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Old 06-14-2007, 10:04 AM   #1
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Trailer: Scamp 13 ft
Posts: 109
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Hello All!

We just got back from our weeklong trip to Colorado. A month or so back I was asking around about how to carry 4 bikes along with our 13ft. Scamp and Toyota van. Well, we ditched on all four bikes and decided on only two, for the kids. We opted to use our existing bumper hitch mount bike rack, which saved us a considerable amount of money. To do this we reinforced the back bumper on the scamp and welded a 2" hitch receiver onto it. We noticed right away that this shifted a considerable amount of weight to the back of the scamp and lifted up on the ball hitch when we hit any bumps or unevenness on the road, scary! To compensate we moved most of our heavier gear to the front bunks and storage compartments, and stored the microwave on the floor instead of under the bed. We also emptied out all of the water in the holding tank which sits towards the rear of the trailer.

It took a lot of time and consideration but our solution worked for us. It makes sense to add some extra weight to the tongue of the scamp so we may add another storage rack of sorts to the front so we will have more open space inside the trailer.

I also found some other creative solutions to storing things that hang around for a whole week. I remember a discussion on this board about using suction cups as fasteners on the exterior. We like to extend the awning of our screenroom up over the trailer so that there is no dripping when we go in and out. We found some clear plastic suction cups with hooks that work great in keeping the tie downs secure on the opposite side of the trailer. I suggest finding cups with metal hooks next time since we had more than one hook break when I got the tension a little too tight.

The same suction cups with hooks worked great as a place to hang our towels in the sun without having to put up a clothesline, which some campgrounds do not allow to be hung. They are easy to take down when you need to pack up and leave. I also moved them around when I needed to hang something up inside, like hats. Very versatile tool and doesn't permanently alter anything.

My husband also made a cover for the stove that also serves as a box/tray to store the microwave in while we travel.

I haven't downloaded our pictures yet but will post them as soon as I do.
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Old 06-14-2007, 11:21 AM   #2
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Trailer: 1982 13 ft Burro
Posts: 38
I'm surprised the bikes made that much of a difference. On my 13-foot Burro, I have a battery and a propane tank on the tongue and it's still very front-heavy even with two bikes on the back bumper and a full water tank.

The tongue is farther from the axle than the rear bumper is, so that 60- or 70-pound battery really makes an effective counterweight for 70 pounds of bikes and 100 pounds of water.
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Old 06-14-2007, 04:45 PM   #3
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Trailer: Scamp 13 ft
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Quote:
I'm surprised the bikes made that much of a difference. On my 13-foot Burro, I have a battery and a propane tank on the tongue and it's still very front-heavy even with two bikes on the back bumper and a full water tank.

The tongue is farther from the axle than the rear bumper is, so that 60- or 70-pound battery really makes an effective counterweight for 70 pounds of bikes and 100 pounds of water.

I'm not sure why except that maybe the Bolers have a longer tongue to begin with, and they tend to ride lower (I think). Also, we had to extend the receiver out past the spare tire and the hitch on our van sits just slightly higher than the trailer so the Scamp sits a little high in front to begin with. It's not that high, though, only a few inches. But with that much weight it can really affect the towing dynamics.
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