Pushing a TrailManor?

[rtcassel]

I am considering buying a 2720SL TM. It would be stored in a 2-car garage with a 15-feet wide door. The garage has a low ceiling in the back half (78 inches in height). In order to accommodate a rooftop AC, the hitch end would probably have to go into the garage first. The level concrete driveway is in excellent condition and consists of two parts that form a T. Part 1 leads into the garage and is 15 feet wide by 25 feet long. Part 2 is shared with a neighbor and is perpendicular to part 1. Part 2 is 10 feet wide by 66 feet long: 30 feet from street to part 1, 15 feet width of part 1, 21 feet past part 1. My question: Is it possible for a couple of people (reasonably fit wife and I) to push the TM into the garage after being unhitched in driveway part 2? Thank you.

Possibly, but if not, the best bet on an electric wench that would be perfect for what you're wanting to do is Harbor Freight. They have one that they put on sale periodically for $59.00 that has like a 2000lb dead lift capacity, and much more rolling capacity. All you would need is a good solid anchor point, and a car battery, (or other 12vdc source, and you're in business. Has a really long cable, and a remote control. I've considered using it for the same reason, but alas, I'd have to convert my hitch to the swing away to get it to fit, and NOTHING else would fit in my garage if I did put it in there anyway. The reason for the winch in my case is that the garage door is only 1" wider on each side than the TM is! Needless to say, I needed a very slow moving way to get it in without scraping anything.......(My driveway is on a steep incline hence the wench as well, so no way to hand push it in).

[glow=red,2,300]Happytrails.......[/glow]

I had a little bit of experience designing rail car pulling systems - pulling cars weighing over 100 tons during my career as a plant engineer for Allied Chemical Corp.

If your HF winch were on wheels, you would be able to pull your TM trailer out of the garage also. Otherwise, with a winch permanently mounted on the inside end of your garage, you'd be faced with the problem of how to back your trailer out by manual labor. With a winch on wheels, you could anchor it with ropes or a padded cable to a large tree outside of the garage and then pull the trailer out. Probably about 100 lb. of pulling force would more than suffice to roll the TM out. Lacking a large tree, you could bury a tire or two deeply in the ground (making sure that you fill the casings with soil) and use those as an anchor point.

By the way, HappyTrails, what kind of "Electric wench" does Harbor Freight sell. I haven't been to our local HF store for quite a while but if they're selling wenches, I sure am going to rush down there to see these (presumably) steroid-inflated females. I, of course, won't take my wife down to see them because I might be tempted to buy one for myself! Just poking fun at you!
;D ;D ;D ;D

When my wife and I bought our TM, we had to move it from the position it was parked into a garage due to rain. We put the wheel on the hitch and were able to push it about 50 feet. Since then, Cathy and I have repositioned it a couple of time to straighten it out on its designated parking spot at a campsite. Lesson learned from this was that you really should put the stabilizer up prior to trying to move it ;D, we forgot to put the one up far enough and pushed, and pushed, and pushed until I finaly deceided to check to see why it didn't move like it did the first time. Surprize :-[.

I'm 5'6 and Cathy is 5'5, both not too athletically sound. So, if we can do it you probably can too. Try it before you buy an expensive hand tow cart. Only other thing is try it on a level area or ensure you have chocks slightly in front of the wheels in case it starts rolling and you find yourself in a bad situation.

ColoradoCop 8)

[mjlaupp]

RT,
A trailer dolly would make the job much easier. You can guide the hitch end while pulling and someone could push from the rear. Go to http://www.northerntool.com and search for trailer dolly. You need the heavy duty dolly that sells for $99.99.
MJL

Larry, the winch is your typical run of the mill electric wench that has two alligator clip style connections for the 12v battery, and a remote to operate it. It's very small, less than a cubic foot, and fairly lightweight being only a few pounds. It's basically an "on the fly" type set up meaning it has a base plate that connects to it by slipping over three bolts on the bottom, and is designed to be simply placed over your hitch ball to pull your TV out of whatever muck you might find yourself stuck in, or to one of the hooks on the front of most SUV's and trucks. It's cheap, reliable, and Harbor Freight has the best price on it. When HF is selling it for $59.00, Northern Tool, which sells the exact same things sells the same one for like $79.00! Mike, yes, a tow dolly might serve them well if on flat ground, but Harbor Freight's got Northern beat hands down on that price for sure. (been a while since I've seen how much, but think it was 20 bucks cheaper for the heavy duty one as well). Lol, I will say Larry, I tend to stay outta HF for the same reasons I shy away from Walley World......walk in to buy a toothbrush, walk out spending at least $100.00 worth of stuff!

[glow=red,2,300]Happytrails..........[/glow]

P.S. Larry, this winch can be easily converted to a snowblower in the wintertime.......simply stick a shovel in her hand.......lol (Insert beatings here!) :P