Hauling a dirt bike
 

I'm looking to haul my dirt bike with my FEH and was thinking about getting a hitch hauler instead of a trailer. Something like this: http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/te...131&hasJS=true

My bike weight about 340. Any thought or help would be much appreciated.

Re: Hauling a dirt bike
 

Technically this will work. However, I'm not sure how happy you would be with it. The weight limit (tongue) for a Class II hitch is 350 lbs so you should go to a Class III hitch for this carrier. You would be putting all that weight cantilevered off the rear end. My guess is it would feel like you had 1000 lbs in the back seat.

If I were doing this, I would get a lightweight utility trailer (less than $500). I think it would be easier handling and give you a lot more flexibility in what you could do with it.

Re: Hauling a dirt bike
 

KenG makes some good points. As a long time RV'er, and a pilot, Weight & balance, Weight Moment, and Center of Gravity, are all important. The 350lb. weight by itself doesn't sound like much, but the class III hitch would be the only one I would consider. The relatively long WB on the FEH compared to the overall length wouldn't make the 'moment' too terribly bad. Moment is easy - the further back the weight is, the heavier it is (like picking up a hammer or axe from the end of the handle).

I wouldn't be too concerned doing this for short/infrequent trips, but for long duration or frequent intervals, I like KenG's suggestion to use a lightweight utility trailer. Using that same analogy, I cut/haul a lot of firewood, and I use a Ford Ranger 3.0L V6 engine, manual tranny with a Class III hitch. I load up my 5' X 8' utility axle utility trailer REAL heavy, but I only do it maybe 5 times a year, and only get wood in the local vicinity, so it's not like driving hundreds of miles with this extra strain on the engine/drivetrain.

Consider your total usage and choose accordingly.