Interesting line of inexpensive bike trailers from Canada!
 

Heh guys,

I just came back from Bike to Work week and found a company that make inexpensive trailers that look really good.

The one that caught my eye is their Suitcase trailer for Dahon bikes, which is fashioned like the Bike Friday suitcase trailer..

http://www.wike.ca/cargo_suitcase_bicycle_trailer.php

They have an inexpensive version of the Burley Travoy, plus they also have an inexpensive version of the Burley Nomad and the likes, including what looks like a Carry Freedom with fabric enclosures. All their trailers are foldable, which is a necessity for me.

Oh gosh, this really excites me. I own a Maya Cycle Trailer and a Burley Travoy myself, but wouldn't mind having the $99 economy flatbed trailer or the Carry Freedom look alike.. A 2 wheel flatbed trailer can come in handy carrying large stacks of goodies..

Enjoy!!

That looks an awful lot like the Bike Friday trailer system. http://store.bikefriday.com/product_...roducts_id=972

Yeap, both companies use the same Samsonite GT Flite case. :)

That Travoy like thing has been presented in the Utility forums some time back.

This is quite interesting to me. One caveat and one question.

Caveat: Clicking on the specs, you are taken to Samsonite's website where it says the dimensions are 29.5" × 20" × 12", which I believe is "airline legal". But Amtrak's carry on limit is 28 x 22 x 14 inches. Now the odds of getting called on it are nil. But once when I was boarding the California Zephyr with my folder in just such a suitcase, the conductor wanted throw me off the train. But it was a special situation: someone had snuck on board with 3 large tupperware tubs taking up all the space in the downstairs luggage rack, thus causing a severe bottleneck.

Question: the Samsonite site shows small wheels and a handle making it easy to get around a station and platform. Does this product have the same?

Yes it does. It's the latest version of the Flite. This is a good alternative for people who are looking to buy a Dahon Airporter Mini, as the mini is smaller in dimension and does not have the ability to be towed like this one does.

This suitcase makes it an ideal companion to my Dahon Mu SL! No panniers needed and good weight ratio plus towing a suitcase as an all in one package. Wow!

During Bike Week, I saw a dude who made his own Travoy like thing out of wood. It was a beautiful piece of art; just so nice to look at especially with a small pot of flower at the top.

You should ask BNB about his experience riding with the same setup in Scotland in early May.

Personallywould go for the 12" wheels that BF is using . ofcourse you can use different wheels for different situations with the wheelchair axel system.

The trailer I made seems to be a mix of the BikeFriday trailer and the WIKE... I used 12" wheels, external frame and hitch like the BF but I made the frame so that the axle was further forward as with the WIKE. The WIKE's hitch appears to be more in line with what I prefer as my BF type hitch failed on the first day (or the about the fifth if you include the test runs at home)... the 1/8" NPT chuck that threads into the chain-stay boss broke. The 12" wheels I used had nylon hub/spoke/rims and they rolled very well, it didn't even feel like I had a trailer attached and quite frankly I would prefer them over WIKE's wheels since the nylon rims are tough and aren't prone to spoke failure or need truing. However if the 16" wheels are packable then why not go with them... I probably wouldn't have been able to fit them since I had to fit a BikeFriday with the largest frame they offer as well as my lightweight alcohol stove, tent, Big Agnes sleeping pad and the outer shell of my mummy bag (it helped retain heat in the below freezing temps) and that was an effort to pack.

I have the Wike canoe trailer - I need to get a new axle for it as I have a very narrow boat and didn't realize it until after I got the trailer, but it's well-built.