Seems like lateral forces are the major concern for a trailer. Riding style is the cause of lateral forces. You will steer with your hands more than lean with your legs to avoid tipping over with a trailer. Braking technique is reversed with a trailer. You ride more like a train wheel on a track, than a motorcycle.
I tend to lean with my hips rather than apply any hand pressure to steer. In fact, i like to shift my thigh and knee into the frame to angle the wheel to turn my bike by unweighting and pushing into the lowered pedal. Kinda like rolling your ankle and knees to get a ski on edge quickly.
Leaning is a bad idea with a trailer, because you want to keep the trailer hitch level. I need to use my hands to turn the fork, which i am simply not in the habit of doing. I prefer to use the crank position and bottom bracket to turn, rather than the fork. I like to use my arms as shock absorbers. I like to stay neutral and light on the handlebars, so i can use my stomach muscles, the seat and pedal to arc a turn. I like to move my arms forward and back, rather than side to side. I like to drive equal pressure into both sides of the handlebar. I like to move the pressure between the front and rear wheels with my arms and feet during a turn.
All of this is bad style for a trailer, because it generates a great deal of lateral force. You want to keep the axle parallel with the ground. You want the bike to have a front shock absorber to allow you to move as much weight over the rear wheel as possible. You want to move like a steel wheel against a train track, rather than as a race car banking around a bend.
The Boost axles/hubs are designed for greater lateral forces. I limited my bike choices to a Boost bike, which resulted in The 2019 Trek PowerFly.
Front wheel Braking dominance must be reversed to ensure the rear wheel stays on the ground. You use the rear brake as a drag brake, then apply the front brake. I do not know what the practical speed limit is, but 15mph seems prudent. You do not want to jack-knife like a 18 wheeler trailer truck. You want to keep the speed low enough to avoid bouncing.
[Bosch ABS brakes are an even better idea, but i would not wait for Bosch. Bosch makes premature announcements that seem to take forever to materialize. So, I would just forget about ABS brakes until they appear in USA stores.]
I am not sure how a trailer affects the drivetrain wrt damage from poor shifting. Bosch shift detection certainly is an advantage. My initial strategy is to leave the chain in the middle gear, fifth. That way, the chain is pulling directly from the chain ring. Perhaps, use assistance levels, my cadence or standing up to achieve the desired speed?
I also chose a Boost axle bike for added strength to compensate for the additional load. Boost widens the rear axle by 6mm and the front axle by 10mm. Wider means you can improve the bracing angles of the spokes in the wheelbuild. Results in a stronger, stiffer, and more efficient wheel.
I plan to replace the original axle with a 12mm Burley Axle to allow the trailer to disconnect quickly and easily. The rear axle is a strong, low center of gravity and balanced connection point, so this trailer is most stable and controllable. Connecting to the seat post is the opposite.
I also chose 30mm Boost inner width rims to allow 2.4 inch tires. To me, the tire contact patch is the most important aspect of a bike or car. The Powerfly 5 is a hardtail, so i want the wider tire to function as a shock absorber, too. I will go tubeless to lower the tire pressure, thereby increasing shock absorption even more. More importantly, the traction is increased with lower tire pressure.
Tire pinching seems to be one of the problems caused by trailers. Tubeless means no tire pinching vulnerability.
The rear wheel should function as well as possible with a trailer. I am open to suggestions to improve the performance of the rear wheel with a trailer.
Anyone know how common this damage is from trailer?
Or do other parts of the bike suffer more stress? Chain and drive chain wear.
The dealer told me that towing a trailer requires more wheel truing. That does not seem like a big deal. But it tells me i need to buy a tool to monitor spoke tension. I should probably take a wheel building class.
I coast down the bike path and street to my place at 18-22mph, so the brake pads will wear quickly.
Would you modify anything to strengthen the wheel?
Rear hub Bontrager sealed bearing alloy axle, Boost148
RimsBontrager Kovee 23, Tubeless Ready, 32-hole double-walled, tubeless strips and valves sold separately
TiresBontrager XR3, 29x2.30˝ (15.5: 27.5x2.35˝)
I tend to lean with my hips rather than apply any hand pressure to steer. In fact, i like to shift my thigh and knee into the frame to angle the wheel to turn my bike by unweighting and pushing into the lowered pedal. Kinda like rolling your ankle and knees to get a ski on edge quickly.
Leaning is a bad idea with a trailer, because you want to keep the trailer hitch level. I need to use my hands to turn the fork, which i am simply not in the habit of doing. I prefer to use the crank position and bottom bracket to turn, rather than the fork. I like to use my arms as shock absorbers. I like to stay neutral and light on the handlebars, so i can use my stomach muscles, the seat and pedal to arc a turn. I like to move my arms forward and back, rather than side to side. I like to drive equal pressure into both sides of the handlebar. I like to move the pressure between the front and rear wheels with my arms and feet during a turn.
All of this is bad style for a trailer, because it generates a great deal of lateral force. You want to keep the axle parallel with the ground. You want the bike to have a front shock absorber to allow you to move as much weight over the rear wheel as possible. You want to move like a steel wheel against a train track, rather than as a race car banking around a bend.
The Boost axles/hubs are designed for greater lateral forces. I limited my bike choices to a Boost bike, which resulted in The 2019 Trek PowerFly.
Front wheel Braking dominance must be reversed to ensure the rear wheel stays on the ground. You use the rear brake as a drag brake, then apply the front brake. I do not know what the practical speed limit is, but 15mph seems prudent. You do not want to jack-knife like a 18 wheeler trailer truck. You want to keep the speed low enough to avoid bouncing.
- A 203mm rear rotor might be a good idea, because the front brake normally accounts for 80% of braking power.
[Bosch ABS brakes are an even better idea, but i would not wait for Bosch. Bosch makes premature announcements that seem to take forever to materialize. So, I would just forget about ABS brakes until they appear in USA stores.]
I am not sure how a trailer affects the drivetrain wrt damage from poor shifting. Bosch shift detection certainly is an advantage. My initial strategy is to leave the chain in the middle gear, fifth. That way, the chain is pulling directly from the chain ring. Perhaps, use assistance levels, my cadence or standing up to achieve the desired speed?
I also chose a Boost axle bike for added strength to compensate for the additional load. Boost widens the rear axle by 6mm and the front axle by 10mm. Wider means you can improve the bracing angles of the spokes in the wheelbuild. Results in a stronger, stiffer, and more efficient wheel.
I plan to replace the original axle with a 12mm Burley Axle to allow the trailer to disconnect quickly and easily. The rear axle is a strong, low center of gravity and balanced connection point, so this trailer is most stable and controllable. Connecting to the seat post is the opposite.
I also chose 30mm Boost inner width rims to allow 2.4 inch tires. To me, the tire contact patch is the most important aspect of a bike or car. The Powerfly 5 is a hardtail, so i want the wider tire to function as a shock absorber, too. I will go tubeless to lower the tire pressure, thereby increasing shock absorption even more. More importantly, the traction is increased with lower tire pressure.
Tire pinching seems to be one of the problems caused by trailers. Tubeless means no tire pinching vulnerability.
The rear wheel should function as well as possible with a trailer. I am open to suggestions to improve the performance of the rear wheel with a trailer.
Anyone know how common this damage is from trailer?
- Tire pinching - non-issue with tubeless
- spokes popping - should be minimized with Boost configuration
- bearing damage - this is an involved topic. Means the wheel won't spin.
- Need to investigate this hub. Might need to be upgraded?
- Bearings take a great deal of stress.
- Hubs are designed for 180 pound riders, so a possible weak link
Or do other parts of the bike suffer more stress? Chain and drive chain wear.
The dealer told me that towing a trailer requires more wheel truing. That does not seem like a big deal. But it tells me i need to buy a tool to monitor spoke tension. I should probably take a wheel building class.
I coast down the bike path and street to my place at 18-22mph, so the brake pads will wear quickly.
Would you modify anything to strengthen the wheel?
- Wheels
Rear hub Bontrager sealed bearing alloy axle, Boost148
RimsBontrager Kovee 23, Tubeless Ready, 32-hole double-walled, tubeless strips and valves sold separately
TiresBontrager XR3, 29x2.30˝ (15.5: 27.5x2.35˝)
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