Tow Dolly

[dmcgiffin]

When we arrive back home we need to move our tow dolly by hand thru gravel to store behind our motorhome. Not an easy task holding up the tongue and pushing at the same time. Any suggestions?

[willald]

..When I had a dolly, my solution to this was that I built an attachment that consisted of a piece of 2x4 with a large caster wheel mounted on bottom, and a long (3") bolt sticking up from the top. Hitch coupler on the dolly had a hole at the top, that the bolt on the 2x4 went through. A wing nut locked it on and held it in place, so that front of dolly was now on a wheel and did not have to be lifted. Didn't cost but a total of maybe $20 total to build this 'device'. I can email pictures of this device if anyone is interested.

When you attach this wheel/attachment on the front of the dolly, it became VERY easy to move around (no need to lift the front of it to move it). I would attach this device as soon as I unhitched the dolly, and take it off just before hitching it back up to the MH. Made it very easy to push the dolly under back of the MH when at campsite, so dolly was almost completely out of the way.

You could also attach a handle/bar onto the front of the wheel attachment, to allow you to push or pull the dolly around like a wagon without having to bend down. I was working on adding such handle to ours, but never finished it - We went to 4 down towing and sold the dolly before finishing it.

Also, the dolly you use makes a big difference as well. The lighter it is, the easier it is to move around by hand. This is one of the reasons the only dolly I'll own is the ACME EZE tow dolly.

[dmcgiffin]

Thanks to all suggestions. Went to Harbor Freight and picked up their dolly on sale for $60....works great.

[Effy]

Retired JSO wrote:
i use one of these. we use it at home on grass and packed sand.

Traller Dolly

How would that help with pushing the tongue under the rear of the MH for storage?

[Retired_JSO]

i use one of these. we use it at home on grass and packed sand.

Traller Dolly

[BTPO1]

Mine has the trailer wheel also, but it does not work that great. So I use my Son or Son-in-law, whichever is available as I can't get the dolly up the driveway myself. JMO

[dbates]

I generally us the suggested trailer dolly at home. I'm lucky enough to be able to put my trailer dolly in one of my large bays and if needed use it on the road but does your dolly have a trailer jack? See one Here
It allows you to leave the tongue down and just pull the dolly and then you can fold it down so that the tongue can go under the MH.

Dave

[Effy]

If I understand the OP correctly - please chime in - It's not a matter of simply moving the dolly around, it's storing the dolly behind the MH with the tongue slid underneath. In which case the various suggestions to move it around won't help. You have a few options; put it in the spot you want and back the MH over the tongue (someone watching of course), push down on the ramps enough to lift the tongue and slide it under, get a 12' pole and with one person on each side of the MH hook the pole under the handle and walk it under, or get something like an off-road skateboard and bungee the tongue to it to use as a creeper to roll it under.

[bigred1cav]

If you have a lawn tractor put a hitch on the front and maneuver dolly.

[Wrong_Lane]

I had a tow dolly for a few years.

The problem I always had when lifting the tongue and pushing or pulling is that you could only lift the front (tongue) a little above knee level before the ramps starting hitting and digging in in the rear. This left me in the awkward position of trying to pull or push while bending slightly forward at the waist. For me that was not a comfortable position.

I agree the tongue weighs very little. Moving the contraption would have been a heck of a lot easier and comfortable if I could have lifted the tongue to waist level and then pulled or pushed.

My solution was to sell the dolly and rig for 4-down.

[Executive45]

I had one of those Harbor Freight pieces of junk for my car trailer. I finally threw it away. Your tow dolly is pretty lightweight. My suggestion would be to:
1. Hard pack the gravel from the rear of the motorhome so the dolly moves easier.
2. Replace the large gravel at the rear of the coach with pea gravel and hard pack.
3. Put a hitch ball on a riding mower, a golf cart or on your car and move it into place that way.
4. Dump your towed and buy a Jeep that can be towed four down....:W:W....Dennis

[Effy]

crasster wrote:

Effy wrote:

cochise49 wrote:
http://t.harborfreight.com/automotive-motorcycle/trailer-accessories/heavy-duty-trailer-dolly-69898.html

Also in their stores.

Is that really a good option though? Since a dolly when lifted by the handle is on one set of tires, this device would add another set of tires and increase your rolling resistance as well as throw off the fulcrum point. You would either need a friend, or a motorized version of one of these. Not a cheap option on the latter. On level ground once you get a dolly rolling it's not too bad. I move mine around with my tractor, but if I am in hurry I just grunt it out by the handle.

I have one of these.

It takes away the lift, not the pull.

Let me give an example. (we have 3 rv's a class c, class a, and a KZ 16ft travel trailer).

The KZ weighs about 300-350 tongue weight. As manly as I'd love to be, lifting the tongue makes me feel like I'm going to blow a sprocket.... somewhere.... I feel my entire body is fully strained. If I pick it off the ground for 1cm, there is no way I can really pull it.

The tow dolly what it does is takes all the tongue weight off the camper. Pulling, while not exactly easy, is way more manageable. I can basically move it around in the driveway pad area.

There would be no way I could do this without the dolly.

In the case of the OP, if it is the tongue weight that is holding them back from moving the tow dolly, then this would be great. If it is the pull, that's another story.

HOWEVER, lifting the tongue AND pulling can sometimes make a person think there is more "pull power needed", than what exists in reality. Once you remove the tongue weight, it is pretty amazing how much you can move on greased axles and tires. I bet this could really help them if they think the tongue is heavy.

tongue weight on a tow dolly and a trailer are nowhere even close. Lifting the arm of a dolly can't be more than 30 lbs. This is an apples to oranges comparison. Thus proving my point. Those trailer dollies provide a fulcrum for lift as well as wheels to move. By design a tow dolly is already built that way. You would be adding more effort and resistance to the equation not less.

OP, simply push down a bit on the ramps (doesn't take much) to lift the arm and push it under your MH. This is really not that hard. Or buy a cheap off-road skateboard and bungy the tongue to that. Me, I just push it under and if it digs in the gravel a bit I consider it good resistance to rolling back out.

[sailor_lou]

When we had a dolly, I did the same as ferndaleflyer and mounted a 2" hitch on my riding mower.

Lou
05 Travel Supreme Envoy

[crasster]

Effy wrote:

cochise49 wrote:
http://t.harborfreight.com/automotive-motorcycle/trailer-accessories/heavy-duty-trailer-dolly-69898.html

Also in their stores.

Is that really a good option though? Since a dolly when lifted by the handle is on one set of tires, this device would add another set of tires and increase your rolling resistance as well as throw off the fulcrum point. You would either need a friend, or a motorized version of one of these. Not a cheap option on the latter. On level ground once you get a dolly rolling it's not too bad. I move mine around with my tractor, but if I am in hurry I just grunt it out by the handle.

I have one of these.

It takes away the lift, not the pull.

Let me give an example. (we have 3 rv's a class c, class a, and a KZ 16ft travel trailer).

The KZ weighs about 300-350 tongue weight. As manly as I'd love to be, lifting the tongue makes me feel like I'm going to blow a sprocket.... somewhere.... I feel my entire body is fully strained. If I pick it off the ground for 1cm, there is no way I can really pull it.

The tow dolly what it does is takes all the tongue weight off the camper. Pulling, while not exactly easy, is way more manageable. I can basically move it around in the driveway pad area.

There would be no way I could do this without the dolly.

In the case of the OP, if it is the tongue weight that is holding them back from moving the tow dolly, then this would be great. If it is the pull, that's another story.

HOWEVER, lifting the tongue AND pulling can sometimes make a person think there is more "pull power needed", than what exists in reality. Once you remove the tongue weight, it is pretty amazing how much you can move on greased axles and tires. I bet this could really help them if they think the tongue is heavy.

[Effy]

cochise49 wrote:
http://t.harborfreight.com/automotive-motorcycle/trailer-accessories/heavy-duty-trailer-dolly-69898.html

Also in their stores.

Is that really a good option though? Since a dolly when lifted by the handle is on one set of tires, this device would add another set of tires and increase your rolling resistance as well as throw off the fulcrum point. You would either need a friend, or a motorized version of one of these. Not a cheap option on the latter. On level ground once you get a dolly rolling it's not too bad. I move mine around with my tractor, but if I am in hurry I just grunt it out by the handle.