Anyone out there got a killer toyhauler set up? How about a Mobile Mancave thread... Looking for ideas; Sprinters, VRVs, etc... love to see your pics. What did you do to customize your rig? What do you always bring along?
Mobile Man Cave: You may be on to something there!!! I have a 5"X16" V-nose enclosed trailer that I've been wanting to re-fit with some man-cave essentials. I use it to take my 2-strokes to the woods. I even camp in it. But in it's current state - it's only features are the ramp door and the luxurious plywood interior. I would love to put in some cabinets, Flooring, AC, Entertainment center and a hammock To think of it as a ManCave that I could hang out in my driveway gives me a whole motivation!!!! .
Hueychief, I saw those before. You gotta post more. Love the "in action" photos at camp. Really gets the mind wondering and wishing. I was thinking of getting a trailer like that. What are the weight restrictions; tongue weight, trailer weight, cargo weight? Right now, I'm thinking of going with a 615 VRV Basecamp; Hitch Weight 420 lbs Dry Weight 2,450 lbs Gross Weight 4,500 lbs Cargo Weight 2,050 lbs Axle Weight 2,250 lbs They are awesome looking, seem very light and being all aluminum, I would think pretty long lasting. Anyway, I'm still on the fence, but about to make the jump. Currently I have a Roadtrek RS Adventurous (Mercedes Sprinter 3500). I've been trying to figure out what all the trailering restrictions mean. Gross vehicle weight rating 11030 lbs (maximum operating weight/mass of a vehicle as specified by the manufacturer[1] including the vehicle's chassis, body, engine, engine fluids, fuel, accessories, driver, passengers and cargo but excluding that of any trailers) Gross combined weight rating (3) 15250 lbs (total mass of a vehicle, including all trailers) Occupants & cargo carrying capacity (2) max. 3000 lbs Towing - tow weight (4) 7000 lbs Towing - tongue weight (5) 750 lbs (1) Add 250 mm/10 if equipped with optional Continental spare tire kit. (2) Allowance for weight of occupants, water, propane and cargo. Reduced by weight of optional equipment. (3) GCWR includes total weight of vehicle, trailer, equipment, fuel, water, propane, cargo, driver and passengers. (4) Maximum towable weight with driver and fuel only. This weight reduced by weight of optional equipment, water, propane, cargo and/or passengers. (5) A weight distributing hitch is required for tongue weights over 200 Kg/400 lbs. I think all that means that my rig weighs 11030 lbs (GVWR) fully loaded passengers included and I can trailer 4220 lbs more (adds up to the 15250 lbs (GCWR)) My only question with the manufacturers numbers was the towing weight of 7000 lbs. I guess the note which says "This weight reduced by weight of optional equipment, water, propane, cargo and/or passengers.", reduces the 7000 lbs down to the 4220 lbs I came up with. Anyone still awake after that? Hello...
PA Slammer, The weight range of 7000lbs is the maximum towing capacity the frame,chassis is rated for along with the 700 tongue weight. You're doing it right with teh numbers you have as far too many people think they can tow what the vehicle is rated for and realize that the vehicle MAY be capable of towing it, but that doesn't mean you SHOULD. My E1 is a work in progress and is currently 2450 empty with a GVWR of 3500. I've done a few mods that have increased the weight and a few mods that have saved weight. The hitch is at 350lbs, but I haven't checked it yet with the KTM 500 on the front deck. Will be interesting to see how not having any water in the tank and a KTM on the deck turns out. When I get the chance I will be putting scales under each wheel and tongue and doing an Excel Weight & Balance program for the E1 to move things around and make changes to determine the effects of the tongue weight. My tow vehicle is rated at 7500lbs witha tingue of 700 of which I don't go near that for power/transmission and safety reasons. Hope that helped. I'll post more pictures as I get them.
Here's a pic of our Jayco Baja all loaded up for our July trip to Custer, SD this past summer: We managed to take 3 motorcycles and 2 bicycles plus everything we needed to camp for 9 days with this setup. Our camp for that trip: Unfortunately, the cargo deck on the Baja is a bit too short for hauling motorcycles, so I have to leave the ramp/rails off when the bikes are on it, but that hasn't been too much of an issue. I did add e-track and a couple of Harbor Freight motorcycle wheel chocks to make loading and hauling easier and safer. I'm considering doing the MX lock n' load system next for the dirt bikes. Here's the deck ready to add a couple of bikes: Different angle: Bikes loaded and ramps stored:
That looks pike something from the NEW RED GREEN SHOW, "remember if the women don't find you handsome...besure they find you handy"
Nice rig kendall-smith. Re: the load deck in front of the camper - how does this set-up pull empty vs. with 2 bikes, with the bikes' weight so close to the tongue? How do you compensate, with ballast? Seems like it would be either too heavy or too light.
Thanks for the comment! As for your question, the camper seems to pull just fine regardless of whether the deck is loaded or unloaded. The first picture in my previous post is about as loaded down as this particular rig will ever get. I would estimate that there is somewhere in the neighborhood of 800-900 lbs on the deck and probably 500-600 lbs in the bed/cab of the truck in that photo. When the deck is loaded I like to use my weight distribution hitch, which helps "eliminate" some of the tongue weight. I live in Shawnee, KS and pulled that setup to Custer, SD and back and never had any problems that were related to weight or anything like that. Except for the fact that my mileage went down to about 13 mpg for the whole trip. I can't complain though, since we were loaded heavy and moving pretty fast most of the time.
So I guess that with the load deck empty, the trailer is close to the usual tongue weight (approx 10% of gross), and when the load deck has 800 lbs of bikes on it, your truck and hitch are heavy duty enough that extra tongue weight isn't noticeable?
It's noticeable in the fact that the truck does squat under the load, but it is manageable in the sense that it doesn't cause any handling problems or anything like that. The weight distribution hitch does help quite a bit. The first couple of trips that I took were without the hitch, and there was a difference when I did start using it. These trailers are built to cater to ATV's, which aren't really known for being lightweight, so I feel that they are more than capable of hauling dirt bikes for sure. Throwing my street bike on there might be pushing the limits of the weight rating, but it hasn't caused a problem to this point. My FZ-1 is around 540 lbs, so you'll notice that I put it in the rearward position so that it's weight was as far back as possible. It will never be loaded in the front position as I feel that would be too close to the hitch.
Somebody here hast to have a SportsmobileVan w/quigley 4x4 version. I have wanted one of those for like 15 years now!
I'm glad to see I'm not the only gear junky out there. Sportsmobiles are incredible! With my three boys I needed a step bigger and went with the Sprinter RV. I really want to see some VRVs but... Too expensive? Too new to the market? PA Slammer
Some nice setups,, I have to see if I have pics of my little popup/bike carrier.. Its a bit smaller but fits the bill for now. Its a fleetwood neon and I made a single bike rack for the front, tow with a 2dr jeep JK wrangler..
