trailer hitch mounting?

lowliferat

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how would one go about putting a hitch on a xs? hook to frame or swingarm? anyone got any pics of one? i am entertained by the idea of towing my kayak to fishing spots.
 
It has been suggested the rear peg and frame loop would be good achor points.
Another poster has mentioned wanting to pull a canoe, but I don't think he actually worked out the hitch yet.
 
thats an idea , the rear pegs to bolt to, i was thinking of a habour freight trailer, i have seen the goldwing guys shorten the rear axle and throw a car top carrier on it. i just wonder length , my kayak is 13 ft long and about 80 lbs dry weight. lengthen the tongue is a must, figure out the center of gravity , and drive like i have some sense.
 
so if i made some loops that went from pass. peg around tire to other side and another one that went from shock mount to shock mount , and connected to a small receiver hitch or ball for trailer , or a universal is what i read they use for motorcycle trailers and build it so it is removeable. wonder if my old front diveshaft from one of my toyota trucks would do it? no probely overkill. what about the mount height ? low or high? or middle? would low mount make ass end dive? and high mount try to lift the ass end up? level is what they do for trucks towing a trailer. need to do some more research on this project. guess i will finally get to use my tube bender and notcher now. should be safe using the same size tubing as the bike is.
 
I think the real question would be how far would you be towing it and at what speeds?
I'd think that keeping the entire trailer/kayak as low as possible would be best with a pivot point just behind the rear wheel of the bike and two wheels attached directly to the kayak at the rear, spaced pretty wide for stability's sake. I think if you come up with something with some flexibility, you'll be able to perfect it via trial and error.

More importantly, what species do you fish and where??? :-D
 
I fish around here in Norfolk iwouldn't be travling but 10-25 miles from home , i'm fishing for striper at the hampton bridge tunnel , and puppy drum , speckled trout at the hot ditch , in the summer its flounder or tau tog at the chesapeake bay bridge tunnel, somtimes its just nice to be able put in less than afoot of water and go fish places that you never could have before but, its just been a pain in the ass loading my kayak in the back of truck , paddle 6 - 8 hours and then lift her back up into back of truck. it's an ocean kayak trident 13 ft , 75 lbs. unloaded , mind you, that she is the best fishing platform that i have ever crewed on , not easy on the back either, i was going to get a harbour freight trailer anyways to be able to tow behind truck , then i saw the threads about sidecars and trailers. and thought it would be cool to be able to use the 650 .
 

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Here's all sorts of ideas. I tow a relatively short four-foot trailer behind my GS, but was quite taken with the idea of pulling something longer if I needed to. Unfortunately the regs here max it out at 2.5Metres long, akair.
https://www.google.ie/search?q=moto...AE#imgrc=_&usg=__Jshg2qhMv79tG9FS-SRX69yKRfw=

My tow hitch is quite simple - basic box-section and angle-iron triangle, top two mounts at the already-provided lugs at the rear hoop of othe bike top frame, and two 3/4" box sections run along to the exhaust mounting lugs. Both anchoring points are very sturdy.
Ignore the swivelling ball hitch for the moment - it's getting replaced soon with a better design.

sl3m4O1.jpg
 
Lowliferat,
I like Weekendrider's suggestion of rear peg and frame loop mounting points, but I think your trailer idea may not be right for a motorcycle. The Harbor Freight trailer is a perfectly serviceable unit hitched to a car, but for a kayak weighing 80 lbs., towed by a motorcycle, you may want to consider building a trailer of you own design, using (what else?) motorcycle tires (sidecar tires?). It would weigh next to nothing compared to the HF trailer, be designed specifically for your kayak (with some supplies stowed in it), and with the larger diameter tires, be easier to hand-launch at unimproved waterway sites. I smell an adventure!...
 
Hi 'rat,
tube loops back from the top shock mounts and the passenger pegs Veed together to make a balljoint mount at the level of the bike's rear axle should make an OK hitch.
Don't go apeshit on the loop material's size, you shouldn't be towing anything heavier than the bike's weight.
And I'm with Tebo, the best way to tow that kayak is on a custom-built trailer.
A simple spine and crosspiece with indespension units and 8" trailer wheels on each side.
And lotsa big pads to support the kayak, boat hulls are real strong but they don't like point loads.
Put Bearing Buddies in the hubs so you can push the trailer into the water and float the kayak on and off.
Again, build it lightweight.
FWIW, your XS650, kayak and trailer is likely to weigh about the same as my XS650 and empty sidecar.
I found it took swapping in a 36T rear sprocket to make the rig happy when carrying a passenger.
with your Kayak & trailer having less drag than a rig and unlikely to be carrying a personweight of fish, your bike should tow OK on solo gearing.
 
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