Cargo carrier / trailer hitch

drwicket

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So I have found several good deals for pinballs but I keep running into the problem that I own a 2009 Nissan Altima and have no way of picking them up.

I have been doing some research and wanted to find out if this would be possible. I have been toying with the idea of installing a trailer hitch onto my car and then getting a hitch mounted cargo carrier similar to this one

http://www.discountramps.com/hitch-mounted-cargo-carrier.htm

They say they can hold up to 500 lbs which is well over the average pinball weight. I am no car expert but would this be possible? If so I figure I can get a hitch and cargo carrier for around $150 total. This way I would be able to drive down and hopefully take advantage of some of these deals I see.

What do you guys think?
 
sounds good in theory but for a few hundred more you could probably pick up a used small trailer where you can tow more than 1. not sure how much a reinforced hitch would cost or how to install. i know lowes sells new trailers under $600 I think but very basic.

here's one for $525 (sure used you could pick it up for $250-$400) and they might have one cheaper, no details online.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_145557-1547...s_4294787395_4294937087_?Ns=p_product_price|0
 
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well now that i think about it you might have to get the trailer registered/tags etc, yeah that cargo carrier won't require this, not a bad idea, just seems very unsafe IMO. but thats just me. got some precious expensive cargo there.
 
The only problem with that is I currently live in an apartment so having space to store a giant trailer like that would be an issue.
 
Hitch

I have the same issue, I have a car and always have to rent a truck at Uhaul to get a game. I missed a deal on a pin recently as the cost to rent a truck and drive would kill what I could afford to spend. The Uhaul guy offered a better solution though, install the hitch on your car, and they rent a 5 X 8 trailer for $15. That would be plenty big to haul at least one pinball, maybe two and it is rated for over 1000 pds. I personally wouldn't feel comfortable mounting a heavy pinball machine to that flimsy looking open carrier that just attaches into the hitch. The other option he mentioned was renting a small suv at one of the car rental places, if the drive to get the pin isnt too bad and you can find a small Suv to use at the right price, the cost wouldn't be that bad.
 
Thanks for the idea pinfan35. I am going to start shopping around for a trailer hitch first thing Monday morning!
 
install the hitch on your car, and they rent a 5 X 8 trailer for $15. That would be plenty big to haul at least one pinball, maybe two and it is rated for over 1000 pds. I personally wouldn't feel comfortable mounting a heavy pinball machine to that flimsy looking open carrier that just attaches into the hitch.

Would you feel comfortable pulling a 1000 lbs. rated, 5' x 8' trailer behind a tiny Nissan?;)

Over time......one of several things are gonna happen, and none of them will be good.

It's time to buy a cheap used truck or SUV.

Edward
 
I agree.......

Would you feel comfortable pulling a 1000 lbs. rated, 5' x 8' trailer behind a tiny Nissan?;)

Over time......one of several things are gonna happen, and none of them will be good.

It's time to buy a cheap used truck or SUV.

Edward
 
So I have found several good deals for pinballs but I keep running into the problem that I own a 2009 Nissan Altima and have no way of picking them up.

I have been doing some research and wanted to find out if this would be possible. I have been toying with the idea of installing a trailer hitch onto my car and then getting a hitch mounted cargo carrier similar to this one

http://www.discountramps.com/hitch-mounted-cargo-carrier.htm

They say they can hold up to 500 lbs which is well over the average pinball weight. I am no car expert but would this be possible? If so I figure I can get a hitch and cargo carrier for around $150 total. This way I would be able to drive down and hopefully take advantage of some of these deals I see.

What do you guys think?

That trailer is going to be a total nightmare. I wouldn't consider moving a pinball machine with that thing for several reasons. One is it looks like it could break. Sure it's rated for 500 pounds but strap a widebody WPC pin to it and drive over a few potholes and speed bumps and see what happens. If I were going to use it I would strap the game to the vehicle as well as the trailer. That way when it breaks there's a chance your game won't be destroyed. Either that or the game AND your car will be destroyed.

The next reason being that actually getting the machine on to the trailer is going to be a real pain in the ass.

Lastly, it's not deep enough. Not even close.
 
That cargo carrier may be rated for 500lbs, but no hitch you'll find for an Altima is going to both be able to mount it, while also being rated for anywhere near that much.

Instead of the carrier failing, the hitch will fail.

In all honesty, I can't think of a safe and reliable way to haul pins at all with an Altima. You'll need to either rent vans/trucks, have friends with a van/truck, or change vehicles.

-Hans
 
My buddy has one of these to move a motorcycle. It will handle the weight of a pin with absolutely no problem. I can think of a couple issues with putting it on a car...

The first thing is that you're putting all of the weight as far past the rear suspension as possible, which means you're probably going to wind up bottoming the rear springs out. You're also artificially maxxing the tongue weight on the receiver since all the weight sits right on the hitch. A trailer has the long tongue and fulcrum of the wheels, so it loads the receiver front to back. This is the opposite in that it loads it all downward.

Because of this, the carrier is probably intended for a full framed vehicle. Since your car is unibody, really make sure the mounting points can handle all that downward weight. A 1000 pound trailer probably has 1/10th the tongue weight of this thing.

Second, since the hitch is chassis mounted, if the suspension bottoming happens its going to transmit all that shock to your pinball machine. I'd make sure the pin was sitting on something with plenty of cushion.

If you can bribe a truck owning buddy with a case of beer for game runs, I think its money well spent!
 
That's the big issue in this case, the tongue weight, not the towing weight. I highly doubt you're going to find a hitch for an altima that can handle that kind of tongue weight.

Plus, like was just said, chances are you'll also be scraping the pavement with the thing as it compresses the rear suspension.

Saw a fun little post on a camper forum not too long ago. Guy tries to tow a camper with and under-rated car hitch. Camper stayed connected to the hitch just fine.....hitch came off the car, and ripped the bumper off in the process. Wheeeeeee

-Hans
 
Guess it's back to the drawing board. I was really looking forward to driving down to Kansas to pick up a judge dredd. Guess I will have to contain my search to local areas :(
 
Ended up fighting a project machine here in town that I'm picking up on Monday so for now my pinball crazyness is put on hold. It will keep me busy until I get it restored then I will be back on with a vengance wanting another one!
 
I have used a hitch rack on a 4 Runner to move multiple arcade and pinball games. No problems at all, its low and easier to load, I overstrap it with 4 huge straps, but never had a problem, throw a blanket on the rack first to lessen scratches, works fine.

Looks pretty redneck, but I live in South Carolina, so its the norm
 
I think the biggest thing a lot of you guys are missing (the guys offering suggestions)......he wants to do this with an ALTIMA!

Edward
 
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