2012 EAST COAST DUCATI.MS MEETUP MAY 9-13TH *official thread*

[apagios]

Originally Posted by redpato

One thing to remember when setting up to haul that much weight in your trailer is weight distribution over the trailer wheels. Too much front or back can cause poor handling. Does the trailer have electric brakes? If so, does your tow vehicle have a good trailer brake controller? Setting proper brake application with the controller is also important.

"in God we trust"

Thanks for the advice! We are definitely going to keep an eye on that!

Trailer's got electric brakes on all 4 wheels. And we splurged on the Torsion axle upgrade for a smoother ride for the Ducs.

The Explorer has the tow package which aside from the extra oil cooler and hitch, was worth it's cost just to have the brake controller plug wired in! Just a simple plug in the brake controller to the socket under the dash and ready to go! (well after setting up the controller settings)

We picked up one of these:
Brake Controllers - Tekonsha

(best deal I could find was http://www.adventurerv.net, great price, though shitastically spammy post sale, be warned! )

We got it set up and running really well empty, when stopping I barely notice the trailer is there (as compared to hauling 1250 lbs of no brakes trailer and concrete behind a Focus SVT!) So I am used to being careful and overly paranoid about stopping distance.

RedPato, thanks very much for the advice, that is a really good point to consider. I'll be taking a look at it before we bolt any stands to the floor. I may consider running 3 staggered bikes on the PitBulls, and keep the optional 4th bike as the one on the left side of the diamond to better distribute weight (and easier walking in trailer)

I'll scan in some sketches of my thoughts and post in a minute.

Thanks very much guys!

[apagios]

Ok so based on RedPato's very good point about weight distribution, here's the current idea:



I have the "*wildcard bike" on the left. That's what will be using a baxley chock and regular tie downs. the 3 other bikes are ours and will have PitBull trailer restraints.

I have my Dad's Monster 796 on the right by the ramp for 2 reasons. 1) he specifically wanted to be able to ride some of the trip and simply roll back into the trailer when he wanted a break, being near the front ramp makes that easy. and 2) it's the lightest so when we only haul our 3 bikes the lightest bike is the off center load. Though with torsion axles, I believe the off center load is not as big an issue. But having the lightest bike there and gear on the other side will help.

Of course switching his M796 and my SS1000ds would also be easy for him to on/off load at rest stops. And perhaps the 30-40lb weight difference between his M795 and my SS1000ds is inconsequential to a trailer this size.

I do intend to ensure before bolting the PitBull plates to the trailer that any bike can fit in any position. My 748S and his M796 share the same axle pin size so I could use his PitBull stand for that bike as well, so I'll make sure there are no length issues for swapping bikes around.

My SS has the widest tail so I was thinking my brothers Daytona 675 in the center of the nose to leave more space to maneuver handle bars for other bikes.

[Wonway]

Here is my 7x12 (that I sold) with 2 bikes in it. Even with slimmer bikes and pitbull trailer stands I don't see how you could fit 3 wide. The tie downs on this trailer were offset so that the handlebars will not hit over bumps.







The V-nose will help a little, but I see maybe 3 max unless you are going to shoehorn them in the trailer.

[TAftonomos]

How do you like the VFR Tom? I'm on the hunt for a sport touring bike I can put some miles on.

Bandit 1250
FZR-1
VFR
Sprint ST

Trying to keep it below 6K.

[Wonway]

Originally Posted by TAftonomos

How do you like the VFR Tom? I'm on the hunt for a sport touring bike I can put some miles on.

Bandit 1250
FZR-1
VFR
Sprint ST

Trying to keep it below 6K.

Best all around bike I have ever owned. I brought it to the ECM last year and almost enjoyed it more than the Streetfighter. Seriously! Mine is a 2002 (6th Generation 2002-2009) and I highly reccomend one. You can probably still find one new in the crate for about $6k. They were not really hot sellers mostly because of their high price. About a year ago they were blowing out new ones for $5999. Don't let the rumors about the Vtec scare you. Once you get used to it you can put it to good use.

[apagios]

It is tight, but if you stuck the front wheel as far between the bikes as you could I am pretty confident it is doable. Assuming you had another smaller bike than your VFR.

Part of my reasoning on this is having had my bike hauled in a 6x12 with 2 other bikes. A local Ducati club guy stuck his 916 up front on the left, and his friends 748 on the right, then a baxley chock between them and we got my SS in there, and that was a 6x12.

So the hope is that with the long Vnose and a total interior length of 16.5 ft, having 2 bikes in line at 7 feet each, we will have about 2 feet of play to slide bikes forward or back to line up handle bars with where seats would be with the side bikes.

I'll take pics once we get it worked out and everything mounted. We are hitting up the IMS show in DC this weekend, if we can get a deal on 3 pitbull trailer restraints we will get them there, otherwise we'll order them next week.

Worst case scenario we only "have" to haul 3 bikes.

Thanks for the perspective shot though, I appreciate it!

[Desmodude]

Originally Posted by TAftonomos

How do you like the VFR Tom? I'm on the hunt for a sport touring bike I can put some miles on.

Bandit 1250
FZR-1
VFR
Sprint ST

Trying to keep it below 6K.

I know you didn't ask me but what the heck....
Check into an ST1300 Honda as well. The VFR is more sport than touring the ST leans a tad more to the comfort/ touring side. Either way you've got a bike that'll log a lot of miles without much worry.
The Kawi C14 is a good one to check into too.

[redpato]

Originally Posted by CAlexio

Holy shnikies... A double trailer???... What is backing up like?... Or even just changing lanes on th e highway...good god red potato!!!

As OneGuay said, there's no backing up. At least not very far or very straight. All stops require a little planning to ensure no backing is required. Changing lanes is a piece of cake. Look at the fourth rung on the ladder of the fifth wheel, there is a wireless back up camera. I can hardly see the second trailer in the mirrors but can see it clearly in the camera. It's wide angle view allows me to see the lanes next to me. Changing lanes is a matter of check the camera, look in the mirrors, hit the turn signal, move over.

"in God we trust"

[metalhead]

I'm in awe of all the cool trailer talk. You see, I TOO....am a 'trailer' guy. I love My trailer. I've dragged My bike/bikes up to the ECMU the past two years. It's a really rough 157 miles away. Sometimes when it's real cold or real hot, and I want to go ride My favorite twisty roads, I'll throw the bike on My trailer, and make that punishing brutal haul of 22 miles. I'm NOT friggin kidding.

The only downfall is, is that, well, My trailer blows. It's one of those 8 by( I can't find an X on My keyboard) 5 landscape trailers. It's all rusty and the tires look like the tires Ralphies Dad had on his car in 'A Christmas Story'. Plus, It's all squeaky and shit.

But I love it. It's My fren.

[redpato]

After reading the post where my Ducati.MS friends wanted to help defray my costs of getting me to this year's ECM my girlfriend and I had a talk about this year's family vacations. I told her how much I enjoyed going to last year's ECM and that if our money situation is healthy enough I want to go again this year, bringing her with me. She said if it works out we'll go. So I'm going to see about making a room reservation so we at least have a place to stay and the rest, if it works out, will fall in place. No trailering this time, we'll haul the bike in the back of the truck.

"in God we trust"