Anonymous Coward
Observer
Here is another nice feature on the trailer I hadn't known about until I picked it up, all along the underside of the top tub rail, there are these hidden tiedown holes. Bungees or camstrap hooks fit great in these.
Manley ORV Original
- Thread starter Anonymous Coward
- Start date
Anonymous Coward
Observer
There are then a number of welded tiedown loops. A couple on the front of the tub, 2 at each corner (top and bottom of tub) plus a hinged loop on the tub floor at each corner, and then 4 on the tongue receiver frame tube right under the middle of the tongue deck.
Anonymous Coward
Observer
And a couple of pics of the Torflex axle. This thing gives me great extra clearance. I suspect with the axle bolted to the frame like this, it also adds frame rigidity, although I don't really think the frame needed it or relies on the axle housing for strength.
The axle shown will allow up to 33" tires. I just wanted the 29" Yokohama Geolanders on mine. They also offer another Torflex axle which I believe is clocked differently to allow for up to 37"s. While you can't do the spring over anymore like you could do with the leaf setup, Manley said just pull the 4 bolts on the existing axle and the other one that supports 35-37's will bolt right up.
The axle shown will allow up to 33" tires. I just wanted the 29" Yokohama Geolanders on mine. They also offer another Torflex axle which I believe is clocked differently to allow for up to 37"s. While you can't do the spring over anymore like you could do with the leaf setup, Manley said just pull the 4 bolts on the existing axle and the other one that supports 35-37's will bolt right up.
Anonymous Coward
Observer
I bought a matching spare with the trailer. Manley will match the bolt pattern, wheels, and tires to your tow vehicle, but I decided against that since I'll be pulling it with more than just the Jeep, and will probably also be lending it out to family and friends. They'll need a spare, and so will I now that I haven't matched them to my tow vehicle.
I think I'm going to just strap it to the tongue deck like this. I could mount it up to the rear receiver but I don't like that so much since it'll block the tailgate and interfere with my ability to carry the boats. I think I can still strap down a ton of stuff on top of this spare anyways so it's probably not a terrible loss of cargo space on the deck.
I threw it on there and could still pick up the trailer by hand from the tongue and sling it all around my garage. The spare doesn't weight a whole lot. It is another advantage of the 29" tires on the "Original" rather than a larger tire size, in that the Yokos will actually fit laying flat on the deck and don't weigh it down too much. It would be nice to find a more elegant solution than this, but for now it seems good.
I think I'm going to just strap it to the tongue deck like this. I could mount it up to the rear receiver but I don't like that so much since it'll block the tailgate and interfere with my ability to carry the boats. I think I can still strap down a ton of stuff on top of this spare anyways so it's probably not a terrible loss of cargo space on the deck.
I threw it on there and could still pick up the trailer by hand from the tongue and sling it all around my garage. The spare doesn't weight a whole lot. It is another advantage of the 29" tires on the "Original" rather than a larger tire size, in that the Yokos will actually fit laying flat on the deck and don't weigh it down too much. It would be nice to find a more elegant solution than this, but for now it seems good.
highlandercj-7
Explorer
The quality in these trailers is outstanding. I expect the weight rating is under-rated, in this day of BS law suits, it has to be that way.
Coward, your trailer looks sweet behind your JK. I have 10' Kayaks, the versatility of the trailer is a must here too.
Coward, your trailer looks sweet behind your JK. I have 10' Kayaks, the versatility of the trailer is a must here too.
Anonymous Coward
Observer
Today I brought home a 17 foot aluminum canoe on the trailer. It pulled perfectly. When I got home I have never seen my son so excited!
I had been looking for a used aluminum canoe for a few months on craigslist but was never fast enough to get one. I had been hoping to find a Grumman or Osagian but yesterday this one came up for only $300. It is a 1974 LoweLine 17 Canoe, made in Missouri. The LoweLine company was established in 1972 and in 1980 changed their name to Lowe, which is the same company that still makes pontoon and bass boats today. They don't make the canoes anymore but these were some of their first boats. They interestingly share some similar characteristics with Osagian canoes, which makes sense as those are also made in the same town in Missouri that this one is from.
It has some dents and scrapes, but after 40 years don't we all. I will get out the wheel polish and a rubber mallet and have it looking like new.
As you can see I am stretching the length limits of my Manley ORV with this canoe, but with the extended tongue it works great!
Of course this trailer is not all about recreation as it helped me haul away all of the tree branches I trimmed over the weekend and brought back a load of firewood. Of course the guy at the place wanted to talk to me for more than 10 minutes about the trailer. He even asked if it came with the Jeep which is really a testament to the attention to detail that Manley has.
I had been looking for a used aluminum canoe for a few months on craigslist but was never fast enough to get one. I had been hoping to find a Grumman or Osagian but yesterday this one came up for only $300. It is a 1974 LoweLine 17 Canoe, made in Missouri. The LoweLine company was established in 1972 and in 1980 changed their name to Lowe, which is the same company that still makes pontoon and bass boats today. They don't make the canoes anymore but these were some of their first boats. They interestingly share some similar characteristics with Osagian canoes, which makes sense as those are also made in the same town in Missouri that this one is from.
It has some dents and scrapes, but after 40 years don't we all. I will get out the wheel polish and a rubber mallet and have it looking like new.
As you can see I am stretching the length limits of my Manley ORV with this canoe, but with the extended tongue it works great!
Of course this trailer is not all about recreation as it helped me haul away all of the tree branches I trimmed over the weekend and brought back a load of firewood. Of course the guy at the place wanted to talk to me for more than 10 minutes about the trailer. He even asked if it came with the Jeep which is really a testament to the attention to detail that Manley has.
Thanks for posting up the details of the soft top and all the tie down points. You would think the manufacturers would post more pictures and details about these little things on their sites but it doesn't seem like they ever do. When I asked about max weight I was being inquisitive. I don't know that I'd need more capacity than that and my JK is only rated to tow 2k, but I guess I'd rather have a cushion than push the listed weight limit.
Right now I'm trying to decide whether I'd rather have, and get more use, from a trailer or a roof rack. There are compelling reasons behind both but I think I'd really just like to buy one and be done.
Right now I'm trying to decide whether I'd rather have, and get more use, from a trailer or a roof rack. There are compelling reasons behind both but I think I'd really just like to buy one and be done.
Anonymous Coward
Observer
I had a roof rack on my last TJ. I had it specifically to carry my kayaks, but also used it for other things.
IMHO:
- Roof racks on Jeeps are unbelievably loud at anything over 30 mph. Some are quieter than others, and you can do some things to mitigate the wind noise, but the noise level will be significantly elevated over no roof rack. Over the course of a long trip, it can really wear you down and be very uncomfortable.
- Capacity and center of gravity: Even the strongest roof racks don't carry much weight. You also don't want to put a ton of weight up there as they significantly raise the center of gravity of your vehicle.
- Load height: no contest between a roof rack and a trailer. Trailer wins hands down and for this reason you can also carry a much larger variation of things in the trailer. Also, unless you have a REALLY high garage door opening, you're going to be loading the roof rack outside. That's a PITA on a hot or a rainy day. A trailer can be loaded in the garage.
- Hard to remove the top with a roof rack. Some roof racks make it impossible. Even with the easiest to use roof racks, it turns a 30 sec. operation to flip the Sunrider back into a minimum 10 minute operation.
- Cost: In the short term, roof rack wins. If you want the cheapest option to carry more stuff, even the most expensive roof racks are going to be cheaper than a GOOD trailer, even if you're building or restoring it yourself. In the long term, the trailer probably wins. You only need to buy one trailer. If you get a new model Jeep, it's going to need a different roof rack.
- Longevity and versatility: Trailer wins. You can pull the trailer behind all of your other vehicles, lend it to friends, etc. When you replace your Jeep with a different one, the trailer hooks right up to it. If you take care of the trailer, it can last for many decades. With a new model vehicle, you'll need a different roof rack.
- Turning and backing up, parking lots, etc.: Roof rack absolutely blows away the trailer here. A trailer is going to make your Jeep really long, even a m416 style trailer significantly increases the length. Backing up a short trailer... takes... practice. Backing one up on the trail or other small spaces... takes... more practice.
All that said, there are places for both. Roof racks have significant downsides but I used the heck out of the one I had. It more than paid for itself.
Thank you for the perspective. That was a great pro/con list and although some of the listed things don't apply to me, it has given me more to think about. I think right now the thing I struggle with is when I go out alone whether I could justify pulling the trailer just to carry gear. I can get it all in the back of my 2 door JK but on a recent trip found that I had to keep digging through things to get to what I needed and thought it was a huge hassle.
Anyway, thanks for your insight.
Anyway, thanks for your insight.
Mark Harley
Expedition Leader
Anonymous Coward
Observer
I don't know, I like both of those a lot! If I had room for 2, I probably would have 2...
Manley did a great job with the tongue as it was sized and drilled so that it slides right back inside the frame and tucks away. They also set me up with safety cable and wiring extensions. The coupler uses 48" stock instead of the normal 12" stock that they weld to the ball coupler.
When I store the trailer in the garage I just pull off the long coupler and set it in the trailer bed.
Anonymous Coward
Observer
Well I've had the trailer a few weeks so now it is time to start modifying 
The Yakima tower mounts that I had been using were working ok. These were a roughly 10-year old rail-style mount that is similar to the current Yakima RailGrab towers, but is now discontinued.
The towers did just barely fit around the rails on the top of the tub. My confidence level in them holding over a long, bumpy trip was not 100%. Additionally, they had one major problem, which was that they did not accomodate the soft tonneau that the trailer came with. So it was time to set out and find an even better solution.
What I came up with was to mount 4 Yakima "Side Loader" brackets to the tub rail. These provide an artificial raingutter mount, to which you can then install Yakima raingutter mount towers. They are traditionally used to mount Yakima towers to the sides of truck bed shells or camper van roofs. The advantage of these is that their dimensions size them perfectly to fit on the Manley's tub rail. Towers could then be installed on the outside of the tub rail, allowing the tonneau to slide in beneath and rest unimpeded on the top of the tub.
Installing the brackets required drilling 8 5/16" holes all the way through the top rail on the tub. The outside wall of the rail is about a quarter of an inch thick!! This ate two of my old worn out drill bits! Luckily I found a new set of Milwaukee bits hiding in my shop and they went through it like butter. But that top rail is unbelievably stout, much more so than I expected.
I still have to go back and hit the holes I drilled with some primer, but the brackets mounted up pretty cleanly.
The brackets come with a backing plate but I won't need that here as that is typically used if you are mounting them to a fiberglass top or shell. They also came with a nice gasket to use in between the bracket and the body. The only other thing I did was pick up some longer carriage bolts to fit my application.
I spaced the brackets 36" apart on the tub, to be able to fit the widest range of Yakima stuff. The first set of brackets I put at the forward edge of the tub, and the next set fall in line somewhere above the middle of the fenders. This also will balance the mounted weight of any of my toys I put up there, so that I am not putting a lot of weight at the back of the trailer and getting a bunch of sway.
To these brackets, Yakima 1A Raingutter Towers can be mounted up. These ended up being much stouter than my previous mounting solution. They also make it much quicker to remove and attach the whole rack assembly.
However, the towers are still too close to the tub. When I put the soft tonneau on, they interfere with the tonneau frame way too much. I need to still fab up some 1/2" spacers for each of the brackets to push the brackets and towers just a bit farther away from the tub. Not sure yet if I will use steel or aluminum or nylon or something else for that...
The Yakima tower mounts that I had been using were working ok. These were a roughly 10-year old rail-style mount that is similar to the current Yakima RailGrab towers, but is now discontinued.
The towers did just barely fit around the rails on the top of the tub. My confidence level in them holding over a long, bumpy trip was not 100%. Additionally, they had one major problem, which was that they did not accomodate the soft tonneau that the trailer came with. So it was time to set out and find an even better solution.
What I came up with was to mount 4 Yakima "Side Loader" brackets to the tub rail. These provide an artificial raingutter mount, to which you can then install Yakima raingutter mount towers. They are traditionally used to mount Yakima towers to the sides of truck bed shells or camper van roofs. The advantage of these is that their dimensions size them perfectly to fit on the Manley's tub rail. Towers could then be installed on the outside of the tub rail, allowing the tonneau to slide in beneath and rest unimpeded on the top of the tub.
Installing the brackets required drilling 8 5/16" holes all the way through the top rail on the tub. The outside wall of the rail is about a quarter of an inch thick!! This ate two of my old worn out drill bits! Luckily I found a new set of Milwaukee bits hiding in my shop and they went through it like butter. But that top rail is unbelievably stout, much more so than I expected.
I still have to go back and hit the holes I drilled with some primer, but the brackets mounted up pretty cleanly.
The brackets come with a backing plate but I won't need that here as that is typically used if you are mounting them to a fiberglass top or shell. They also came with a nice gasket to use in between the bracket and the body. The only other thing I did was pick up some longer carriage bolts to fit my application.
I spaced the brackets 36" apart on the tub, to be able to fit the widest range of Yakima stuff. The first set of brackets I put at the forward edge of the tub, and the next set fall in line somewhere above the middle of the fenders. This also will balance the mounted weight of any of my toys I put up there, so that I am not putting a lot of weight at the back of the trailer and getting a bunch of sway.
To these brackets, Yakima 1A Raingutter Towers can be mounted up. These ended up being much stouter than my previous mounting solution. They also make it much quicker to remove and attach the whole rack assembly.
However, the towers are still too close to the tub. When I put the soft tonneau on, they interfere with the tonneau frame way too much. I need to still fab up some 1/2" spacers for each of the brackets to push the brackets and towers just a bit farther away from the tub. Not sure yet if I will use steel or aluminum or nylon or something else for that...
Anonymous Coward
Observer
...of course we also did put the trailer to use this weekend and have some fun, as you can see here we are down at the boat ramp.
This lake was great; no motorized access and no development; makes for a quiet canoe ride with just us, some folks fishing by the shore, and a few great blue herons. Now of course my trailer is starting to get all full of sand :victory: I think this means I should go and bedline it before I wear away all of this nice powder coating right??
This lake was great; no motorized access and no development; makes for a quiet canoe ride with just us, some folks fishing by the shore, and a few great blue herons. Now of course my trailer is starting to get all full of sand :victory: I think this means I should go and bedline it before I wear away all of this nice powder coating right??
Anonymous Coward
Observer
I got some 16 guage 3/4" square tube and decided to make some spacer brackets for the false raingutter mounts. Cut to match the length of the raingutter mounts, drilled through holes for the carriage bolts, and finished the ends with some square insert caps.
Now the raingutter brackets are extended outward from the tub by an additional 3/4"...
...so that when I put the soft tonneau back on,
It now clears the Yakima raingutter mount towers.
...and so I can run my soft tonneau at the same time as my Yakima gear. I can even still completely unsnap the tonneau, or even slide the whole frame on and off with the Yakima rack all still on there.
:ylsmoke:
Now the raingutter brackets are extended outward from the tub by an additional 3/4"...
...so that when I put the soft tonneau back on,
It now clears the Yakima raingutter mount towers.
...and so I can run my soft tonneau at the same time as my Yakima gear. I can even still completely unsnap the tonneau, or even slide the whole frame on and off with the Yakima rack all still on there.
:ylsmoke:
Mark Harley
Expedition Leader
Nice work on the spacers. Looks good and wolves the fit issue.