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Gotta find a way to haul this

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Gotta find a way to haul this

Old 08-07-08, 04:00 PM
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Gotta find a way to haul this

So I've been working on a project for a while now to haul my almost 3.5 foot long bari sax around campus. It has a nice rectangular case, so it'll be easy to make something to hold it. But it's a very fancy sax, set us back about 6 grand 4 years ago. So what ever I build to haul it, it needs to be stout. I can't decide if I want to put a rack on a bike, or build a trailer for it. Below is a picture of a rack I built that held the sax nicely, but I had to go to a different frame, I'm too attached to whitewalls and large fenders. So now I've got a cruiser bike that I picked up from a local sporting store that was on sale, got it for $60, regular $100ish. The frame has a nice shape, and is aluminum. But I cannot weld aluminum, and the rack I made would look ugly on this curvy frame. I could get tabs welded onto the bike so I could bolt the rack to the bike, have a rack made out of aluminum tubing that would match the frame better, or build a simple 2-wheel trailer. As you can see, I'm a little lost here.

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Old 08-07-08, 04:16 PM
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I'm thinking a 2-wheel trailer with slightly flat tires to handle shocks.
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Old 08-07-08, 04:29 PM
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Originally Posted by Kimmitt
I'm thinking a 2-wheel trailer with slightly flat tires to handle shocks.
Yes, I agree. That said, DON"T use that trailer that is hardtailed to your bike. It's dangerous!
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I dislike clipless pedals on any city bike since I feel they are unsafe.

Originally Posted by krazygluon
Steel: nearly a thousand years of metallurgical development
Aluminum: barely a hundred, which one would you rather have under your butt at 30mph?
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Old 08-07-08, 04:29 PM
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I think a trailer will be nice. The only thing I have against it is I only have 2 gears, so I'm not sure about the weight.
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Old 08-07-08, 04:31 PM
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I suggest a two-wheeled trailer with a weatherproof, padded box bolted on it. A box big enough to hold your sax in the case.
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Old 08-07-08, 04:32 PM
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As a former trombone player, I say, go with a trailer.
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Old 08-07-08, 04:49 PM
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Alright, trailer it is. This will be something new, I've never built one before. I can build the trailer easily, but the hitch is the only thing confusing me. There's so many different ways to make a hitch.

Lets see if I've got this right. Small wheels are best, keeps the center of gravity low. The weight need to be centered over the trailer wheels, to keep the weight off the hitch. I'll use some 20" wheels, and some fenders as well.
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Old 08-07-08, 04:59 PM
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I like this hitch, looks very easy to make, and cheap too.

https://www.bikeforums.net/utility-cycling/445721-pics-macgyvered-trailer-hitch-mechanism.html
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Old 08-07-08, 08:13 PM
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Yes, you can find anything "ready made" if you throw enough money at it. But why do that?

You ,even if you're a clutzy person, can build this trailer , or have it built, for under $100 with
salvaged parts to carry 300# easy. Save your money, mate, it's hard times..remember??

"For those who want a "afforable" trailer consider a DIY trailer like this one. I built this trailer
many years ago using easily salvaged material that were found or I had on hand. I use it still
today when my Worksman PAV trike can't handle the load. If you elect to follow my mods to
the original plan it will have load capaicity of 300 lbs easy.

https://www.motherearthnews.com/Do-It...e-Trailer.aspx

My mods.....
Frame... from plywood to white oak salvaged from a shipping skid.
Wheels...from 27" to 20" salvaged from a discarded kids bike (carrys more).
Neck.. from plywood to white oak salvaged from a shipping skid.
Bracing for neck (for added twist strength) diagonal from front edge of frame to 6"
behind hitch of 3/4" electrical conduit. Neck dimensions can be adjusted to fit properly.
Paint...what I had on hand in oil based enamel.
Hitch.. a piece of tire side wall or other cord reinforced rubber sheeting.
Safety... seat belt for kids and bike flag for idiot drivers.

This plan is so easy to build I built mine using simple hand tools for everything except
drilling the 4 holes in the metal conduit
."
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I dislike clipless pedals on any city bike since I feel they are unsafe.

Originally Posted by krazygluon
Steel: nearly a thousand years of metallurgical development
Aluminum: barely a hundred, which one would you rather have under your butt at 30mph?
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Old 08-07-08, 08:31 PM
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I've got a few of those air fittings laying around, and some swivel casters too, so the hitch will be free. I'll have my local metal shop bend me a piece of conduit for the arm, I'm friends with the manager, so that will be cheap too. All I've got are 26" front wheels. Can they be converted to hollow hub wheels? If they can, that'll make the trailer more easy to make. The only new parts will be the tires. I think I can do this for less than $40.
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Old 08-08-08, 07:49 AM
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For such valuable cargo I would consider something along the lines of the Bob Ibex, i.e with suspension. Adding suspension makes it very complicated very quickly, but the Ibex's simple design is quite DIYable. It's been copied elsewhere. Even if you bought an Ibex it would only be 5% the cost of the sax.

Obviously it'll be difficult to give it a ride as smooth as strapping it to your back. Don't rely on tires alone for damping. They only offer less than 1" of usable 'travel', and with a light load would probably be utterly ineffectual.

If it's a dedicated sax trailer, then possibly build a basic rigid one-or-two wheel trailer and suspend the sax using a system of bungee cords. Although I haven't seen this idea implemented very often (or at all) I found it to work well.

While no expert I have tried all of the above suggestions.
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Old 08-08-08, 09:26 AM
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It will be a dedicated sax trailer, until I find somewhere in the music hall to store it. I'd rather not haul it around to begin with. Otherwise, I have to get it from one side of the campus (my dorm) to the other, for almost every class I have. I've got an idea for a trailer, and how I can use the 26" wheels I have. I'll be using 2.125 tires that match the ones I'll be putting on my bike, so with low air pressure, they'll be fairly shock absorbing. The case my sax is in is very protective, I'm not too worried about any harm coming to it.

What I'm gong to do is take the rack you see in the picture in my first post, cut the struts off it, and use it as the main frame of my trailer.The trailer will be high off the ground, but I won't be flying around corners.
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Old 08-08-08, 09:50 AM
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Originally Posted by musicman
I'll have my local metal shop bend me a piece of conduit for the arm, I'm friends with the manager, so that will be cheap too.
You don't need a metal shop to bend conduit. A conduit bender only costs $25 and is handy to have if you like to build stuff. If you don't want to buy a real conduit bender you can bend conduit by hand around a tree or other solid object.

*Note* My trailer hitch mechanism with the castor and airline quick connect needs to be welded together. If you don't have a welder or a friend with a welder, (A) you should go buy one, welders are awesome! (B) if you aren't buying a welder you'll want to factor having the part welded into the cost of the overall build.
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Old 08-08-08, 10:06 AM
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For the welding and metal fab, I've got an arc welder, gasless wirefeed, and your plain 'ol gas torch. I can't lay pretty beads, but I can weld.

As a trailer noob, the arm is making me scratch my head. Is there any dimensions I should follow? Conduit diameter? Maybe draw a picture on what shape the arm should be, and write in some lengths? Anything helps. No use doing this twice.
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Old 08-08-08, 11:28 AM
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Sounds like you've got the welding pretty well covered then.

I would use 3/4" steel conduit. It's less than $4 for a ten foot piece and it should offer the best mix of strength to workability. As for dimensions, no one can tell you what they will be without knowing the dimensions of your bike and trailer. What you want to do is bend the piece so when it's installed, the centerline of your trailer will be in line with the centerline of your bike. Below is a sketch I made of how I would recommend bending the conduit. The bends on the trailer end are just to allow room for a good solid attachment to the trailer, they can be modified to fit whatever works best with your trailer.



When you are calculating the ammount of offset you'll need in your trailer arm to keep the trailer centered behind the bike, don't forget to factor in the hitch mechanism.
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Old 08-08-08, 11:37 AM
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These pictures are from before I welded my own hitch so ignore the big plastic attachement piece but you can see what the arm looks like.

Also, when welding the seat and chainstay 'arms' onto the castor wheel bracket, I sugest small tack welds and allowing the work to cool between welds as too much heat will warp the metal and the ball bearings will bind up.
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Old 08-08-08, 03:10 PM
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Alright, thanks for the pictures and diagram, that's exactly what I needed. All I have to do is figure out the wheels, I don't have any matching front wheels to use. By the way, nice trailer, that's cool.
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Old 08-08-08, 10:35 PM
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Looks like you're already on the trailer path... but can I suggest the Big Boda Xtracycle-work-alike from WorldBike.org ?

Linkage: https://www.worldbike.org/technologie...rrying-bicycle

Trailers are great but Xtracycle-style longbikes are a lot handier. You'll find you use it for a lot more than just the sax.



Steve
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Old 08-08-08, 11:39 PM
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I've seen a few racks like that. What I like about the trailer is that I can take it off in a second, and I've got a regular bike again. Thanks for the recommendation though.

Trailer update. I found two 20x3 tires in the garage that I forgot about. Those with low air should be perfect. As for wheels, I called the local shop today (just got back from the beach), and they threw a pile of used wheels in the dumpster a day or so ago, and the truck already came and picked everything up. But they'll have 2 20" front wheels for me soon, they cater to bmx bikes mainly.
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Old 08-09-08, 08:59 PM
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A trailer would be preferable to hauling an instrument of that size, rather than using a longbike. Shocks and vibration have to be considered - you can screw up your keywork adjustments pretty quick if you're not careful, even with a hard case. Couple of good bumps on the way to a gig could cost you. I would think a trailer would offer a smoother ride, esp. if you could somehow rig a suspension of some sort.

I would love to rig a trailer so I could haul my tubas to gigs. My big horn is 70 lbs. and would be difficult to haul on the bike due to it's size. All of my soft cases are backpacks, but wearing them is just not an option due to the high center of gravity. So, I'm stuck with the car for now...

In lieu of a suspension, thick foam padding from a hobby store might work well to cushion the ride and keep your axe from getting knocked out of adjustment.
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Old 08-10-08, 12:42 AM
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I'm hoping these huge tires I have will cushion the sax, I was going to use 20x2.125, but I found 2 matching 20x3 tires. I also have a shock off an old honda spree scooter, I'll see if I can make a suspension trailer with it. I've got a thought on how to use it. Got the caster wheel and air fitting from harbor freight totay, $5 in cost so far
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Old 08-10-08, 04:26 PM
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alright, the bike I'm working on is primarily a cruiser, so go here for more updates: https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...21#post7244621
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