Swivel wheel trailer

[Roadking06]

Has anyone used a swivel wheel “trailer “ attached to the back of a 5th wheel trailer ? I’d appreciate any input. Thanks .

[dennis45]

Originally Posted by Roadking06

Has anyone used a swivel wheel “trailer “ attached to the back of a 5th wheel trailer ? I’d appreciate any input. Thanks .

I helped a fellow RVer install one a few years ago to carry a small motorcycle. I have not talked to him since to get his operational opinion.
But, I thought it was a pretty decent piece of equipment and liked the concept. I did however have concerns with the size of swivel wheel. At highway speeds of 60 MPH that little wheel would be going 120 or more. Could be a high maintenance thing.

[Roadking06]

Originally Posted by dennis45

I helped a fellow RVer install one a few years ago to carry a small motorcycle. I have not talked to him since to get his operational opinion.
But, I thought it was a pretty decent piece of equipment and liked the concept. I did however have concerns with the size of swivel wheel. At highway speeds of 60 MPH that little wheel would be going 120 or more. Could be a high maintenance thing.

Thanks for the input , I’ve had the same concerns too .

[aknavy]

I'm on my second one. I upgraded from the 46 to the 58 for more capacity. I put 30k miles on my 46 last year. Replaced the tire at about 15k miles, wheel bearings were fine the whole time, never had an issue. In fact, the swivel wheel bearings were always about 20 degrees cooler than the fifth wheel bearings. I like the fact that it gives me a "toy hauler" without sacrificing my living space.

I have the dual receiver hitch for the trailer, which I believe adds more stability.

I will say - I neglected to take care of the wheel bearings on the 58 that I bought used, and got burned. It was a pain in the butt to deal with, as it's difficult to move with no wheel. But - my fault, didn't check/repack the bearings on a used trailer, so as long as you do your maintenance, nothing to worry about.

[grindstone01]

I have been full timing for 6 years with a fifth wheel and swivel trailer attached. I have not had any legal issues but do get alot of curious lookers at rest stops. I am 61 ft long which is legal in most states, again never questioned. My 2 wheel GL1800 weighed 950 lbs and the $40, 8" rim, 8 ply, 100psi tire would last for 2500 miles then pop. I now haul a VTX1300 that weighs 550 lbs and get about 8k miles on the tire.

If I recall, the single wheel trailer had a pay load of 1000 lbs, whereas the two wheel trailer pay load was 1200 lbs with twice the tire risk.



My advise would be to get a tire monitor system, rear camera, and carry 2 spare tires (8 ply can be hard to find) Check Craigs List and FB Market, sometimes you can find some reasonable priced used swivel trailers out there.

[aknavy]

I haven't had any tire issues, but I am loaded a little bit lighter - total load on my current setup is about 900 pounds.



After my wheel bearing fiasco, I upgraded my swivel axle/tire to an axle by "Axles and More By Joe", https://axlesandmorebyjoellc.com/.


The axle is alot heavier duty, and there are two spindles/tires/bearings to share the weight. It also gets rid of the brake pad, depending on the double wheel to prevent wheel flutter/shaking. The hubs come with an EZ Lube fitting, so that makes maintenance easy.



I don't run a TPMS on it, but I do check pressure before hitting the road, and I check temps a couple times a day.

[grindstone01]

Originally Posted by aknavy

I haven't had any tire issues, but I am loaded a little bit lighter - total load on my current setup is about 900 pounds.



After my wheel bearing fiasco, I upgraded my swivel axle/tire to an axle by "Axles and More By Joe", https://axlesandmorebyjoellc.com/.


The axle is alot heavier duty, and there are two spindles/tires/bearings to share the weight. It also gets rid of the brake pad, depending on the double wheel to prevent wheel flutter/shaking. The hubs come with an EZ Lube fitting, so that makes maintenance easy.



I don't run a TPMS on it, but I do check pressure before hitting the road, and I check temps a couple times a day.

Load weight has a huge impact on the tire life. With out a TPMS, how would you know if your tire had a blow out? You can't see the tire or hear it pop back there. My first tire failure was brought to my attention by a passing motorist, and I didn't have a clue. I could only imagine that running down the road on a blow out rim throwing sparks and over heating the spindle to red hot would not end good. One bad tire experience and you will be investing in a TPMS for the swivel trailer tire. A TPMS is less than 1/2 the cost of the dual spindle and the extra valve sensors can be put on the camper tires.

[BonS]

Grindstone1: What is it like loading your GL1800 onto the platform? It looks daunting.

[aknavy]

Originally Posted by grindstone01

Load weight has a huge impact on the tire life. With out a TPMS, how would you know if your tire had a blow out? You can't see the tire or hear it pop back there. My first tire failure was brought to my attention by a passing motorist, and I didn't have a clue. I could only imagine that running down the road on a blow out rim throwing sparks and over heating the spindle to red hot would not end good. One bad tire experience and you will be investing in a TPMS for the swivel trailer tire. A TPMS is less than 1/2 the cost of the dual spindle and the extra valve sensors can be put on the camper tires.

At the moment, I'm depending on the fact that one tire can carry the load with the dual wheels, and that I won't have two blowouts at the same time. In the future, I will probably invest in a TPMS for it. My only problem in over 30k miles was with a bearing on a used trailer that I didn't inspect/repack.

[grindstone01]

Originally Posted by BonS

Grindstone1: What is it like loading your GL1800 onto the platform? It looks daunting.

Yes, loading the GL is very daunting and a main reason I decided to downsize. I used 3 ramps that were wide so I could put my foot down if needed. But still, loading the 950lb bike up a ramp, the bike would occasionally stall (not enough gas) and start to lean which would tax my strength to hold it up right, all being done 3 ft up off the ground. On the other hand, if I gave it too much gas, I would slam into the wheel chock. I did like the GL reverse for unloading.

Originally Posted by aknavy

At the moment, I'm depending on the fact that one tire can carry the load with the dual wheels, and that I won't have two blowouts at the same time. In the future, I will probably invest in a TPMS for it. My only problem in over 30k miles was with a bearing on a used trailer that I didn't inspect/repack.

It's a high probability that what ever caused the first tire to blow would also have affected the second tire being they are so close together. Also, if the first tire blows, the second tire is now carrying twice the weight which can be fatal even for a few seconds. A third consideration is the first tire blow out may damage the second tire being so close to the explosion. A lot of damage is done under the trailer when the tire blows and rubber strips are flapping around at 60 MPH. I've had 4 blowouts with my swivel trailer in 6 years of full timing, approx 60k miles.

[weredoingit]

Originally Posted by Roadking06

Has anyone used a swivel wheel “trailer “ attached to the back of a 5th wheel trailer ? I’d appreciate any input. Thanks .

I wanted one, but upon further investigating it wasn't possible for my 5ver. Swivel wheel web site gives all the requirements. You need at least 12" of welding on each frame rail. According to my shop I only had 10" so they wouldn't or couldn't legally install it. A call to Swivel wheel confirmed that they didn't vary from the 12" weld on each rail. I hope yours will work.

[KanzKran]

Originally Posted by grindstone01

Also, if the first tire blows, the second tire is now carrying twice the weight which can be fatal even for a few seconds.

What happens when only one tire is carrying the load, it being off-center from the pivot as dual wheels on a caster arm are?

[grindstone01]

Originally Posted by weredoingit

I wanted one, but upon further investigating it wasn't possible for my 5ver. Swivel wheel web site gives all the requirements. You need at least 12" of welding on each frame rail. According to my shop I only had 10" so they wouldn't or couldn't legally install it. A call to Swivel wheel confirmed that they didn't vary from the 12" weld on each rail. I hope yours will work.

I made my own rear hitch. I used thick wall 2" tubing welded under the 2 trailer frame rails with gussets in front and back. It was shade tree engineering. My Cameo fifth wheel frame is box tubing which may be heavier duty than most.

Originally Posted by KanzKran

What happens when only one tire is carrying the load, it being off-center from the pivot as dual wheels on a caster arm are?

The single swivel design spindle is almost horse shoe shaped so that the tire is directly under the pivot point. No offset loads.
The ultimate single wheel trailer system.

[grindstone01]

Some pictures (not the best)