Jump to content

Welcome to TheMalibuCrew!

As a guest, you are welcome to poke around and view the majority of the content that we have to offer, but in order to post, search, contact members, and get full use out of the website you will need to Register for an Account. It's free and it's easy, so don't hesitate to join the TheMalibuCrew Family today!

Innovative Boat Tow Vehicle And Camper


DONTW8

Recommended Posts

Wow, crazy. Seems like what he gained is the big storage container for all the gear.

The last couple years I've noticed a lot of people making toyhaulers out of a car trailer & an old pop-up or slide-in camper. Some look really ghetto, others are really well done & allow you to haul your camper with motorcycles, ATVs, golf carts, Jeeps, even boats. That guy took it to a whole new level. :crazy:

Link to comment

I recognize that guy's ability to weld and design but, it seems to me that there has to be a ready made answer that wouldn't require double towing.

Link to comment

Up here we see lots of units like that. You are allowed to tow like that in Alberta and I will see lots of campers on the trailer and then a couple of quads. Then they will hook up a 4 or six place quad trailer behind that and head out to the foothills.

I just found this set up online.

post-5478-0-31662500-1326133747_thumb.jp

Edited by Malibuzer
Link to comment

To me it makes more sense to put the camper on the truck and tow the boat. It's gotta be a pain to launch with that setup.

Obviously you don't launch with both trailers. He has to drop the boat, then drop the camper, then hook up the boat to go backwards more than about 10'.

PITA? Yea. But he can bring all his stuff with him on his trip. I'm pretty sure he's not towing just to the lake down the road with that setup. Probably going some distance & really wanted to bring all his gear with him. Probably better than driving 2 rigs.

Link to comment

Yes, I agree, the man has skills. But, why not just put your camper in the back of the truck, hook up the boat, and thin out your gear? Do you really need to take everything? It just looks like a real pain. Put a bunch of your gear inside your boat and inside the camper, and everything you don't "need", leave it at home. Or just buy a lake house! :rockon:

Link to comment

Up here we see lots of units like that. You are allowed to tow like that in Alberta and I will see lots of campers on the trailer and then a couple of quads. Then they will hook up a 4 or six place quad trailer behind that and head out to the foothills.

I just found this set up online.

Got you beat on this one Trent..check out this gem!

post-4887-0-10836800-1326253765_thumb.jp

Link to comment

I recognize that guy's ability to weld and design but, it seems to me that there has to be a ready made answer that wouldn't require double towing.

I thought the same at first but who wants to dunk their home away from home in the water or even close to it. :dontknow:

Link to comment

I thought the same at first but who wants to dunk their home away from home in the water or even close to it. :dontknow:

I assume your talking about using a big RV to launch your boat......

I haven't done it myself, but I have had a couple of guys ask me if I would launch their boats for them. They get their big bus into camp & all setup & then don't really want to be moving it much (not very maneuverable in tight situations, hard to backup due to chassis length behind rear axle, lack of vision, etc.).

This guy can pull into the campground, drop his boat at the launch parking lot, drive to his camp, drop his camper & his gear at the campsite. Then use the truck to go into town, launch his boat, or whatever. All while his camper is still setup on site.

Doesn't sound like a bad deal to me at all. :unsure:

Edited by Bill_AirJunky
Link to comment

I think it's pretty slick. I double towed a 25' fifth wheel and my Rlxi for a few years. It worked well, but made everyone besides me nervous as hell. Like that guy, our trips were 4 hours minimum. We always set up the camp before launching, no matter what. So dropping the boat to set up the camper isn't a big deal. Also, I've never seen anyone that can back a double setup. Some say they can, but I've not seen it. I've driven a lot over the years (Class A CDL) moving heavy and oversize construction equipment, so I'm no amateur and I couldn't back my setup more than a few feet.

As far as ready built trailers, most I've seen are not made well at all, and if they are, they're extremely expensive. The quality of the fifth wheel was my biggest issue in my setup. Even with a fair amount of fab work underneath to strengthen the frame and add the rear hitch, it still made me nervous. Realize, most of us have a bigger investment in the boat than the camper and the boat's at the end.

One more thing. His idea of towing behind the boat didn't sound good at all.

Link to comment

I don't really tow so I may be way off here, but why wouldn't he just put the camper in the bed and tow the boat directly? Seem like he should be able to drop the camper from the bed at the site when he gets there and then just tow the boat without the camper. I understand that he gets a little more storage but couldn't he have built some kind of an addition to the boat trailer to house the gear?

Edited by Jimmypooh
Link to comment

I thought he explained it pretty clearly in his write up.

"The whole reason for doing this is allot of storage in a small area. I am now up to about $10,000 in ski equipment, and need all the lockable storage I can get."

Plus the fact that he doesn't want to break camp every evening to pull the boat out.

Link to comment

I think it's pretty slick. I double towed a 25' fifth wheel and my Rlxi for a few years. It worked well, but made everyone besides me nervous as hell. Like that guy, our trips were 4 hours minimum. We always set up the camp before launching, no matter what. So dropping the boat to set up the camper isn't a big deal. Also, I've never seen anyone that can back a double setup. Some say they can, but I've not seen it. I've driven a lot over the years (Class A CDL) moving heavy and oversize construction equipment, so I'm no amateur and I couldn't back my setup more than a few feet.

As far as ready built trailers, most I've seen are not made well at all, and if they are, they're extremely expensive. The quality of the fifth wheel was my biggest issue in my setup. Even with a fair amount of fab work underneath to strengthen the frame and add the rear hitch, it still made me nervous. Realize, most of us have a bigger investment in the boat than the camper and the boat's at the end.

One more thing. His idea of towing behind the boat didn't sound good at all.

I think the double towing is pretty cool! I think I could do it on the freeway, but I would hate it in town or worse, in a campground. In most campgrounds we go to, we can barely maneuver the boat & truck around. I can't imagine trying to get to your campsite with a 5th wheel & boat in tow!

Link to comment

I thought he explained it pretty clearly in his write up.

"The whole reason for doing this is allot of storage in a small area. I am now up to about $10,000 in ski equipment, and need all the lockable storage I can get."

Plus the fact that he doesn't want to break camp every evening to pull the boat out.

I understand that, but to built an entire 5th wheel trailer to add that little amount of storage seems like a waist. He should be able to drop the camper from the bed at the campground. Then perhaps add 5 feet to the front of the boat trailer and add the storage there.

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...