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Utility trailer question

6K views 33 replies 15 participants last post by  Kep1a 
#1 ·
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#2 ·
Looks interesting. For $150 it's worth a shot.
 
#4 ·
It is hinged to allow it to fold up and down to follow the contour of the road. I'm worried about it tearing itself apart with the rocking of the tray left to right with a heavy load. I had hoped someone on here would say "I had one don't waste your money" or "I have one and love it".

I may go look at it on my day off if he still has it. I can take my tiny 2000 Acura and save gas. I can just plug in the 1.25" to 2" hitch adapter then the trailer and just fold it up and bring it home if I get it. I still won't know if it works well or not until I pay for it and use it. :irked:
 
#7 ·
Gotta add up the cost of the parts, might be a quick build from 2x4's, plywood, hinges and the wheel. Might be cool around the yard
 
#10 ·
I wouldn't want to try it. Looks like it might mess with your hitch if you get to much weight on it and it starts to bounce up and down. I have put some weight on my hitch and while it worked at that moment I wouldn't do it again.
 
#11 ·
Looks cool but I don't really understand the wheel. Why not just get one of those racks that hook up to your receiver, like you see SUV's use to haul coolers. Looks like the same size.

I guess the wheel would come in handy if you are going through rough terrain and expect the normal cargo rack to scrape.
 
#13 ·
might be useful if you're just carting bails of hay around a barn, or farm yard, if the yard isn't to rough. but there is no suspension in that rear wheel. so any bumps, or holes it goes through will get transferred directly to your receiver. Sure, there may be a hinge, but I'd bed that not all of that force will be vertical up and down. especially not when there are unbalanced loads involved. personally I think you're better off putting that $150 towards a regular trailer. Especially if you're looking at using it off-road on rutted trails.

There is a reason he's getting rid of it for $150. if it was useful, he'd want more for it.
 
#14 ·
To the person (too lazy to look back) who mentioned having 2 wheels for stability, there's truth there, but then you would need the type of hitch that allows for yaw/twist from side-to-side. With just a vertical hinge on this one, one wheel is better IMO. This looks too light duty for anything off of a road/field.
 
#15 ·
Yea I would not use it off road or for ATV exploration or camping etc. It would only be to transport at low speed between the lower portion of my property to the top of my property and also to transport welder, yard tools or road repair tools for my 1.5 mile steep driveway.

What I am doing now is using my 2500 truck for the road (overkill) and my 1996 Polaris 425 magnum to transport materials up to the top portion of the property. My magnum had frame mounted metal racks and could take serious loads. When I got my 2015 and started to do some mods I quickly realized this thing can't haul 1/8 of what my magnum can. So I'm just looking for ways to increase the 570s load capacity without damaging the plastic racks. The 570 with it's motor, suspension, cooling system, charging system, ADC, EPS and EBS can do way more than my Magnum 425 could ever consider doing. The issue is those dam flimsy plastic racks. I don't use it like that all the time but when you have 345 bags of concrete or similar, 3 bags at a time just isn't going to cut it.

I do have an ATV 2 wheel trailer but if I load it and try to climb the steep ATV trail I just spin on the trail. I thought this trailer would put more weight on the hitch/ATV and with a rack/basket in the front receiver along with light loading of the front and rear racks I could get a bit closer to the real life capacity of the Magnum 425 on just its front and rear racks alone.

I'm going to go look at it my next day off and see what I think.
 
#16 ·
how much weight are you trying to move? Maybe consider upgrading to the Utility rear racks. they will fit any non-touring 570 front and rear. Not just the current model year. Tourings will only fit the front utility rack.

Maybe combine both the trailer, and sacks loaded on the front, to get some of the weight back on the front so you don't loose as much traction on from the rear being loaded down? option B is upgrading to a walking beam trailer that better distributes the weight of your load and doesn't put as much weight on the tongue?

I really don't see that system working well for you stated needs. as the location of the wheel, at the very back of the rack, is going to put a lot of weight on the tongue/rear of the ATV. making the front light. which will cause issues with steering, and reduce the effectiveness of the AWD when the back wheels start spinning.
 
#17 · (Edited)
The problem with my ATV trailer is the load is over the axle and on a 18 degree or more incline the trailer becomes wildly tail heavy and lifts the back of the ATV then all four spin.

I know that I'm doing ATV abuse but I started at 11 80# bags of cement at a time (5 front and 6 rear) and that was easy on my magnum 425. The magnum has done one delivery of 250 bags and one delivery of 345 bags without issue. If I recall correctly, I stopped at 6 on the front and 8 on the rear. I made one attempt with two more on the seat and that was too much. So I went back to 6 & 8. I have done the same thing with gravel loads of 7 five gallon buckets at a time and blocks (8x8x16) for a wall. I don't recall how many at a time but it was 2 high front and 3 high rear. So yes I'm a serial ATV abuser LOL.

http://www.polarisatvforums.com/forums/polaris-sportsman-570/122794-used-2015-sp-3.html

Those plastic racks just are not up to anything near that, even with metal rack extenders. I saw a photo of a blown out bottom of the front storage compartment because of someone like me. He did have a metal rack. He was a hunter not a builder though. I didn't even think to research this before I bought it as I assumed it would work just as hard if not a bit harder. Go figure, live and learn

My plan at this point is to look at that trailer, if it will work I will put four bags in the single wheel trailer, three bags on the back rack, two on the front receiver basket and one on the front rack with the metal rack I installed. This will get me close to where I started with the magnum 425, I think I could deal with that if that's all I can do.

I want to spruce up the Magnum and sell it. I would hate to have to keep it two more years for the next two big projects up on top that I have. That's why I'm trying to figure out a way to make my sportsman work as a pack mule. Rest assured I'm not done raising a few eyebrows around here LOL.
 
#19 ·
That looks nearly identical to my ATV trailer. Works great for light loads or semi-flat terrain.

Like I said go up a steep incline with a heavy load in it while on on loose covered hard pack and your done! The load lifts weight off the back of the ATV and then you are not going anywhere but back down the hill.
 
#21 ·
#22 ·
I'm lost on why you have to use the steep trail when you've got a serviceable driveway to get to the same spot? this is drive way work, is it not? and for that matter if you're moving that much concrete, I don't see how the truck is overkill?

And as stated, if the trailer is lifting the back, it needs to be set up differently.

But hey, it's your money. spend it where you will.
 
#23 ·
I posted the pic of my garden trailer... you'll note I used a 2 foot extension that is on top of the tongue. What isn't pictured is my drop ball mount in the quad receiver. Perhaps you need to level your trailer out a bit more... I have had that trailer heaping full of dirt - a lot of weight... no problems.
 
#24 · (Edited)
These are older screen shots but you can get an idea of what I'm dealing with.

The solar shed is above the home site and is a narrow very steep foot or ATV trail. I guess I'm having a bit of trouble conveying the scope of the access issues. The driveway is not the issue (other than maintenance) it is the site above the home that presents a challenge. We have a 3500 gallon water tank, solar shed, 2 strings of solar panels, a green house, rain water collection system and a future fish pond.

You can barely see the ATV trail in the photo but assure you it is there.

Adjusting the load or leveling will not even begin to address the issue. :deadhorse:



 
#25 ·
any way you can draw in where the trail is? is it possible to change the route of the trail to make it not as steep? you're definitely out in BFE, that's for sure.
 
#26 ·
Other issues aside, that trailer just does not look robust with that one universal wheel. As the others, I have not seen anything like that in the past so I know almost nothing about it other than what your picture shows. My first instinct is that you may be inviting an off center issue where the torque of that trailer can create an unsafe situation. Think about how much the utility trailer affects you, and that has two wheels and pulls your back end up, imagine if it applied a twisting force in addition to or instead of.. Sorry that the solutions being discussed are not fitting your needs, and I don't have better to offer except to approach this one with a lot of caution. Best of luck on this one!
 
#27 · (Edited)
Not that it matters but yes I drew it in blue. You see once you get steep enough the trailer becomes a leaver on the hitch. My thought was that if I keep the load between the single wheel and the ATV I mitigate the cantilever effect created by the dual wheel trailer with the load split fore and aft of the axle. For the record the solar shed and water tank are 96' above the home site. The home site is 400' above the driveway entrance.

What really sucks is I have an ATV that does just fine. I wanted to add some farm and bucket implements but the Magnum 425 with a 200 watt charger and solid rear axle could not be adapted for that use/abuse. The sportsman 570 seemed like the perfect upgrade until I saw the rack limitations.

 
#29 ·
where does the steep part really take effect? at the hard left, or the Right turn as you're going up?

Is it possible to extend the trail. say instead of making the right and going essentially straight up the hill, continue straight and then loop around to the back of the upper buildings? It's hard to see the true topography of the hill from the photo, so that may not be possible based on grade, and other terrain obstacles.

Just trying to come up with alternative options. because I don't think that that cart is really going to help you. you're right, in the fact that it will not lift up on the rear. but it will definitely push down on it with enough force to severly lighten the front end causing steering and traction issues.

If that doesn't work, you could always set up a cable lift to take materials up to the upper landing. lol. :deadhorse:
 

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#30 ·
The problem is the county won't allow us to put in a permanent vehicle access road so we can't permit a road and I'm not paying a fine for putting one in! Short story is that the reality is that the new UN agenda 21 regulations about slope and cross slope prevent it. Hell If the 20 acre parcel I have owned since 1991 and the driveway had not been grandfathered in before the new slope laws I could not have even got a permit to build our retirement home!

Yes the steep part is the right turn. The existing trail is the best access and it is the least risk to exposure to roll over and such. It is far steeper with any other approach. I did use a block and tackle attached to a skid to transport the 12 345# each batteries to the top but that was a real PITA and took two days. I may have to just keep the Magnum for uses such as this. I just never expected this is all.

All this because Polaris saw fit to make their ATV less utilitarian and durable IMHO LOL.
 
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