tracking problems.

[GSXR7ED]

^^Haha,

Yeah, Gramma P and her eyesight. I started watching "Black Is The New Orange" and so now I have a complex.

Anyway, thanks for the Steve seal of approval!

What's sad is, I'm gonna leave my "T" here at home. I'm just not ready to proceed with all she needs. Back to jax today.


Ed

[posplayr]

Just looking at this from an engineering stand point, having the engine forward of the axle pretty much guarantees that you will have down force on the tounge. Use a bathroom scale to measure the force before making any more adjustments.

[chuck hahn]

There will be PLENTY of tongue weight with a bike loaded..trust me on that. Mount the spare tire and a small tool box on the tongue and thats even more.

Honestly, its being way over thought here. Load the bike and just try to lift the tongue up off the ball and youll see that its heavy as can be.

[storm 64]

^^Haha,

Yeah, Gramma P and her eyesight. I started watching "Black Is The New Orange" and so now I have a complex.

Anyway, thanks for the Steve seal of approval!

What's sad is, I'm gonna leave my "T" here at home. I'm just not ready to proceed with all she needs. Back to jax today.


Ed

So all this trailer talk and your not using it to take your motorcycle with you?? Spring time in Florida with no motorcycle?? Whatever...

[GSXR7ED]

Not A Fan

So all this trailer talk and your not using it to take your motorcycle with you?? Spring time in Florida with no motorcycle?? Whatever...

Dude,

I'm not fond of Florida. (No offense to anyone)

Lived in many different places around the world and I can't say it's where I'd want to live. There's a reason I'm there and it's not for pleasure.

Plus, I've ridden in a more scenic place...city riding is fine but nothing beats the countryside. (I know there might be those who disagree but that's fine)


Ed

[GSXR7ED]

Part 1 Travel Day

There will be PLENTY of tongue weight with a bike loaded..trust me on that. Mount the spare tire and a small tool box on the tongue and thats even more.

Honestly, its being way over thought here. Load the bike and just try to lift the tongue up off the ball and youll see that its heavy as can be.

Just being thorough Chuck...I like the concern though.

Yes, I just put the bike on the trailer and went...all the way from Dover, DE to Alamogordo, NM--nearly 2K miles!!!

I had no issues but since I did start this thread and open discussion is what Forums are for...well, you know how this works.


Alright, I'm outta here...400 miles south to North Carolina...


Ed

[Dogma]

There will be PLENTY of tongue weight with a bike loaded..trust me on that. Mount the spare tire and a small tool box on the tongue and thats even more.

Honestly, its being way over thought here. Load the bike and just try to lift the tongue up off the ball and youll see that its heavy as can be.

That's why I didn't mount my wheel chock all the way forward. I parked the bike on the trailer in a variety of positions until I found a spot where I was happy with the balance (just enough weight on the tongue to keep it from bouncing up and down on most roads, pretty much as Steve recommended at 15% of load). This position also helps keep the tow vehicle's suspension in its happy place. An F150 would happily carry a bike's weight on a hitch, but a smaller vehicle might run into stability problems. Loaded this way, my Grand Prix (RIP) happily hauled a bike at "highway speeds" from Cincinnati to the Chicago area for the MotoWorks track day. It didn't even overheat maneuvering through Chicago's traffic and limitless toll plazas.

I ran 70 and 75 MPH all the time with mine and it never gave me any tire problems nor tracking problems.

The speed rating on the trailer is at full load. With one bike on a 1400 lb rated trailer, the tires will easily tolerate speeds exceeding the rated limit. How much they will tolerate is unknown until you destroy them though. Low pressure will effectively reduce the speed rating, so keep an eye on that, of course. It has mainly to do with heat generated by sidewall flexing.

I got to watch this in action on a ride a couple seasons ago. Somebody had a backhoe tractor loaded onto double-axle utility trailer better suited to a couple mowers and some trimmers. The weight of the tractor had the whole rig swaying as it went down the road, and one of the tires looked to be a little more squashed than the others. Probably low on air. Well, not long after I came up behind this thing I started to smell hot rubber. In less than a minute there was a lot of smoke coming off the squishy tire. By then I was backed off far enough that I couldn't see exactly when the tire went completely flat. I think he would have made it to wherever if he had kept it to 35 instead of doing 55.

Of course, overinflating doesn't increase the speed rating. Well, not enough to warrant risking a blowout.

[chuck hahn]

Low pressure is why you see all the retreads comming off semi tires too. Makes intolerable heat build up and they simply delaminate or explode.

[GSXR7ED]

Fwd Weight

That's why I didn't mount my wheel chock all the way forward. I parked the bike on the trailer in a variety of positions until I found a spot where I was happy with the balance (just enough weight on the tongue to keep it from bouncing up and down on most roads, pretty much as Steve recommended at 15% of load). This position also helps keep the tow vehicle's suspension in its happy place. An F150 would happily carry a bike's weight on a hitch, but a smaller vehicle might run into stability problems. Loaded this way, my Grand Prix (RIP) happily hauled a bike at "highway speeds" from Cincinnati to the Chicago area for the MotoWorks track day. It didn't even overheat maneuvering through Chicago's traffic and limitless toll plazas.

I forgot to add the weight of the spare tire (located fwd of the bike stop) to the total weight of my trailer:

Trailer(250)+Chock(40)+Plywood(50)+Spare(30)=370+5 00 (GS750TZ)=870 for my truck to pull.

The trailer did not have a noticeable bounce at the rear as discussed. Like was mentioned by posplayr, engineering wise...the weight of the bike is mostly forward of the axle. Here's a good pic that shows fwd weight. (My Honda Pilot weighs over 4K lbs)

The speed rating on the trailer is at full load. With one bike on a 1400 lb rated trailer, the tires will easily tolerate speeds exceeding the rated limit. How much they will tolerate is unknown until you destroy them though. Low pressure will effectively reduce the speed rating, so keep an eye on that, of course. It has mainly to do with heat generated by sidewall flexing.

Forgot to take pics of the tires...but they are inflated to suggested psi and the seal/contact around the rim is solid.

I got to watch this in action on a ride a couple seasons ago. Somebody had a backhoe tractor loaded onto double-axle utility trailer better suited to a couple mowers and some trimmers. The weight of the tractor had the whole rig swaying as it went down the road, and one of the tires looked to be a little more squashed than the others. Probably low on air. Well, not long after I came up behind this thing I started to smell hot rubber. In less than a minute there was a lot of smoke coming off the squishy tire. By then I was backed off far enough that I couldn't see exactly when the tire went completely flat. I think he would have made it to wherever if he had kept it to 35 instead of doing 55.

Of course, overinflating doesn't increase the speed rating. Well, not enough to warrant risking a blowout.

The importance of proper inflating.


Ed

[chuck hahn]

Youve got nothing to worry about or modify. Its a rock solid little trailer from my many years of experience using mine. Keeping the tires at proper pressure and a few pumps of grease into the bearing buddies every 1,000 miles and she will roll forever.

I did replace the axle caps that came with it for some better quality bearing buddies..the buddies that came with the kit looked pretty chincey to me.

[GSXR7ED]

Solid Little Trailer

^^Now, I got the Chuck seal of approval. I'm happy!

Edit: and with more ideas to improve the buddies covers.