Towing Compact Jr. - Fiberglass RV
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Old 01-29-2011, 04:40 PM   #1
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Trailer: Compact Jr 1973
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Towing Compact Jr.

Hi! have a Compact Jr. ( Lil Jubilee) and have lost the use of my 6 cyl. Ranger! Could I tow with a 4cyl Subaru Outback, 5 speed manual? (good offer from bro) or should I stick to the 6 engines?

Also Compact tends to "bounce" around alot on highway. It has car tires and original springs (i am pretty sure)....what upgrades should I do for more stability? It does not fishtail...and I have tried a variety of loading configurations, so its time to deal with the mechanical issues...thanks for any info!

Sherry A
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Old 01-29-2011, 05:18 PM   #2
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Well, I read enough about tow vehicles on this thread...but still would like to address the "bounce" while towing. We can hit just a small pot hole or bump and the trailer bounces rather than absorbs it. I travel pretty light..usually no stored water, but have a kayak and bike.....propane is the only thing on the tongue.
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Old 01-29-2011, 05:30 PM   #3
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Originally Posted by Sherry A View Post
Well, I read enough about tow vehicles on this thread...but still would like to address the "bounce" while towing. We can hit just a small pot hole or bump and the trailer bounces rather than absorbs it. I travel pretty light..usually no stored water, but have a kayak and bike.....propane is the only thing on the tongue.
Sherry
I tow mine with a PT Cruiser and it pulls fine. Make sure you load it with enought weight in the front and replace the car tires with trailer tires. Mine had car tires on it and when I replaced them with trailer tires it made a big difference.
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Old 01-29-2011, 06:17 PM   #4
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What Rick said, get rid of the car tires, load it right and hammer down.
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Old 01-30-2011, 11:03 AM   #5
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Sherry
I tow mine with a PT Cruiser and it pulls fine. Make sure you load it with enought weight in the front and replace the car tires with trailer tires. Mine had car tires on it and when I replaced them with trailer tires it made a big difference.
Thanks Rick...Like your trailer and checked out the mods...gave me some ideas. Mine still has original interior. It has an icebox, three burner and sink. I dont' use the sink so have it covered with a cutting board. I have had it for three years and keep hoping to stop travelling enough to redo the cabinets, and it needs paint..it is a very deg-lo yellow when buffed out. I need to replace the back door as well. The original owner tied his bike on the back and it banged around and dented in the door.

I will check out the trailer tires. Have you done anything with the axle or springs?
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Old 01-30-2011, 12:53 PM   #6
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Thanks Rick...Like your trailer and checked out the mods...gave me some ideas. Mine still has original interior. It has an icebox, three burner and sink. I dont' use the sink so have it covered with a cutting board. I have had it for three years and keep hoping to stop travelling enough to redo the cabinets, and it needs paint..it is a very deg-lo yellow when buffed out. I need to replace the back door as well. The original owner tied his bike on the back and it banged around and dented in the door.

I will check out the trailer tires. Have you done anything with the axle or springs?
No I haven't done anything to the axle or springs. Replacing the tires made a big difference in the bouncing around. I think that with the leaf springs you will get more up and down movement the with the axles that are on the other glass trailers
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Old 01-30-2011, 01:09 PM   #7
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Compact Jr: tow vehicle

Sherry,
I have a Compact II, sibling to your Jr. model, and have always towed mine with a Subaru Outback (4 cyl), as long as you aren't loading the trailer up with your cast iron pots & pans and other assorted heavy objects. I also travel without any water in my water tank and with heavy stuff like cooler, boxes of food, etc,either stored under the front bed or on top of it...keeping the main weight in the front.
Hope to see you at an Oregon, Washington or Canadian EGGIE rally!
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Old 01-30-2011, 01:50 PM   #8
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You should get a set of appropriately rated trailer tires on it AND set the proper pressure in the tires. Unlike a lot of others around here, I recommend going with the tire manufacturers pressure chart based on the weight of the trailer, NOT the max sidewall pressure.

For instance, my tires (same as the original Scamp tires) have a MAX rating of 50 PSI, but both Scamp and Goodyear recommend using 15-20 PSI because the Scamp is so light. If you use a higher pressure, the trailer will bounce more, which is bad for your trailer, your hitch, and whatever is inside your trailer.

Running he appropriate pressure is not "too low." It is just right. You shouldn't always run your trailer tires at the maximum pressure, just like you don't always drive your car at it's maximum speed.
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Old 01-30-2011, 10:01 PM   #9
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I agree with 'Rick Brown', chuck the car tires 2 ply vs 8 ply too soft in the sidewalls and less load capacity. As stated Tongue at 15% of total load is also good.
Have a 17' boler and they have leaf springs as well.
'mcbrew' said it right on tire pressure; although yours will be different than our boler trailer it has 32 psi listed in closet door as recommend but tire pressure an has a tire max of 50 psi. Tire size and trailer weight set best setting; that compact Jr would recommend.

P.S. Was told that car tires are a big no no in Ontario anyway. Do not know the rule in your area though.
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Old 02-01-2011, 11:48 AM   #10
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Got this info from the MTO so is more accurate than some of what I have read in general.
When we got our boler I talked to the people in charge we do not have to use trailer tires! But trailer tires do have to have the capacity to meet the Quote from MTO ‘Manufacturer's rated capacity of trailer’. Type of tire must be highway rated, meet weight limit and min size requirement. I did talk to the tire experts and the consciences is that the stiffer side walls of ST tires will give better control and last longer as they are made for the job at hand. Trailer in most cases do not have shocks or anti sway systems from factory.

“HTA 7, Reg. 628
Equipment is not permitted on the road with tires that:
are smaller than vehicle manufacturer's recommended minimum size * * *

(Our trailer has tire size listed as F78-14 (st205r14 is equivalent))
Listed tire for bolers:
(17’ bolers at f-78x14-4 ply B rated recommended pressure 32 psi 1500 lbs. capacity per tire)

Above would give a load limit of 3000 lbs. regardless of axle being greater.


(13’ boler came with 600x13-2ply recommended pressure 28 psi 1010 lbs. capacity per tire)

Above would give a load limit of 2020 lbs. regardless of axle being greater.


Was told when I asked about tires; that any highway rated tire meeting or exceeding the tire listed by the manufacturer’s recommended tire in weight and size, that will fit can be used.”

Using st205r14 C rated tires gets the trailer load max up to the trailer axle rating of 3500 lbs. A larger tire of car type can meet the load requirement but would make the load also higher and I feel less stable on corners.

More Quotes on tires:

“Tire Rating: Indicate the manufacturer's rated capacity of tires on each identified axle. Permited weights will be based on the submitted tire ratings.
Total Weight Requested: Input the total requested gross weight (value must equal addition of all requested axle weights).”

“Equipment tires shall not be worn to the extent that in any two adjacent major grooves, at three equally spaced intervals around the circumference of the tire:
•the tread wear indicators contact the road; or
•less than 1.5 mm (1/16 in) of tread depth remains.”
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Old 02-01-2011, 12:04 PM   #11
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Thumbs up

In the end any type of tire that is highway rated the meets the min trailer requirement is ok. It is more about what we each feel is safe and we have to all make or own decision on that.
A lot of our trailers are customized and as such smaller tires could probably be used to lower the trailer as the sticker inside will not be available. In the end we all decide what we feel is best.
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Old 02-01-2011, 12:11 PM   #12
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In the end any type of tire that is highway rated the meets the min trailer requirement is ok. It is more about what we each feel is safe and we have to all make or own decision on that.
Well maybe that's what it says, but just for the fun of it put trailer tires on your car and drive it for a week then you'll see the difference.
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Old 02-01-2011, 12:16 PM   #13
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Rick Brown and Greg H in the end I do agree that a specialty tire made for the job is a good idea. But that is our opinion and not all will agree.

Plus the added height to meet the min requirement needed using larger car tires to meet the minimum may add to the problem with stability

At the end of the day the tire has to meet the load requirement; for me, ST tires seem like the best idea for safety
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