Bob Yak trailer V Topeak Journey bike trailer

[RST Scout]

Has anyone got experience of using a Topeak Journey bike trailer? I'm aware Thorn/SJS advise the Bob Yak which is cro-mo but the Topeak one is aluminium and therefore lighter. I accept that it may not last as long as the Yak but then I'm very careful with my things and will NOT be going beyond Europe.

Janet

[jags]

Janet why u want a trailer

[RST Scout]

To do away with loading the bike.

[bobs]

I think  you will find towing a trailer very awkward  and only encourage you to take more. On our last trip we were waiting to get off the Newcastle to Amsterdam  Ferry and spoke to a couple who had a trailer  and a full set of panniers.  I asked them if they were camping,  no they said we are staying in hotels. One of them then proceed to blow up his tyre with a track pump. We only had rear panniers.

Bob

[jags]

Why oh why would people carry that amount of useless gear can't understand it meself.fully convinced two rear panniers barbag is the way to go.

[bobs]

Have to  agree Anto,  I've managed to cut what I take down to barbag and 2 rear panniers.  Keeping everything under the weight limit when flying and is much easier to handle.

Bob

[RST Scout]

On our last trip we were waiting to get off the Newcastle to Amsterdam  Ferry and spoke to a couple who had a trailer  and a full set of panniers.  I asked them if they were camping,  no they said we are staying in hotels. One of them then proceed to blow up his tyre with a track pump. We only had rear panniers.

Bob

Good Lord, that's extreme   I wouldn't be doing anything like that. A trailer is very handy for shopping. I already have a CarryFreedom City (2 wheel) trailer but I still can't get used to the width and keep getting it jammed against the kerb (and other things!). I just wondered if a single wheeled trailer would be better for shopping/touring.

Janet

[bobs]

Janet,

I thought that the trailer would be for touring,  but if you are using it for shopping  only I can see it it would be useful. But I still think that they are brute to handle.

Bob

[RST Scout]

Mmmm they can be awkward, especially when you are trying to slalom round gates on footpaths. Very difficult when you have a full months worth of dog and cat food on board

[Pavel]

loading the bike up, especially when using Carradice panniers - is sexy.  Skip that heavy, expensive, cumbersome, high-drag, flat prone, bound to get hit by lightning, ugly, complicated,jacknifing trailer Janet. 
Thorns were meant to carry weight, the manly, Carradice way.  Loads of it.

[martinf]

I already have a CarryFreedom City (2 wheel) trailer but I still can't get used to the width and keep getting it jammed against the kerb (and other things!). I just wondered if a single wheeled trailer would be better for shopping/touring.

Most tourers I see with trailers have the single-wheel type. They used to be much commoner here in France when I first arrived in the early 80's. One big advantage over a two wheeler for touring is that a single-wheel trailer can use narrow paths.

For touring I prefer to load up the bike rather than have the hassle of a trailer (wear on the hitch, a different size of tyre to replace). AFAIK a single-wheel trailer can't take more than about 40 Kg, which is just about doable on a Thorn Raven Tour in front/rear panniers plus bags strapped onto the rear rack, though not on a Raven Sport Tour, where a trailer might make more sense.

But under most circumstances, I don't need that amount of stuff. For a one-month trip in Spain front and rear panniers were quite enough. Total weight of luggage including 2 x 1 litre water bottles and the weight of the bags themselves was about 23Kg at the start of the trip, when I had about half a rear pannier taken up with surplus food from home that would otherwise have gone to waste. With a bit more planning I could easily have reduced the initial load by at least 5 Kg.

I do use a big and heavy two wheel trailer for really heavy loads (over about 40 Kg, heaviest so far about 130 Kg) and some bulky loads, but only for utility purposes, not touring. I have managed to overturn this trailer once, when running empty, going a bit too fast on a roundabout with a fairly deep pothole. This kind of accident is not an issue with a single-wheel trailer, but a single-wheeler is insufficient for most of my trailer loads.

I am not so bothered about the width of a two-wheel trailer. I have a mirror on the towing bike and frequently check the position of the trailer with respect to the kerb, like I do when driving motor vehicules.

[energyman]

Difficult to park two !

[Bill C]

haven't used a topeak trailer but have had a bob for approx 9-10 years
the weight dif between the topeak and the bob is only 650g
the bob yak weighs about the same as front and rear surly racks with carradice super c's fitted so no real dif there.

the bob trailer catches the wind/drags a lot less than two sets of panniers, it tows really well you often end up checking to see it's still there, it lets you know its there on the hills though with the extra drag from another wheel

been car free for about 8 years my bob has been used quite a bit, it has carried stupid amounts of shopping,plus loads of trips to the dump, 
if you intend touring i'd take a spare bob skewer as i have had one break, apart from that its been a real workhorse
best bit is if you intend to travel to one place with your camping kit then go on day rides on a nice light bike not weighed down with racks n crap

i rarely ride my sherpa as with full touring kit (racks dynamo lights large bottle cages) it's not the best bike for daily use, if i ditched the racks n crap and used bob instead just when needed the bike would be usable on a daily basis, but it will stay set up as it is.
if you are ill while away bob can be a pain though as the trains don't much like bike trailers, where as racks n panniers are no problem

I prefer single wheel trailers as they track virtually in the same tyre track as your rear wheel, and are about the same width as your pedals, upshot is you ride like normal
parking needs a bit of thought , ride up close to a wall and lean bob against it and the bike stays upright, but if your on a slope you'll need a strap to keep one of the brakes on to stop it rolling

it was mentioned up thread about jackknifing only ever had it happen a couple of times and that was off road scrambling down steep slopes if you doing that on a regular basis then i'd unhitch bob and carry stuff down,
if bob had a drag brake it would be awesome
mmmmm i wonder new bob wheel with a drum brake? is that doable?

panniers or bob? i use both and at Christmas i used both together for the Lidl shop 

sorry can't help about the topeak but can't imagine it would be much different to bob in use
ATB Bill

[RST Scout]

haven't used a topeak trailer but have had a bob for approx 9-10 years
the weight dif between the topeak and the bob is only 650g
the bob yak weighs about the same as front and rear surly racks with carradice super c's fitted so no real dif there.

the bob trailer catches the wind/drags a lot less than two sets of panniers, it tows really well you often end up checking to see it's still there, it lets you know its there on the hills though with the extra drag from another wheel

been car free for about 8 years my bob has been used quite a bit, it has carried stupid amounts of shopping,plus loads of trips to the dump, 
if you intend touring i'd take a spare bob skewer as i have had one break, apart from that its been a real workhorse
best bit is if you intend to travel to one place with your camping kit then go on day rides on a nice light bike not weighed down with racks n crap

i rarely ride my sherpa as with full touring kit (racks dynamo lights large bottle cages) it's not the best bike for daily use, if i ditched the racks n crap and used bob instead just when needed the bike would be usable on a daily basis, but it will stay set up as it is.
if you are ill while away bob can be a pain though as the trains don't much like bike trailers, where as racks n panniers are no problem

I prefer single wheel trailers as they track virtually in the same tyre track as your rear wheel, and are about the same width as your pedals, upshot is you ride like normal
parking needs a bit of thought , ride up close to a wall and lean bob against it and the bike stays upright, but if your on a slope you'll need a strap to keep one of the brakes on to stop it rolling

it was mentioned up thread about jackknifing only ever had it happen a couple of times and that was off road scrambling down steep slopes if you doing that on a regular basis then i'd unhitch bob and carry stuff down,
if bob had a drag brake it would be awesome
mmmmm i wonder new bob wheel with a drum brake? is that doable?

panniers or bob? i use both and at Christmas i used both together for the Lidl shop 

sorry can't help about the topeak but can't imagine it would be much different to bob in use
ATB Bill

Thanks for that Bob.
I have a little confession. One of the reasons that I am looking at a new trailer is my dog who will have to come with me. He currently has a very solid German dog trailer that weighs a ton I was looking for something a bit lighter.
Here's a photo or our current set-up.





Janet

[Danneaux]

I...can't look at those photos without smiling! 

Best,

Dan.