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Old 12-13-11 | 05:23 PM
  #18  
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PaPa
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Joined: May 2003
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From: Idaho
Originally Posted by hopperja
I've even had it imbalanced the other way (more weight on the back than the front) and I still didn't have any problems.
Not a condition i'd care imitate or suggest to others.

1.) Most prudent bike riders know the effectiveness of, and use the bike's front brake. However, because of the high CoM (center of mass) the bike normally unloads the rear wheel during braking. If your trailer load is rear biased, this will exacerbate the unloading of the bike's rear wheel, especially under hard braking. And if the bike's rear wheel loses enough grip, you'll immediately 'jack-knife' the whole rig.

2.) Rearward biased trailer loads are also known to cause oscillating along the yaw axis at speed - primarily due to imbalanced trailer loads and insufficient tongue loading. Once this side-to-side 'yawing' (or more commonly referred as 'tail wagging'), begins, it's almost impossible to inhibit unless you take immediate action. Just hesitating corrective action, almost guarantees a pile rubble and skin loss.

I always maintain 8-10% of the trailer gross on the hitch.

Last edited by PaPa; 12-13-11 at 05:27 PM.
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