Bike trailer question

favabean1982

Hello everyone-I'm getting back into cycling after too long of a hiatus and would love to get my children involved. My two-year old son has been begging to ride in the Bell bike trailer we purchased from a rummage sale a few years ago-it's in good shape, however the clamp that clamps around the bike frame itself has a bit of an issue in that the rubber on the clamp is starting to wear away, exposing the metal underneath. Although there's still a substantial amount of rubber left, there's enough metal exposed where, even if I just clamp it onto my bike for a moment, it scrapes away a bit of the finish (I just got a brand new black Trek).
Any thoughts on how I can protect the finish and still use the trailer? Should I wrap the clamp in tape or something along those lines? Is there a replacement part I can purchase somewhere, or should I just bite the bullet a purchase a new trailer? That last part would be a bit of a bummer, as the trailer's in good shape, so any thoughts on how to save it would be appreciated!

StillGoing

How old is your son? If he's not yet old enough to ride a bike, why would you want to drag him along behind you? Instead, get yourself a WeeRide seat that fits between the seat post and the handlebars and puts him infront of you. You can then talk to him, show him what you're seeing isntead of staring at your backside, see that he's safe and not going to be the first thing a car running into you hits. It also has the benefit of putting your arms either side of him for added protection.

https://youtu.be/izAH2r-AM9Q

If he can ride a bike, splash out on a Follow me tandem that puts your sons front wheel slightly in the air behind you. You drag him along until you reach somewhere where you simply unhook his bike and he can ride beside you.

https://www.followmetandem.co.uk/news/i ... icleshow=8

cyclingsheep

You could wrap the part of the frame you’re clamping to with an old inner tube. I do this with our tag-along. Before that I used a trailer with my kids, it was the only place I could guarantee they’d fall asleep which worked a treat for longer rides. It’s all about getting them used to being out with you and around bicycles.

cyclingsheep

If he can ride a bike, splash out on a Follow me tandem that puts your sons front wheel slightly in the air behind you. You drag him along until you reach somewhere where you simply unhook his bike and he can ride beside you.

Tag-alongs aren’t great for bikes smaller than 16” wheels as the angle ends up all wrong, also for long rides if they get tired you’re in trouble. The kid’s only 2. I rode through central London for years with my girls in a trailer and they were perfectly safe.

StillGoing

cyclingsheep wrote:

If he can ride a bike, splash out on a Follow me tandem that puts your sons front wheel slightly in the air behind you. You drag him along until you reach somewhere where you simply unhook his bike and he can ride beside you.

Tag-alongs aren’t great for bikes smaller than 16” wheels as the angle ends up all wrong, also for long rides if they get tired you’re in trouble. The kid’s only 2. I rode through central London for years with my girls in a trailer and they were perfectly safe.

If you look at the video for the follow me tandem, it takes a 14" wheel. I know this as my daughter is using a 14 Frog bike. The wheel is raised a couple of inches is all as recommended in the assembly instructions. My little one was on a balance bike at 2 and riding a pedal bike at 2.5 years, and loves getting towed on the main roads until we get to where she can be let loose. She can pedal along with me or just sit there and freewheel whilst attached. I wouldn't dream of taking her any distance that she can't comfortably manage without getting tired. And when she was only on the balance bike, we'd use the WeeRide to take her around.

slowbike

We had a trailer - connected via a quick-release - worth looking for a cheap/knackered trailer with that connection and swapping things around? Even with the rubber youll find that the clamp on does wear away the finish on the bike. My brother found that on a gentle ride to Paris - we put tape around his frame which helped (and stopped it slipping)

cyclingsheep wrote:

Tag-alongs aren’t great for bikes smaller than 16” wheels as the angle ends up all wrong, also for long rides if they get tired you’re in trouble.

I have a followme setup for my son on his Cnoc 14 - no wheels way up in the air - you adjust the followme bar so it sits where you want it.
They're expensive bits of kit - but, having used both the followme and a trailgator I can say that the followme is far superior in terms of rigidity and stability. If you're going to use it frequently (like we do - 2 miles each way to pre-school) then I'd suggest a followme - if you're only going to use it occasionally then you could get away with a trailgator.

Tiredness could be an issue - some toddlers don't nap - others need it - huge advantage of the followme is that it attaches with a quick-release - so you can have a rack & panniers or a childseat - so if you're going on a long ride then you can put them in that. Also - long rides, saddles - they could get sore ...

One last thing to remember - gearing - I worked out that at 10mph, Little Slowbike was going to have to pedal at about 130rpm ... and that doesn't change on the towing method...