Is there a sticky on trailers, and if not can someone with experience give some tips please?

Utility Cycling subforum does have a trailer construction sticky, if that's what you're after.

As for which ready-to-roll trailer is best for touring, this thread's as good as any if some replies come along.

I have a homemade 2-wheel lowboy trailer but it's too wide and too heavy for touring use, IMO. The lowboy nature makes it unflippable, however, which is quite rare in the 2-wheel trailer realm.

I'd probably go with a BOB if I wanted a touring trailer.

EDIT: dug up some pics of the lowboy cuz every thread needs pics.

Empty:


Loaded:


Tows great but the unloaded weight is ridiculous. Gotta be about 60 lbs.

I had a BoB, prefer a 2 wheel trailer, myself.. have 2, now..
Burly 20" wheel flatbed.
and a fold for travel, carry-freedom, city.

they do tow centered on the left hub end where the mount is..

I have both a Bob single wheel trailer and a Quik-Pak 2 wheel trailer. I prefer the 2 wheel Quik-Pak trailer for road touring. The nice thing about the 2 wheel trailer is that its easy to load/unload, no problem when you stop about getting the Bob in position to stand, lots of room, and it tracks very well. Also the Bob just kind of wags the rear of my bike, shifting from side-to-side especially the slower I go. The Bob really was first used off-road for mtn bikes and single track trails. No room on those trails for wider 2 wheel trailers. The Bob has now been adopted by road bike users and it works well, I just feel there are better choices for trailers used primarily on roads.

There should be a sticky, but there isn't.

Google "trailer site:bikeforums.net". Substitute "Bob Yak" for trailer, also "Burley Nomad" for trailer. You'll get 10^6 results.

These two account for >80% of the trailers you'll see out on the road. Pick the Yak if you need a trailer for singletrack (that's what it was designed for). Pick the Nomad if you want to use it for grocery hauling in addition to touring duty.

Either can be sold for more than half of original price after tour on ebay.

The Yak weighs 13.5 lbs for trailer, plus another 4.5 lbs for the yellow bag (yak sak), total weight is 18 lbs. The bag holds about 4,000 cu in / 65L closed. You can stack stuff on top too. 70 lb load rating.

The Nomad weighs 14.8 lbs total. Interior volume is 105L. The Nomad is lighter than the Yak, but holds more volume and carries more weight. There's an optional rack that allows you to carry more junk outside. 100 lb load rating.

The Nomad has a wider profile, so it's hard/impossible to drag it down singletrack paths. On the road, the wider profile and left-biased tow arm makes you more visible to traffic, and forces passing vehicles to give you a wider berth when passing - a nice passive safety feature.

There's also a BOB Ibex, which has suspension. I guess if you're riding some really hairy terrain.

Just type in "trailer" or "touring trailer" or something like that in the advanced search function/titles only, on this site and you'll get scads of info.

The search function on this forum leaves a lot to be desired...

It might help to be more explicit about what you want tips on.

Andrew

What I want to know is opinions on what's best, what tows best, stability, ease of towing, etc.

I also have the Quik-Pak trailer. I have not used it yet but planning on taking it on my cross-country trip this May (DC to Seattle). I bought it after looking at the BOB and Nomad trailers carefully. It weighs 1 pound more than a BOB (using their website specs) and 2 pounds more than the Nomad. A poster above totals the BOB at 18 lbs. if you get the optional dry bag.

I can tell you the Quik-Pak is very well made and thought out. I like two wheels because you can balance the load over the axle which takes the weight off your bike wheel. It has two 20" touring-spoked wheels, adjustable axle height, and is completely waterproof. It comes with a visibility flag and reflective strips on the back. It also has more room than you would want to use (5500 cu. in.) but this just makes it easier to manage what you do bring in terms of packing your gear. It weighs 16.5 pounds.

It also folds up flat for shipping. It costs less than either the BOB or the Nomad and is made in Colorado.

How do you find the Quik-Pak in terms of weight over using panniers? How is it on hills (up and down)? Do you ride a DF bike? I have a recumbent (Slipstream). There seems to be a lot of resistance by some tourists against using a trailer (extra weight, rolling resistance, wind resistence, tendency to bring more gear than you need, etc.). It's always good to hear from a user, too.

I have a Nashbar cheap-o ($88 dollars including shipping) single wheel trailer. I love it for modest loads and like others have mentioned, it is skinny and can go on single track trails and negotiate urban tight spots really well. It is very light. What I don't like is the lack of stability when you aren't moving forward, it makes the rig a handful to load or attach to the bike even when you are leaning it on a wall.

My Carry-Freedom City, folds flat within its own squarish frame.
it includes a big sling bag that hangs in the frame in travel
or on you when the bike is packed for shipping.
or multi modal travel..

if there is a second duffle, it lays nicely tied on top of the sling bag.

I can also carry my folded up Brompton on top of the trailer.. might be useful if
you have to catch a car on a train on the opposite end of the platform..

I initially purchased th Quik-Pak for use with my Rans Vrex recumbent. I've toured using it on the recumbent and liked it very much. No affect on the handling and it was much easier to have the trailer then a number of specialize panniers & racks (underseat racks) to get the same volume. Nice thing is that when I toured using my DF, it was a simple 1 minute task to mount the simple l-bracket onto the axle of either bike. I've had mine since 2002 and its still going strong.

Thanks for the clarification, but I suspect it would help to know what your planned uses are. For me, my touring use needs are different for my needs running around town picking goods.

So for touring use I use an Extrawheel Voyager and used a BOB Ibex before that. In my experience both trailers work well, the Ibex if anything provides a bit more versatility if you want a trailer for both an around town and touring.

In terms of towing I am probably in more favour of the Voyager. I like the design, that it is easier to fly with and the use of panniers.

The Extrawheel Voyager



The Bob Ibex



There is also a good discussion at the Australian Cycling Forums which might be worth a read.

Regards
Andrew

Thanks Andrew. How stable is that Extrawheel Voyager? I am in training now and want to do the garden route in SA at the end of the year, and knowing my wife, I will be carrying most of her stuff along with mine. Am partial to the bob for capacity though.

I haven't noticed any issues with stability with either trailer but I do find the BOB seems to change the weight distribution over the bike and trailer more than the Extrawheel but then that could be my packing I guess. One thing but with the Extrawheel and that I find it best to make sure it was connected to the bike before putting the panniers on.

If I was to make a choice today, I would go the Extrawheel over the Bob.

Andrew

I used a Mayacycle trailer on my trip and really liked it. The good part is that the weight was never an issue. The bad part is that it´s too easy to take too much (it doesn´t take long to discover what´s necessary and what´s not). I never had an issue with fishtailing, etc, but it took me a while to figure out how to distribute my load. Going down moutains could be hairy, but it wasn´t because of the trailer but because I was still in the learning mode and was scared of speeds over 22mph or so. The downside is that you have to have an extra tube and wheel, but the upside is that once you get moving, you´ll barely know it´s there. You don´t have to unload all of your panniers to just use the bike. Unhook (under a minute) and you´re free. As far as what´s the best trailer, it´s really personal preference. I got an amazing deal on my Mayacyle and have never regretted it. Others swear by the Bob, etc.

I'll chime in, in favor of the Burly Nomad w/ the rack extender. I've maxed it out for inter-urban portages (100lbs/45.35kg) and have been quite pleased at it's relative handling under such a situation. On a more regular tip, I use mine to take my dog around town (to the vet etc) and feel more or less just as nimble as I do w/o the trailer attached.

Agree! Bobs and other one wheel trailers are inferior (unless you are limited to single track mtb), because they put more weight on your rear axle and handle poorly at higher speeds or if not packed correctly. Quik-Pak trailer is awesome, Burley Nomad is 2nd choice.

I don't have experience with two wheeled trailers but I do have experience with a BOB Ibex and an Extrawheel Voyager. Neither suck, neither cause me any wheel rear axle isses and handling at higher speeds? No dramas either.


Bob Ibex in action on the Munda Biddi Trail in 2008


Extrawheel Voyager playing in the Darling Ranges

I am heading off on my Dreaming Tour in July, ~5,000 km mainly on dirt roads through the outback of Northern Territory and Western Australia. I will be pulling my Extrawheel Voyager. Never ever considered the idea of a two wheeled trailer and have never seen any reason to go with one over the Extrawheel Voyager which has been used on some serious expeditions by others. GJ Coop is also touring around the place pulling a BoB as is the Cycling Dutch Girl. Seems to be working fine for both of them.

Andrew

I have used an extea wheel on my folding bike for a 400mile trip, flat terrain. You might have some fishtail issues with high speed descent. I carried about 50lbs. Very satisfactory from my experience. You might check out their web site for video demo.

I have descended at speeds around 50 km/h (IIRC the recommended maximum speed for the BOB trailer BTW) and had no issues. Mind you I am not comfortable at speeds much above 50 km/h on the Surly even with panniers due to the braking limitations.

I guess if I wanted to descend at 70 to 80 km/h it would be an issue.

Andrew

Would the Extrawheel Voyager be suitable for a CF?