Thank you for your reply and description. I've had the similar ideas in mind. Are your square tubes welded to the platform? Guessing it might be kind of heavy as a single assembly. I was considering bolted components for this reason. I'll be able to address the cantilevered weigh issues a bit easier on my truck, I'm thinking.
The entire platform is a single welded unit, minus the brackets that attach it to the frame. I had weighed it a while back and wasn't considerably more than one off the off the shelf flimsy designs. The 1" hardwood and Pit bull trs added about 40 lbs to the overall tongue weight. I designed it so I could install by myself with relative ease. I can remove the wood platform and stand in between the framing and use the grab handles in the middle to basically deadlift it into position and slide the draw bar into the hitch.
This is my first year hauling with a hitch receiver carrier, and cap back on my pickup. Picked up some inexpensive helper springs from o-o-o-O’Reilly and it handles an FZR hanging off the back perfectly. Definitely a step up from having to pitch a tent. Plus, f*ck extra tolls for additional axles of a trailer
That's what I'm stoked about... no more tents or crackhead motels along the interstate. Plenty of room to sleep inside.
Yep, makes it a lot nicer to be able to pull into a rest stop and crawl into the back and actually lay down to get some sleep on a long haul. Everything together as one unit. I admit I would love a van, but I’m avoiding tagging multiple vehicles so the pickup gets double duty.
You know the holes in your truck plate will fit in a van...they line right up. And since you cant be driving 2 vehicles at the same time...why not...multiple plates are a government scam, like fluoride, the post office and seat belts.
At least the insurance companies aren't bending us over for liability on each vehicle. Liability on the new van was like $35 per year. They used to ding you full pop on every vehicle.
I usually use the iOverlander app and find a quiet spot on a BLM or ranch road. Less chance of a crackhead messing around the van.
I see these setups at the track a lot. Have you (or anyone) considered the amount of of weight and mass flying toward the driver in a head-on collision? Sure, slow down is the answer...
As opposed to those safe head-on collisions without the bike in my van.... No, seriously: My bike is in the van's centerline, where it would torpedo the engine cover IF there wasn't already one of the passenger bench seats in front of it that otherwise would have 3 x 150 lbs of biomass tied down and secured (AKA "Seatbelted") to the same mounts on the floor - one of the benefits of an old Ram 3500 1-ton van. Fuel in the back of the van scares me a lot...
