Trailer for BMW r1200gs?

Wh05apk

Wh05apk

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On 4th van so not a total newbie....
I am looking to trailer my BMW, quite a lump at close to 250kg.

I like the idea of the hydratrail, and possibly for a light scooter I would go for one, but I think the GS will be too heavy for it.

Have looked at side loading - motokug/armitage etc, but wonder if there is any advantage over a traditional trailer?

I am looking for something easy to load, as I don't want to be standing at ground level, with the bike balanced on a ramp....

Any suggestions?
 
Have a look on gumtree/ebay for ex RAC/AA recovery motorbike trailers with the dropdown loading bed you drive on fasten bike on and then raise the platform and lock into place,I have no idea who or what make they are but they do show up from time to time
 
Cochet and Yo remorque, both
manufactured in France.............and both are reassuringly expensive!
Check them out on youtube.
 
Tigertom said:
Cochet and Yo remorque, both
manufactured in France.............and both are reassuringly expensive!
Check them out on youtube.
Click to expand...
Seen those they do look good, but as you say reassuringly expensive, are they available here?
 
Air trailer in Holland, is on my wish list one day for my GS! Met a chap with a big LT on one, looked a great bit of kit - at a price, naturally. Don’t see the point of side loading trailers, will just be harder to reverse with.

https://airtrailer.nl/en/

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Someone was bringing Cochet into UK but i'm not sure if they're still in business.
We bought our YOremorque whilst in France, second hand on Le boncoin ( a site similar to gumtree).
 
Feltwell said:
Air trailer in Holland, is on my wish list one day for my GS! Met a chap with a big LT on one, looked a great bit of kit - at a price, naturally. Don’t see the point of side loading trailers, will just be harder to reverse with.

https://airtrailer.nl/en/
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check out yoremorque on youtube........very easy to reverse.👌
 
Tigertom said:
check out yoremorque on youtube........very easy to reverse.👌
Click to expand...
True, I have seen those, they do look a much better bet for a heavy bike than the hydratrail.

You've got to jump out and fix a bar in place before you reverse the yoremorque haven't you?

I've got an 8'x4' box trailer at home that is maybe a little longer than the axle to hitch length of most "normal" bike trailers, but not much - and it's dead easy to reverse. Mind you that is with a large car, and I know with some vans the amount of rear axle overhang makes a difference as well.

Every option has it's compromises! I saw a Mercedes Vario van for sale a while back with a tail lift on it, cut down and fixed in horizontal that would make an excellent raise and lower bike rack, and the van had the rear axle loading required as well. The van would have made a great start for a conversion, it was an ex-Fire Service workshop vehicle, great condition and low miles. Alas I doubt I'll ever see another!
 
Yep, you're right about using the bar for reversing but I only use it in a really tight situation, otherwise I just use the mirrors and reversing camera..............but the trailer is very twitchy 😮👌.
You're right, every option is a compromise, I guess if your using sites and aires with large pitches then a longer trailer isn't a problem.
The airtrailer does look very good for larger bikes but we take the 790 adv with us so the YOremorque does the job.
You pay your money and make your choice 👍
 
Wh05apk said:
I am looking to trailer my BMW, quite a lump at close to 250kg.

I like the idea of the hydratrail, and possibly for a light scooter I would go for one, but I think the GS will be too heavy for it.

Have looked at side loading - motokug/armitage etc, but wonder if there is any advantage over a traditional trailer?

I am looking for something easy to load, as I don't want to be standing at ground level, with the bike balanced on a ramp....

Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
We have a Peugeot Metropolis trike and purchased a Hydratrail for it (as you say a great piece of kit). Sadly, at 270kg, and heavily weighted to the front, the hydra just could not lift the trike evenly, it always sagged on one side. In fact, we damaged the tow bar trying to raise the trike off the ground the second time.

Although it has been rated to 500kg (as per Antony, Hydra inventor and owner) it would appear it only works if a heavy bike is 'evenly' weighted. Antony was brilliant, giving us a full refund and an apology. If I ever have a need with a lighter bike, I would buy again.

We purchase a standard Bateson trailer with a drop down gate 2nd hand, added 2 wheel chocks at the front to hold the trike in place and just ride it up on to the trailer. Reversing with a 4m trailer behind a 9m van does take a little getting used to, but if you take it slow, it becomes easier with time!

Hope you get sorted

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Fulham Dave said:
Although it has been rated to 500kg (as per Antony, Hydra inventor and owner) it would appear it only works if a heavy bike is 'evenly' weighted. Antony was brilliant, giving us a full refund and an apology. If I ever have a need with a lighter bike, I would buy again.
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You were lucky, when the Hydratrail wouldn't lift my MP3 I asked Anthony if he would buy it back at a reduced price, he didn't want to know.
 
I would think about 5 years ago. Search on here for other problems relating to Hydratrail. I have an Armitage side loading trailer now which is a much better option if you are careful when reversing. The other thing to remember is that you can't disconnect a Hydratrail with a bike on so if you pull up to a site for just an overnight stop and the pitch isn't long enough you have to take the bike off the trailer before you can take the trailer off the m/home.
 
TheTwoOfUs said:
I would think about 5 years ago. Search on here for other problems relating to Hydratrail. I have an Armitage side loading trailer now which is a much better option if you are careful when reversing. The other thing to remember is that you can't disconnect a Hydratrail with a bike on so if you pull up to a site for just an overnight stop and the pitch isn't long enough you have to take the bike off the trailer before you can take the trailer off the m/home.
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Ah OK, ours was only last year, maybe his position has changed about refunds.

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We had a BMW GS and now have a BMW R1250RT. To start with we had a flatbed, open trailer which worked fine but we decided that our bike was not well protected from both the elements and prying eyes.

We took the plunge and bought a new Debon trailer which not only takes the bike but all our kit too. Our reasoning for buying new was that it was very difficult to find one secondhand and therefore when we do come to sell we should be able to recoup a lot of the cost.

We find that getting the bike in and out of the Debon is much easier than the flatbed as the door drops down and you can ride the bike straight in. With the flatbed, there was just a tyre width ramp that made riding the bike on impossible so we both had to get involved getting the bike on. As you say, the GS is a heavy bike, especially for one person.

We have been very happy with our choice. Hope this helps with your decision.
 
Which Deben did you opt for - single or twin axle? I currently have an IFor Williams P8E for bikes and a Can Am quad but like the idea of an enclosed unit
 
We went for a single axle Debon Cargo C1300 in which there is only room for one bike with a bump stop.
 
ORPP2 said:
We went for a single axle Debon Cargo C1300 in which there is only room for one bike with a bump stop.
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That looks fantastic, keeping everything hidden and dry, but storage would be a problem, I am moving towards something like the Armitage low loader as it can be stored on its side in the garage.
 
I have one of the old style AA/RAC trailers, that pulls apart and will fit inside a car. I've used that on a Pan European and a Crosstourer, but to be honest it's a bit worrying having a heavy bike so high up. That trailer is better suited to our lighter bikes, but there is a lot to be said for having one that fits in the boot when you are moving a bike one way.

The main trailer I use is a RoRo - http://www.mswmotorcycletrailers.com/

These load at ground level, you've just got to bump the front wheel over the pivot point for the wheel holder. Once the bike is strapped down, it gets lifted into the air using a large lever (or you can get a winch) - it's pretty easy even on 300kg bikes. I like it a lot. They do sell a dolly for storing it on its side; I welded up my own, though I also tend to disassemble it a bit as it is a real lump to move around. Tows very nicely, and I can load on my own.

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No need to get fancy.
Have a look at the Motlug site.
A great British engineered and built trailer.
I have the mid range one that would carry your 250Kg bike.
 
The thing that worries me a bit with motolug (or any other "normal" bike trailer with a single channel for the wheels rather than a flat base) is having a heavy bike a foot and a half off the ground when I'm stood on the ground. It makes it harder to balance, and recover from any overbalancing. I've not dropped a big bike that way yet, but it is a worry, compared to doing it all at ground level.
Having said that, I have got a Pan European (330Kg) in the back of a 4x4 pickup truck bed using a couple of normal folding ramps, where the bike would only fit diagonally into the bed. That wasn't at all scary...

A lighter bike I'm fine with.
 
Next time i put the trailer together i will check the height. Mine has the upsized 10" wheels. From memory i don't remember the channel being 18" from the ground.
I think the balance thing is down to experiance. A chock for the front wheel to lock into is a massive help.
 
TheTwoOfUs said:
The other thing to remember is that you can't disconnect a Hydratrail with a bike on so if you pull up to a site for just an overnight stop and the pitch isn't long enough you have to take the bike off the trailer before you can take the trailer off the m/home
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If that's the case with side loading trailers generally it would rule it out for me. I have a 3m trailer and with a jockey wheel to manouvre, it makes parking or reversing in awkward situation very easy. I have never failed to park on an aire by unhitching and tucking in somehow.

The point about legs dangling well of the ground when loading on and off is well made (unless you have bags of confidence with a big heavy bike). It was an issue with my Africa Twin until I bought a pair of lightweight folding motocross ramps to fit either side. With my Himalayan and much lower seat height its no longer an issue.

If I had to start again now I would just bite the bullet and spend on a ground loading trailer. A normal trailer never really seemed an issue 20 years ago but as you get older things start to get more difficult unfortunately 😕.
 
Saw this on Facebook, don’t if the price is good or bad.
C6EC8E91-50E9-493E-89CF-71BD76DC6476.jpeg

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If it's brand new and the middle of the range of three then yes it's ok.
They start new at £1,300 i think.
Motolug.
Don't understand what the automatic transmission is all about
 
I've had several trailers over the years, one of my favourites was the Dutch made Van Vossen, who were taken over by AirTrailer, but currently have the Cochet, the advantage of the Cochet (apart from the price) is that it folds in half and can be stood on its end, I keep mine inside my garage, stood against the wall, plus of course for loading/unloading it drops down to the ground
 
PHCAS said:
MOTOlug SE - Works fine for me. I ride it up the ramp so you need a balance skills to load it.


View attachment 712382
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I picked up a 6 month old motolug hde last week, interested in how you strap yours down? Looks like you just use a ratchet strap around the rear frame?

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