Camping Trailer

[mpinco]

So you all are turning my views of trailering with our LR4 on its head. .....

Glad we could oblige!

When we made up a short list of features we wanted with a camp trailer they were pretty much the following:

- Small, less than 20', preferably 18-19'
- Light weight (under 5000 dry)
- Light tongue weight (under 500)
- Ground Clearance
- Slide out to expand internal space

The 19FBPR had the ground clearance, wide-stance axles (desired but not required although I like them), internal space and height (curved ceilings), .... etc. With the wide-stance axles you do need to pay attention to keeping the trailer level.

Added the rear shelf with 250#'s of rear weight. Built for more if needed.

Started towing with RRC and Equilizer. Err, not enough power and hated equilizer hitch system. Now pull with LR4.

Initially used the OEM plow hitch but eliminated the Equilizer. Flipped the Reese hitch to 'rise' to level trailer. But OEM hitch has many issues - its a plow off the flat and level, restricts spare size, reports of failures, etc. Added Rhino hitch, tossed OEM aside, run Reese in 'dropped' config, pulls fine.

The bullet shape does pull easy. Less wind resistance. Had the pleasure of pulling the trailer headed West across I80 in Wy. We all know of the legendary Wy winds. With a stiff headwind uphill the LR4 did great, trailer pulled smooth with no bounce and sway.

Last recommendation - don't buy in Colorado. They are proud of their inventory. Consider suppliers that are near the manufacturers and buy them by the 100's. Savings can approach 30%

 

[Hayseed_LR4]

Our list is shorter...
The trailer needs to be able to be pulled by our wrangler as well. Not too many of those out there. This would also negate any need for anything but the OEM hitch.

Our first pick is the Taxa Cricket Trek (http://taxaoutdoors.com/cricket-trailer/). But at $25k it is steep.

We do not need anything fancy or big. Want some water, heat, cool air, and a fridge. Solar would be nice. Any other ideas would be appreciated.

 

[DWarner]

Hello,

I also just did my first maden voyage with the LR4 and towing my trailer - 2010 Flagstaff Shamrock M233 - 23 foot Hybird - 3600 pounds dry, so about 5000 fully loaded, Reese weight distribution.

I am trying to figure out a few things.


1. I have the OEM hitch receiver and its seems to have considerable play up and down and left and right with the Reese Head - Is this normal.

2. Where I store my trailer is on a incline and the truck is flat which creates a huge challenge to get the ball to release from the coupler. The truck will continue to raise the suspension as I lift the trailer tongue. Any suggestions on how to make it safer to disconnect. Currently I pull the pin on the head and move the truck forward.

3. I have the straight-line Reese Hitch - has anybody used this with the LR4 - is it worth it for me to add the cams to the system?

Thanks
Shane

Not sure the OEM hitch should have much play to speak of. Mine locks right in with really no play whatsoever... And your incline issue may be assisted if you thoroughly grease the ball portion. Good luck!

So you all are turning my views of trailering with our LR4 on its head. When I started down that path a year ago I came to the conclusion that, to pull our trailer, I needed a 3rd party receiver (which brought its own set of inconveniences) and I needed a Hensley hitch which, although it is great to pull, is even more cumbersome to use than the WD/anti-sway hitches and has become something we hate doing.

You also seem to have found potentially good trailers that are lighter than our hybrid. So my wife and I spent yesterday evening wondering if we bit off more than we should have with our trailer and that maybe we should downsize to a somewhat lighter trailer but more importantly a trailer with significantly lower hitch weight (which apparently the Keystone trailers achieve in part through a wider spread between the wheels.)

So how many of you are using the OEM hitch (which would be my preference if it works) and what is your trailer and hitch weight?

Any recommendations on trailer brands? Do the "bullet shaped" trailers pull easier/better? Do the spread wheels actually work better?

I was pretty impressed with the OEM hitch. It locks right in and holds steady, despite the size. We use a stabilizer system and brake assist that worked smoothly as well. The height of the ball after installation was perfect and allowed our camper to pull while level. I may be a little leery trying to pull the 7700 pounds it claims to be able to handle, but the 5000 or so we pull didn't seem to challenge it much.

 

[danrhiggins]

Our list is shorter...
The trailer needs to be able to be pulled by our wrangler as well. Not too many of those out there. This would also negate any need for anything but the OEM hitch.

Our first pick is the Taxa Cricket Trek (http://taxaoutdoors.com/cricket-trailer/). But at $25k it is steep.

We do not need anything fancy or big. Want some water, heat, cool air, and a fridge. Solar would be nice. Any other ideas would be appreciated.

OK. You definitely need something lighter if you need to pull it with a Wrangler! And my wife things the Cricket is, "So cuuuute!" Seriously, a bed, a kitchen, storage and even a shower. And you have great outdoors to do your business. What else do you need?

 

[danrhiggins]

Thanks! Questions/comments below...

Glad we could oblige!

When we made up a short list of features we wanted with a camp trailer they were pretty much the following:

- Small, less than 20', preferably 18-19' Yes, we're trying to see if we could fit in the 22' model of what you have. It would be much smaller than our current hybrid where the "box" is 17' long (beds fold out so don't intrude) and there is a large slide on one side and a kitchen slide on the other. It could sleep 8 which was probably overachieving by my wife and I.
- Light weight (under 5000 dry) We are OK going a bit larger than 5K but not much. Our current hybrid is 5,200 dry. Given that most of our towing is in the mountains I don't want to go larger.
- Light tongue weight (under 500) I'm OK going as high as 600 or 650 given that is where our current setup is. But no more than that. I'm intrigued with what you have done to put a shelf on the back. That would presumably help offset some of the tongue weight though I want to stay at abou 10% of total weight.
- Ground Clearance
- Slide out to expand internal space. Yep. Slide outs make a big difference.

The 19FBPR had the ground clearance, wide-stance axles (desired but not required although I like them), internal space and height (curved ceilings), .... etc. With the wide-stance axles you do need to pay attention to keeping the trailer level.
I would like to understand more about these wide-stance axles. Do they in fact reduce sway and provide a more stable tow? This is what the sales people in the youtube videos claim. I guess it makes some sense. This could be a big deal for us as I am considering moving away from the Hensley sway-elimination hitch we have as it is a pain to hook up and without it I may be able to use the Rhino rather than the Curt and that would allow me to store my spare underneath (a lot of interdependencies there!) So anything that reduces sway is a big deal for me. What is your take on the wide stance axles?

Added the rear shelf with 250#'s of rear weight. Built for more if needed. I'm intrigued. I may be interested in doing something similar someday. Maybe for a couple bikes or simply being able to put a basic trailer hitch on the back so I can use my hitch-mount bike rack. But I don't know the first thing about welding or where to go to have some done. I am also thinking that putting weight in the rear will help offset an overly heavy hitch weight.

Started towing with RRC and Equilizer. Err, not enough power and hated equilizer hitch system. Now pull with LR4. So are there alternatives to the Equalizer that work better?

Initially used the OEM plow hitch but eliminated the Equilizer. Flipped the Reese hitch to 'rise' to level trailer. But OEM hitch has many issues - its a plow off the flat and level, restricts spare size, reports of failures, etc. Added Rhino hitch, tossed OEM aside, run Reese in 'dropped' config, pulls fine. Glad to hear the Rhino is working out for you. I may be able to do that route if I abandon my Hensley hitch system. The tow bar on the Hensley needs to go deeper. I assume that your Reese doesn't have that issue?

The bullet shape does pull easy. Less wind resistance. Had the pleasure of pulling the trailer headed West across I80 in Wy. We all know of the legendary Wy winds. With a stiff headwind uphill the LR4 did great, trailer pulled smooth with no bounce and sway. No bounce and sway on I80? Heading west? Now that is impressive! And encouraging. How does it feel doing down mountain passes. That is where I sometimes feel a bit uneasy - going down a winding mountain highway with 6,000 lbs of weight behind me.

Last recommendation - don't buy in Colorado. They are proud of their inventory. Consider suppliers that are near the manufacturers and buy them by the 100's. Savings can approach 30%

Great suggestion! We have been very disappointed with the dealerships here. And they carry very little Bullet or Premier inventory. The closest I can find is in Montrose or Durango! Were we to get one we would want to trade in our hybrid which is less than a year old. If we buy in the midwest then I guess I would have to tow it to wherever we buy.

Ultimately, my wife is definitely getting interested in a hardside rather than a hybrid. She is overly concerned about bears. But it would be nice to not need to set up the beds each time and to have more control over temperatures. We like the open, light-filled feel of a hybrid. And we like the space. But we don't really need to sleep eight and we don't need quite that much space. So if we can find a quality hardside that is light enough and has enough space/storage and has lots of big windows to let in light then it would be perfect.

I really like the Bullet Premier brand like you have. It has a lot of great features. But right now they have a gap in their lineup. They jump from a 22' to a 26'. A couple options in the 24' range like the normal Bullet lineup would probably be great for us.

 

[danrhiggins]

I was pretty impressed with the OEM hitch. It locks right in and holds steady, despite the size. We use a stabilizer system and brake assist that worked smoothly as well. The height of the ball after installation was perfect and allowed our camper to pull while level. I may be a little leery trying to pull the 7700 pounds it claims to be able to handle, but the 5000 or so we pull didn't seem to challenge it much.
[/QUOTE]

As for the OEM hitch, someone shared the following link with me. Now, to be fair, the guy was pulling a 25' Airstream and the specs on these have a hitch weight over 800lbs. (The trailer dry weight starts at about 5,600.) And he was pulling it across a stream. And using a Reese system. :-o

https://bakerstream.com

 

[danrhiggins]

Im in WA state. With this setup I will most likely be in the surrounding states of ID, MT, OR and maybe a bit of UT. Rarely get to Colorado as it is but its a beautiful state!

BTW, I love the PNW. Born in Seattle. Raised in Oregon. Our sons are currently in Seattle though our oldest is moving back to Denver. But I can envision a LOT of great camping in WA and the surrounding states with your setup!

 

[Davidinseattle]

Our list is shorter...
The trailer needs to be able to be pulled by our wrangler as well. Not too many of those out there. This would also negate any need for anything but the OEM hitch.

Our first pick is the Taxa Cricket Trek (http://taxaoutdoors.com/cricket-trailer/). But at $25k it is steep.

We do not need anything fancy or big. Want some water, heat, cool air, and a fridge. Solar would be nice. Any other ideas would be appreciated.

Hayseed,

I think I might have one of these in the glove box of my Suburban

 

[mpinco]

Thanks! Questions/comments below...

Great suggestion! We have been very disappointed with the dealerships here. And they carry very little Bullet or Premier inventory. The closest I can find is in Montrose or Durango! Were we to get one we would want to trade in our hybrid which is less than a year old. If we buy in the midwest then I guess I would have to tow it to wherever we buy.

Ultimately, my wife is definitely getting interested in a hardside rather than a hybrid. She is overly concerned about bears. But it would be nice to not need to set up the beds each time and to have more control over temperatures. We like the open, light-filled feel of a hybrid. And we like the space. But we don't really need to sleep eight and we don't need quite that much space. So if we can find a quality hardside that is light enough and has enough space/storage and has lots of big windows to let in light then it would be perfect.

I really like the Bullet Premier brand like you have. It has a lot of great features. But right now they have a gap in their lineup. They jump from a 22' to a 26'. A couple options in the 24' range like the normal Bullet lineup would probably be great for us.

My experience with a wide-stance axle trailer is so far good. Little sway and bounce. We did have some old trailers in our camping history that were single axle. Definitely more bounce and sway but also old design so reference point is somewhat suspect but probably not too far off.

Our rear shelf was purely functional - generator and additional water.

On hitch, glad to eliminate the anti-sway/leveling system. Feels more stable and don't have one system fighting the other. Eliminating the OEM hitch and returning the oversize tire to its home was also a desired outcome. Thought of the Mitchel Bros product until the Rhino arrived.

Dealership - Did see a Passport 19FBPR at Camping World / Fountain. They listed it at $32K, "On Sale" for $26K". Lakeshore RV in Michigan had it for $17.5K. Bought from Apache Village / Hazelwood MO at $17.5K + reasonable compensation for delivery to Hazelwood from Lakeshore plus close enough negotiating (rather drive to St. Louis vs Michigan). Tried to negotiate with Camping World and they couldn't come close.

Don't drive your wife through Northern Wyoming or Montana. Signage is "No Tent Camping Allowed"

 

[Hayseed_LR4]

Hayseed,

I think I might have one of these in the glove box of my Suburban

Let me know what color it is.