jcain

Cool man. Enjoy

dodosmike

Put some matching blue flames on it.....lol.

Nice trailer. 7x will be easier to see around than my 8x. If your using it year round get it under coated like a vehicle. I'm thinking of keeping mine, if I do I'm going to get some 24" wide aluminum stock on a roll and enclose the bottom to keep road debris, snow, sand and general grime from getting hung up underneath.

Torsion or spring suspension?

Dodosmike

95&2010

I thought about putting something on it. Not sure what.
It's spring suspension. Now I'm looking at how to setup tie downs I got some e track. I'm going to use the trailer first to move to South Carolina. So the first trip will be furniture and household goods. 2nd trip will have the two Harleys and whatever is left. After that hauling the bikes will be its primary job. Should I setup the tie downs so the bike are over the axle? Or does it matter?

flatlander_summit

If you're going to use it for a bike hauler I would put some removable chocks in the floor. I think if I hauled bikes I would make sure to move them far enough forward so there is some tongue weight to limit the swaying of the trailer.

smokeywren

It matters.

When on the road, you want a minimum of 12 percent of the gross trailer weight on ball. Up to 15% is okay if that won't overload your tow vehicle.

So load the trailer with everything that will be in it when on the road. Then go to a truckstop with a certified automated truck scale. Drop the loaded trailer on one pad of the scale so the tongue jack and both axles are on the same pad, then somehow reach way up there and mash the intercom button without standing on a scale pad. Pay the scale attendant their $10 then you can do the next step at your leisure.

Use a tongue weight scale and weigh the tongue of the wet and loaded trailer. (Here's a link to my tongue weight scale:
http://www.etrailer.com/Tools/Sherline/5780.html )

Divide the tongue weight by the gross trailer weight. If the answer is less than 0.12, then you need to rearrange the bikes so more weight is in front of the trailer axles. If the answer is more than 0.15, then you need to move some weight to behind the trailer axles.

If you have time to adjust the weight on the trailer more exactly, then try to wind up with an answer between 0.125 and 0.130 (12.5 to 13% tongue weight, and with the bikes arranged to your liking inside the trailer. After you have the load properly distributed, then mark the floor to show where you want the tie-downs located.

In my 7x14 motorcycle trailer, there are tie downs in the floor as well as on the front and side walls..

When you have it all loaded, double check your tongue weight. Then hook the trailer to the tow vehicle using a good weight-distributing hitch, and have a good trip.

95&2010

Well I'm going to show how stupid I am. I didn't even think about a WD hitch. I guess it wouldn't be a bad idea with 7000lb GVT. Is there one style that is better than another? I don't want to spend a lot but I want to be safe at the same time.

brulaz

Talk with the operator, but busy truck stops usually don't want you dropping your trailer on the scale. Nor do the truckers in the line behind you.

Here's another way to do it when at a busy CAT scale:
#1 Measure truck with trailer attached. Have each axle on a separate pad.
This will give you loaded Steer, Drive and Trailer GAWs + Total (GCW).
Drive off and drop the trailer in the lot. Get back in line.
Position truck in same place on the scales as before.
# 2 Measure truck alone. This gives you unloaded Steer and Drive GAW + Total (truck's GVW).

CAT scales only charge a couple of bucks extra for any extra weighs after the first.

If you're using a WDH, weigh #1 should be with the WDH slackened.

First Total (GCW) minus Second Total (truck's GVW) is your trailer's GVW.
Trailer GVW minus Trailer GAW (from first weigh) is your tongue weight.

If you have a WDH you will want to run through again with the WDH cinched up to see how well it moves the weight off the drive axle and onto the steer and trailer axles. Can try different WDH settings too.

Have done this many times. The limiting factor is the patience of your passengers. CAT scales guarantee their accuracy. And when doing multiple weighs with my WDH, the Totals were always the same. If not, there's something wrong.

Always good to talk to the operator first and explain that you'll be doing multiple weighs.

The call button IS high. I used to use a broom stick, but last time got out of the cab, jumped up to whack the button and climbed back onto the running board. Seemed to work ok.

brulaz

As for WDH with good sway control, most people recommend a Equal-i-zer
http://www.adventurerv.net/equalizer...bs-p-1377.html

or Reese Straight-line.
http://www.adventurerv.net/reese-str...00-p-1561.html

They're both about $500.

The Equal-i-zer looks a bit easier to install (clamps to trailer frame at only one point) and easier to connect/disconnect. But it can be noisy. Both are supposed to work well.

There are cheaper and more expensive ones though.

smokeywren

There are four basic types of weight-distributing (WD) hitches.

1] El Cheapo, with sliding friction sway controls, or with no sway controls at all. Around $250 to $350 including shank. Don't even look a them. Here are two examples:
http://www.reese-hitches.com/product..._800_lbs,31996

http://www.reese-hitches.com/product...1_000_lb,49903

2] El Cheapo with some other sort of sway control. Around $400. They work, most of the time, if properly adjusted. I wouldn't use them for towing further than around the neighborhood. Example;
http://www.etrailer.com/Weight-Distr...2-00-0800.html

3] Good without being expensive. Around $600 to $700 including adjustable shank. Example is the Reese Strait-Line WD hitch with dual cam sway controls. That's the one I use on both my 7,000-pound cargo trailer and my 5,000-pound TT until I save up enough for a ProPride.
http://www.etrailer.com/Weight-Distr...e/RP66083.html

Others have mentioned the Equal-I-Zer hitch that includes built-in sway control. They are good too (if you think friction sway control is good).
http://www.etrailer.com/Weight-Distr...0-00-1200.html

4] Excellent, but over $2000. ProPride or Henesey Arrow. No sway, ever. None of the less-expensive brands can say that.
http://www.propridehitch.com/product...ol-Hitch-.html

When comparing prices, be sure the hitch you're looking at includes the adjustable shank. If the shank is not included, add another $100 to the price of the hitch to include the shank (and some WD shanks cost over $200). The shank is the part that fits into your receiver and bolts onto the WD ball mount.

Ignore the gross trailer weight rating of the WD hitch, and go by the tongue weight rating. You want more than enough tongue weight capacity, but not way too much. Use 15% of the GVWR of the trailer as your guide. Use the next higher available tongue weight capacity as the one you want. Example: Your trailer has a GVWR of 7,000 pounds. 15% of 7,000 pounds is 1,050 pounds. So 1,000 pounds tongue weight rating is not quite enough. So choose 1,200 pounds tongue weight rating. Another example: The TT has a GVWR of 5,300 pounds. 15% tongue weight would be 795 pounds. So the WD hitch tongue weight rating should be 800 pounds.

95&2010

Why are the cheaper ones no good? What benefit is there that makes the twice the cost worth it?