View Full Version : After Market Tongue Modifications
In order to fit my new-to-me 1999 TM 2720SL in the garage, I'll need to have the tongue modified so part of it is removable. I understand from the local dealer that a swing-around tongue can be ordered from the factory with new models. For after market modifications, the tongue has to be cut, the ends of the tongue pieces sealed, a "sleeve" made for the tongue pieces and pins added. Has anyone had this done? I've looked at the tongue of the SL model and wonder how it will work, with the propane tanks mounted on their sides and the spare tire mounted underneath. I also wonder how this will all hold together. This is my first trailer and I questioned that the pin holding the hitch in the receiver would actually do its job. :)
However, made it up and over the Grapevine without problems when I brought the trailer home from north of Modesto to southern California. As an aside, it towed like a dream up the Grapevine. Did have weight distribution hitch with sway bar. Used 3rd gear in my GMC Safari RWD with AC off; maintained speed of 45-50 mph. Engine temp below 210 (the mid-point) without a transmission cooler, which I need to have installed. Nice to know the trailer handles well and the van can handle the load.
Would appreciate feedback from anyone who has had the tongue or rear bumper modified to fit in a storage place.
This forum is a wonderful source of info. What good timing that the "New Trailmanor owners" thread is going on now! Have really learned a lot about Trailmanors from all of you.
Collette
1999 GMC Safari Van
1999 TM 2720SL
As part of the negotiations for our trailer, our dealer offered and agreed to modify the tongue on our trailer. Being that it was done in his shop, I would refer to it as "after market". Ours was probably one of the first to be done. (Our dealer has proven creative many times, his ideas haven been adopted by the factory and other dealers). The idea originated by the elderman who delivers trailers cross country for TrailManor, he was present to assist in making the offer.
About thirty inches of tongue can be removed. We also had the rear tire moved to the front, under the trailer. Without this being done, our trailer still wouldn't have fit into a garage. Also, the rear bumper was moved forward about four (?) inches. As it is, the garage door closed with about one-two inches of clearance. If the trailer is at a slight angle, the door won't close. I believe the garage that I was storing it in is about 20 feet. If we were to rent a garage, I would need to measure the depth of the garage first and maybe try out the trailer in it. It is close.
It all seems very stable and strong. Ours is made up with two (not one) three inch shafts each sliding through 3" square tubes, just like the one through which you presently slide your trailer hitch. (I believe it is called a receiver). Each of these is locked into place by pins of the same type that holds your trailer hitch to the receiver. I could even use one of the locking pins if I were to feel someone might mess with it.
I would recommend that you measure your garage and the final length of your trailer. We wouldn't get the door to close if we hadn't had the spare tire removed and the rear bumper shortened.
Ours is a 1999 2720. I didn't realize that the tongue could be shortned on the SL. Also our tongue does not swing around but once both pins are removed the shafts are pulled out of the double receivers and the unit is physically carried or drug to the side and out of the way of the door.
For a true answer, you should call Donnie Pilkington at the TrailManor factory. He might even send the Delivery man to your dealer to supervise the job.
If you were to wish, I could photograph my tongue (& rear bumper) and send it to you.
By the way, I don't look forward to having to gain access to the spare tire. While it is near the front, whenever the trailer should have a flat, it sits quite low. That means that after it is raised up by a jack, the spare needs to be lowered. Just like on many SUVs, my tire is suspened on a chain and is raised or lowered by a crank.
Would I do it again? It now costs about $300.00. We store our trailer on a carport and having the longer dimension wouldn't make any difference. Acually, we do have to remove the tongue in order to get the gate shut. Yes, I would consider it.
Hal:o
Addendum to my previous message on the topic of retrofitting the tongue.
In the process, the batteries and propane tanks needed to be removed from the first three feet of the tongue. As a result, it was too tight a fit for the top to close down. It would hit the batteries. So, a strong cage had to be built that made the tops of the batteries just below the top edge of the tongue frame. I can still barely access the batteries which rest in this cage below the tongue and when the top is down. The propane bottles were placed in a position where the top just clears them when it is closing. I did have a bit of a problem with the bottle cover which is made of stiff plastic. To remedy this problem, I was able to trim the bottom of the cover to a point leaving the second flange. The cover was designed to fit over taller bottles anyway, so no mine fits perfectly. I can get measurements for my set up but must be requested pretty soon as our trailer will be going into winter storage.
Hal
Hal,
We have a 2720 that was probably modified after yours. Our is about an 18" cut. Still, this is enough that we were able to fit the trailer in our garage now.
It seems the modification is very similar to yours in all other respects.
Our spare tire is also moved under the tongue, but the battery and propane tanks sit in front of the tire and there seems to be plenty of room to reach the battery and spare tire.
The propane tanks overhang the removable section of the tongue, so we really only shorten the trailer by about 14 or so inches. If you post pictures, I will do the same if ours looks different.
The dealer in Arizona (Van's) mentioned somebody from California does this work. I've also heard this may be available from the factory as well.
One interesting aside. Load equalizing bars, at least the EAZ-Lift and Reese brands I've used, both have brackets that mount to the trailer. Our EAZ-Lift brackets mount to the fixed part of the trailer, just behind the chop. Seems if this isn't measured out properly, the added cross beams may get in the way of these brackets.
Jon
Wow, Hal, what great drawings!!! Thank you so much for doing them--what they say about a picture being worth a thousand words is soooooooooo true. Now, I understand how the modifications are made. Jon.M, does yours look like this?
I'm in California and probably spoke to the person that you and Jon.M both referred to. He was very helpful! As soon as I clean out my garage :( and can back the trailer in to see how much I'll need to take off the tongue, I'll make an appointment to have the work done. It is good to hear that you and Jon.M are happy with the modifications made to the tongues on your trailers.
One question, though, on what does the remaining part of the tongue rest when you remove the front part?
Also, the battery in my 1999 2720SL is in a rear storage compartment. Is the battery normally stored on the tongue or is that a feature of the SL models?
Thank you again, Hal; I really appreciate the drawings! They are great!!!
Because of updating the drawing, I erased the earlier response and the attachment showing the drawings of the detachable tongue. I hope this doesn't cause confusion for anyone. In response to Jon, I had answered that it is true that the brackets for the equalizer are effected by cutting off the tongue. Actually, I can trim 33 inches off the length of the trailer. Then by the fact that the rear bumper was shortened, the garage door is just barely (1-2") clear the front of the trailer.
Now in place of the first drawings are an update which includes much more detail.
Collette, in response to your questions:
1- When the tongue has been removed, the trailer sits on its front jacks, or in my case on two cinderblocks padded with a 2x6 board. Be sure that the heighth of these blocks is identical as the trailer will be in a twist and might cause the frame to warp over a period of time.
2- On the most recent models of the TrialManor Trailers, the battery (ies) are installed in a compartment at the rear of the trailer. On mine (1999) the batteries originally sat on the tongue. Based on the drawing, you will see they are now resting in a cage that is below the level of the tongue.
Hal
Hal,
Thank you for the new drawings! They are very clear and detailed. Having the actual dimensions of the tongue with modifications is quite helpful. I'm going to print out the drawings and take them to the lot where I have my 2720SL temporarily stored. Will measure the tongue based on your drawings. I'm curious to see how much can be cut off because of the placement of the propane tanks and spare tire on the 2720SL and the brackets of the weight distribution hitch.
Thanks too for the tip about making sure the trailer is level while stored (and, of course, while in use.) I noticed some bubble levels attached to the outer wall of the trailer. Will use those to make sure it is level when I store it.
When I went to the storage lot today to do some cleaning in the trailer, I looked at the spare tire. I see what you mean about it being a problem when the trailer has a flat. It would be very difficult to get to. Guess I better figure out how to deal with that before I really need to.
Thank you very, very much for the drawings of the tongue modifications. They are great!!! I appreciate your help.
Collette
Hal,
Thank you for the new drawings! They are very clear and detailed. Having the actual dimensions of the tongue with modifications is quite helpful. I'm going to print out the drawings and take them to the lot where I have my 2720SL temporarily stored. Will measure the tongue based on your drawings. I'm curious to see how much can be cut off because of the placement of the propane tanks and spare tire on the 2720SL and the brackets of the weight distribution hitch.
Thanks too for the tip about making sure the trailer is level while stored (and, of course, while in use.) I noticed some bubble levels attached to the outer wall of the trailer. Will use those to make sure it is level when I store it.
When I went to the storage lot today to do some cleaning in the trailer, I looked at the spare tire. I see what you mean about it being a problem when the trailer has a flat. It would be very difficult to get to. Guess I better figure out how to deal with that before I really need to.
Thank you very, very much for the drawings of the tongue modifications. They are great!!! I appreciate your help.
Collette
Collette, even more important than the trailer being level when stored is that the frame jacks have equal lift on the trailer. You can almost tell by looking if the trailer is in a twist. This is the concern that I had warned you about.
You are quite welcome for the drawings. As to the amount that can be trimmed off by a removable tongue, I think ours is just right. Any less and we just wouldn't get the garage door closed. Then the expense and benefits would be for naught.
Hal
Hal,
Thanks for clarifying what you meant. I'd never heard of "twist" before in regard to a trailer. I will make sure that there is equal lift on the jacks when I store it. So many new things to learn about these rigs!
Thanks again for the info and the drawings.
Collette
We bought a 2720 which measures 20'3" end to end. Our garage can fit 19'11". A simple way to gain four inches to make the rear bumper removable. We also have the spare tire fitting into a square socket to the bumper adapter since removing the bumper with the tire together would be quite heavy. The bumper has welded plates that slide into the 2"x5" frame members. There are pins which secure.
We lay the rear bumper and spare tire down on the garage floor underneath the TM. The rear bumper serves as a tire travel stop so that the tail lights are a mere 1/2" from the rear wall of the garage.
We also made a swiveling wheel adapter for the hitch end post so that we can push it around in the driveway, into the garage. But don't consider this unless you are strong enough to control 3000lbs on whatever grade is present and have help for guidance.
Glad to hear that you only had to modify the rear bumper to fit your TM in your garage. The dealer said that they could modify the rear bumper and/or the tongue depending on how much space I need. I just need to clean out the garage to see how much I'll need to take off the length. My garage is about 19 ft 6 inches, so I think I'll need to modify the tongue.
You mentioned you had made a "swiveling wheel adapter for the hitch end post ." What does this look like and how does it operate? I only have a slight incline up into the garage; but, I am concerned about the strength it would take to move the TM into the garage. I looked at the website for the Powercaster recommended by Jon. Looks pretty handy...
Thanks for the info.
Collette
Unfortunately, the taillights become the contact point after the four inches gained by rear bumper removal. To go under 19'6" you're looking at a hitch mod.
I bought a 6" caster with a polyurethane wheel from a caster supply house. It did require an insert in the cup of the caster to make it slip fit over the end of the post.
I, however, would not advise this unless you're exceedingly strong, not afraid of great exertion, and you know well the grades on which you'll be pushing. While it rolls nicely on concrete, the trailer weight is enormous and can easily get away from you. The first time we pushed it the front caster wheel slipped off the driveway edge into the grass and I had a lever it back on with a long steel bar.
The motorized dolly sounds like a good idea if cost is in range for you.
Received an e-mail from TrailManor yesterday.
"See the new swing-away tongue at:
http://www.trailmanor.com/garage.htm
WOW!
TrailManor has email? :o
The swing hitch link worked great, but I can't find access to it from the main web site. Can anyone else?
Are there any other non-linked web pages of interest?
Thanks!
I guess I'm on their email list because I requested a brochure via their webpage and I'm on the distribution list. I see the link to the swing-around hitch on the bottom left of their homepage:http://www.trailmanor.com/index.html
I think they just added it; I don't remember seeing it there a couple of days ago.
I like being on their distribution list; I've received notices of sales and most recently of the big RV show in Pomona, CA. It does have info at the bottom of each message about how to get off the distribution list--so far the traffic on the list has been very light.
BTW, my trailer is at the local dealer having the after market tongue modification made--as well as having some other minor, I think, things fixed. For the tongue modifications, they do exactly what Hal's drawings show in an earlier message. Thanks, Hal!!! Will let you know how the modification works when I get it back...they've been busy at the RV show...and I'm not in a hurry.
Wow, the tongue modification that Custom RV in Anaheim, CA, made on my 1999 TM is great!!! The craftsmanship is surperb; everyone I showed it to on my Thanksgiving camping trip was very impressed with it! It looks much like Hal's drawing, except my TM tongue has a spare tire underneath and two horizontal propane bottles, which had to be moved slightly. They welded the sway control bar to the front piece of the tongue frame since it needs to be right where the tongue splits. In addition, they welded pieces of metal on each side of where the tongue splits to which they attached safety chains; these chains are joined by a bolt [that I don't know the name of.] It seems very safe! I was pleased with how very easy it was to take apart and that the front of the tongue was not as heavy as I expected. Now, the TM fits into the garage.
Collette
Collette, I am glad the removable tongue works for you and that you can get your trailer into your garage. It is the only way we could get ours into the garage as well. By the way, the new swing around idea looks nice. It would appear that by the fact it "hinges" and swings around, that it is no longer necessary to have to lift the heavy removal part when removing or reinstalling it. I do notice that the removable style does shorten the trailer considerably more than the swing around. Our set up shortens the trailer by 36 inches, while, if I recall, the swing around is considerable less (18"??) Thus the swing around may not be for everyone as in our case, it would not shorten our trailer enough to get the garage door shut.
By the way, our spare tire does hang under the tongue framework that is back under the trailer. It will be a bit more difficult to get at if I have a flat and the trailer is lowered by the flat. But then, I don't expect to have a flat. Also, because the tire is hanging down, its clearance is much difference, especially for tops of ramps or other high points such is in backing it into our garage. It is necessary for us to back our car tire onto a couple 2x6s in order to rase the trailer for enough clearance. While this is a problem, we would not be able to store our trailer at home without the removable tongue.
Hal
I should have checked my own drawing for measurements. This drawing was posted in this thread a bit earlier. According to measurements I made when making this drawing, the removable portion shortens the trailer by 33 inches. I checked the TrailManor site and found that it removes 24 inches. While the latter is a few inches more than I stated in my last message, it would still not be enough to get my garage door closed. As a matter of fact, there is a one inch clearance for the door as it slides past my trailer front. For those of you that have the proper clearance, it is a great idea. You should take measurements before expending the money for it. By the way, my trailer was shortened by removing the spare tire from the rear and shortening the overhang of the rear bumper. My spare tire is now hanging horizontally under the front of the trailer box. My batteries are in an angle iron box that allows the batteries to be low enough for clearance when the front section is closed.
Hal
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