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Post by nulldevice on Nov 22, 2013 0:56:17 GMT -5
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Post by oldchopperguy on Nov 22, 2013 1:37:21 GMT -5
Pretty neat!
No reason it shouldn't work. I've seen such things on European scoots. The only thing I can see that might cause any problem is lack of suspension on the trailer wheel. It may really bounce... It would be pretty easy to mount the wheel in a hinged arm, using a bicycle coil-over spring and shock to absorb impact. That might avoid any tendency to "pogo" or "jackrabbit" over bumps. The sprung-arm could also swivel a little right and left to make low-speed turns less "squeaky". Any lateral swing would have to be limited (probably by simple light-duty "screen-door-return-springs on chains) to keep the wheel straight, and prevent the swiveling wheel interfering with walking the scoot and trailer backwards.
Just some thoughts... The single-wheel trailer is a very good concept as it will lean, and "track" nicely on a 2-wheel vehicle.
Leo in Texas
Please keep us posted with pix! Other riders may well want to make something like this too!
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Post by nulldevice on Nov 22, 2013 13:45:00 GMT -5
Oh, the trailer works fine. I wasn't sure the link would work.
I have towed it almost 1000 miles over a few weekends this last summer and didn't really know it's back there, even when it bounces. I found adjusting the air pressure to the load can keep the bounce within reason and the hitch connects to the rear axle so that end of it is not suspended either. Since I changed the wheel recently I haven't had opportunity to play with the pressure. I figure it will run somewhere between 15 to 25 PSI when loaded to a gross weight of around 100 to at most150 pounds.
The big problem has been stiffening the hitch. I made it out of laminated lath strips and the trailer will wag from time to time but nothing excessive to make me afraid of it, but it is annoying. That is a winter project, to replace the hitch with one made of rectangular steel tubing.
Swivel wheel on this trailer? No way. That is for cars. The reason I went with no suspension was for simplicity and to eliminate any movement of the wheel between it and the chassis. The hitch allows vertical and left/right motion of the whole trailer body, but doesn't let it roll in relation to the scooter. Think of a U joint on a drive shaft. Pics and maybe video to follow . . .
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Post by oldchopperguy on Nov 22, 2013 15:01:04 GMT -5
Sounds like you got down pat!
Adjusting tire pressure WOULD make all the difference. Please DO post vids, pix, etc.!
Also, how about info on title and licensing? In Texas, this trailer would require a title (as a home-built) and separate license-plate. They won't let it slide as a part of the scooter. Even though it's not a major expense, having to renew yet one more license has somewhat kept me from making a trailer myself.
The idea is neat enough though, that I may "give in"... I have an abandoned curb-edger that's just BEGGING to be made into a scooter trailer-chassis... AND a couple of high-speed light-plane tail-wheels...LOL! Really!
Leo in Texas
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Post by Mainely Scooters on Nov 23, 2013 13:23:55 GMT -5
Awesome job! I had posted before of other scooter trailers that are common in Korea. You might find something useful in the photos.   |
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Post by nulldevice on Nov 23, 2013 20:48:27 GMT -5
Sounds like you got down pat!
Adjusting tire pressure WOULD make all the difference. Please DO post vids, pix, etc.!Also, how about info on title and licensing? In Texas, this trailer would require a title (as a home-built) and separate license-plate. They won't let it slide as a part of the scooter. Even though it's not a major expense, having to renew yet one more license has somewhat kept me from making a trailer myself. The idea is neat enough though, that I may "give in"... I have an abandoned curb-edger that's just BEGGING to be made into a scooter trailer-chassis... AND a couple of high-speed light-plane tail-wheels...LOL! Really!Leo in Texas I live in Ohio, so your mileage will vary. For example people from Pennsylvania act horrified about Ohio's vehicle inspection/safety laws but I know they are simply jealous. In Ohio light trailers don't require a title but do need a license plate and registration. For home made trailers you go to the license bureau and get a weight slip. You take the trailer and weight slip to a certified scale -- feed mill, sand and gravel seller, etc -- and get it weighed. Return to the license bureau, present the slip and $50 and you get a plate and registration. Home made trailers don't require inspections but you will need to conform to license, lighting, plate placement requirements and such. Any traffic stops and the police will check paper work and conformance to trailer regulations. Oh yes, the empty trailer weighs 40 pounds. |
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Post by nulldevice on Nov 23, 2013 20:56:10 GMT -5
Thanks for the pictures. I had to be a little more cautious in my construction. I take this trailer on the Interstates and it mostly gets towed however fast the traffic goes. I do back off when the speed exceeds 80 -  MPH. |
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Post by oldchopperguy on Nov 24, 2013 1:48:19 GMT -5
Woo Hoo! You just HAVE to scratch your head, then give a tongue-in-cheek "thumbs-up" to that incredibly crude, yet totally effective Korean universal-joint trailer connection! Rube Goldberg couldn't have done better hisself!  Ride safe! Leo in Texas |
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Post by nulldevice on Nov 24, 2013 12:37:22 GMT -5
Hitch movement
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Post by nulldevice on Nov 24, 2013 13:14:39 GMT -5
Here is a close up of the hitch where it connects to the trailer. The vertical rod lets the trailer swing left and right.  Here is a close up of the hitch where it connects to the motorcycle. The threaded rod goes all the way through the hollow axle.  This is a view of the scooter axle without the trailer on it.  |
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Post by oldchopperguy on Nov 25, 2013 2:00:36 GMT -5
OK, I saw the video and I am impressed!
Now, Not being familiar with your scoot, is that hollow axle "factory"? Or did you fabricate it? It certainly works great. Hooking up to the scooter is always one of the more difficult parts of the fabrication.
Enquiring minds want to know...
Thanks!
Leo in Texas
PS: Your trailer-licensing laws are similar to ours here in Texas. Hmmm... That old gas-edger chassis behind my house is looking more and more interesting to me! I may have to try a trailer project myself!
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Post by nulldevice on Nov 25, 2013 22:17:57 GMT -5
Both axles on my TMAX are hollow. I did have to drill it out to get a 5/16 inch rod through it. I wanted to go 3/8 but decided it wouldn't leave enough meat under the threads that hold it on. I'll get around to using a grade 5 or maybe grade 8 rod and nuts if I can find them. I eventually intend to have a solid axle made so I can use a pair of bolts to hitch up. It would make hitching up so much easier and I could use a bigger diameter bolt as well.
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Post by nulldevice on Nov 25, 2013 22:59:20 GMT -5
wrote, in part;
The idea is neat enough though, that I may "give in"... I have an abandoned curb-edger that's just BEGGING to be made into a scooter trailer-chassis... AND a couple of high-speed light-plane tail-wheels...LOL! Really!
Leo in Texas
If you are making a trailer for a 1000 pound Harley or heavy Gold Wing tourer you may be on the right track. If you are making one for a light scooter consider taking a really old idea from the auto industry and make the trailer with a uni-body construction. You get strength and light weight that way. For safety I put a gross load limit of about 1/4 the weight of the scooter. 500 pound scooter allows about a 125 pound trailer curb weight. For cars the safe limit is about 1/3 the weight of the car for trailers without brakes but I have fewer wheels and thus the lower limit, and I don't go very far very fast when at the limit. YMMV. The box on my trailer is 17 inches wide, 48 inches long and 11 inch deep. It is made from 1/4 inch floor underlay and 1 x 2 stock with oak 3/4 inch plywood for the hitch points and wheel mounting. The box is the frame. For the test run I put a little over 100 pounds in it for a short test run on city streets and on the Interstate with no structural problems. Every pound the trailer weighs is one pound less you can safely haul. My trailer weighed in at forty (40) pounds when I got the license plate. |
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Post by oldchopperguy on Nov 26, 2013 2:52:58 GMT -5
Nulldevice,
VERY well thought out! I think you're weights and dimensions are right on the money. The uni-body construction is great... Vespa does pretty well with it... LOL!
I'd do it that way too, except for that incredibly cool edger frame already on-hand. It's perfect in size, made from industrial chrome-molly tubing. It's as rigid and strong as the scooter chassis itself, yet weighs only around 12 pounds. I think with a lightweight box, the little wheels and some hardware it would still be in the general ballpark with yours for weight.
It's a long-term, "maybe" project at best, but one that would be fun, useful and if done right, would look absolutely as "factory" as a Vespa sidecar. My scoot is pretty wide, and, I'm putting a set of saddlebags on it, so... I could make the trailer-box fairly wide without having it track way outside the max width of the scooter. Lacking your unique axle-mount-hookup, I'd probably fab up a mount to fasten to the shock mounts (upper, or lower). I like the look of a 2-wheel trailer, so I'd make up a "hitch" using something like a heavy-duty universal-joint for full-articulation.
I don't know if I'd use it enough to justify the expense and work, but if it's nothing more than an "exercise" in engineering, it might be worth it. If I do try it, I'll be sure to post a thread on the build.
Since the chassis is almost a "freebie" and on-hand, I think I'll start looking for a suitable "box" to compliment it. An old "treasure-chest" style trunk, a plastic/fiberglass "car-topper"... an obscure ABS container of some kind? Who knows? If an old industrial edger can be a chassis, there's no telling what might make a nice "box" for it.
I just love "repurposing" junk into something useful!
Do keep us posted on how your trailer works out. Lots of riders would like to make something similar, and there are so many different approaches to try...
Ride safe,
Leo
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Post by nulldevice on Nov 27, 2013 21:47:22 GMT -5
So many approaches, how true. It sounds like you are going the two wheel route. If you are, be sure to have the ball on a rotating mount. The ball doesn't really have enough motion to cover the lean angle of the scooter without it. My concern was with my trailer the trailer's maximum lean angle. The hight of the bottom of the trailer from the pavement set the width limit. If I went much wider I would start to interfere with the lean angle of the scooter. In my case they claim a 55 degree lean angle and the trailer can do that at 17 inches wide. I haven't scraped the edge yet but I know I have come close.  |
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MPH.