At 09:45 PM 11/13/01 -0700, Larry Hoy wrote:
>OK guys and gals, I'm surprised Barney hasn't stepped in here yet.
>Barney must be the "king" of trailer towing. I would guess he has more
>trailer towing miles on his MGA than anyone else.
>
>Barney's web site is:
>
>http://users.ntsource.com/~barneymg/mg01.htm
>
>Barney, ya out there?
Yeah, I be here (most of the time). And Larry's right about me trailering
with the MGA. Since I restored the car (the first time) I have put 170,000
miles on the car and 92,000+ miles on the trailer. See picture here:
http://ntsource.com/~barneymg/mg11.htm
This one is just a bit larger than most motorcycle trailers and happily
carries suitcases, tools, parts, case of oil, ice chest and camping gear
for a month (or two). Alternately it carries a full set of race tires, air
tank, helmet, and camping gear for a weekend. It has 22 cubic feet of
space and is low enough to see over the top with the dash mirror. The box
is Fibreglas construction with toggle latches on the hinged lift up cover,
and rugged enough to take a side impact with a guard rail and a rollover
with only a few cracks and scratches (don't ask). It also has tie down
rails on top, which can be very usefull on rare occasion, like bringing
home an extra set of race tires. Empty weight was listed as 150 pounds,
but I have never bothered to weigh it. It seems very light and is easy to
move around with one hand when empty, and not difficult to move by hand
even when loaded. Rated load capacity is 1080 pounds GVW, or about 930
pounds of cargo. I seldom ever have it loaded to more than about 550
pounds grose. Except for a some reduction in accelleration and a few more
feet of stopping distance (and a little extra fuel consumption), you would
hardly know your towing it with a LBC. It is a welcome and very mild
mannered companion on a long trip.
Of course the bad new is that you can't buy one new, and used ones are
scarcer than Twin Cam engines. The manufacturer of any of these things is
fondly known as "Fly By Night Trailer Company", and will probably be in the
business for only a couple or years. Most production starts with someone
making one for themself, then trying to produce and sell them to recoupe
the tooling cost and maybe make a little extra cash. The end comes rather
quickly when they discover that there is a very limited market, and the
maker's liability insurance is prohibitively expensive.
I bought this one in the spring of '89 in preparation for a six week road
trip. I was searching for two months for something appropriate and coming
up dry. I had collected four trailer ad brochures from motorcycle shops,
tried to call all of the companies, and they were all out of the trailer
business before I called. I checked with several rental agencies, but the
smallest trailers in the rental fleets were too large for my use. While I
was asking one rental agency for the name of their trailer supplier, I
happened to spot this trailer at the side of the building. On inquiry the
manager said, "Oh we don't rent those. You would have to buy that one."
.... Oh? .... For $650 (plus a few accessories and tax, title and license)
it was mine, all mine! They also made one nearly identical but 8" taller
for increased volume, typically pictured attached to the back of a mini
van. The manufacturer's name was Chipmonk Trailer Company, the taller
model is the "Chipmonk", and the smaller one I have is the "Lil Chip". And
there was an open flat bed model with expanded sheet steel floor, a little
wider and longer (no FibreGlas), suitable for hauling a large snowmobile or
such. I don't recall the model name of the flat one, maybe "Road Kill"?
Less than a year later a friend was wanting one, but by that time this
source had also gone out of business. A few years ago I happened to see
another one identical to mine, also being used to haul autocross
tires. The owner of that one said he bought it used for $300 (a very
fortunate fellow).
The Coleman tag-along trailer (no longer produced, and I don't recall the
exact model name) was a little wider and longer but shallower in height,
perhaps a little larger volume but I don't think a full size ice chest
would fit into the vertical space. The box on that one was a moulded
plastic clam shell with the cover being nearly half of the total height of
the box, and mostly flat on top. The box is not strong enough to handle
much of anything on top. The good news is, I think there were more of
these made, so you may have a reasonable chance of finding a used one. By
comparison to mine, this model has the appearance of being rather large for
towing behind a LBC, but it may actually be lighter when empty.
For what it's worth, most of these little trailers use a nearly identical
chassis, built with the same square tube axle and twin leaf springs. The
stated GVW capacity is derived from the ground up, starting with the cheap
4.80x 8 two-ply tires which have a rated load capacity of 560 pounds each
(at 60 psi). I generally run mine at 30 psi, which seems adequate for
anything I carry. J.C.Whitney used to sell the bare chassis, once under
$100 and more recenty about $150. You could just add a sheet of plywood
for a flatbed, or build your own box from plywood to suit. I see lots of
these being used to haul autocross tires, a small moulded plastic cargo box
and an ice chest.
Currently J.C.Whitney is selling a small cargo "Trunk" on one of these
chassis, for $599.99. It has a moulded polyethylene clam shell box, curved
on top for aerodynamics (so the ice chest may have to go near the back),
48" long, 38" wide, and 21" overall height (just the box). That would make
it maybe 14 cubic feet inside, and less rectangular in shape, so maybe not
quite so easy to pack up all the space. Weight is 135 pounds empty. No
stated load capacity, but probably the same as mine, except the box may not
be strong enough to carry very heavy items (like engine blocks for instance).
Sears is usually selling the plastic clamshell luggage carriers to go on
the roof of a car (hardtops of course), usually in the 12 to 14 cubic foot
size. From time to time Sears also offers one of these small trailers
built with the same clamshell box on wheels, and sometimes with a slightly
larger box. These would also be suitable for vacation luggage and camping
gear, but nothing particularly heavy. If anyone is interrested I just
happen to have one of those Sears cartop clamshell boxes that I would be
happy to see go away for free if someone was to come and pick it up. I
also have a homebuilt retractable overhead garage storage rack for
it. Mount this box on one of those little utility trailer chassis, and you
can have an extra large tag along trunk for you LBC. It is incidentally
tall enough to hold a full size ice chest, and tapered top and bottom on
both ends. I don't recall the exact volume, but something around 12 to 14
cubic feet.
Barney Gaylord
1958 MGA with an attitude
http://www.ntsource.com/~barneymg
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