I have a 2014 ST Limited - does anyone know how much i can pull? I want to go camping, and I've seen super small (one person) campers...
Thanks!
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I have a 2014 ST Limited - does anyone know how much i can pull? I want to go camping, and I've seen super small (one person) campers...
Thanks!
A few years ago I was testing my Home made Hitch on my 2014 RT .... so I cabled it to my Toyt Tacoma ....and pulled it about 25ft , in my gravel driveway ( the Toyt. not the Spyder :roflblack: ) ............. But seriously the Spyder's limit is 40lb tongue weight and 400 lbs total weight of trl. and what's in it ...... The REAL towing issue isn't how much it can PULL ..... It's how much it can safely .... STOP .......... Mike :thumbup: ...... a trl. equipped with proper elec. BRAKES - imho could pull 550lbs .....remember this is ROLLING weight , I'm 71 and can still move my 400lb snowmobile trl. with two 600lb+ machines on it ......Hope this answers your concerns .... Mike :thumbup:
I agree with Mike. It is stopping that needs to be addressed. One other thing I found was the trailer "pushing" me in corners, especially going down hill at reasonably good speed. When cornering I could feel the trailer, that wants to go straight, pushing the rear of the spyder towards the outside of the corner. I found that I needed to enter the corners slower and then roll on the throttle to pull the trailer around and through the corner. That was then, (old Kenda OEM tire). Now I have a better rear tire. I have not trailered with it yet but am sure it will hold the road better. Just how much better will be known when we take our annual summer tour this July. The thing to understand is that we have a relatively light vehicle that is in charge of maintaining road control both stopping and in cornering. Ability to pull a given weight doesn't make it a safe ride.
Yes, please stop talking about pulling a trailer. It's all about how much you can safely tow. Pulling is only part of towing a trailer but too many people only think about how much they can pull.
I have gently "pulled" this across my yard to move it around but I wouldn't go further than that as it easily exceeded the 40/400 limits.
But if you insist on examples of trailers being "pulled" then enjoy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5ARkLQOIP0
In all seriousness there are a number of threads here about towing trailers, a search should come up with quite a few.
Another non-Spyder specific resource is http://www.motocampers.com/
When we go camping the wife tows our camper with her Spyder and I tow a small single-wheel trailer with my bike, we have likely somewhat exceeded the 400 lb limit with the camper but I wouldn't recommend going much over the 40 lb tongue limit as the hitch is on the swing-arm and it moves up and down a whole bunch!
I recently purchased a tag-a-long that empty, weighs 150 lbs. Pulled it around empty at highway speeds a few times and had to keep looking at it to make sure it was still there. Now loaded, it's going to be a another thing all together. Like you, I'm a bit concerned about handling when loaded. Lots of issues involved here to maintain safe handling. Started some research on trailer brakes. Here's a link to start with if you're interested. https://www.etrailer.com/faq-adding-...um-brakes.aspx. I was thinking about a hydraulic surge set up. Like canamjhb said, going down hill into a turn loaded, the weight and G forces are going to take over quickly and tend to create a jack knife situation. Speed is always going to be your worst enemy. Good luck. Motorcycle touring and camping can be a great adventure and lots of fun. Talk to SpyderAnn. She's one that can tell you all you need to know about towing a trailer.Quote:
Originally Posted by roselover58
Like others have said here, it's the stopping issue not the pulling issue , just pay attention to the 40/400 rule and you will not have problems, the down hill cornering issue is something to REALLY pay attention to . My wife and I both pull trailers and with a combined mileage of near 100K we have kept them both on the road. Pulling the pop up gives us the option of camping or finding a motel if the weather turns bad. On our extended trips we camp a few days then find a room for a night and it helps stretch the travel budget. And we have made some great new friends at some campgrounds that share the same interest in riding and camping.
pulling is not the proublem" 100.000#s if yuo want but stopping is a whole new story;; we 2 up, pull a canam 622 fully loaded w cloths and a cooler300#s it takes twice the distance stopping being nice to the breaks" but when we spent 900 miles in the Rockies last YR, it was the down hill pushing on the back TIRE" that realy made you shift down to controll the trailer That 300# trailer was more like 1000# pushing especialy on the 6% grades and switch bacxks cornoring.. And with the impatiant auto drivers that half to pass you when you are allready traveling at 75 on a bend down a regular HWY on a bend with all yellow lines and no passing zone. they gotta get arround you and slam on their breaks before they are far enough ahead of you sooo you GOT no time to stop with out a trailer!!! so just add 300#s and try to stop on a dime. we only have 22000 on our RTS and aprox 18000 with TLR some experance but not alot.. please be carefull on how much you pull.. canam realy needs to put breaks on their trailers.. compression hitch breaks! not electric.Quote:
Originally Posted by roselover58
Except for the highlighted text, which is highly subjective (sorry Mike - you must be some kind of tough SOB), I'd say this is VERY good advice.Quote:
Originally Posted by BLUEKNIGHT911
You can pull to the hitch rating - 230kg on my frame mounted hitch, believe it is 181kg on brp hitch.Quote:
Originally Posted by roselover58
Our camper has hydraulic brakes, works well when slowing.
On the ST- make sure you put it in Trailer Mode to keep revs high and protect clutch mechanism.
We have towed happily with RS, ST and now F3S. Always one-up.
Have you read your owner's manual? Seriously, you need to. All the info you need right there.Quote:
Originally Posted by roselover58
:agree: After all; If you can't believe the folks who built the bike: who CAN you trust??? :dontknow:
If you want to tempt fate: drink prune juice, and go for a long walk in the woods!
Don't put other motorists at risk... EVER! nojoke