Trailers: Two Wheels or One?

Hi. I bought the the Kool stop trailer (single wheel) & intended to use on my first tour (750 miles) but later decided against a trailer as it was my first tour & was sceptical of what problems I may get, (not from a trailer, but just from the tour itself) so i used panniers, but i'd gladly use a trailer now.

I use the trailer weekly for my supermarket shopping, it's great with one wheel as it just goes with the flow of the bike...no need to take tight corners cautiously as it just follows in line with the rear wheel, when unloaded you really don't know it's there. I think the BOB version looks better though, the cage design, & alos the option for the suspension model is good.

I found this a few months back, worth considering: the wewbsite shows some pretty demanding terain video shots, though i'm not sure of it's mechanical longevity..
extrawheel.comindex en.phpOpen ↗

Mark. UK

I have had a bob travelling at 80kph without a problem.
Single wheel trailers are generally narrower than two wheelers and the wheel is in line with the bike which makes dodging potholes easier and you dont have a second wheel to worry about hanging off the pavement on narrow or rough roads.
Personally I prefer panniers as I feel there is less drag in the mountains and using public transport is a lot easier without a trailer.

GTWilliams said:

Let's presume I decide to use a trailer and I will not be off-roading. It seems to me the Burly Nomad has some nice features e.g. two wheels isn't tippy when you stop.

What are some of your experiences on one wheel vs two wheel trailers? (BOB vs Nomad)

I have pulled a home made BOB clone, fully loaded, behind my recumbent for a total of over 1,700 miles -- loved it.

I have pulled the Nomad from SF to San Diego without any problems. I thought it felt extremely stable and loading it up everyday was a breeze. I didn't have to worry about propping the trailer up against something so it wouldn't tip over. What's also nice about the trailer is that it's actually pretty light on it's own. When I took the Amtrak back, all I had to do was take the attachment arm off and they took the trailer loaded. Downhill or uphill, I didn't feel that much of a difference in regards to handling.

I really like the way the interior is designed also. Besides two mesh pockets on the sides, the main compartment can be divided in half from left to right. The only problem I've had is when some of my belongings got a bit dirty when I was riding through rain in Washington. The rear wheel was kicking up water, which got in underneath the rain fly in the front compartment.

Contact me if you have any more questions about the Nomad.

GTWilliams said:

What are some of your experiences on one wheel vs two wheel trailers? (BOB vs Nomad)

I rode from Central PA ultimately to Ocracoke Island, NC. with a BOB in tow. I traveled about 1200 miles and had not one problem. While training I had a rack and panniers and it made my bike so unbalanced it was scary. I can't imagine bringing a two wheeled trailer but I haven't tried it. I would recommend a BOB to anyone.

Good Luck!

I agree with the comments on a BOB, it kinda makes the bike more stable. I would add one comment though - in a hot climate they can be a bit of a drag and take it outta you. I would rather have the unsteady panniers when I am cycling in Southeast Asia.

My experience?

If you need a trailer (any number of wheels), you have too much stuff.

Awww...without a trailer, you can't take pictures like this:
img.photobucket.comCACoast039.jpgOpen ↗

I put about 10,000m on my last BOB and my only two complaints are:
It was unstable at high speed and it was a pain to pack for air travel. Other than that, it was great.

I now own a Burly (made in the US) and the main reason I got it is because of it's portability. It breaks down in a minute or two. I haven't had a chance to take it out yet unfortunately.

Kool Stop makes a couple neat designs worth looking at and they also break down.

BOB stability is usually related to how it is packed.

Pack heavy stuff low and don't put a heap of stuff on top of the bag as a top heavy overloaded BOB may cause more than a few wobbles.🙂

Whoever originally thought up the BOB trailer, seems to have pretty much perfected the design right off. I've pulled one a few thousand miles and it works great.

The one thing that I think would improve the BOB would be one of those double kickstands, that I saw a picture of on some forum thread once. It was homemade. It was a stand that was attached to the bottom/front of the BOB, and when you put it down, it actually picked the rear wheel of the bike off the ground an inch or so, and looked like it was very stable for the whole rig.