Hi All,
Just bought a second hand trailer for towing behind my RK and it has no swivel hitch.
Question is, from your experiences - do I really need to fit one ??

Thanks all.
Rowle - UK.

 

Every trailer I have own had one. With that said I never turned it over, so it never proved itself. For me it was just peace of mind. I hear that they protect the frame of the bike from bending and make recovery a little easier in an accident. Price it out, if only a few dollars go for it, over a hundred......

Be Safe JIM

 

Thanks HD - is that what they are designed for then ? - to stop the trailer turning over ?

Thanks for the help.
Rowle.

 

If you tip the bike over and don't have the swivel, somethings gotta give and I'm sure you won't be happy about it. I know many don't use the swivel and consider it useless but I wouldn't tow without it. The choice is yours.

 

I would not tow a trailer without one.

 

May as well throw in my two cents.... The main purpose for a swivel hitch on a trailer is to prevent the torque of a trailer flipping over being transmitted to the bike - or at least that is the theory.... That being said, there is a fair bit of rotation allowed in a regular hitch that would let a trailer bounce fairly high on one side without twisting the bike.
I towed an Aspen Sentry tent trailer with a swivel hitch and a Lees-ure Lite without and had no problem.
If you flip a trailer being towed by a bike, you are going to be in a world of hurt with or without the swivel hitch but if the $100 for the cost of the hitch makes you feel better......
That's my opinion and you're welcome to it....

 

Regular ball hitch will move about 170 degrees.Ninety degrees puts the trailer on its side.I say you could lay your bike down with a conventional hitch and not flip the trailer because of the hitch.

 

I pull too but don't have a swivel hitch. At least not yet. Been thinking about it but have not had any problems as of yet. I think that if you go down, trailer or not is a bad situation. As far as a spill in a parking lot, I dont know.

 

Okay, I'm not a rocket scientist by any stretch; however, that's saying you can almost flip the trailer over using a ball hitch. You may want to look at your math again.

I'm not sure why trailers are flipping... I've been towing for years without incident. I have a Bustec trailer, which uses a heim joint for the hitch connected to a bar that will rotate 360° regardless. Speaking with the folks at Bustec, they explain the set up as being able to avoid transmitting torquing forces in either direction... not specifically for flipping. If your trailer flips, doesn't matter what hitch setup you have... and, if you flip... the trailer is just one more complicating factor. Of course, this just my opinion.