Towing with the ST1300 personal experience caution with a non swivel hitch

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Good day, just thought I would post regarding my experience towing a trailer with the ST1300. I have a small steel frame trailer with 12 in tires, led lights and a long ski box top, total weight empty about 100 lbs. the first time I towed with it I had a non swivel hitch on it as I had read various forums stating you didn't need a swivel hitch to tow. The first corner I got to was a 90 degree left turn at about 30 kph, when I attempted to turn the bike, it leaned a bit and then just stopped leaning into the turn and I was pushed straight to the outside edge of the road, I then leaned very hard off the left side of the bike and managed to make the corner, that really got my attention.

When I got off the bike to see why, I tried to uncouple the trailer and could not with the bike on the side stand, the fork on the underside of the ball was impinged as it was twisted to the side, this same impingement prevented the bike from leaning normally to make the corner. As soon as I got the trailer home I switched to a swivel hitch and have not had another issue. So why did this happen when I read it shouldn't be an issue? Perhaps the design of the ball at 5000 lbs rating is thick enough at the base that there isn't enough room for the forks to roll under the ball? Perhaps the fork tension adjustment was too tight, or maybe a heavier bike like a Goldwing simply flexes the fork from its weight?

I'm not sure what caused it but it was quite dangerous and rather than trying to jury rig the setup to work, I simply elected to put a proper swivel hitch on it and not experiment. I'm sure lots of riders will comment they tow just fine and have never had an issue, I'm just cautioning those who would attempt to tow for the first time to be aware this may happen with a non swivel set up, as it did for me, ride safe, Al.
 

The Dan

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Sounds like it was to tight. I'll be the first one to say that I've never had a problem with my camping trailer or a cargo trailer behind my ST1300.
 

T_C

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3 trailers, combined probably 30k miles. A few peg scrapers here there and in-between. Never felt a bind, never needed a swivel.

From the first part of the read, when you talk about being pushed into the outside of the turn, that is a classic feeling for entering a turn too hot. Does not take much weigh on a hitch to be felt pushing the ST around. Sometimes I forget the trailer is back there and dive into a corner... HELLO!! Be careful! Yeah.. not so much fun.

But if it was physically bound up when you looked at it then I'd say there was another issue. Not being able to unhitch whiel the bike is sideways is going to be a natural.

My hitch ball is a 3,500# model. Since that is over twice the weight of the ST and trailer combined I think it should hold. Be sure to buy a brand you can feel confident in.

I look at a swivel as one more thing that can go wrong. I'll stick to the KISS principle for things that aren't really needed.

PS I had my trailer along when I did the CPMT course in Minnesota, I tried doing the 13' offset weave.:wave1::chrfl1:
 
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OP
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For sure I wasn't hot into the corner at 30 kph, not even close. When I talk about the push it was because the bike was incapable of leaning enough to turn around the corner, when I leaned way over the bike finally leaned enough, at that point I was probably down to about 15 kph. I've owned a dozen or so bikes, GSXR 1100, VTR 1000 and also currently own a TL1000R. Also been riding for about 41 years, I know what overcooking a corner is like for sure, and this wasn't it. Totally different feel with the swivel hitch after the switch. I used that ball simply because it was lying around in my garage, not because I needed a 5000 lb rating, it's probably way thicker at its base than a 1500 lb ball, probably that was the key difference which caused the issue. I tried adjusting the fork looser so it swivelled better, but this just caused it to clank up and down on the ball making a racket over every bump. The swivel hitch is rated at 3000 lbs so I don't think I'll worry about towing my trailer fully loaded at 250 lbs. This post was only to serve as a caution so new to trailer towing riders will check every aspect of their setup to safely tow. This subject is quite controversial when I read up on it prior to trying it. I think it's kind of like the MCL lowering pegs, before I got them I read lots of reviews, half the riders stated they are very dangerous, rode once with them and scared themselves when they caught a peg while leaning over in a turn and then immediately removed them . I have a set on my bike, love them and realize that when they occasionally scrape, the peg is still spring loaded and is designed to do this, so I've never had an issue with them. I'm not saying every tow setup needs a swivel, just saying mine sure did.
 

rjs987

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Haven't towed as many miles as some here but I have towed 2 campers behind my bikes at different times. One was a Time Out camper behind my Gold Wing, at first without the swivel coupler and then with the swivel. No issues either way. The other was a Mini-Mate camper behind my ST1100 without a swivel coupler and never had issues with that either. Used the 1-7/8 inch ball in both cases since that is what is called for with these trailers and anything smaller. A larger ball would be way overkill on a bike trailer. I could lean both bikes over way past scraping pegs with both trailers being towed, and I have scraped a peg or two with both with trailers attached. In fact, the reason I put the swivel on my Time Out camper is that one time I found my Gold Wing leaning over almost enough to contact the tip over bars in a parking lot that had fresh asphalt on a hot day with the camper still attached but not binding the hitch yet. That is the only reason I felt the need for a swivel... in case of a full tip over when parked or stopped.

BTW- what are you referring to by "fork" in reference to your hitch? Just not familiar with that term.
 

T_C

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the fork on the underside of the ball was impinged as it was twisted to the side, this same impingement prevented the bike from leaning normally to make the corner.
Just out of curiosity.. the trailer tongue and the ball are both the same size? Was thinking about this and wondered if a 2" hitch would cause the hang ups on a 1 7/8" ball. I do know and have experienced that the lower end hitches can be flexed and deformed by squeezing (via tightening the bolts) that hold them onto the trailer tongue.
 

rjs987

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Slightly off topic, how do you like your CTX1300 compared to the ST1300? I bought my wife the 700 and she loves it.
I love it. But only because it is my own kind of ride. Not every rider is the same, thus many choices in riding style and bike styles. I refer to the CTX1300 as a touring/cruiser. I am one of the moderators on the CTX1300 forum. There are a few former (and some current) ST1300 owners over there now. The CTX1300 is VERY different ergos than the CTX700. The 700 has foot forward controls and the 1300 has neutral foot controls (NOT foot forward). Lots of common parts between the ST1300 and the CTX1300 especially with the engine and tranny. But VERY different ergos between those two also.

Back to the current content...
Sounds like maybe adjusting the coupler clamp (fork) in between the tight and loose might work out. When I was towing I always folded a sheet of common wax paper (fold in half, then half again 2 more times) to fit between the ball and coupler. That seemed to quiet things a little, though I did hear some rattle of the connection on big bumps. You really don't want so tight there is no movement when you pull up and down on the tongue, but also don't want really loose. Somewhere in between. I tried the ball grease but that was more mess than I wanted to mess with and heard about using wax paper, which works great. One sheet is good for one day of pulling so I brought along extra for each day.
 
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OP
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Thx I'll try the wax paper. I put bar risers, and MCL peg lowers on my ST to make it more upright and comfy, is the CTX more upright and comfy than the ST? I tried looking it up on the forums in search but got 20 pages of info.
 

rjs987

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Thx I'll try the wax paper. I put bar risers, and MCL peg lowers on my ST to make it more upright and comfy, is the CTX more upright and comfy than the ST? I tried looking it up on the forums in search but got 20 pages of info.
I think even with the "fork" tight the wax paper idea will improve things. You may have to adjust the "fork" anyway to allow the thickness of the wax paper.
I think the CTX1300 is more comfy but that's my opinion. Reminds me of the GL1500 I owned some years ago. It is definitely more upright and the knees are not bent as much as on the ST. I also added risers on my ST1100 for the same reason. Check out the CTX1300 forum for much more information.
 
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And I am one of those who will say I don't have a problem with the regular non-swivel hitch. Once I dropped the bike down on a deep gravel road with deep ruts. The Harbor Freight trailer just sat there still attached to the bike. No binds, no twisting, no issues. I expected the bike to pull the trailer onto its side, but no, the trailer remained flat on two wheels. That just confirmed that _I_ don't need a swivel hitch. Your mileage may vary. Or your angle of lean may vary. But I suspect that something else was wrong with your setup. Either way, if the swivel works and you feel better, then that's all that matters.
 
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