Frazer island towing questions Help please

Post by **michael a** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 6:28 pm

Hey Guys,

I got a cub camper this week and going up to frazer in Feb.

Its got little wheels on the trailer like boat trailer wheels and only has 200mm from the axel to the ground. Is this going to caust me drama s on the inland tracks?

Has any one been up there this year?

I have a gq with a td42 it drives on the sand ok but my mate reckons I will have dramas if I take it.

What is awinya creek like?

Would this be the worst one to cross?

Cheers

Mike

Post by **badger** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 6:42 pm

eli creek is the worst crossing usually.
i would say that if the sand is soft you may want more clearance.
are the springs under or over the axel?

Post by **michael a** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 6:47 pm

yeah the springs are above axel already.

To lift the camper would be hard as its a fold over style so racks on top would need to be changed also annex would ot fit any more

Post by **bastard** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 7:18 pm

As long as you have 33s or bigger on the tow vehicle you should be allright run 16pds pressure if running anywere north of indian head,id run 16 everywere and then you could just scull drag the camper.The inland tracks wont be a problem,the only problems i could see is on and off the barge and places like indian head and nagala.The biggest mistake people make is not using low range in the soft stuff and running out of steam in the middle of a soft section,low range second gear works well generally at about 2800 revs and it would be hard to stop you.

Post by **bastard** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 7:21 pm

It would be a good idea to take spare set of wheel bearings and a spare hub,those little wheels turn pretty fast and on a long trip they get hot,we used to pull jet ski trailers up there with the little wheels and bearings were allways a probleme,not so much on frazer but from the trip up there.

Post by **Jeeps** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 7:31 pm

We were up there with a HEAVILY loaded camper trailor a few months back. My mate's t-case was playing up and it popped out of low range when he hit the sand and he became bogged at inskip getting onto the barge. I just reversed back and gave him and the trailor a tug and no worries. The biggest mistake we made was keeping the 31" trailor tyres at 30psi. Once they were down to about 18psi it towed a lot better.

We didn't take it through indian head but that would be a nightmare with a trailor, we barely made it through indian head without a trailor although it was badly chopped up at the time.

Some inland tracks could become a problem as i found out up there. I was coming back east on Cornwells Break Rd, a few hundred metres east of the Smith Rd intersection and came across a couple of Toyotas unable to make the climb up to the sandblow up over the dune - they just kept running out of puff. Even with my wrangler's big engine and a big run-up and no gear in it i found it a little challenging to make it to the top, a trailor would be almost impossible for a standard vehicle or a slowish diesel.

Website · Post by **LuxyBoy** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 8:50 pm

bastard wrote:It would be a good idea to take spare set of wheel bearings and a spare hub,those little wheels turn pretty fast and on a long trip they get hot,we used to pull jet ski trailers up there with the little wheels and bearings were allways a probleme,not so much on frazer but from the trip up there.

Or put hub oilers on

They self oil as you go so they take a bit of the heat and sand out/oil in

Post by **vSAHARAx** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 9:09 pm

Hey Mate,

I only got back on Saturday from fraser was up at waddy point for a week. They have had next to no rain for a while, indian head and nagala rocks by-pass are very very soft.

I towed my heavily loaded box trailer up and became very very stuck at indian head, I hit it in 1st high around 3000rpm without dying, was going really well but the trailer was the one that stopped me, i had 20 Psi in the Cruiser's 32"x11.5" BFG A/T's and 16psi in the trailers 31"x10.5" Desert Duelers, it took ages to get me out, dad snatched me in the 80 series, his tyres down to about 14psi, my cruisers tyres down to 14psi and the trailer tyres down to 8psi before we even started to make head way.

how big are the Cub tyres? in inches? If you are going to take it up you should be okay, providing you hit the beach 30mins - 1hr before dead low tide, and you have your tyre pressures right. if you plan on taking it north of indian head i suggest before you even attempt it, you hook a snatch strap up to another vehicle (if one is present) and have both vehicles tyres down to 16psi, and drop your trailer tyres down to 10psi, and dont worry about the axle dragging, hit it in 2nd low and just try keeping those little tyres turning and you'll be okay. The moment you find yourself losing momentum and losing to gravity, STOP, digging holes wont help you or anyone else (hahaha trust me i know from experience), try reverse out and you might have to think about hitting it in 3rd low, my old cruiser can do it so im sure the patrol can

my 2c worth
Troy

Post by **michael a** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 9:28 pm

the camper is only about 400kg loaded but the tyres would be 12 in max and about 3-4 in wide tiny little things.

I have a turbo on it so hp should not be much of a worry.

How does indian head compair to southern end of stockton beach?

Stocko was easy for me but my mates had a fer dramas

I have 35 in baja on the car so I will let them down to about 10-15 psi the trailer will have to go down but on 5 psi there not doing much anyway.

Thanks for the feed back guys.

How steep are the dunes compaired to stockton beach

Post by **vSAHARAx** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 9:41 pm

only 400KG and 35" Claws on the patrol, you'll laugh at it! i dunno if you would need drop the claws down that low unless needed,as driving on fraser your cruisin up the beach for an 1hr + sitting on 80kms and hour i dunno if ide feel comfy dropping them that low, but then im no expert. You can drive on the dunes at fraser but the tracks that have an incline are mostly boarded so its pretty easy.

Post by **80lsy gq** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 10:08 pm

it will all depend on what the weather is like up there as to how hard it will be to drive...i was up there between Xmas and New Years and there was a bit oif rain for a couple of days just before i went there and it was really easy going..i was in two wheel drive most of the island (even on Cornwells Break Rd) with the only exception being Ngkala rocks bypass and it was still easy as i was only in first gear high...

while towing the camper i did get stuck in Eli Creek but it was nearly high tide when i went in and i was to busy dodging a wave that was coming in and i drove into a bit of a hole in the creek and wet the dizzy and it wouldnt restart for a bit so i just got a tow out but other than that it was pretty easy

dave

Post by **shorty_f0rty** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 10:35 pm

vSAHARAx wrote:You can't drive on the dunes at fraser but the tracks that have an incline are mostly boarded so its pretty easy.

when we were up at the sandy cape in september we saw the ranger fixing the "driving on dunes prohibited" sign after some idiots knocked it down and decided to go for a cruise up the big sand blow.. he wasn't a happy looking chap and i can understand. i went for a walk up to the top to see how far these guys got and there were 2 sets of tracks and you can see when they hit the real soft stuff deeper into the dunes.. please repect the place and don't give the EPA an excuse to deny us any more access than they do already and don't drive on the dunes.

Post by **RED60** » Tue Jan 16, 2007 5:05 am

shorty_f0rty wrote:
vSAHARAx wrote:You can't drive on the dunes at fraser but the tracks that have an incline are mostly boarded so its pretty easy.
when we were up at the sandy cape in september we saw the ranger fixing the "driving on dunes prohibited" sign after some idiots knocked it down and decided to go for a cruise up the big sand blow.. he wasn't a happy looking chap and i can understand. i went for a walk up to the top to see how far these guys got and there were 2 sets of tracks and you can see when they hit the real soft stuff deeper into the dunes.. please repect the place and don't give the EPA an excuse to deny us any more access than they do already and don't drive on the dunes.

Hope someone got this wankers plate n put him in to authorities. If something is gunna shag it for everyone, this is!!

Post by **vSAHARAx** » Tue Jan 16, 2007 9:27 pm

The reason why i said dont drive on the dunes, is because friday evening i climbed that big sand dune (on foot) near waddy point and i noticed some dickhead had been driving all over those smaller dunes near where the bins used to be, and i mean fully carving it up! Would love to catch some of these rat-bags.

Oh and if you are camping near ocean lake becarful cause on friday arvo when i was driving down the beach there was a pack of around 6 - 8 dingoes roaming around the beach and dunes not far away from camp sites, we informed the rangers and they said we they said its a serious concerned if they are packing up in such large numbers as they become fearless, so we need to scare them as much as possible. the rangers throw bark, rocks, etc etc at them when ever possible.

Sorry to high-jack the thread
Troy

Post by **bru21** » Tue Jan 16, 2007 10:46 pm

hey mate,

we just got back too and its soft as over indian head, and around the shops etc. small wheels do not turn in soft sand. find the right balance between letting them down - losing clearance and being too hard and not turning. if you get worried just partner up with a snatch and drive two cars through with the one trailer. we were towing a 1600kg boat with a 100 series, my tinnie with a mates rodeo, i was towing my camper with 35's behind mine, a mate had a jetski behind a hilux and my old man had 3 bikes behind his 100 with 33 on the trailer.

the spring on my tinnie broke and swung around at 45 degrees locking up the wheels. i was towing it back from watumba. the trailer was 2 days old. i have now got a spare spring!

the only other drama is the 100 got stuck going back over indian. i towed it out in reverse while i still had my trailer on. 55oorpm in low and we got all 1600kg of boat and the 2k of 100 out!

enjoy your trip

Post by **michael a** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 12:01 pm

Thanks heaps guys for the feed back

The tyres are real skinny as well like a tinny boat trailer will that make them sink?

Even when flat they are only about under 100mm wide.

Post by **micka1** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 12:34 pm

Why just not take the trailer , then i won't have to pull you out , or pull your trailer around with snatch straps . Hence why i am not taking my camp trailer so as not to inconvenience other people when i get stuck .

Post by **vSAHARAx** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 3:53 pm

Taking a trailer isnt as bad as it seems hundreds of big boats get towed all the way to waddy point for the toyota classic. Plus i saw a Daihatsu Terios drive up indian head on its 2nd attempt last friday morning, thats gotta mean somthing

. Your only gonna tow it up the island and back, its not like its attached all the time, If taking the camper means you'll have a comfortable campsite and decent bed to sleep in, who cares about the minor inconvinience of getting stuck

. And if you do get stuck i bet nearly every vehicle that drives past will stop and ask you if you need a hand. If you have your own snatch strap most people would be more then happy to give you a tug, So you wont be stuck for long. The only real problem area would be indian head, and if worst comes to worse, D/connect the cub and skull drag it up with the snatch strap

Take the Cub, get the tides right, get your tyre pressure right, Give yourself a bit of spare time incase you get stuck, and if you do, dont stress you'll be out before you know it, Then sit back relax and enjoy Fraser, Ya lucky bugger!

Post by **460cixy** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 4:33 pm

last time i was up there i saw a bloke with one of those campers with the pissy wheels and all it did was drag the axle throu the sand and was bogged like 3 times before he even got the the barge fuck that

Post by **dibbz** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 6:07 pm

Hows that crusty old video of Thommo draggin the sprung over caravan up Fraser they play on 31 from time to time.. hahaha... it's coctail hour!

I heard a story of a guy winching through Ngkala bypass with a camper trailer the other week when I was up there, I've seen a few guys up there with them.. damn.

Post by **Simo63** » Thu Jan 18, 2007 1:35 pm

michael a wrote:Thanks heaps guys for the feed back

The tyres are real skinny as well like a tinny boat trailer will that make them sink?

Even when flat they are only about under 100mm wide.

Hi Michael

Read the responses above, some I agree with others I don't. I used to have a Cub camper and all the years I've been fourbying up the beach and over to Fraser and Straddie, I have only ever got stuck once. You guessed it, when I had the little cub camper on. Those bloody skinny and low wheels got me in trouble the moment I left the bitumen at Inskip heading to the ferry. I always let my car tyres down to 18psi when on the beach (and even down to 12 when crossing at nagala rocks on Fraser) so have never got stuck (oh okay .. other than 1 unfortunate incident when the wife was driving 'cos I was pissed), anyway this time I let the car tyres down as usual but didn't let the camper tyres down because it was pretty loaded (going to fraser for 2 weeks even had the BBQ strapped to the roof of the camper

) and I was worried about letting the tyres down too much.

Anyway, we got stuck the moment we left the bitumen as the skinny tyres on the trailer dug in AND I think more importantly, the axle was sitting around 3 inches below the sand that builds up between the "established track" leading off from the bitumen. Got towed back onto hard ground, let the camper tyres down to around 22 I think as they were balooning pretty good by then and then chose a different track where the trailer axle would not be bulldozing the road.

Anyway, hope this helps, my suggestion is to let your tyres down and around the high traffic areas like the ferry pick up points, try to keep the axle above the sand line.

Have a good time and look after the place so it's in good condition when the rest of us visit.

Cheers
Simo

Post by **dirtyGQ** » Thu Jan 18, 2007 7:23 pm

what the heck is all this about fraser or any sand driving being too hard etc. fair enough the land barge (100 series have troubles they are useless in the petrols) but we take our td42 gq eveywhere and last time had a trailer with over 2 tonne in it. The biggest problem is people bogged in front of you with not enough air out of there tyres and not enough sense to use low range in the soft stuff .We towed a gu patrol and he had a camper on all the way from indian head to the barge at hook point . btw I was running 18 psi in my old baja claws. Mate awinya creek is bloody sensational best spot i have ever camped . Be careful of the snot weed in can catch you by surprise especially in wathumba creek .

Post by **460cixy** » Thu Jan 18, 2007 7:37 pm

i recon driveing in sand is the easyest thing you can do . its the inexperianced that make a big deal about it. then again when i was dealing in hire 4bs for fraiser i was on the sand every day of the week allmost and cant think of too many times i was bogged even in claped out 80,s 4cyl jackaroos and pajeros bet thing we had was landy stage1 ute used to eat the sand

Post by **vSAHARAx** » Thu Jan 18, 2007 8:24 pm

Simo63 wrote:
Hi Michael

Read the responses above, some I agree with others I don't. I used to have a Cub camper and all the years I've been fourbying up the beach and over to Fraser and Straddie, I have only ever got stuck once. You guessed it, when I had the little cub camper on. Those bloody skinny and low wheels got me in trouble the moment I left the bitumen at Inskip heading to the ferry. I always let my car tyres down to 18psi when on the beach (and even down to 12 when crossing at nagala rocks on Fraser) so have never got stuck (oh okay .. other than 1 unfortunate incident when the wife was driving 'cos I was pissed), anyway this time I let the car tyres down as usual but didn't let the camper tyres down because it was pretty loaded (going to fraser for 2 weeks even had the BBQ strapped to the roof of the camper ) and I was worried about letting the tyres down too much.

Anyway, we got stuck the moment we left the bitumen as the skinny tyres on the trailer dug in AND I think more importantly, the axle was sitting around 3 inches below the sand that builds up between the "established track" leading off from the bitumen. Got towed back onto hard ground, let the camper tyres down to around 22 I think as they were balooning pretty good by then and then chose a different track where the trailer axle would not be bulldozing the road.

Anyway, hope this helps, my suggestion is to let your tyres down and around the high traffic areas like the ferry pick up points, try to keep the axle above the sand line.

Have a good time and look after the place so it's in good condition when the rest of us visit.

Cheers
Simo

we took a little zodiac rubber ducky over to moreton island 3 yrs back and the boat trailer has those tinny little wheels (the ones where the wheel and the hub is one unit, no wheel nuts) and we didnt let the tyres down on the trailer, as we were worried about axel height. We got about 3 metres off the barge and got bogged. we dropped the tyres down to about 14psi (boat had a bit of gear in it) and we never had any more dramas, the axel dragged alot but as long as we kept our foot on the go pedal on the soft stuff, we were fine.

Post by **Bingham** » Thu Jan 18, 2007 10:02 pm

dibbz wrote:Hows that crusty old video of Thommo draggin the sprung over caravan up Fraser they play on 31 from time to time.. hahaha... it's coctail hour!

I heard a story of a guy winching through Ngkala bypass with a camper trailer the other week when I was up there, I've seen a few guys up there with them.. damn.

thats the most serious sand section ive seen on the island......... i wasnt driving patrol 3 weeks ago but apparantly was working and on the bike 2nd gear tapped and some tidy roosters but thats about it walking it through almost...

we towed a trailer up also box pretty well loaded to the hills and only really 2 soft spots near champagne pools made the pootrol work.....

so just drop trailer a couple of pound and truck tyres to 20 and you will sail with no worries in low range...

for those that towing heavy shit without being in low range without a well above standard truck simply! you deserve to not only get stuck but dig it out your self aswell

if all else fails upeda upeda and dont look at the gauges !!!

Revs and speed

and grab a beer and admire the tanned european beauties roaming around the cutting

Post by **dirtyGQ** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 7:43 am

and not only will low range save you getting bogged,but will save you fuel and a clutch at the same time.

Post by **Simo63** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 11:46 am

dirtyGQ wrote:what the heck is all this about fraser or any sand driving being too hard etc. fair enough the land barge (100 series have troubles they are useless in the petrols) but we take our td42 gq eveywhere and last time had a trailer with over 2 tonne in it. The biggest problem is people bogged in front of you with not enough air out of there tyres and not enough sense to use low range in the soft stuff

Yep that's the answer right there .. forgetting to engage brain before leaving the bitumen

Post by **vSAHARAx** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 6:15 pm

Yep that's the answer right there .. forgetting to engage brain before leaving the bitumen

Which is around 90% of the people on the beach

Post by **Jeeps** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 7:41 pm

I helped recover a bloke in a bogged 100 series a few weeks ago up the beach. I didn't have to do much after i reminded him to lock in his hubs

Post by **Simo63** » Sun Jan 21, 2007 12:03 am

Jeeps wrote:I helped recover a bloke in a bogged 100 series a few weeks ago up the beach. I didn't have to do much after i reminded him to lock in his hubs

OWNED.

Actually had a similar experience about 10 years ago with 2 clowns in a hilux over on Straddie. Back in the days when you could camp behind the dunes and you had to drive over the soft stuff to get to your camp, these boys (pissed) spent ages trying to get over. We were watching them, snickering to ourselves, as we noticed that it looked like only the rear wheels were turning, asked them if they were in 4Wd to which they angrily responded so we just sat back drinking a few cans and watched them .... sure enough, a hour or more later they figured out that whilst the transfer was in 4WD, they hubs weren't engaged (just like their brains).

They drove off very sheepishly after that

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Frazer island towing questions Help please

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