Trailers & 'BWSOW's

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Let's see yours

This was my first trailer
(as in owned, not borrowed)


"When I Grow Up, I Want To Be A Logging Trailer"

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Looking at this, reminds me that a friend (of that era) who had a fabrication business, made that adaptor-plate, on the tow-bar, & the bike-carrier that slotted into it


The Uno was our 2nd new Fiat
We had an 'E' plated Panda
'F' plated Uno 3-door
This petrol
'L plate 3-door diesel
'M' plate Punto TD

All reliable; one faulty alternator was worst problem
Then we had a 1.6 petrol '('M' plate) Tempra estate............:evil:


It was finished, like this

The only new item I had to buy was the cover
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We jump a few years, to May 2004 (not long before we sold the house)
Borrowed, from a friend, for garden clearance/paving-stones, when we lived in this house

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I will, at this moment, throw into the mix, a couple of points
One Legal, the other just common sense

DO NOT USE
This pattern of pin/ball hitch
(it may be legal, but they're sure as hell not safe!!!)

If you use it, with a tow-ring, or a rope/strop, onto the pin, that's fine!:okay:
However, if you use it with a 50mm ball, it's beyond ludicrous
All that's attaching 2 tons (or more) to your tow-vehicle is a 3mm over-centre lock-pin (like the thumbnail)
Imagine you're driving along a rough/undulating road, the trailer may have the correct nose-weight, but there's some oscillating
All of a sudden that 2 tons has sheared the 3mm pin
You look around to see your trailer overtake you................. towards the family car heading towards you.................

It's not Rocket Science
If you have one of these, bin it!!!


18387-jc803-combined-pin-and-ball-hitch-50mm.jpg



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The sensible/correct type, if you need a pin, as well as the 50mm ball
This is a Dixon-Bates 'Pinball Wizard' (seen on my old Discovery)
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The safety chain was attached in use, via the 25mm pin
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Wiring

Unless things have changed a great deal, it's still a legal requirement to have an 'Audible, Or Visual Warning Device' to warn of the failure of a trailers indicator bulb
My old Defenders (& the Discovery) shown here had an icon in the instrument cluster)
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In previous vehicles, that I'd wired myself, after having the bar fitted, I used an 'buzzer'
https://www.towsure.com/single-7-pin-towbar-wiring-kit-n-type



YES
I realise that modern cars tend to have dedicated electrical packs now, where can-bus systems are used for vehicle systems - including lighting
(to save cabling/weight)
Thus bypass systems are used, that sense a voltage at the specific cable, but take their power from a dedicated supply

I won't go into these, for the plain & simple reason, that I'll admit I'm not up to speed on them, as I have never had to use/install one

I will happily read any information given on these systems


One More Point!
And, even if you don't tow, you may still need a 12N (or 13pin) socket, for a lighting board, if you carry bikes on a rack & they obscure your vehicles lights/number-plate!
 
First BWSOW

Given to us, by a friend (complete with awning)
He'd been offered a simply ridiculous sum for it, in PX for another one
So, he asked if we wanted it

A Safari (whatever model), seen here with my 90CSW (genuine factory build V8), & our 2 Border Collies of the time

E440 CAO. Safari. 12.JPG


An 'old school' caravan, with very solid wood fitting indeed, & hence heavy!


Later on, with the 740 estate, that struggled with it!!
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It suffered greatly later, after lending it to someone, who towed it with a too high a ball, & ripped the rear end of it away from the chassis over kerb/sharp change in road-gradient

We let it go, to the chap who owned the paddock we stored it in, who took it to a MX course, for use by marshalls/lap-keepers

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gbb

Squire
Location
Peterborough
No photos but started with a Pennine Aztec folding camper, my wife could pack what seemed an entire house under the cover. Punctured once on the M3, on a Sunday, in the middle of nowhere. Had to drive and find a tyre shop, paid a fortune for a replacement , went back then set off again. We took it in our stride then, its be a mini disaster now.
Moved up to an Ace Diplomat caravan, 1988, a little jaded but in good functioning condition. Had many marvelous holidays in Weymouth in that..
Always set off in the night, 55 mph behind my Vectra 1.8, never really had problems, its actually nice in the quiet, a relaxing way to drive.
A friend offered us the chance to go halves when he brought it, so £400 each. Cheapest way to holiday you could imagine, he passed on, we took full ownership of it and sold it for £600 around 10 years later.
I miss that old van.
 
No photos but started with a Pennine Aztec folding camper, my wife could pack what seemed an entire house under the cover. Punctured once on the M3, on a Sunday, in the middle of nowhere. Had to drive and find a tyre shop, paid a fortune for a replacement , went back then set off again. We took it in our stride then, its be a mini disaster now
That reminds me
I forgot we had a folder too, pre-Safari caravan
I think it was when we had the Punto?

.....searches on a couple of CD-ROMS.............

Joannes dad had bought a Tempra, on the same day as we got the 'L' Uno D
This was possibly the day, we'd got the Punto?

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It had nothing inside, it was as close to a 'tent on wheels' as it could be
And leaked.....................

I do remember once towing it, back over Mortimer Road (better known to Yorkshire & Derbyshire cyclists, as The Strines)
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This image has 1996, in its title
Jack, sat on top of it
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Ming the Merciless

There is no mercy
Location
Inside my skull
Let's see yours

This was my first trailer
(as in owned, not borrowed)


"When I Grow Up, I Want To Be A Logging Trailer"

View attachment 578417

Looking at this, reminds me that a friend (of that era) who had a fabrication business, made that adaptor-plate, on the tow-bar, & the bike-carrier that slotted into it


The Uno was our 2nd new Fiat
We had an 'E' plated Panda
'F' plated Uno 3-door
This petrol
'L plate 3-door diesel
'M' plate Punto TD

All reliable; one faulty alternator was worst problem
Then we had a 1.6 petrol '('M' plate) Tempra estate............:evil:


It was finished, like this

The only new item I had to buy was the cover
View attachment 578418

Which fool parked it obstructing the pavement?
 
2nd BWSOW was a Swift Challenger 520/5TA


It probably weighed the same as the Safari. but had better road-manners, even allowing for a few years of use/standing over winters (I 'blocked' its successor, on oak cubes)
It did pitch, & again due to age, could take time to settle, as the two axles 'fought each other' (one set of elastomers in compression, the other in extension.... add infinitum)

That was a genuine factory built V8 County, not a transplanted V8 into a diesel vehicle

August 2002, at a site by Castlerigg Stone Circle (near Keswick)

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Which fool parked it obstructing the pavement?
:okay:

Prior, probably in both cases, to putting it (& the car) into the drive:okay:
 
3rd (final) Wobble-Box

Elddis Crusader 2000
From memory, it was about 18 months old when we bought it

The overwhelming memory of collecting it, barring the cost..., was a final inspection
The dealer (by Castleford railway station) had it ready for collection, all we had to do was hitch up, put the extended mirrors on, & 12N cable

We both got in to look/check. & both went to the end toilet/shower-room
It tipped, as the legs were wound up:blush::wacko:

It was a big 'van
It towed wonderfully, very stable, with little sway, or oscillation
Reversing was a cinch, due to the length/distance of wheels from hitch
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It had curious features, such as an external shower
However, it was on the near-side, hence inside the awning:wacko:
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I did fit a Winterhoff hitch though
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We had a theft attempt on it, whilst it was in the same paddock that we'd kept the Safari & the Swift
Chris, the owner of the paddock (& adjacent local garage) came home one day, to find the gates open
He walked in to see, a pick-up drive out with 2 guys in
Thankfully, he didn't challenge them, as 2 onto 1 is always bad

This was what we found, after he'd rung us
All 'gas-axed' off

The following day, it was moved into a gold-standard storage yard

Granted the paddock contents could be seen from the road, & ours maybe stood out a bit more, as it had an a/c pod on the roof
It was targetted, as no other 'van was touched (or that we heard about, till the land was sold for housing)

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Park Cliffe
(east side of Lake Windermere)
Easter 2005

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From a Land Rover publication, by the illustrious adventurer/explorer; Tom Sheppard
I have this copy on my shelves
Amazon product ASIN 0951449346View: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0951449346/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i5





Very sound advice indeed!!
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I also have his even more impressive book; Amazon product ASIN B01K3JD05OView: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01K3JD05O/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i0

Note the one new @ £741.53 :wacko:

They can have my copy for half that price:laugh:
 

gbb

Squire
Location
Peterborough
Inevitably, our Pennine Aztec got too leaky, beyond economic repair so I stripped it out and made a flat trailer from it which i soon sold on, didn't really have the skills or materials to make a better job. The kitchen which comprised a large cupboard with a sink and a gas hob in it I put to one side, knowing one day it might have a use. Eventually we did a car boot and I put it up for £20 I think. All day people looked at it but wandered on. As we began to think about going, I decided it was going to end up in the skip they put out at the car boot.
One woman turned up, her face lit up....how much ?....please dont sell it, I need to find my husband.....and off she went. They both hurried up 5 minutes later....perfect, the husband said, we're converting a Landrover to tour in, its absolutely just what we're looking for. Made my day that did.
 

Drago

Legendary Member
After years as a copper id been to too many jobs involving stolen caravans, or nasty smacks on the roads involving caravans to want one myself so we went for motorhome. I'm actually considering selling both the Eldis and the XC90 and buying a new camper, something small enough to drive occasionally for the sort of chores I would use the car for. It seems daft to be pqying lots of insurance etc when I use both of them so little.

I had the pin type hitch on my first Disco, but I used if for pulling my Sankey with the NATO hitch. I had no use whatsoever for a Sankey, I just wanted one.
 
@Drago

'Sankeys' (generic name, as Brockhouse also built the same pattern) are awful to reverse, due to the short length
That said, they are exceptional on the rough-stuff, due to the height, hitch articulation
Just so long as either the NATO hitch is locked, if the trailer had a swivel ring - or visa-versa, if the trailer has a fixed ring
(otherwise it can all go horribly wrong!)
 
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