First time ever pulling a trailer with a bike

Question

Got a question maybe there's an answer maybe not. First time ever pulling a trailer with a bike. But I've got a beautiful Honda VTX1800N and a trailer with the 8" wheels it she seems to fish tail a little more the I like. Not big fish tail just little short side to side fish tail. Running 35psi in the 8" trailer wheels and 43psi in my rear car tire on the bike, and been traveling 2 up from 70 to 80 mph. I'm I going to fast or do I need to add air in trailer or the rear bike tire? Or maybe it's just normal?

First time ever pulling a trailer with a bike

First time ever pulling a trailer with a bike

3 years 0 Answers 783 views 0

Answers ( No )

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    You need more weight in front of the axle. 60u0025 weight axle forward.

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    My trailer with 8 inch tires take 90 psi.

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    Tongue weight and tongue downward

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    Once you have the tongue weight figured out with the load you are traveling with (9-15u0025 of total weight), it is a good idea to have a way securing your load so it doesn’t shift during the trip. Before any long trips I weight my trailer and load. I keep a fish type scale with me to check the tongue weight. I have never had any issues with this routine.

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    Stick to around 70mph over that and those 8" tires can get hot, I run 25psi and 20lb on the tongue anymore and you are making front of the bike light I stick to 65-70mph as trailer law here is 60mph I have taken it up to 110mph just to test it and pass a hog group

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    Tongue weight. Although I do not buy into the 10-15u0025 rule many here quote. That is for trucks and trailers. Might work out for lighter motorcycle trailers… however, if towing a heavy tent trailer, 10u0025 is far too much weight on the motorcycle frame and unloads front end way too much. Regardless of weight of trailer… I have found 25 to 35 lbs to be the sweet spot to prevent sway when towing with a motorcycle.

    I picked up an electronic fish scale at Walmart and they work great for checking tongue weight. Be sure to weigh at same height as ball.

    And as mentioned… your hitch ball should be at, or only slightly higher or lower than your axle height. If too much higher or lower… it can can cause instability and even be very dangerous.

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    Dito on the tongue weight thing but also concentrate the heavier portion of the load directly over the trailer wheels if at all possible. Having to much weight at the very ends of the trailer, especially the rear, can increase the chance or fishtailing caused by rotational inertia.

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    Can you pull a small camping trailer with a honda shadow 745cc??

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    Also are these considered commercial vehicles??

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    tongue weight ,,,everything that pete said above…I have pulled a trailer for over 20 years….and when you have it loaded correctly don’t even know its there

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    I have some experience towing four different trailers with two different Harley Electra glides. Two of the four trailers did that… the solution was to lengthen the tongue on the problem trailers. Motorcycle manufacturers don’t want the liability of trailer towing so there are no hard and fast rules for said towing. Everybody has an opinion and everyone thinks they are the expert. There are no experts on the subject…

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    Tom Finch of Tailwind Trailers may disagree with you. http://www.tailwindtrailers.com/index.htm

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    Get a fish weigher.. Check what your tongue weight is and adjust different to find your sweet spot…I pull a Timeout trailer.. My best tongue weight seems to be around 25 Ibs…

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    If you have too much weight to the rear it will "wag" like a dogs tail and will wreck you. Agree with not exceeding tongue weight for your "bike". First time I pulled my Bunkhouse it wagged when I traveled past 60 mph… Problem was tire pressure difference of about Ten lbs. on trailer tires. Fixed that and pulled up to 80mph (short distance) with zero wag… Check your bearings for play then feel your hubs after driving a few miles… they should be slightly warm but not hot… I pull close to (if not over) 500lbs. Rear tires and brakes will need to be replaced more frequently so check them often….

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    My Time-Out loaded comes in at around 650lbs. 25-35lbs on tongue and I barely know it is there.

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    I will have to weigh mine ome day

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    Rule of thumb is 10-15u0025 of the total trailer weight on the tongue. So, if total weight of trailer and contents is 350# tongue weight will be 35-48#. These can be measured, usually, with a bathroom scale.

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