Help With Towing New Trike

[Birdman-68]

I am having my bike converted at the Hannigan, Ky location, and I want to tow it home (3 hours away).

Looking for recommendations for a trailer or whatever to tow it on. Will U-Haul's 6'by 12' work?

[triketomcat]

I had same problem awhile back wanting to haul my bike back from Florida and went to UHaul BUT because I was driving a Ford Explorer they would not rent me any kind of trailer to tow with that vehicle. I went to Lowes and bought a landscaper trailer a drive up ramp 5 X 10 for app. $600.00 and drove the bike up on the trailer, strapped it down and drove home. At home I added a wood floor some permanent tie downs and a short shield in front to keep the bike cleaner when trailering it, best investment I ever made.

[Calman]

Trailering is okay but why don't you take commercial transportation down and ride the trike home? It'll give you plenty of time to "get use to it". I did that when I picked my 1500 GW in KY last year and rode it home and haven't looked back since. You can buy a trailer as a Christmas present to yourself.

[turboman1354]

Drive it home, much more fun

[Grandpa1]

I agree with Calman. I rode mine almost 500 miles home the day I bought it. Wasn't real sure about it when I first started but by the time I got home I was in love with it.
Of course, you may not be able to ride it home for various reasons so you do what you think is right.
As far as trailering, I suppose just about any rental place would have what you need. Just tell them how big it is and how much it weighs.
Good luck with it. I'm pretty sure you will love a trike!

[tfdeputydawg]

1 Hannigan is located in Murray, Ky.
2. No, a 6' wide enclosed trailer will not work! A Hannigan conversion is 61.5"s wide-will not fit in the door of that narrow a trailer. You need at least a 7' wide.
3. Unless you live close to a U-Haul location that keeps motorcycles trailers on hand, their usual trailers do not have wheel chocks nor d-ring tie downs in them.
If you really need to haul it home, call Hannigan and ask to use a trailer of theirs. Surely to goodness, if you're buying a conversion from them, surely they can let you use a trailer to get it home!

[Bill Reber]

Fly to KY and ride it home yeehaw

[1800 06 Champion Trike]

Do you know of any friends that would have a trailer that you can use?
If not, I would rent a open trailer to haul it the 300 miles.

[Texan]

Fly and RIDE !

o~\o

[msocko3]

As tfdeputydawg said they are wide, this is my 2012 GEN 2 in a 7x12 Haulmark.

[Veritas44]

+1 to Tom and Mike.
Whether Hannigan or any Trike, choosing an apropriate Trailer can be a pickle wthout the Unit to test fitment at point of purchase. Some points that may help...
Consider your Trike as a Crate/Box. Get the dimensions (W, H, & L or D) of your "crate" from the Manufacturer which also varies by model and if the Steering Angle (Triple Trees) have been modified/changed.
Enclosed Trailers:
It's the INTERIOR width NOT the Exterior that matters.
Measure the width of the opening and floor/cargo area. Typically 3" on both sides is considered as minimum clearance so will need to be +6" or more above the overall Width of your Trike. Otherwise, sooner or later will end up with skinned paint and damaged trailer. Plus, it's a Bear to get the rear wheels tied-down properly the tighter it is on the side. But that can be overcome if so by stapping from the inside of the rims or Trike frame and cross-pulling through center to the opposite side. Actually, cross-strapping from side, through middle, to opposite side IS the preferable and most effective method of tie-down. So don't be overly wrapped up in having much more than the 3" per side clearance.
Watch the distance between the Door Cable Supports/Guides... Those can be a forgotten obstacle when loading/unloading and do a nasty number on your Trike fenders. Seen some that the Trike fits into but had to have a person on each side to pull the cables out and clear of the fenders during entry and exit. Can be done but not optimal or desirable every time.
Be sure and consider any interior wheel-wells that protrude into the cargo floor area. Measure the distance from where you want your center of rear wheels to sit to the rear edge of the protruding wheel-well. Compare to your Trike (call Manufacturer) to get minimum distance from rear wheel center to front edge of trike fender to be sure that Trailer config will work. The rest of the trike forward of the front fender is a non-issue as concerns the Wheel-wells. Just be sure there is enough floor area rear of the wheel-wells to accommodate the rear body section of the Trike and still be able to close the door. You can also work that backwards and go from where the front wheel of the trike must sit to the rear edge of the Trailer wheel-well then compare to the Trike from the front wheel to front edge of Trike Fender.
You must also make sure to consider where the Trike placement in the Trailer needs to be to be properly Load-Centered when taking the above measurements. An improperly load-centered cargo within a Trialer makes for a nasty & frustrating trip/pull and can be overly taxing on brakes, tongue, coupler, hitch, etc.
ALWAYS get a Front & Side Man-Door! If you don't, hope you like to climb from the seat over the rear of the Trike to get out.
The Short of it: As Mike's pic and experience clearly show and prove, virtually ANY 7'x12' enclosed Trailer will suffice and do nicely for ANY Trike. Most of those will be designed so that wheel-well placement will not be an issue for the Trike and how it needs to be positioned for proper load-centering. You can use the above to verify should you be so inclined.
Open/Flat-Bed Trailers
Pretty much same as all above but a tad more forgiving. Then it's just the floor and the ramp width that must accommodate the Trike dimensions and will not require much extra.
Just watch the side-rail height (if has sides but most do).
Also consider if Ramp-Gate equipped as that MUST be able to be lifted/closed and locked up and clear the Trike rear.
As such, ANY 6' by 10' Open/Flat-Bed Trailer will work. 10' may be close but as the longest Trike is right at 118" (w/Mod'd Triple Trees) from extreme front edge to rear, so 120" will definitely accommodate. If that is cutting to close for comfort (1" to spare front and rear) for you, go 12". Along with that, the widest is right at 62" (actually 61.5" with a +/- of 1/4" as Tom pointed out) so a 5 & 1/2' (66") Trailer will work and is somewhat as common as the 6' Trailers are. So, you can actually look for a 5-1/2' x 10' Open Trailer and you should be fine. A 6' x 10' will Definitely get the job done with NO issues at all.
Again, be mindful of the inward protruding wheel wells as they relate to the Trike and where it needs to sit in order to ride and haul correctly.
Tie-Down points are also obviously much less, if any, of a concern on Open Trailers as well.

The standard U-Haul Trailers Will NOT work. You must specifically request a Car-Hauler Trailer from them and as Tom said, Those usually are few and far between, hard to locate, and as rare as common-sense in D.C. I have seen people who have requested those and were given a Cargo Trailer with 3' metal sides instead. A Bitter Pill to swallow when arriving to take delivery. Be caredful dealing with U-Haul or the like. Take a tape measure with you when you go to pick it up and verify fitment.

Hope this clarifies and helps you and any others with the same concerns out in Trike-Land.

or, as others have said (and I agree 100%),,, Forget about all this Trailer Crap and RIDE THAT RASCAL HOME

[bongobobny]

Yes, I bought a 6 X 10 from Lowes to take my RSV down and bring the converted trike back. It literally just fit with the front tire as far forward as it could go. Had about 1" of room between the rear and the tailgate. I had it done in early spring so there was no way we were going to drive it down and back when there was still snow on the ground. I now have a trailer should we decide to head for warmer territories in the winter...

[msocko3]

+1 to Tom and Mike.
Whether Hannigan or any Trike, choosing an apropriate Trailer can be a pickle wthout the Unit to test fitment at point of purchase. Some points that may help...
Consider your Trike as a Crate/Box. Get the dimensions (W, H, & L or D) of your "crate" from the Manufacturer which also varies by model and if the Steering Angle (Triple Trees) have been modified/changed.
Enclosed Trailers:
It's the INTERIOR width NOT the Exterior that matters.
Measure the width of the opening and floor/cargo area. Typically 3" on both sides is considered as minimum clearance so will need to be +6" or more above the overall Width of your Trike. Otherwise, sooner or later will end up with skinned paint and damaged trailer. Plus, it's a Bear to get the rear wheels tied-down properly the tighter it is on the side. But that can be overcome if so by stapping from the inside of the rims or Trike frame and cross-pulling through center to the opposite side. Actually, cross-strapping from side, through middle, to opposite side IS the preferable and most effective method of tie-down. So don't be overly wrapped up in having much more than the 3" per side clearance.
Watch the distance between the Door Cable Supports/Guides... Those can be a forgotten obstacle when loading/unloading and do a nasty number on your Trike fenders. Seen some that the Trike fits into but had to have a person on each side to pull the cables out and clear of the fenders during entry and exit. Can be done but not optimal or desirable every time.
Be sure and consider any interior wheel-wells that protrude into the cargo floor area. Measure the distance from where you want your center of rear wheels to sit to the rear edge of the protruding wheel-well. Compare to your Trike (call Manufacturer) to get minimum distance from rear wheel center to front edge of trike fender to be sure that Trailer config will work. The rest of the trike forward of the front fender is a non-issue as concerns the Wheel-wells. Just be sure there is enough floor area rear of the wheel-wells to accommodate the rear body section of the Trike and still be able to close the door. You can also work that backwards and go from where the front wheel of the trike must sit to the rear edge of the Trailer wheel-well then compare to the Trike from the front wheel to front edge of Trike Fender.
You must also make sure to consider where the Trike placement in the Trailer needs to be to be properly Load-Centered when taking the above measurements. An improperly load-centered cargo within a Trialer makes for a nasty & frustrating trip/pull and can be overly taxing on brakes, tongue, coupler, hitch, etc.
ALWAYS get a Front & Side Man-Door! If you don't, hope you like to climb from the seat over the rear of the Trike to get out.
The Short of it: As Mike's pic and experience clearly show and prove, virtually ANY 7'x12' enclosed Trailer will suffice and do nicely for ANY Trike. Most of those will be designed so that wheel-well placement will not be an issue for the Trike and how it needs to be positioned for proper load-centering. You can use the above to verify should you be so inclined.
Open/Flat-Bed Trailers
Pretty much same as all above but a tad more forgiving. Then it's just the floor and the ramp width that must accommodate the Trike dimensions and will not require much extra.
Just watch the side-rail height (if has sides but most do).
Also consider if Ramp-Gate equipped as that MUST be able to be lifted/closed and locked up and clear the Trike rear.
As such, ANY 6' by 10' Open/Flat-Bed Trailer will work. 10' may be close but as the longest Trike is right at 118" (w/Mod'd Triple Trees) from extreme front edge to rear, so 120" will definitely accommodate. If that is cutting to close for comfort (1" to spare front and rear) for you, go 12". Along with that, the widest is right at 62" (actually 61.5" with a +/- of 1/4" as Tom pointed out) so a 5 & 1/2' (66") Trailer will work and is somewhat as common as the 6' Trailers are. So, you can actually look for a 5-1/2' x 10' Open Trailer and you should be fine. A 6' x 10' will Definitely get the job done with NO issues at all.
Again, be mindful of the inward protruding wheel wells as they relate to the Trike and where it needs to sit in order to ride and haul correctly.
Tie-Down points are also obviously much less, if any, of a concern on Open Trailers as well.

The standard U-Haul Trailers Will NOT work. You must specifically request a Car-Hauler Trailer from them and as Tom said, Those usually are few and far between, hard to locate, and as rare as common-sense in D.C. I have seen people who have requested those and were given a Cargo Trailer with 3' metal sides instead. A Bitter Pill to swallow when arriving to take delivery. Be caredful dealing with U-Haul or the like. Take a tape measure with you when you go to pick it up and verify fitment.

Hope this clarifies and helps you and any others with the same concerns out in Trike-Land.

or, as others have said (and I agree 100%),,, Forget about all this Trailer Crap and RIDE THAT RASCAL HOME

Very good advice here. I know the 7x12 Haulmark V nose low hauler pulls like a dream. On the way back from the Hannigan factory I was bopping along with the cruise control set at a nice leisurely 77-80 mph. I used my 2012 Toyota Tundra with the 4.6 V8, the downside was the 9 - 10 mpg.

[Birdman-68]

Thanks for all the responses and recommendations. I'm going to try the 6' by 12' open trailer from U-Haul. I am getting a Kawasaki 1600 Nomad converted, so the width is only 59" according to the website, and I drive a Ram 1500, quad cab with the HEMI so pulling it wont be a problem. I'll report back after I pick it up to let you all know how it went.

[Golden Dakota]

I live in a snowy climate, so need to trail my bike/trike down south each winter. For this reason, decided to buy a trailer built for the job! Bought a Drop Tail Trailer and never looked back. Check them out on the web - they have different models and one of the best things about them is that they stand up on end and you can push them into the back of your garage with one hand - fantastic design!