1 Trailer balancing.. Can i move the weight further to the rear? Wed Jan 29, 2014 5:52 am
Rendrag
Silver member
Hi Folks,
So the VFR doesn't tow quite as well as the K100 did - it's quite a bit more susceptible to locking up the front wheel under not-so-heavy braking - which the K100 never had a problem with at all.
So I'd like to get some weight off the rear of the bike. Sitting at a normal load, but nothing in the esky on the drawbar, she sits at 27kg on the towhitch. If I take the 2kg gas cylinder off the drawbar, she drops to 21kg on the towhitch. If I take the 30kg deep-cycle battery out of the trailer (sits as far back in the tub as I can get it, beside a second 2kg cylinder), it goes back up to 26kg on the towhitch. On the way home from the FCR, I repacked the trailer a little so I could put the gas cylinder off the drawbar into the trailer tub, (which changes it to be about 22kg on the towhitch), and the front braking on the bike was MUCH more reassuring.
So what I'd really like to do, is weld up and bolt on a small shelf at the back of the trailer (and move the tail lights and numberplate back behind it), and then have the battery and gas bottles mounted onto that. Like I've mocked up on the picture below:
That'd get my hitch weight MUCH closer to what'd be comfortable - but I was worried about moving all that weight a foot further back behind the pivot point when moving around in the lane/going around corners, etc.. - thats a lot more momentum as the trailer swings.
Figured it was worth asking the folks here, as you've all likely towed a lot more than I have Thoughts?
So the VFR doesn't tow quite as well as the K100 did - it's quite a bit more susceptible to locking up the front wheel under not-so-heavy braking - which the K100 never had a problem with at all.
So I'd like to get some weight off the rear of the bike. Sitting at a normal load, but nothing in the esky on the drawbar, she sits at 27kg on the towhitch. If I take the 2kg gas cylinder off the drawbar, she drops to 21kg on the towhitch. If I take the 30kg deep-cycle battery out of the trailer (sits as far back in the tub as I can get it, beside a second 2kg cylinder), it goes back up to 26kg on the towhitch. On the way home from the FCR, I repacked the trailer a little so I could put the gas cylinder off the drawbar into the trailer tub, (which changes it to be about 22kg on the towhitch), and the front braking on the bike was MUCH more reassuring.
So what I'd really like to do, is weld up and bolt on a small shelf at the back of the trailer (and move the tail lights and numberplate back behind it), and then have the battery and gas bottles mounted onto that. Like I've mocked up on the picture below:
That'd get my hitch weight MUCH closer to what'd be comfortable - but I was worried about moving all that weight a foot further back behind the pivot point when moving around in the lane/going around corners, etc.. - thats a lot more momentum as the trailer swings.
Figured it was worth asking the folks here, as you've all likely towed a lot more than I have Thoughts?
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2000 VFR800