Pop Up Toy Haulers? Anyone have one?

Yep, saw all three of those. $10K is a bit more than I want to spend but the other two are promising. I think I'll call the guy in Ohio and see if he's interested in selling. Thanks

 

That's pretty much what we did this season. This was our setup at Nelson last month. Just looking for something a little more homey. We'll use it for other trips too.

 

Everyone wants (and seems to expect) top dollar for any steaming pile that they have around. I'm just hoping I can sell my 6x12 relatively quickly when the time finally comes.

 

I love this concept for the idea of bringing the toys along. But the added weight of the bikes in front of the axle is going to really add to the tongue weight. Yamaha-themed scorpion looks neat, but I'd bet that it would be way heavier than the Ridgeline can tow. A Leonard 7x18 dual axle equipment trailer weighs close to 3,000 lbs, and the frame on that one looks very similarly sized/proportioned. Just looked it up - too heavy: https://www.stonyrv.ca/inventory/34630/stony-plain-alberta-camper-fleetwood-scorpion-s1.php

And a thought on "can tow" vs. "should tow." The closer you get to max weight, the less fun it is to drive and haul around. I had an RV that was 90% of what my F-150 "could tow." I would never have taken that rig on a long trip, as going up and down hills was not fun at all. Maybe if I lived in Nebraska, but no Appalachia.

From my old racing days, we used to tow a 6x12 enclosed, pull the bikes and sleep on cots. Wasn't the lap of luxury, but we were young!

 

Yeah, I think your right. My Ridge just wasn't meant to tow much. Funny you mention the 6x12...when my son and I last raced together in 2010, I had my Titan and a friend's 6x12. We headed to Road A and did just what you said. This is an old Pic of him crashed out. There were bikes warming up right next to us and he was snoozing like a baby!

 

How do you remove the bikes from the trailer section? Ride them through the camper? Or do the side rails remove? Notice where the axels are, all of the weight placed inside the trailer section will be tongue weight. 10k goes a long way towards hotel bills.

 

The side rails on it are ramps. But yes, it's too much for my little Ridgeline. Looks like we're back to square one, and as you said $10K gets a lot of hotel rooms, although I wasn't going to spend near that much. I'll admit that the couple times we did hotels this past season made for a very good nights sleep. That's kind of why I started this little investigation into something a step up from tent camping. Plus when I retire here within the next 18 months I plan on taking a multi-month adventure out west. I was looking to get a teardrop type rig and then toss one motorcycle into the bed of the truck. Set up camp for about a week at a time in various locations and then ride all day.

 

All of the bike weight would not be on the tongue. Estimate the location of the center of mass of the motorcycle(s), measure the distance from the hitch, measure the distance from the hitch to the center of the two axles. Say the axle distance is 15' and the bike's center of mass is 8' from the hitch. In that case only 7/15 x motorcycle weight would be added on the hitch and the other 8/15 would be on the trailer axles.

This is the opposite issue of most small toy haulers, where the tongue weight is too high when they are empty but would balance out better when loaded since the load goes in the back.

 

I built this over the summer. If you want to talk about a build like this, I can be of help. I know a place to buy windows and doors and trim at about 20% cost of retail.

It has Toyota wheels, electric brakes, runs completely off 12v and LP, space for a queen mattress, a hot-water shower and weighs about 1,500lbs.

All said and done, you’re still going to between 7-8k building yourself, and about 20k buying new.

 

That is totally cool and would be great for me...not so good for my son and I and it still begs the question where do the bikes go? If it was just me I'd have a tear drop in a second.

 

I think bikes are going to have to go in the bed of the "truck" or you're going to have to sacrifice living accommodations.

A 7x14 enclosed trailer weighs 2200 pounds. https://www.bestchoicetrailers.com/...um-wheels-1pc-roof-66-h-6-frame-H45n|9ei.html
A 6x12 single axle is 1200, and tandem axle is 1800: https://renowncargotrailers.com/enc...osed trailer has,empty weight of 1,800 pounds.

Two SVs (400#x2), pit bike (300#), tools (200#), spares (200#) and camping supplies (300#) would weigh under or about 2000 pounds.

This would put you under 80% of your tow capacity, and should be more than enough room for two cots to sleep on and would be dry.

There are a lot of videos and such on converting an enclosed trailer into an RV.

You can insulate with rigid insulation pretty easily ($30/sheet), add a screen for the door(s) ($50), a good vent fan (MaxxAir) ($200), and a diesel heater from Amazon. ($150) This should keep you cool/warm in most instances.

For power, you could go with a full 12v system (LED lights, water pump, etc.) and a big (100 Ah) Lithium battery ($300) with a 20 Amp Charger ($75). More than enough to run the camper for a weekend. Add a 110v AC plug to run the charger, tire warmers, space heater, etc. if your campsite has power ($25).

If you want to be super-fancy, add a Campmor hot-water shower, with pump ($250) and a 12V cooler/fridge ($300). The joy of a hot shower and cold beer can not be overstated.

 

A friend of mine runs the Snoozy II place. I went and checked out how they are built. When you get ready for your trip, look at one. They aren't cheap, but the fiberglass body will last forever.

 

What about a Sunray 109E?

https://www.rvtrader.com/listing/2024-Sunset+Park+Rv-SunRay+109E-5028399981

 

I keep playing around with ideas and keep landing on one of these. Do up the inside like a living space/RV...pull the bikes in a small enclosed trailer. Maybe even keep the wheelchair loader to lift bikes into the back. Would be a fun build, and they have different lengths.

 

Most of them will come with completely worn out front suspension parts.

 

Probably be governed down to 55mph

 

I've rebuilt plenty of suspension before. The parts can't be any more expensive than other vics right?

That should be an easy fix too, no?

 

I used to think so. Chuck Ivy has had trouble finding someone that will unlock his. I think his doesn't let him use all the gears in the transmission.