Tongue weight with dinghy towing

[Scottybee]

Just wondering. When towing a vehicle 4 wheels down it seems to me the tongue weight would be almost nothing.
So if I added a hitch hauler for a motorcycle that would be all tongue weight and nominal towing weight.

My goal here is to travel with my motorcycle and a car (SUV).
We bought a 2016 Winnebago Adventurer 37F. So it's a Ford V-10 gas class-A.
We love the coach's layout and size but it's only 5,ooo lb towing capacity and I believe 500 lb tongue weight. As I see it my options are A: Get a trailer long enough to put the bike on sideways in front or behind a very light car. I can see where a trailer would be a pain to deal with when at a campground.
Or B: Have a hitch hauler made for the bike that extends the hitch out then hook tow bar for car into that.
Or C: Leave the bike at home (that would really suck).


Any ideas or advise will be greatly appreciated.

[TonyMac]

2 words: small pickup.

[PbdBlue]

Originally Posted by Scottybee

Just wondering. When towing a vehicle 4 wheels down it seems to me the tongue weight would be almost nothing.
So if I added a hitch hauler for a motorcycle that would be all tongue weight and nominal towing weight.

My goal here is to travel with my motorcycle and a car (SUV).
We bought a 2016 Winnebago Adventurer 37F. So it's a Ford V-10 gas class-A.
We love the coach's layout and size but it's only 5,ooo lb towing capacity and I believe 500 lb tongue weight. As I see it my options are A: Get a trailer long enough to put the bike on sideways in front or behind a very light car. I can see where a trailer would be a pain to deal with when at a campground.
Or B: Have a hitch hauler made for the bike that extends the hitch out then hook tow bar for car into that.
Or C: Leave the bike at home (that would really suck).


Any ideas or advise will be greatly appreciated.

You don't say what kind of bike you have. I haul my dirt bike on the back of the MH and pull a toad. I built the carrier and it is attached via two 2" receivers I bolted the end plates of the hitch where it attaches to the frame rails. I built a hitch extension for the toad that also attaches to the bike tray out near the extended receiver. It bolts together and the individual pieces weigh less than #30 each so it's very easy to put on\take off. Using the two receivers eliminates the rocking that you get with a traditional hitch mounted rack and puts the weight directly on the frame. It's solid as a rock and I have used it for 1000's of miles towing without issue. That said I don't think I'd put anything heavier than 350 - 400# on it.

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f250/mc-c...ed-245468.html

[Gary RVRoamer]

Tongue weight on any toad tow bar is almost non-existent, basically just the weight of the tow bar itself. Ditto for a tow dolly, which basically just acts as the front axle on a wagon (the rear axle is the car)



Any two-wheel trailer, however, is balanced on the back axles so that part of the weight falls on the tongue. If you get one of those that can carry a bike and also act as a dolly, or a trailer that can carry car & bike, the tongue weight could be substantial.



The suggestion of a small pick-up on a tow bar and carrying the bike in the truck bed is a good one. A friend on mine does that.

[BirchyBoy]

Don’t forget to factor in your cargo capacity and see how much you have available when you’re loaded for a standard trip. You may or may not have enough for a 300lb tongue weight.

[Scottybee]

Originally Posted by PbdBlue

You don't say what kind of bike you have. I haul my dirt bike on the back of the MH and pull a toad. I built the carrier and it is attached via two 2" receivers I bolted the end plates of the hitch where it attaches to the frame rails. I built a hitch extension for the toad that also attaches to the bike tray out near the extended receiver. It bolts together and the individual pieces weigh less than #30 each so it's very easy to put on\take off. Using the two receivers eliminates the rocking that you get with a traditional hitch mounted rack and puts the weight directly on the frame. It's solid as a rock and I have used it for 1000's of miles towing without issue. That said I don't think I'd put anything heavier than 350 - 400# on it.

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f250/mc-c...ed-245468.html

The bike is BMW 1200GS it is just over 500 lb's.
I love the dual 2" receivers idea. I was planning to put some sort of braces going to those hitch end plates but your idea would be better and a little easier.

I like the small pickup idea too I looked at a Chevy Colorado but the wife doesn't want to drive that for her vehicle.

I still have some time to sort all this out but I want to hear from people with experience and get some good ideas so thanks everyone

[PbdBlue]

Originally Posted by Scottybee

The bike is BMW 1200GS it is just over 500 lb's.
I love the dual 2" receivers idea. I was planning to put some sort of braces going to those hitch end plates but your idea would be better and a little easier.

I like the small pickup idea too I looked at a Chevy Colorado but the wife doesn't want to drive that for her vehicle.

I still have some time to sort all this out but I want to hear from people with experience and get some good ideas so thanks everyone

A GS might be a little bit of a stretch. On my F53 chassis the bike tray sits about 24” off the ground so loading a bike that heavy might be challenging.

[Lt Dan]

You have to calculate the weight of the lift plus the bike, then multiply that by a percentage depending on the rear overhang of the chassis. If you put 1000lbs on the rear, it could translate to 13-1500 on the rear axle depending on the overhang. You need to weigh the coach and chances are you are probably pretty close to the max limit on the rear axle already. Motorcycle lifts are generally not recommended on coaches without tag axles, but some have done it anyway.

[BirchyBoy]

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

Tongue weight on any toad tow bar is almost non-existent, basically just the weight of the tow bar itself. Ditto for a tow dolly, which basically just acts as the front axle on a wagon (the rear axle is the car)



Any two-wheel trailer, however, is balanced on the back axles so that part of the weight falls on the tongue. If you get one of those that can carry a bike and also act as a dolly, or a trailer that can carry car & bike, the tongue weight could be substantial.



The suggestion of a small pick-up on a tow bar and carrying the bike in the truck bed is a good one. A friend on mine does that.

I’ve used a few dollies and have never been able to pickup the tongue with a car on it. I bet the tongue can easily be 300lbs for a standard car weighing about 3,500lbs.

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by BirchyBoy

I’ve used a few dollies and have never been able to pickup the tongue with a car on it. I bet the tongue can easily be 300lbs for a standard car weighing about 3,500lbs.

I'll take that bet. I have lifted my loaded dolly off by hand, actually one hand.
I was surprised how light it was.

2017 Jeep Renegade, StehlTow dolly.

[Beyond]

The previous owner of our coach carried a Harley and towed a medium sized car 4-down with a CruiserLift (for close to 20k miles). We've used a CruiserLift for our motorcycle for probably 40k miles across the country and through Alaska. To find out if this system would work for you, check out this website: https://irp-cdn.multiscreensite.com/...ements2008.pdf [or look at cruiserlift.com]. There is a guide to see if your coach could handle the lift (which incidentally requires a triple receiver).

[Scottybee]

Originally Posted by Beyond

The previous owner of our coach carried a Harley and towed a medium sized car 4-down with a CruiserLift (for close to 20k miles). We've used a CruiserLift for our motorcycle for probably 40k miles across the country and through Alaska. To find out if this system would work for you, check out this website: https://irp-cdn.multiscreensite.com/...ements2008.pdf [or look at cruiserlift.com]. There is a guide to see if your coach could handle the lift (which incidentally requires a triple receiver).

What kind of coach is that on?

[dix39]

How about one of these https://www.tandem-tow.com/ for the bike and toad. I was thinking of modifying our dolly to something like it for our 500+ lb. bike. My balance finally got so bad that after pulling the bike over on me several times I just gave up and sold it. If the bets are still out, I would take anyone up on the thought that the tongue weight on this thing is minimal when loaded.

I'm thinking that the tongue weight on a regular dolly would depend somewhat on the dolly, I think our older Demco is pretty heavy, but then maybe I'm just getting weak???

Steve

[Scottybee]

I like it
I'll check that out
Thanks