Trailer Bike info

kingsley said:

Bought a trailer bike on the weekend...
here's my brane-dump before I forget it all:

There are a few brands available locally:

Burley - the 'Piccolo' ~ $900
Giant - 'Half-Wheeler' ~ $399
Adams - Trailer-Bike ~ $350 (also a tandem model)
Alley-Cat - Never saw one ~ (guess) $300
Pacific - $300 / $350
Some other brand $275

We borrowed a SS alley-cat, to make sure Katia (5) wasn't
going to say "I hate riding the trailer-bike". Tried it
out on a bikepath & she loved it.

Poking around on news & the web led me to believe the
usual failing point is the hitch with the bike. All trailers
except the Burley connect to the seatpost with various
different clamping mechanisms. The biggest problem reported
is the develpment of 'play' in the hitch. Supposedly the
Burley was immune to this, but I stopped considering it
as soon as I got the quote (from Greenspeed, the official Aus.
retailer).

Most of the lower-end trailer bikes are CrMo steel, and much
the same. Basically you need to spend around $300 to get anything.

When we borrowed the AlleyCat, it was given to us with
the seat+seatpost attached - this was a fairly good indication
as to how easily it detached.

Gears didn't interest me - when the kids are big enough to
get to grips with the gears, they'll probably want their
own full-size bike. This doesn't significantly affect your
choice, most trailer bikes can come with or without gears.

Our target application, apart from weekend riding, is to do
some siginificaqnt touring early next year. So we were definately
looking for something of quality. Also needed to attach a
rear rack & mud-guard.

We ended up buying the Giant one, but had to go home from the
bike shop (45mins each way) to see if, when connected, the
tow arm will clear the rack (50cm, 700C touring bike). It did!

The giant model is an Aluminium alloy rather than steel, and
feels significantly lighter than the others. The hitch is a
quick-release clamp, looks fairly robust (we'll see in 6 months).
The tow-arm is hinged in the middle, and folds back on itself...
thus it can fit inside the car (holden stationwagon), 'cause
these things are a bugger to put on a bikerack.

So, um, that's about it.

cheers,
-kt

Thanks for that - maybe it could go in the FAQ for future reference?

&roo

"kingsley" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Bought a trailer bike on the weekend...
here's my brane-dump before I forget it all:

Quoted message said:

Pacific - $300 / $350

We bought this one on special this week at $220.

Quoted message said:

We borrowed a SS alley-cat, to make sure Katia (5) wasn't
going to say "I hate riding the trailer-bike". Tried it
out on a bikepath & she loved it.

Ear to ear smiles from my 4yo who can't yet ride a bike.
He loves being on a bike with daddy.
We'll find out how he feels after a few km next week.

Quoted message said:

Poking around on news & the web led me to believe the
usual failing point is the hitch with the bike. All trailers
except the Burley connect to the seatpost with various
different clamping mechanisms. The biggest problem reported
is the develpment of 'play' in the hitch.

I've already noticed this issue. As the child moves their weight
around, you get a distinct lean to one side, then it slops to the
other side. A little disconcerting when you are trying to do
hand signals. Probably safer not to do the hand signals.
The hitch might need some modifications later.

Quoted message said:

Most of the lower-end trailer bikes are CrMo steel, and much
the same. Basically you need to spend around $300 to get anything.
The giant model is an Aluminium alloy rather than steel, and
feels significantly lighter than the others.

Pacific one definitely feels heavy enough to be steel.

We've had a Pacific one for about six months. We got the one with gears and
we are glad we did because it means that Rosie can help out going up hills.

It always leans slightly to one side (I think it has from the start); not
enough to be a major problem, and it definitely never switches the lean from
one side to the other as described below. Still, it would be better if it
didn't lean.

One thing I wish it had is some sort of small loop near where it attaches to
the main bike that you could put a chain through to secure both the main
bike and the trailer bike with one chain (you would need a super-long chain
to reach back to the triangle of the trailer bike). We have thought about
trying to get something like this welded on. This seems like such a simple
and obvious design improvement I can't believe they don't have it.

Regards,
Neil

"Russell Lang" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"kingsley" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Bought a trailer bike on the weekend...
here's my brane-dump before I forget it all:

Quoted message said:

Pacific - $300 / $350

We bought this one on special this week at $220.

Quoted message said:

We borrowed a SS alley-cat, to make sure Katia (5) wasn't
going to say "I hate riding the trailer-bike". Tried it
out on a bikepath & she loved it.

Ear to ear smiles from my 4yo who can't yet ride a bike.
He loves being on a bike with daddy.
We'll find out how he feels after a few km next week.

Quoted message said:

Poking around on news & the web led me to believe the
usual failing point is the hitch with the bike. All trailers
except the Burley connect to the seatpost with various
different clamping mechanisms. The biggest problem reported
is the develpment of 'play' in the hitch.

I've already noticed this issue. As the child moves their weight
around, you get a distinct lean to one side, then it slops to the
other side. A little disconcerting when you are trying to do
hand signals. Probably safer not to do the hand signals.
The hitch might need some modifications later.

Quoted message said:

Most of the lower-end trailer bikes are CrMo steel, and much
the same. Basically you need to spend around $300 to get anything.
The giant model is an Aluminium alloy rather than steel, and
feels significantly lighter than the others.

Pacific one definitely feels heavy enough to be steel.

cool

I have a Adam's trailer which both my girls love (altho the 9yr old is
too big and my 5yr old is getting too good on her own now)

was really cool when they were younger just riding with them and I earnt
major brownie points with the girls "Lets go to the shops". I wanna go
with daddy!" and riding with Matilda to school/creche when i was working
from home.

I cant complain really about any noticeable play in the linkage, and
mine usuallyy goes onto my mtb-commuter. wish had got one with gears tho
as my territory is very hilly and the supplied gear on the trailer is
HUGE! especially for a kid

One of my (many) must-gets is a tandem now; altho i suspect that will
mean towing the wife about (altho she is tempting me with european
holiday on said tandem... )

--

kingsley said:

Bought a trailer bike on the weekend...
here's my brane-dump before I forget it all:

There are a few brands available locally:

Burley - the 'Piccolo' ~ $900
Giant - 'Half-Wheeler' ~ $399
Adams - Trailer-Bike ~ $350 (also a tandem model)
Alley-Cat - Never saw one ~ (guess) $300
Pacific - $300 / $350
Some other brand $275

We borrowed a SS alley-cat, to make sure Katia (5) wasn't
going to say "I hate riding the trailer-bike". Tried it
out on a bikepath & she loved it.

Poking around on news & the web led me to believe the
usual failing point is the hitch with the bike. All trailers
except the Burley connect to the seatpost with various
different clamping mechanisms. The biggest problem reported
is the develpment of 'play' in the hitch. Supposedly the
Burley was immune to this, but I stopped considering it
as soon as I got the quote (from Greenspeed, the official Aus.
retailer).

Most of the lower-end trailer bikes are CrMo steel, and much
the same. Basically you need to spend around $300 to get anything.

When we borrowed the AlleyCat, it was given to us with
the seat+seatpost attached - this was a fairly good indication
as to how easily it detached.

Gears didn't interest me - when the kids are big enough to
get to grips with the gears, they'll probably want their
own full-size bike. This doesn't significantly affect your
choice, most trailer bikes can come with or without gears.

Our target application, apart from weekend riding, is to do
some siginificaqnt touring early next year. So we were definately
looking for something of quality. Also needed to attach a
rear rack & mud-guard.

We ended up buying the Giant one, but had to go home from the
bike shop (45mins each way) to see if, when connected, the
tow arm will clear the rack (50cm, 700C touring bike). It did!

The giant model is an Aluminium alloy rather than steel, and
feels significantly lighter than the others. The hitch is a
quick-release clamp, looks fairly robust (we'll see in 6 months).
The tow-arm is hinged in the middle, and folds back on itself...
thus it can fit inside the car (holden stationwagon), 'cause
these things are a bugger to put on a bikerack.

So, um, that's about it.

cheers,
-kt

Does anyone know of an LBS in melbourne that has a decent range of
trailer bikes. Ivanhoe is probably closest to me and they've usually
only got 2 or 3 and I don't want to spend a day going from shop to shop
trying to compare them all if I can help it (rather be out riding with
the family). Or is there just not the demand for anyone to have a large
stock of them?
Dave B.

On Tue, 13 Apr 2004 12:19:07 +1000, DaveB <[email hidden]> Wrote :

<snip - big time>

Quoted message said:

Does anyone know of an LBS in melbourne that has a decent range of
trailer bikes. Ivanhoe is probably closest to me and they've usually
only got 2 or 3 and I don't want to spend a day going from shop to shop
trying to compare them all if I can help it (rather be out riding with
the family). Or is there just not the demand for anyone to have a large
stock of them?
Dave B.

I was going past Hillmans about 3.00 am the other day and I _thought_ I
saw some in the window. I was in "head down - [censored] up" mode with a
pretty good headwind so I didn't really look. ( I _did_ have a ROARING
tailwind a few hours earlier though - what goes around comes around
I guess..... Anyway it couldn't hurt to give 'em a ring.

Ooroo

--

Humbug

flyingdutch said:

One of my (many) must-gets is a tandem now; altho i suspect that will
mean towing the wife about (altho she is tempting me with european
holiday on said tandem... )

We're considering this, but flying with a tandem
seems pretty nightmareish. You'd just about have to dismantle
the bugger to get it into any sort of bike box. Mind-you
carrying a pair of wrapped/boxed bikes around an airport isn't
much fun either.

You gonna take the kids ?

I rode my half-bike + trailer-bike + trailer on the weekend.
Only did a 22k bikepath (Katia's first significant test-ride on
the trailer bike). I thought it would be quite difficult to turn,
but being doubly-articulated(sp?), it turned somewhat as easily
as the tandem.

Our biggest problem on the tandem is that Larissa seems to prefer a
lower cadence than me. Sheldon's reckons that smaller crank arms on
the front(?) fixes this a little... not sure myself.

-kt

kingsley said:

Bought a trailer bike on the weekend...
here's my brane-dump before I forget it all:

There are a few brands available locally:

Burley - the 'Piccolo' ~ $900
Giant - 'Half-Wheeler' ~ $399
Adams - Trailer-Bike ~ $350 (also a tandem model)
Alley-Cat - Never saw one ~ (guess) $300
Pacific - $300 / $350
Some other brand $275

We borrowed a SS alley-cat, to make sure Katia (5) wasn't
going to say "I hate riding the trailer-bike". Tried it
out on a bikepath & she loved it.

Poking around on news & the web led me to believe the
usual failing point is the hitch with the bike. All trailers
except the Burley connect to the seatpost with various
different clamping mechanisms. The biggest problem reported
is the develpment of 'play' in the hitch. Supposedly the
Burley was immune to this, but I stopped considering it
as soon as I got the quote (from Greenspeed, the official Aus.
retailer).

Most of the lower-end trailer bikes are CrMo steel, and much
the same. Basically you need to spend around $300 to get anything.

When we borrowed the AlleyCat, it was given to us with
the seat+seatpost attached - this was a fairly good indication
as to how easily it detached.

Gears didn't interest me - when the kids are big enough to
get to grips with the gears, they'll probably want their
own full-size bike. This doesn't significantly affect your
choice, most trailer bikes can come with or without gears.

Our target application, apart from weekend riding, is to do
some siginificaqnt touring early next year. So we were definately
looking for something of quality. Also needed to attach a
rear rack & mud-guard.

We ended up buying the Giant one, but had to go home from the
bike shop (45mins each way) to see if, when connected, the
tow arm will clear the rack (50cm, 700C touring bike). It did!

The giant model is an Aluminium alloy rather than steel, and
feels significantly lighter than the others. The hitch is a
quick-release clamp, looks fairly robust (we'll see in 6 months).
The tow-arm is hinged in the middle, and folds back on itself...
thus it can fit inside the car (holden stationwagon), 'cause
these things are a bugger to put on a bikerack.

So, um, that's about it.

cheers,
-kt

Woo Hoo, just picked up the trailer bike and the test ride up and down
the street ended up being up and down and up and down and ...one more
time Dad this is fantastic. Ended up going with the Pacific for $280.
Just one question, I assume the connection between it and my bike is
supposed to allow the trailer bike to swivel on turns, ie. much like a
car trailer would, rather than be fixed into a position permanently in
line wiht my bike's frame?? Everything seems to be as tight as it can go.

Dave B.

Daveb said:

Woo Hoo, just picked up the trailer bike and the test ride up and
down the street ended up being up and down and up and down and ...one
more time Dad this is fantastic. Ended up going with the Pacific for
$280. Just one question, I assume the connection between it and my
bike is supposed to allow the trailer bike to swivel on turns, ie.
much like a car trailer would, rather than be fixed into a position
permanently in line wiht my bike's frame?? Everything seems to be as
tight as it can go.
Dave B.

cool. enjoy!

yep, meant to swivel. if it stayed in line your passenger would be
continuously swiped sideways and the bracket wouldnt last long

the shorter cranks should slow your spped down and hence allow your
stoker to keep at their liked cadence

re travelling with the tandem, its probably going to be a buy-it-over-
there job as prices/choice is so much better in the UK/europe. Have you
seen those (cant remember the name. checkout ThornUK website) links you
can put into a frame to make it collapsible? just a thought...

Take the kids? are you mad 😄

--

flyingdutch said:

re travelling with the tandem, its probably going to be a buy-it-over-
there job as prices/choice is so much better in the UK/europe. Have you
seen those (cant remember the name. checkout ThornUK website) links you
can put into a frame to make it collapsible? just a thought...

S&S Couplers ?
Only for Steel & Ti (not Alu)

Supposed to improve the stiffness of the frame too.

Quoted message said:

Take the kids? are you mad 😄

No way... Wouldn't go without them!

http://maddogsbreakfast.com.au/Diary/Europe2002/images/First_day_of_camping_at_Gouda.html
http://maddogsbreakfast.com.au/Diary/Europe2002/images/Camping_at_Schoonhoven.html
http://maddogsbreakfast.com.au/Diary/Europe2002/images/Camping_Kirchzarten.html
http://maddogsbreakfast.com.au/Diary/Europe2002/images/The_Crew.html

-kt

--
Kingsley Turner,
(mailto: [email hidden])
http://MadDogsBreakfast.com/ABFAQ - news:aus.bicycle Frequenly Asked Questions

Kingsley said:

Bought a trailer bike on the weekend... here's my brane-dump before I
forget it all:

Thanks Kingsley for the brain dump. This evening I just went and looked
at a second hand trailer bike ($195), to put away for my daughter for
next year (when she turns 5).

At the moment we use a Philips Kiddiecarrier 2 wheeled trailer for her
to ride in. We've taken her on one 4 day tour and the trailer meant she
could have a nap in the afternoon. It is possible to tip/overturn these
trailers at speed on gravel roads, as we found out. But children are
protected by a five point safety harness and the trailer frame provided
an effective roll cage. And, of course, she had a helmut on. She was
just a bit shaken.

Full trailers (and their contents) become hard work up hill. Need some
low granny gears to keep moving. So, I'll be looking forward to when my
little possum is big enough to use a trailer bike instead.

Takver

--

takver said:

Kingsley said:

Bought a trailer bike on the weekend... here's my brane-dump before I
forget it all:

Thanks Kingsley for the brain dump. This evening I just went and looked
at a second hand trailer bike ($195), to put away for my daughter for
next year (when she turns 5).

At the moment we use a Philips Kiddiecarrier 2 wheeled trailer for her
to ride in. We've taken her on one 4 day tour and the trailer meant she
could have a nap in the afternoon. It is possible to tip/overturn these
trailers at speed on gravel roads, as we found out. But children are
protected by a five point safety harness and the trailer frame provided
an effective roll cage. And, of course, she had a helmut on. She was
just a bit shaken.

Full trailers (and their contents) become hard work up hill. Need some
low granny gears to keep moving. So, I'll be looking forward to when my
little possum is big enough to use a trailer bike instead.

Takver

--

You might find the trailer bike not that much easier than the trailer.
Just on the two weeks I've had mine I'm finding it harder going than the
baby seat was. I think it's because I'm a bit more tentative about how
much I'm rocking the bike so that may change as me and my daughter both
get more confidant with it.

Dave B.

"takver" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Thanks Kingsley for the brain dump. This evening I just went and looked
at a second hand trailer bike ($195), to put away for my daughter for
next year (when she turns 5).

You could start earlier. My almost 4yo is riding on the trailer bike,
but not pedalling yet. He doesn't want to try "scootering" on a
small bike yet, maybe because he thinks that if he can ride his own
bike then he won't be allowed to ride the trailer bike behind daddy.

The first few rides were *very* wobbly. He now seems to have
developed some balance, or learnt not to throw his weight around.
I can now use hand signals while towing.

As my child learnt to balance on the trailer bike, the slop in the
coupling became less of an issue.

The main use is riding to a playground other than the close one.

Quoted message said:

Full trailers (and their contents) become hard work up hill. Need some
low granny gears to keep moving. So, I'll be looking forward to when my
little possum is big enough to use a trailer bike instead.

Trailer bikes and an unpedalling child are also hard work up hill.
It is more weight than a child bike seat, but he much prefers to
be on *his* bike than in the child bike seat.

Hi all, good to read of others thoughts on these machines... My daughter
and I have been riding for a year now together with a Giant Halfwheeler
and we have found it to be a fantastic machine. She is tall for her age
and first rode it just before her 4th birthday. We have tried to get out
most weekends ever since and 40K+ is no problem for her, as long as it
isn't to cold or hot. A few comments on the Giant Halfwheeler... I
purchased the Giant ($399 from Goldcross) because of a) it's weight (or
lack of) and b) the connection mechanism is far superior to any of the
cheaper units and does need tools to go from bike to bike. Any sideplay
in this joint mechanism is very disconcerting as it plays havoc with
your balance on the rode. Even though the play was minimal with the
Giant hitch, a few 0.2 mm shimming washers sorted that out totally. As
she has got stronger I have swapped the rear freewheel for higher
gearing but she still needs the occasional reminder to stop spinning her
legs out when we are coming down a hill. All in all a great unit
although I have decided she needs gears now and have ordered a Half-
wheeler 7 (spd) and child number 2 can graduate from the child seat
behind my wife’s mtb to a trailer behind same! -m

--