Boat tail project based on a single wheel trailer...

[freebeard]

113425021, 211425021A, 113425021J, New replacement steering dampers for VW Volkswagen standard Bug, Super Beetle, and Bus. Sometimes a worn out or leaking steering damper will cause the car to shimmy and shake when you hit a bump in the road.

$22.00

[jeff88]

BZP, do you think a motor mount would work?

[BamZipPow]

Originally Posted by jeff88

BZP, do you think a motor mount would work?

The current rubber puck is similar to a motor mount in that the puck is secured to the top and bottom plates of the wheel frame. I'm not sure a motor mount would have enough "give" to have the trailer ride a little softer.

I did notice that I could extend the wheel frame out and maybe adapt a bigger puck or even add in a motorcyle coil spring/shock setup. I also thought that I could have an adapter built that used some rubber bushings to help isolate the amount of vibrational energy transfer through the frame. I could secure the new adapter to the hitch adapter ears.

I still want to go with some sort of front bumper dampening device as I believe it should give me the most dampening effect over the rest of the other options.

[BamZipPow]

Mock up time fer the transition lid between the aero cap and the trailer...

Back view...


Corner view...




Side view...




The lid will be attached at the front with a pivot point on the aero cap frame just outside of the aero cap lid. It will be attached with some pins so I can easily remove/attach as needed and so I can raise the aero cap lid separate from the transition lid. The rear will be a sliding mechanism so it will adjust with the rise/fall of the rear of the trailer and the opening of the trailer lid. Rubber tie down cords to keep it taut to the trailer. There will be safety stops as well as safety chains just to make sure the transition lid won't take off back there. We'll have to see how this concept will fair out.

The PVC pipe is just to git an idea of where the sides will extend out and down to. I know I will have to have a 2 piece (rear of truck and front of trailer) of where they will over lap. I'm not sure if I will have to make the sides clear so they can see my truck's rear license plate or not.

[slowmover]

What is the reason for the trailer? Just for aero fun? Or will it carry a load (and how much)?

With any trailer the difficulites raised by bump steer -- the trailer getting sideways abruptly -- and causing problems at the steering wheel are always central. The more sophisticated the suspension, the more this problem is lessened. Bump steer and wind-handling difficulties are what get trailers into trouble.

Trailers also present a problem for other drivers due to size. Time and distance considerations especially when turning across traffic. Thus LED side marker lights and 3M brand conspicuity tape for both vehicles starts to make sense. There are now tiny red or amber marker lights to look at for both vehicles . . and they can be set to flash with apprpriate controls should one be at the side of the road; as here. I have seen these used in the rear trailer bumper, too, at end extremities to highlight trailer width.

And, as always, enjoying the work and thoughts. Thanks for including us.

.

[Thenorm]

Originally Posted by slowmover

With any trailer the difficulites raised by bump steer -- the trailer getting sideways abruptly -- and causing problems at the steering wheel are always central. The more sophisticated the suspension, the more this problem is lessened. Bump steer and wind-handling difficulties are what get trailers into trouble.

Trailers also present a problem for other drivers due to size. Time and distance considerations especially when turning across traffic. Thus LED side marker lights and 3M brand conspicuity tape for both vehicles starts to make sense. There are now tiny red or amber marker lights to look at for both vehicles . . and they can be set to flash with appropriate controls should one be at the side of the road; as here. I have seen these used in the rear trailer bumper, too, at end extremities to highlight trailer width.

And, as always, enjoying the work and thoughts. Thanks for including us.

.

i think was can all agree on the visibity comment,

but this trailer only has one degree of freedom (rotation around the hitch axis) there is no bumpsteer

[BamZipPow]

Originally Posted by slowmover

What is the reason for the trailer? Just for aero fun? Or will it carry a load (and how much)?

With any trailer the difficulites raised by bump steer -- the trailer getting sideways abruptly -- and causing problems at the steering wheel are always central. The more sophisticated the suspension, the more this problem is lessened. Bump steer and wind-handling difficulties are what get trailers into trouble.

Trailers also present a problem for other drivers due to size. Time and distance considerations especially when turning across traffic. Thus LED side marker lights and 3M brand conspicuity tape for both vehicles starts to make sense. There are now tiny red or amber marker lights to look at for both vehicles . . and they can be set to flash with apprpriate controls should one be at the side of the road; as here. I have seen these used in the rear trailer bumper, too, at end extremities to highlight trailer width.

And, as always, enjoying the work and thoughts. Thanks for including us.

.

The purpose of this single wheel based trailer is that it will be used as a platform fer testing a boat tail/tail cone configuration since most of the other boat tail configurations are based on hard points on the vehicle and are difficult to remove easily. The fact that the trailer already has a cargo body isn't a big deal to me. I will probably test a custom built shaped body to see how much better my mileage can git. If there isn't a significant improvement, I'll probably go back to the original cargo body. I keep cargo in the current setup to preload the suspension of the trailer and to minimize it from bouncing (about 300lbs worth of gear). Hopefully (if designed/engineered correctly), my forward dampening/bump suspension will keep the trailer pinned to the road more efficiently and minimize the amount of oscillations/vibrations the trailer will see and I can keep the boat tail weight down to a minimum.

No significant amount of bump steer in this setup as the trailer is attached at 2 points on the hitch receiver adapter. Think of it similar to towing a wheelbarrow with the 2 handles attached to the back of the vehicle. The only real movement I will git is where the trailer will pitch up and down pivoting on the 2 attachment points on the hitch receiver adapter. There may be a little yaw or roll movement (minimized by the Hitch Vise device) but nothing that will be significant to steer the truck as the single wheel will pivot/steer (just like the front wheels on a shopping cart) to allow fer those forces.

I will make it a point to ensure the trailer is highly visible (as far as markers go) on the rear and sides as I don't need anyone tagging me on this project. I already have the LED side markers that will git moved when the shaped sides go on.

[BamZipPow]

Had some road time to Lincoln, NE and back. I've found that if I load the trailer with about 100lbs of gear and the truck bed with about 350lbs...bucking is minimal.

I've been thinking about how to address gap covers between the rear of the truck to the front of the trailer. It looks like I might be able to use a 1"x6" wood board on top of the rear bumper to mount pivot points on so I can install the covers to it. The board will be bolted in place via the bumper trailer holes. The covers will be clear (Suntuf 26 in. x 8 ft. Clear Polycarbonate Roofing Panel fer about $20) and will be framed fer strength (probably the shelf rails I used on the rear wheel skirts). I'll see if I can use an iron on low heat to flatten the panels out.
Suntuf 26 in. x 8 ft. Clear Polycarbonate Roofing Panel-101697 at The Home Depot

The upper pivot point will be attached to the aero cap main bed rail. The covers will pivot out of the way when I need to gain access to the truck bed and will also overlap past the front of the trailer. Mechanical fasteners will keep the covers in place while in operation.

[BamZipPow]

I did notice one effect that was occurring when I was towing the trailer...my aero cap rear window (which wasn't secured down) kept opening and closing while I was at speed. This effect did not occur before when I wasn't towing the trailer. I'm pretty sure any gaps at the front of the aero cap wasn't big enough to cause this effect.

Not sure if the gap between the trailer and the truck was causing it or not but I did find it interesting. I've since secured the rear window with magnets...which I can easily remove to see if the effect is still occurring after I install the gap covers.

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by BamZipPow

my aero cap rear window (which wasn't secured down) kept opening and closing while I was at speed. This effect did not occur before when I wasn't towing the trailer. I'm pretty sure any gaps at the front of the aero cap wasn't big enough to cause this effect.

Maybe whatever air got in, used to go out an easier way before you added the trailer ?

You don't need much air to lift a slab surface.