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Old October 19th 10, 02:09 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
doug
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Posts: 5
Default double wide trailer

On Oct 18, 10:40*pm, Tony wrote:
i know its been done a few times. *I've heard of a husband/wife duo of
Libelles that had a double trailer. *Also I've seen a double 1-26 open
trailer. *Leah and I only have one pickup but two gliders and tend to
like to go places together. *I'd like to solicit opinions (dangerous
thing to do here!) on how you would design a trailer to fit two
gliders, namely two Cherokee II's. *It may require some creativity as
they have a fixed center section approx 3 ft wide. *I'd like something
enclosed. *Stable while empty or with one or both gliders loaded.


We have used ordinary utility trailers hauling up 4 SparrowHawks at
one time (just fits in a 24 footer with double racks for wings above
the fuselage) The big question is how long the wings are. That is
usually what determines the length of the trailer. The 24 footer my
friend has weighs about 3500 lbs. empty and my dad has a lighter 22'
trailer that weighs around 3000 lbs. I imagine that with the chord of
the Cherokee wing, you could probably make a rack for one wing on each
wall and the other 2 overhead (We screwed a 2X4 to each wall to
support another 2X4 bridging across. The weight of the wings and
where you can support them obviously might require something a little
different). The trailers are about 8' wide inside, so the two
fuselages should fit. Might have to have them nose to tail so you can
get around them. We just have the fuselage sitting on the dolly and
tie it down with cargo straps. Both trailers (one's a Haulmark and
the other is an Interstate) have elastomeric suspensions and tandem
axles. They ride very nicely, so the gliders don't get beat up.
Price wise, they are hard to beat also. 5 years ago, they were around
$7K - $8K new. That and a little wood for racks and it is a lot
cheaper than a Cobra for one glider. I saved the secret benefit for
last - once the gliders are set up, you have a nice, shady "club
house" to hang out in.