Added trailer hitch, strong enough to pull ATV trailer?

hotjag1 wrote:
That looks like a nice job and plenty beefy for bikes or a light trailer.
I had a professional shop do pretty much the same thing on the back of my enclosed car hauler so that I could haul my 300lb scooter on the back of the trailer.

I too was concerned about having enough tongue weight, so I bought a tongue scale($45). Hanging the 300lb scooter on the back only took 75lbs off of the tongue weight.

Of course, depending on placement of your axles and how you load your trailer will determine the effect on your tongue weight. I would recommend a tongue scale to make sure you have enough weight on the front.

Yep, I just put a few short welds on the bumper just to tie everything together.....not really for strength. The main strength comes from the welds to the frame.

Nicely done! It looks to me like the weak point is almost certainly going to be the frame of the trailer itself.

I think you should be able to safely do what you suggest.

You did a very nice weld job there. It looks very good. I have a feeling your hitch and frame is much stronger than the trailer frame it's attached to. No doubt the frame you built will be able to haul, pull, or carry just about anything. But, not so sure what the trailer is capable of handling though.

Now that you have it installed, take it out for a dry run. Have someone drive behind you, see how much shake or wobble the 2nd trailer has. Might even be a good idea if they could record it so you can see what's happening yourself.

Start by driving slow and increase speed a little at a time so you can learn it's limitation. It might be flawless and, who knows??? you may be able to run 80 mph. On the other hand,... well ... just start slow, build your confidence your plan works and works well. Also, have a 2 way communication with your chase car. If something happens that's funky, you need to know immediately so you can slow down.

There again, I think your self-built hitch is fabulous. Not so sure about the integrity of the camper though. Road test it thoroughly before towing for real!

That looks like a nice job and plenty beefy for bikes or a light trailer.
I had a professional shop do pretty much the same thing on the back of my enclosed car hauler so that I could haul my 300lb scooter on the back of the trailer.

I too was concerned about having enough tongue weight, so I bought a tongue scale($45). Hanging the 300lb scooter on the back only took 75lbs off of the tongue weight.

Of course, depending on placement of your axles and how you load your trailer will determine the effect on your tongue weight. I would recommend a tongue scale to make sure you have enough weight on the front.

You did an excellent job on fabricating that hitch. The only week point that I see is the hitch being welded to the trailer bumper. As you probably know, that trailer bumper is made out of THIN steel. Keep an eye on it and check to be sure the hitch is not pulling away from the bumper.

imq707s wrote:
Should I have any problem towing a light trailer with this setup? Thoughts?

Your custom mount is a work of art BUT hanging it's weight AND a bike rack AND bikes off the far rear of your trailer, so far aft of the axles, will serve to unduly unload the tongue, more so on a shorter trailer like yours than a 30 footer. Bikes belong over the trailer tongue or in the truck bed.

I like those workstands, too!
Where does a guy get them?

Nice fabrication job!!
That receiver should be able to handle any small trailer load. Watch out for how this affects your overall towing loads, though. You'll probably lose a lot of tongue weight on the first trailer.