A trailer for ebike or non ebike towing.

[Nealh]

A thread that some may find useful, so do please add you own trailer pics here.

My old Norco now decommissioned as the seat post weld snapped.
The trailer is a Carry Freedom Y large model, I chose this one for the 90kg/200lb max payload.

 

[Nealh]

Being that I prefer a lower C of G for the trailer load I have modified the above CF trailer.
The base has been replaced with my diy larger version which now measures 1000 x 600, I used 9mm marine ply and coated both sides with three coats of gloss varnish and a base coat of 50/50 diluted varnish.
Also I added some home made mudguards buy cutting a dustbin lid in half, some 2mm x 20mm ali strip to secure to the axle. Using the dustbin lid gives the cargo protection from all the muck and rubish thrown up by the wheels esp when I use mucky cycle ways, I copied the CF way of securing the mudguards.

To spread the load I extended the rear by 100mm and the front by 200mm so the weight bias is forward of the axle.


For some anti slip I bought a couple of rolls of strong adhesive stuff for about a tenner on ebay
I fitted D ring fixings for ratchet straps and bolted the fixings on using a 20mm dia washer either side.
In #1 the load is a bit top heavy, with this longer base I can spread the load better by carrying two honey boxes long ways and two or three high.

 

[Nealh]

For carrying other less bulky items, loose items, tools & shopping etc, I can use this large lidded box strapped down.


To remain legal the trailer has a pair folding rear reflectors under the rear edge and a pair of fixed one at the front corners, a light attached to the small post O/S/R corner and the box now also has one added higher up on the O/S/R.

 

[Nealh]

This is flecc's trailer page, so I thought worth linking to it.

trailers

 

[Nealh]

A new CF large Y will set you back approx£480 new but on ebay or Gumtree one can snaffle one for under £200 used, mine was £125 and I could have had another couple easily since I bought my one.
Recently on Gumtree there were two for sale at £150 & £180 respectively.

The CF is well worth the money as they are collapsible, the tow arm is easily removed as are both the wheels. It takes only 10secs or less to remove them for flat easier stowing.

 

[AndyBike]

The single wheeled affairs seem to be better rated than the wheelbarrow types.
They are narrower, usually lighter and more maneuverable than 2 wheeled. The also have less rolling resistance.
EG
Adventure CT1

Adventure CT1 Single-wheel Cargo Trailer

No Description Available

www.avonvalleycyclery.co.uk

Bob Yak - Excellent but horrifically expensive.
Klarfit follower.Priced at about £190

Follower Bicycle Trailer

The Klarstein Follower cargo trailer i s the specialist when it comes to easy transport by bike - whether for shopping, the next picnic or of course while on a trekking tour by bike. With its area of 35.5 x 65 cm, there is easily space for luggage, beverage crates, bags of potting soil ...

www.hifi-tower.co.uk

or the above Klarfit one better priced via ebay- £150 free postage.
This would probably be my choice ,mainly as its ebay so maybe easier to get and a bit more trustworthy than a non descriptive website

Pardon our interruption...

Sold by the ebay arm of the one who do the Klarfit called

 

[Nealh]

It depends on the use, the single wheel trailer is no good for stability with large or tall loads. In my case it also rules out a rear hub motor. For touring/camping trips they are good but not for heavy or bulky cargo use.
For heavy and bulky loads one needs the stability of a two wheel trailer.

Guerney our forum pumpkin man may find a single of use but not going by the weight and massive size of his fruits ( or are they veg ?).

The single wheel trailer has to lean with the bike, whilst the two wheel trailer doesn't it will have a single flexile coupling to allow the bike to lean independently.

 

[Nealh]

With the CF I can load the box and keep everything dry with the lid when wet, another advantage over the single wheel type.
Both wheeled types have there pro's & con's, it just depends on the users specific requirements.

 

[Raboa]

My trailer is a kids trailer with the exterior framework and cover removed,. the top covered in varnished wood and a plastic container bolted to the wood. I use it to take stuff to the scrapyard, I call it my S.U.V, Scrap Ulitity Vechile.

 

[jimriley]

I use a redundant dog trailer, dog passed away a few years ago. I keep thinking about removing the cover and putting a flat bed and sides on it, just can't find my box of round tuits.

 

[sjpt]

We still have a basic two small wheel golf cart style trailer we used for the children 40 years ago. I made a very clunky rear facing seat for it. We adapted the seat for the dog later; the dog hated it, probably too old when we first tried it when her walking started to get stiff. It attached at the seatpost; very quick for moving from one bike to another. It only fits our non-electric bike now. The rack battery on the Motus, and the Suntour suspension seatpost on the tandem means it won't work with either of those. We hardly use it now but very useful when we do. Mainly walking; cats to the vet, or chairs and supper for outdoor performances.

 

[Nealh]

Did a £100 shop today at the supermarket with the Cotic and trailer, two panniers full and the Black box choker full with groceries. A nice bright crisp morning ride out and back, the rush hour traffic in the most gave me plenty of space and were nicely patient. In the most part I was quicker then the slow er moving traffic, part of my route is shared ped/cycle way so I used it where I could.
As with any bike trailer arrangement one certainly feel the push and pull of the weighted down trailer sadly no camera for a pic but will do so in the coming months as the bees will need my attention and the trailer will be used a lot more for lugging stuff about.

 

[guerney]

Being that I prefer a lower C of G for the trailer load I have modified the above CF trailer.
The base has been replaced with my diy larger version which now measures 1000 x 600, I used 9mm marine ply and coated both sides with three coats of gloss varnish and a base coat of 50/50 diluted varnish.
Also I added some home made mudguards buy cutting a dustbin lid in half, some 2mm x 20mm ali strip to secure to the axle. Using the dustbin lid gives the cargo protection from all the muck and rubish thrown up by the wheels esp when I use mucky cycle ways, I copied the CF way of securing the mudguards.

To spread the load I extended the rear by 100mm and the front by 200mm so the weight bias is forward of the axle.
View attachment 45986

For some anti slip I bought a couple of rolls of strong adhesive stuff for about a tenner on ebay
I fitted D ring fixings for ratchet straps and bolted the fixings on using a 20mm dia washer either side.
In #1 the load is a bit top heavy, with this longer base I can spread the load better by carrying two honey boxes long ways and two or three high.
View attachment 45987

That's a pimped out trailer alright! How much do you want for it? When you said that you'd replaced the board, I hadn't expected something so blinged out - all you need now is some swarovskis araldited to the spokes! I'm very much digging those square rubber inset design on the board. I hadn't expected the board to look so much substantially larger than the original, and you've very wisely modified the mudguards to protect your sweet sweet honey cargo from muddy splashes. Very nice job!

 

[guerney]

Guerney our forum pumpkin man may find a single of use but not going by the weight and massive size of his fruits ( or are they veg ?).

Oddly, they're fruit! Anything which starts as a flower, botanically speaking is a fruit. And the type I grow are extremely dense, compared to other pumpkin varieties - a Crown Prince is far far heavier at the same size of one of those big orange watery ones which people carve out a Halloween, and taste much much nicer. I'd worry about damage to my QR rear wheel axle with a single wheeled trailer, particularly when stopping at lights, where balancing would also be problematic with 66kg (I managed that [painfully] last year in a rucksack resting it's weight on the back of the saddle, and with rear pannier bags) on a one wheeled trailer. Because I keep getting sniped by big bidders on ebay (it's a strategy that wins!), I may just get a cheapo £100 Homcom folding trailer, the reviews aren't bad and the only real problems people seem to have with them are worries about the weld quality on the frames (seems unfounded, I haven't seen any evidence of welds failing), the weight (it's steel tubing), and the difficulty in sourcing new wheels - but at less than £100 it makes sense to simply buy a new Homcom with new wheels, if it comes to that, rather than buy quality wheels at about £50 each (if they were available). I'm in no particular hurry till harvest time, around the end of October. I may yet buy a Carry Freedom, because they look very repairable, durable, capable of transporting very heavy loads, and will probably outlive my cycling days.

 

[guerney]

If I can't buy a Carry Freedom (they're always on auction, never "Buy Now" on ebay, and very few listings provide delivery) by October's end, I'll just get a Homcom. Capacity is only 40kg... which added to the 13.5kg of the trailer, might be at the limit of what my thin QR axle can handle.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/HOMCOM-Folding-Trailer-Bicycle-Storage/dp/B078W39W37/ref=

 

[Nealh]

The mudguards are a heath job but only cost me about £20 to knock up, CF cell them but they are about £110 but are open so not a lot of protection form spray and mud.

 

[guerney]

The mudguards are a heath job but only cost me about £20 to knock up, CF cell them but they are about £110 but are open so not a lot of protection form spray and mud.

Yours is a smart solution - all that spray from normal CF mudnonguards would damage your stock! A tarp over your cargo would have been very unpleasant to remove, and would have risked muddying the stock and snazzy new board while being removed.

 

[Nealh]

I had a bit of result today regarding using my ebike and trailer to take stuff to the local RC, the contracts Officer for W.S.C.C confirmed by email (now save don my phone for proof) that a I don't have to book a visit time slot and can turn up ant any time during opening hours to deposit my recycling waste. This now increases my usefulness of my towing combo for increasing it versatility as a shopping, beekeeping and waste disposal medium for transportation.

 

[guerney]

I had a bit of result today regarding using my ebike and trailer to take stuff to the local RC, the contracts Officer for W.S.C.C confirmed by email (now save don my phone for proof) that a I don't have to book a visit time slot and can turn up ant any time during opening hours to deposit my recycling waste. This now increases my usefulness of my towing combo for increasing it versatility as a shopping, beekeeping and waste disposal medium for transportation.

What??!? I don't have to book to use the tip if I use a bike trailer? That's fantastic! I've got oodles of junk to throw away, because I'm moving soon. That info has brought me soooo much closer to ordering a cheapo Homcom folding trailer now... how bad could it possibly be? I might even move a few things from house to house with it, mostly wood and metal for projects, tools etc, nothing easily damaged.

 

[Nealh]

What is your local authority guerney as access may vary.