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Old 02-23-2011, 07:28 AM   #21
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Name: Greg
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Wow, it's kinda funny how this thread "morphed" into discussions about aesthetics, awnings, air conditioners, etc. The OP was just trying to get some info on the possibilities of adding a little storage space on the back, especially since (as we all know) our little trailers never have enough room for "stuff".

As to aesthetics, some may not like the box-on-the-back idea, but I can't think of anything uglier than a ratty spare tire chewing up the gelcoat on the back of a glass trailer. Worse than a NASCAR "door doughnut" in my opinion. I like my box, I'm happy with it, and I don't know what I'd do without it anymore. Just me...
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Old 02-23-2011, 10:51 AM   #22
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Hehe your right Creg it did morph but its important to note that aesthetics in most cases was not the only concern that was raised as the reason by those who dont like having a box attached to the back of the trailer.

Weight = safety concerns was also raised. IMHO the weight distribution one is the bigger more important reason and well worth giving serious thought to.
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Old 02-23-2011, 11:06 AM   #23
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Yes, that's true Carol. Weight distribution, and total weight/tongue weight ratios are definitely important issues to be considered when thinking about adding anything to our glass eggs, especially all the way forward or all the way aft. I did mention that, as for my trailer, it does run a bit "tongue-heavy", but other trailers may not balance out the same. It is important to be sure that any mod you make won't lighten your tongue too much, as this could cause poor handling and could even be quite dangerous.

Personally, I don't carry the spare on the back anymore, so the weight of the box is pretty much equal to the weight of the spare that now lives in the bed of the pickup with all the other heavy stuff when we travel. I only carry lightweight, but somewhat bulky items in it. It's handy for the sewer slinky (coiled in a 5 gal. plastic bucket,) water hoses, power cord, plastic jack pads and levelling blocks, plastic rake, camp axe, small shovel, etc. I don't use it for anything too heavy. My box, and its contents, are probably no more than 100 lbs for all of it. Certainly well within my total weight/tongue weight ratio.
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Old 02-23-2011, 11:50 AM   #24
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Darn them folks with pick up trucks that can take all that extra stuff - keeps making me think I need to seriously look at one as an option!
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Old 02-23-2011, 12:11 PM   #25
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Casita Greg,

I think your bumper box is very attractive. Since we don't have the convenience of a truck, we've been considering other locations for the tire. Like you we mainly want to put trailer set up stuff in it.

Norm
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Old 02-23-2011, 01:19 PM   #26
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Norman,
Thanks for the kudos. No doubt about it, a pickup truck is definitely a godsend with a small travel trailer. With my canopy on it, I manage to schlog all manner of useless and unnecessary crapulence with me all over the country, lol.

I'm not sure what type of tow vehicle you have, but when I load out for a trip, I usually stick the spare for the trailer in first and pile everything on top of, and around, it. The odds of needing it are small, but I still wouldn't venture forth without one! If your tow rig has a trunk, or a rear (SUV-type) compartment you might be able to finagle it into some hidden nether reaches within the bowels of your storage area. Perhaps even on a roof rack if you should have one. Just a thought...
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Old 02-23-2011, 02:22 PM   #27
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I think if I wanted to permanently add a little storage box, I'd add it to the front of the camper and not the back. Just my opinion.

I too use the tote box thing. In fact, I bought a big sort of flat one recently with tiny wheels on it (got it at Wal-Mart) and now I put my junk that I take with me in there. I haul it in my truck and after I set up, I slide it under the camper so I can get to it easily ... perfect!

Patty
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Old 02-24-2011, 07:31 AM   #28
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It's not permanently mounted. It is mounted on a 2" slide in receiver which I can easily remove by pulling the pin, just like a receiver trailer hitch. The boxes I found for mounting on the front would never be big enough to suit my needs, and if the sides of the box were to stick out horizontally beyond the "A frame" part of the tongue, I wouldn't have enough clearance for my tailgate when making tight turns. There is a method to my madness.
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Old 03-30-2011, 11:59 AM   #29
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photo of one on escape
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Old 03-30-2011, 12:56 PM   #30
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photo of one on escape
Ken, did that require a special spacer to clear the spare, or is it stock?

Regards

Matt
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Old 03-30-2011, 01:05 PM   #31
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I just came across the photo by chance and added it since i knew i would never find it again. At the top, the name looks like the zepplin express, I'm sure that's wrong. It's too blurry for me to make out. Maybe someone will identify the owner.
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Old 03-31-2011, 03:50 PM   #32
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I can't help it, I'm a visual person. I think stuff other than the spare tire hanging off the back is.... ugly. Don't hate me, it's strictly an opinion. Others think an A/C on the roof looks like a pimple. That doesn't bother me... I'm short . I guess I'm lucky, I tow my trailer with a truck. I can haul all the yucky stuff I want and it doesn't destroy the great look of an egg. I'd build a box to put yucky stuff in and haul it in the tug or trailer before I'd add a bunch of stuff hanging off the back. YMMV
I can never hate you Donna. Last year, before I left on my "maiden voyage" through the rockies and pacific northwest, I had a truly ugly back porch built for my generator. I simply can not dry camp without it! I did spend some $$ having a cover made for the generator, so all you see is a black square box. Still ugly ... but functional.
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Old 03-31-2011, 06:12 PM   #33
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Ah Jane, you're kind. I truly believe people should be free to make choices... especially when it comes to their eggs... how they decorate or where they places boxes, etc. It's what makes us all unique... along with our trailers
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Old 04-01-2011, 05:45 PM   #34
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Smile

Hi folks,

For our Boler, I made a box from 7/16 plywood to attach to the back, not wide enough to block the tail lights. We put our outdoor carpet and mats, hot dog roasting sticks, and assorted long dirty items in it that we did not want mucking up the trailer after a rainy camp, sometimes including the awning. I covered the top with a metal flashing cut to size and folded under so it would be water repellent. I painted the body black to match the trailer, and I was happy with the look and the little bit of storage. Because it did not stick out far, it did not affect the tongue weight much. We mounted the spare tire on the box rather than on the trailer bumper.

We are looking for one now for the "new" trailer, but the commercial ones are all too fat for me. I will probably end up building another one which is wide, tall and only a few inches deep, for carrying the same items.

You can see the box in this picture below.

Rick G.
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Old 04-09-2011, 06:40 PM   #35
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I bought this truck tool box at G.I. Joe's ($130.00) in 2008, turned it on its side, and bolted it to the trailer. My spare's up front under the bed, there's usable space between the box and trailer body, and it hauls one bike atop the box.
As you can see, I replaced taillights with lower-profile lights on the box face; and the box has been bashed-by-backing a couple of times. I need to add some kind of bumper there, and will if the rig ever stays home long enough...
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Old 04-10-2011, 10:09 AM   #36
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I, too, am with Donna on this one. It is better to carry extra stuff in the truck. A friend of mine bought a 21' Bigfoot with a 2500 watt generator mounted on the back bumper. He towed it over a thousand miles home without an incident. A couple of months later, he was towing it home from a service appointment without any gear in it. The trailer went into a violent sway and crashed into a bridge abuttment, totalling it. It nearly pulled his truck off the road in the process. I went to the salvage yard later and bought some items off the wreck. The damage was very impressive. I should have taken some pictures for the forum but didn't want to embarass my friend in any way. Those of you carrying lightweight items in lightweight bumper boxes are "probably" OK, but how much is too much? Proper tongue weight is a critical safety consideration. I am a true believer after seeing that totalled-out Bigfoot. I won't even tow with more than a few gallons in my freshwater tank.
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Old 04-10-2011, 10:44 AM   #37
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Francesca, I love that! How does it open -- hinged on the bottom? How do you secure the bike?

I'm trying to figure out how to bring two recumbent bikes plus child cart with us when we camp. We love riding and maybe (a big maybe) we could get one bike into the camper.

TV is a jeep so no options for carrying bikes inside that. Anybody use a rack on top of TV? Bikes are light, but worry my back won't tolerate lifting that high.
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Old 04-10-2011, 12:09 PM   #38
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Quote:
Originally Posted by David and Nancy View Post
Proper tongue weight is a critical safety consideration. I won't even tow with more than a few gallons in my freshwater tank.
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Originally Posted by Darnelle View Post
Francesca, I love that! How does it open -- hinged on the bottom? How do you secure the bike?

I'm trying to figure out how to bring two recumbent bikes plus child cart with us when we camp. We love riding and maybe (a big maybe) we could get one bike into the camper.

TV is a jeep so no options for carrying bikes inside that. Anybody use a rack on top of TV? Bikes are light, but worry my back won't tolerate lifting that high.
I'm in the same boat you are, Darnelle- limited capacity in my tow vehicle. I also take great pains to keep the trailer properly balanced, and maintain the tongue weight at between 150 and 190 lbs, depending on trailer loading. I keep a bathroom scale for that purpose.
I'm such a nut about the weight thing that I REMOVED my water tank, as I didn't like to deal with the variation in weight associated with it. The space it used to occupy is mighty handy for miscellaneous gear storage, and the three-gallon water containers I use now (gravity flow via rack I put on kitchen wall) can be stowed in various places, also depending on trailer loading.
In my case,the box addition has actually served to increase the stability of the trailer rather than otherwise. I was determined to avoid the instability caused by raising up the bumper load and/or extending it farther away from the axle, both of which, in addition to improper tongue weight ratio, can contribute to the kind of accident David and Nancy describe in their post.
I won't go into the calculations I made beforehand, but I determined the allowable dimensions for the box before I went shopping, eventually finding the one you see in the picture, which is shorter than standard truck tool boxes in the critical depth (10") factor.
If you click on the thumbnail to enlarge and use the magnifier, you'll see that the bike rack consists of a rail atop the box, at each end of which is a two- position bike hook. The bike sits in the rail with the rear tire fitted to the curved part of the bike hook and the front fork (wheel removed) gripping the edge of the rail. The wheel travels in the right hand part of the rail and I use an ordinary tiedown to secure the load.
You could carry a second bike on the outermost hooks, but I've never tried this and don't know how much the weight there will affect handling of the rig. We've used the rack for other things- (that's a pole pruner in the picture) including carrying a long bag containing a one-man pontoon boat frame, floats, and oars.
And we ALWAYS reconfigure trailer load according to the cargo on the rack and in the box. An extra benefit has been that the static weight of the box itself lightened the tongue enough to allow me to carry about 20 more pounds there.
The box is hinged at the bottom, and makes a useful shelf in the open position.

Francesca
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Old 04-11-2011, 09:06 AM   #39
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Thanks Francesca,
My tongue is plenty heavy now, plus am adding shelves to the front closet so more of our stuff can travel there (the big space where others have a bathroom) and considering moving the water tank to under the sink (no water heater) and perhaps moving the spare tire as well. Am being very cautious regarding tongue weight and strength issues (both mine and the bike rack/platform). For us, camping without our bikes is not a complete camping trip!
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Old 04-11-2011, 03:46 PM   #40
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Originally Posted by Darnelle View Post
Thanks Francesca,
My tongue is plenty heavy now, plus am adding shelves to the front closet so more of our stuff can travel there (the big space where others have a bathroom) and considering moving the water tank to under the sink (no water heater) and perhaps moving the spare tire as well. Am being very cautious regarding tongue weight and strength issues (both mine and the bike rack/platform). For us, camping without our bikes is not a complete camping trip!
I hear that!
Got to take all the toys
I like having the bike at such an easy level to load-which reminds me:
Have you seen passenger cars running around with bikes hanging off the sides?
I haven't seen one parked, so I haven't looked at them closely, but the setup looks like a storebought set of hooks mounted somehow to the vehicle roof (?) or door(?). I've seen this rack more than once, so I'm pretty sure it's not a backyard build. As I recall, the bike sits high enough so the handlebars clear the roof and bike hangs at a bit of an angle so the pedals don't hit the car.
Don't know how door access is affected if at all, but the setup sure looks easy to load/unload.
I also like that the bikes riding lower brings the center of gravity down- no small concern for us short wheelbase vehicle types.

Francesca
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