Cargo trailers to tow behind an RV
I'm wondering about factors that one might consider in the purchase of an enclosed cargo trailer to haul all that bulky, dirty sports equipment and nice stuff that we can't fit in the RV. (I think Re...
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Do know Sprinters have built in rails on the roof for racks. But, the 2500 I drove was 9.5' tall, add on another 2' for the canoe, windage ie 2-4 mpg loss, potential low clearance issues.....my personal last choice for canoe. I own one! Have a rib too as dinghy for sailboat.
You can get a cargo trailer with 6' headroom, torsion axles, a 28" diam tire, roof might be 7' off the ground. One doesn't need but a step ladder at best to load the canoe on it. At 6' myself, I don't need a step or equal.
The trailer and canoe might be a net loss of 1-3 mpg vs double with the canoe on top.
If you do a torsion axle like I've mentioned, you may want the axles at 65%bsck vs typical 60%. This will reduce the rear overhang dragging issue. On the other hand, if you might be off highway using, forest service roads etc, a low rider trailer may not be good. So a spring over axle trailer with 30-32" tires would be better. This latter option will put you in the 7.5-8' roof height.
Also make sure your 10' ladder is a bit less than 10'. I could not get an 8' tripod ladder except angled in an 8' box trailer I had.
No matter what you do, get brakes on the trailer. The sprinter I had, I could tell the brakes didn't change much to 10k lbs, as I hit 12k gvw, 5400 van, 6300 lbs of 3 pallets with 210 gals of antifreeze per pallet. Brakes were ok, not great. A small U1 battery, will operate interior lights, and brakes if the trailer breaks away just fine.
A few more issues I've run into in the past for you to cogatate over. Everything has a plus or minus.
Marty
You can get a cargo trailer with 6' headroom, torsion axles, a 28" diam tire, roof might be 7' off the ground. One doesn't need but a step ladder at best to load the canoe on it. At 6' myself, I don't need a step or equal.
The trailer and canoe might be a net loss of 1-3 mpg vs double with the canoe on top.
If you do a torsion axle like I've mentioned, you may want the axles at 65%bsck vs typical 60%. This will reduce the rear overhang dragging issue. On the other hand, if you might be off highway using, forest service roads etc, a low rider trailer may not be good. So a spring over axle trailer with 30-32" tires would be better. This latter option will put you in the 7.5-8' roof height.
Also make sure your 10' ladder is a bit less than 10'. I could not get an 8' tripod ladder except angled in an 8' box trailer I had.
No matter what you do, get brakes on the trailer. The sprinter I had, I could tell the brakes didn't change much to 10k lbs, as I hit 12k gvw, 5400 van, 6300 lbs of 3 pallets with 210 gals of antifreeze per pallet. Brakes were ok, not great. A small U1 battery, will operate interior lights, and brakes if the trailer breaks away just fine.
A few more issues I've run into in the past for you to cogatate over. Everything has a plus or minus.
Marty
