new owner 2012 Jay Series 1007 - added a rear tow hitch!

[flyinglion]

Already had a rear tow hitch installed on the 1007 for attaching and carrying my hitch mounted bike rack.

I choose this option as my same bike rack can then be used in both situations; when we are going camping and when you drop the camper at the site you can then move the bike rack to the car hitch.

If anyone is interested and/or curious, the tow hitch we used was a 2003 Honda Odyssey DrawTite. The hitch had a "few mods" in order for it to be mounted with grade 8 bolts through the camper frame. And the hitch receiver sits just below the bumper line for a nice tight clean look.

Once I get bikes loaded I'll add more pics.

Also.....I guess 'Jayco' doesn't ever think you'll lift your trailer up in the air and have a good look at what's underneath..... I found a lot of SLOPPY and SHABBY quality work. The diamond plate which is in front and rear had many many staples that were not even stapled correctly and some where half out, missed the plate completely. And holes through the camper floor for wires were not sealed good at all.

[flyinglion]

As promised, here are a few more photos of the rear hitch I added onto our pop-up with our recumbent bikes loaded. The last photo is the rack moved from pop-up to the car after setting up camp and driving to the trailhead. It sure did work great this past weekend.

[okieinalaska]

Looks great! Scary to see the camper up that high though, lol.

[micklouie]

Could you send some shot of the mounting area? I have a really nice swing arm Thule Bike Rack that we hook to our mini van. I would like to take our bikes along.We love our 1007 Jayco.

Thanks,
Mike

[William]

I thank all campers should have hitches like that from the factory it will cost me $269 to $369 for a custom fab hitch for mine. I do like your recumbent bikes I hav a canondel recumbent.

[Txblue]

Flying lion,
I have read my manual on my 2013 jayco looking for bike rack options as I too wanted to load bikes. They don't recommend loading anything other than a tire because the weight of anything bouncing may stress the frame. let me know how things go after some use because I would like to mount some bikes.

[yaluyg]

did you install hitch on to 1007 yourself? We have the same issue...new 5 bike carrier for hitch on van, want to use it on back of new 2014-1007. Do you recommend doing the same, now that you have had it for a summer?

[Tail_gunner]

I'd like to add a cautionary note concerning center of gravity and trailer sway.

When you have the bikes on the back end of the pop-up, IT WILL reduce the weight on the ball AKA tongue weight. Any time you have an inadequate amount of tongue weight you are in danger of a significant to severe swaying of the trailer behind your tow vehicle. Generally you need at least 10% to 15% of the total trailer weight on the ball to ensure the trailer tracks straight & true.

So when you have the bikes on the back end, make sure you have your cargo and equipment loaded inside the camper with the heavier items loaded as far forward as you can get them.

[flyinglion]

sorry gang, hadn't been around here in awhile..... I stopped in to find an answer to why my water heater won't start and saw all the posts here.

Most of your questions can be answered if you read my first post carefully. I took the camper to a professional hitch installer who installs DrawTite hitches. He was willing to work with me in finding a solution to the problem. I worked by his side during the fab work and install. We used a DrawTite 2003 Honda Odyssey tow hitch that he had laying around the shop......it was a near match to length and depth. The hitch was cut and diced in a few spots, welded in a few other spots for mounting tabs, then was mounted to the pop-up trailer frame using grade 8 bolts through the frame rails. Bolts were horizontal to the ground for superior strength through the hitch and frame. I'll see if I can get some new pics taken since there is quite the interest.

Only used the pop-up with bikes in tow 3x last year. All 3 times we carried a full tank of water, 20lb propane, and deep cycle battery as we were dry camping on each occasion. No problems with bike rack to date.

[flyinglion]

Originally Posted by Tail_gunner

I'd like to add a cautionary note concerning center of gravity and trailer sway.

When you have the bikes on the back end of the pop-up, IT WILL reduce the weight on the ball AKA tongue weight. Any time you have an inadequate amount of tongue weight you are in danger of a significant to severe swaying of the trailer behind your tow vehicle. Generally you need at least 10% to 15% of the total trailer weight on the ball to ensure the trailer tracks straight & true.

So when you have the bikes on the back end, make sure you have your cargo and equipment loaded inside the camper with the heavier items loaded as far forward as you can get them.

I need less tongue weight not more! The bike rack and our 2 bikes might be 55lbs-60lbs total and in the grand scheme of things doesn't make a difference.

[Matt Chapter]

Originally Posted by flyinglion

I need less tongue weight not more! The bike rack and our 2 bikes might be 55lbs-60lbs total and in the grand scheme of things doesn't make a difference.

Actually, what you appear to need is a taller step up on your hitch. As do I. Here's how you know.

1) Park your trailer on level ground, raise the tongue so the tongue is level.
2) Measure the height from the bottom of the trailer hitch to the ground.
3) Put your TV on level ground, loaded as you would be for camping ( or a reasonable facsimile of weight and distribution, this is critical to correct measurements)
4)Measure from the top of the receiver (not the TV hitch) to the ground.
5) subtract figure 2 from figure 1, that is how much step up (or down) you need

[flyinglion]

Originally Posted by Matt Chapter

Actually, what you appear to need is a taller step up on your hitch. As do I. Here's how you know.

1) Park your trailer on level ground, raise the tongue so the tongue is level.
2) Measure the height from the bottom of the trailer hitch to the ground.
3) Put your TV on level ground, loaded as you would be for camping ( or a reasonable facsimile of weight and distribution, this is critical to correct measurements)
4)Measure from the top of the receiver (not the TV hitch) to the ground.
5) subtract figure 2 from figure 1, that is how much step up (or down) you need

I was being a little sarcastic with tail gunner on his tongue weight comment by posting the pic of my sagging car which was heavy on the tongue. I apologize.
My SAAB Aero is more of a sport wagon with performance springs and is far from being a work horse. I realize I can purchase a different tow bar, it's hard to see in the pic but actually my rear springs are compressed severely and the real solution is adjustable rear springs or air bags on my rear suspension vs. getting a higher step up tow bar..... This would raise my tow point to just about right and level while making the car ride level as well, but for as often as we are traveling it hasn't been an issue to correct or worth the extra cash to get adjustable air bags.