Help settle a dispute

[caranoel]

Hi All,

We have a Trailblazer (I-6) and just bought a used Coachmen Clipper. GVWR is about 2900 lbs, so we are well below our GVWR limits.

The camper came with a class III hitch on the back that was obviously used. We have a Thule hitch-mounted bike rack that can hold up to 4 bikes. Currently, we have two adult mountain bikes and a child's bike--no more than 75-100 pounds with the bikes and the rack.

Can this type of hitch be used on the back of the trailer? If so, should we load heavier things up front in the camper? Does anyone see any potential problems?

I'd really like to bring the bikes this weekend for our first outing, but Dh seems to think we can't use the hitch for carrying bikes.

Thanks for your help!

cara

[wavery]

Hi All,

We have a Trailblazer (I-6) and just bought a used Coachmen Clipper. GVWR is about 2900 lbs, so we are well below our GVWR limits.

The camper came with a class III hitch on the back that was obviously used. We have a Thule hitch-mounted bike rack that can hold up to 4 bikes. Currently, we have two adult mountain bikes and a child's bike--no more than 75-100 pounds with the bikes and the rack.

Can this type of hitch be used on the back of the trailer? If so, should we load heavier things up front in the camper? Does anyone see any potential problems?

I'd really like to bring the bikes this weekend for our first outing, but Dh seems to think we can't use the hitch for carrying bikes.

Thanks for your help!

cara

The rule is to keep your tongue weight between 10-15% of your total trailer weight.

Having said that, please remember that PU trailers are designed to be "LIGHT WEIGHT". Everything about the design of the trailer is designed around that concept. If you overload the back of the trailer to where the front is less than 10% (including your addition), then add more weight to the front of the trailer, your distribution of weight will be on the ends of the trailer as apposed to the center. At some point, you may have frame and/or axle problems. If you keep the trailer within it's max weight limits, you should be OK. I would just be a little skeptical about hanging weight on the extremities of the trailer.

[Dog]

,,if you put the bikes on the rear do load a few(don't over do it) in front to compensate,,,proper way is weigh the traile and the items that you will be loading up,add all together and divide by .07(7%),this should be about your toung weight,you can go a little over but not under,7-10 is good,I think you'll be fine though,remember,the gvwr is a loaded weight,not the lite weight,,good luck and enjoy the camper

[AustinBoston]

,,if you put the bikes on the rear do load a few(don't over do it) in front to compensate,,,proper way is weigh the traile and the items that you will be loading up,add all together and divide by .07(7%),this should be about your toung weight,you can go a little over but not under,7-10 is good,I think you'll be fine though,remember,the gvwr is a loaded weight,not the lite weight,,good luck and enjoy the camper

7-10% may be OK for long-tongue trailers like boats, but is TOO LOW for a pop-up.  10-15% is the minimum.

caranoel:

In addition to what wavery said, many pop-up frames are not designed to have a hitch attached to them.  I could imagine it compromising the frame.

Austin

[brainpause]

I don't believe I'd use the Class III hitch on the back of the PU. That 100 pounds is actually much more stressful than you think. The waving back and forth, side to side is quite a bit of torque at the hitch. Even if the bike rack is only 3 feet long, a good bump or sway could torque the hitch a couple hundred foot-pounds. Doubt the camper's frame is really designed for such.

Larry

[tlhdoc]

I hate to say it, but I agree with your DH.  I would not use it.

[Cheryl]

We had a Coleman Cape Cod that DH wanted to add a rear gear shelf to. After bracing and beefing up the rear bumper we had a nice 6 foot wide by 3 feet deep shelf that he thought we could carry some fire wood, extra chairs, and a few odds and ends on to free up space inside our TV. The first trip we took was a nightmare. The camper fishtailed and "wagged" the TV so bad I was a nervous wreck. We thought we had added enough balance weight on the tongue of the trailer but it didn't seem to help. Needless to say, firewood (just a few sticks) and odds and ends are a lot heavier than you think. After that trip the only things allowed on that shelf were the empty blue tote and two light weight alluminium chairs.
Just my $.02 worth,
Cheryl

[flyfisherman]

Hi All,

We have a Trailblazer (I-6) and just bought a used Coachmen Clipper. GVWR is about 2900 lbs, so we are well below our GVWR limits.

The camper came with a class III hitch on the back that was obviously used. We have a Thule hitch-mounted bike rack that can hold up to 4 bikes. Currently, we have two adult mountain bikes and a child's bike--no more than 75-100 pounds with the bikes and the rack.

Can this type of hitch be used on the back of the trailer? If so, should we load heavier things up front in the camper? Does anyone see any potential problems?

I'd really like to bring the bikes this weekend for our first outing, but Dh seems to think we can't use the hitch for carrying bikes.

Thanks for your help!

cara

The only successful rear mounted bike rack for popup campers (that I know of anyway) are only for TWO bikes. And for just two bikes, kinda expensive. Have you considered/looked into, mounting a reciever hitch on the FRONT of the trailblazer? That way you could use your present 4-bike rack.



Fly

[chip]

I am also towing with a Trailblazer.  I've been using a hitch mount bike carrier similar to the one in the PUP Times store, to carry two bikes.  We are in the process of upgrading our PU, so that setup may not work for us any more, depending on how the truck handles the toungue weight of the new trailer.

I have been considering a front mounted hitch for some time.  Aside from releiving the crowdednesss (is that a word?) at the trailer tongue while connected, it will add some versatility.  And as Fly says, I can still use my existing bike rack.

Curt makes front hitches available for the TB (Model 31055) for about $200 and look to be pretty easy to install.  Looks like the mounting holes are already in the frame.

Just my .02

[wavery]

To give you an idea of what people are addressing here, take a hammer in your hand with the head of the hammer in your palm. Bounce the hammer up and down. Now take the hammer by the very end of the handle and bounce it up and down the same amount as before.

This will give you a small idea of the dynamics in place on your trailer as you move the weight farther away from the center of effort (axle). If you hang 60# of items off of the back bumper, they will be about 6-9 feet behind the axle. It is the position of the axle that you have to keep in mind. When you are traveling down the road and hit a bump, the load hanging off of the rear is a lot like that hammer head as you hold the hammer by the end of the handle.

The frame on your PU is just simply not designed to handle the types of forces that you may be talking about. If you hit a bump hard enough, a substantial weight could exert enough force to bend the frame of the trailer IMHO.

[flyfisherman]

To give you an idea of what people are addressing here, take a hammer in your hand with the head of the hammer in your palm. Bounce the hammer up and down. Now take the hammer by the very end of the handle and bounce it up and down the same amount as before.

This will give you a small idea of the dynamics in place on your trailer as you move the weight farther away from the center of effort (axle). If you hang 60# of items off of the back bumper, they will be about 6-9 feet behind the axle. It is the position of the axle that you have to keep in mind. When you are traveling down the road and hit a bump, the load hanging off of the rear is a lot like that hammer head as you hold the hammer by the end of the handle.

The frame on your PU is just simply not designed to handle the types of forces that you may be talking about. If you hit a bump hard enough, a substantial weight could exert enough force to bend the frame of the trailer IMHO.

Gee, Wavery, I know we are all entitled to our opinions (and remember how they are likened to a certain body part ... "we all have one"); and what an interesting hammer/frame theory!  However, in the real world of experience, where the camper tire meets the road, I've had a Top Line rear mounted bike rack now for over five years; been down lots of roads, for many, many miles, with the the bikes just hanging there off the rear of the camper, wiggling and bouncing along as we hustled along the byways to far away places. And ya know, my Starcraft's little 3" tubular steel main frame (larger units have 4") has held up remarkably well. Also, there have been postings right here on PUT of sightings of popup campers with reciever hitches mounted on the rear where they tow their boats right along behind in a tandem set-up.  Maybe these pup main frames are not all that fragile afterall!

This is the bike rack I have mounted.

http://www.toplinemfg.com

When I was considering going this route and talked with the tech folks at Starcraft, they even had some suggestions on how the rack should be attached to the camper's main frame. Seems I recall in our conversations something to the effect that popup camper frames were designed and manufactured to flex as they tooled their way down the highway. Without a certain amount of flexing action, there would certainly be some seriously damaged frames just simply being towed down the road.


Fly

[wavery]

Gee, Wavery, I know we are all entitled to our opinions (and remember how they are likened to a certain body part ... "we all have one"); and what an interesting hammer/frame theory!  However, in the real world of experience, where the camper tire meets the road, I've had a Top Line rear mounted bike rack now for over five years; been down lots of roads, for many, many miles, with the the bikes just hanging there off the rear of the camper, wiggling and bouncing along as we hustled along the byways to far away places. And ya know, my Starcraft's little 3" tubular steel main frame (larger units have 4") has held up remarkably well. Also, there have been postings right here on PUT of sightings of popup campers with reciever hitches mounted on the rear where they tow their boats right along behind in a tandem set-up.  Maybe these pup main frames are not all that fragile afterall!

This is the bike rack I have mounted.

http://www.toplinemfg.com

When I was considering going this route and talked with the tech folks at Starcraft, they even had some suggestions on how the rack should be attached to the camper's main frame. Seems I recall in our conversations something to the effect that popup camper frames were designed and manufactured to flex as they tooled their way down the highway. Without a certain amount of flexing action, there would certainly be some seriously damaged frames just simply being towed down the road.


Fly

Does yours have 4 bikes on it? Your picture didn't come through.

[brainpause]

The bike rack shown by Fly is a little different from what I (and I think wavery) was thinking. This does change the stressors a bit.

I still wouldn't do it.

Then again, I have a decent setup in this: http://www.campingworld.com/browse/skus/index.cfm/Outdoor-and-RV-Accessories/Outside-Your-RV/Boats/Bikes---Racks/Bike-Racks/Swagman-Bike-Racks--Towing-3Bike-Rack/skunum=17222
and don't need a camper rack. On our small frame, I doubt I could convince myself to put anything on it. It isn't a heavy frame at all.

Larry

[flyfisherman]

Does yours have 4 bikes on it? Your picture didn't come through.

No ... that's the shortcoming of the system, it will only handle two bikes.

On that Top Line site, scroll over to the left side and click on "racks" and a picture should come up showing a popup camper with the bike rack.

At the time I had a GMC Sonoma tow vehicle and could not accommodate a hitch mounted bike rack (at least not without some modifications that I did not want to do), so the other alternatives were carrying the bikes on the front of the TV or the rear of the PUP. Now, if I could have my "overs", I would have gone with the TV front mounting system, as that brings out the second Top Line shortcoming ... cost.  With the TV front mounted bike rack the cost would have been less than half, and could have carried more bikes in the bargin.



Fly

[tlhdoc]

I would have gone with the TV front mounting system, as that brings out the second Top Line shortcoming ... cost. With the TV front mounted bike rack the cost would have been less than half, and could have carried more bikes in the bargin.

And you could use the bike rack without towing the camper.