Does the factory run extra trailer wiring to the back of the rig?

[Raddy & Mary]

Hi, I am thinking of towing a golf cart on a small trailer behind my 2015 38 GK. Since there is no longer a supplied pigtail included is the wiring harness run to the back and I just need to find and tie into it? Or would it be wiser to run and tuck under the bottom from front to back and then add a front removable pigtail so I can hook to the extra light plug on the tow vehicle? I did try to remove the tail light lens to see if there was room to add on there and drop inside down the back to the storage compartment. That is siliconed so tight it doesn't need screws! Never succeeded in getting the lens off for fear of breaking it. I did find a 100' spool of the proper wire from Northern Tool for 39.99. And of course after a few years of camping I have numerous connector ends in the spare wiring box!

Any thoughts or suggestions would be gladly welcomed...thanks, Raddy

[atom ant]

I would not count on Redwood having run wires to the back for the hitch. I never found any on mine.

If you are running brakes on that rear trailer, it might be wise to start from the pin box and run back. The brake wiring for that lenght should be at least 10 g for a single axle, maybe 8 g for double axle. You could come off the Redwood brake wiring, but that would put a lot of additional load on that wire + some heafty voltage drop if the Redwood wire gauge is too light for more than two axles.

If no brakes, or if its a surge brake, just grab the wiring harness off the frame in the rear that feeds the tailights and T tap right into it.

[Railcat]

You can access the taillight wires by either cutting an access hole in the thin plywood on both sides or just removing it. I wasn't happy with the plastic tub they used so I removed all the crappy balsa wood and plastic liner and used decking to floor the area, they used a nice steel frame so its very solid and easy to install the decking. Now I have access to all the wiring and have a larger more sturdier compartment. Let me see if I can post some pictures or a link.

[Railcat]

In the picture the wires that run on the aluminum rail are the tail light wires really easy to just tap into them. Here is the link the pictures are inside:http://www.redwoodowners.com/forums/...haul-2099.html

[Raddy & Mary]

You made it sound too easy guys and thanks for the pics too! Guess I will have to get busy.

Now if I can just keep "Barney" from pulling me over when I am tooling down the road.

Thanks for the replies, Raddy

[j1251b]

Originally Posted by Raddy & Mary

You made it sound too easy guys and thanks for the pics too! Guess I will have to get busy.

Now if I can just keep "Barney" from pulling me over when I am tooling down the road.

Thanks for the replies, Raddy

You may want to check with your insurance company about double towing. If you get in a accident they might not cover you.

[danrn]

Originally Posted by j1251b

You may want to check with your insurance company about double towing. If you get in a accident they might not cover you.

This is a good point, but I believe as long as you are following state laws you should be OK. Most states that allow triple tow have a 65 foot limit. That is my dilemma. My truck and RW is about 57 feet. That leaves me 8 feet to play with. So far I haven't found any working way to take my bike with me. I may end up having a trailer build that will allow me to load my bike sideways and keep the length under 8 feet. I know there are trailers out there that will allow me to do this, but either their tongue weight is too much for our RW's, or I will end up with a larger tail swing.

[Shane Wood]

Railcat
How well sealed from road grime and dust is that rear compartment without the plastic tub. I will do the same to mine if it will keep out the dust.is the frame boxed in or is it made of channel with the belly sheet keeping it enclosed?
thxs

[atom ant]

Originally Posted by j1251b

You may want to check with your insurance company about double towing. If you get in a accident they might not cover you.

That is a good point - I need to read mine again but I think my Good Sam insurance specifically excludes pulling a trailer in the back. I might be wrong, but I remember something catching my eye about that.

[Railcat]

Originally Posted by Shane Wood

Railcat
How well sealed from road grime and dust is that rear compartment without the plastic tub. I will do the same to mine if it will keep out the dust.is the frame boxed in or is it made of channel with the belly sheet keeping it enclosed?
thxs

It seems to be well sealed I have not had any issues with road grim or water entry. Last fall we pulled our Redwood over 4000 miles on a trip out west with no issues. It is made of rectangle steel tubing and yes the belly sheet is underneath the framed structure. I was able to cut decking boards and they fit in between the main frame rails so its pretty much sealed up. With the boards setting on the frame and the compartment structure the load capacity is huge you could put pretty much whatever you wanted to back there. Sure does beat the pos plastic tub.

[Dave&Ginny]

Originally Posted by danrn

This is a good point, but I believe as long as you are following state laws you should be OK. Most states that allow triple tow have a 65 foot limit. That is my dilemma. My truck and RW is about 57 feet. That leaves me 8 feet to play with. So far I haven't found any working way to take my bike with me. I may end up having a trailer build that will allow me to load my bike sideways and keep the length under 8 feet. I know there are trailers out there that will allow me to do this, but either their tongue weight is too much for our RW's, or I will end up with a larger tail swing.

I used to have some vintage Honda CT110s and this was the trailer that I found that I liked. I talked to several people with them and they all raved about how much they loved them. They aren't very long and lite weight. At the campground they're easy to just shove under the trailer for storage.

Strokers Dallas » Blog Archive Motorcycle Trailers - Strokers Dallas

I've personally talked to several state troopers from various states and they all said pretty much the same thing. If they see a 5th wheel pulling a second trailer from out of state, they assume it's legal in the state that the rig came from. Even in Illinois where I'd be too long, the state cops said they had more important things to worry about unless I caused an accident due to the extra length.

Due to the fact that the second trailer tracks on the outside (pretty much the same position as the truck), it would be easy to pull. Please keep in mind though, unless you're going a VERY short distance.....no backing up.

[johnboytoo]

FYI, I had a pigtail added to our 38gk as part of the sale...

He pulled out all the lights on the back and tied into those wires...

(but, maybe that's why my brake lights stopped working on the drive home today ??? )

thank goodness everything else, including the brakes, worked though !

now to fix that this month...