 | Wheel balance has proved to be important and should be checked to prevent
vibrations and uneven tyre wear. This is particularly relevant to the wide
wheels which are so popular nowadays. |
| Wheel alignment is critical, and many handling problems can be attributed
to toe-out or excessive toe-in. |
| The towbar arrangement on the motorcycle should be well located in both
lateral and vertical directions to prevent flexing which could lead to snaking
or towbar breakage through metal fatigue. |
| Despite certain theoretical ideals, hitch height and position has not
proved critical. The commonly used 50 mm ball mounting allows only a limited
amount of motorcycle lean before reaching its limit of travel. This is
overcome by using a hitch on the trailer which rotates freely. Our experience
shows that this is an important safety feature. |
| The UK legal width limitation of one metre increases the importance of a
low centre of gravity, which is vital for lateral stability. This also reduces
weight transfer to the nose hitch on breaking, thus helping to retain balanced
breaking on the motorcycle. The inevitable high unsprung weight ratio of an
unladen trailer will highlight any suspension limitations, and may lead to
undue bounce on uneven surfaces. A low centre of gravity will help to
counteract any tendency to overturn the trailer in these circumstances. To
avoid the possibility of snaking, the loads should be distributed to provide a
positive nose weight, and where possible the heaviest items should be placed
over the axle line to reduce the polar moment of inertia (or ‘dumbell’
effect). |
