| If you tow a caravan or camper trailer you soon get | | | | control (there are usually two motors, drive one |
| exposed to the difficulties of reversing into a tight spot. | | | | forward and one reverse and you can turn in a circle). |
| If you are one of the lucky ones, it comes naturally, | | | | Most models have a wireless remote so you can |
| and you attract the envy of all those other campers | | | | stand back and avoid driving your caravan over your |
| around you who have difficulty with this issue. | | | | feet! |
| However, it doesn't matter how good you are with | | | | Now, what are the pros and cons? |
| reversing a rig, sooner or later you will find an instance | | | | Manual movers are generally inexpensive but still |
| where you need to do some manual handling; and | | | | require a degree of effort to move a caravan. Of |
| depending on your age and fitness, and the weight of | | | | course the heavier the caravan and the more hostile |
| your caravan it can be a very strenuous exercise. | | | | the terrain, the harder it becomes. They are not |
| Throw in an incline and a bit of rough terrain and just | | | | fixtures. They can be removed from the caravan |
| watch the blood pressure rise! | | | | when travelling and they are relatively easy to engage |
| Fear not - there is help. A series of little helpers known | | | | and disengage. |
| as caravan movers, or trailer trolleys, or trailer tractors | | | | Motorised movers are obviously more expensive but |
| are available (for a price), to reduce the load on the | | | | are much more capable. The models that drive the |
| body. This article will look at several of them, and | | | | main caravan wheels are permanent fixtures and may |
| suggest some points to bear in mind when selecting | | | | require a degree of welding or bolting to the chassis. |
| one or the other. | | | | The wheel engagement can be actuated either |
| To start with, there are two main modes for movers, | | | | manually or power driven. As a permanent structure |
| manual or motorised; and within those two groups | | | | they may be susceptible to water and stone damage. |
| there are variations. There is quite a large price | | | | The motorised movers that take the place of the |
| differential too between manual and motorised. | | | | jockey wheel are many in design and price. Some |
| Manual movers generally operate on the jockey wheel. | | | | have batteries on board whilst others have power |
| One type consists of what looks like a normal jockey | | | | take-off from the caravan battery. Some have a |
| wheel but in fact has dual modes. Flick a lever one | | | | single driving wheel; others have two wheels. They are |
| way and its acts as the normal wind-up mechanism | | | | all portable fixtures and are easily removed for |
| for the jockey wheel. Flick the lever the other way and | | | | travelling, so the water or stone damage issue does |
| the winding of the handle now drives the jockey wheel | | | | not come into the equation. |
| and thus the caravan or trailer. Another type of | | | | My particular choice is a neat little device made in |
| manual mover is a modified jockey wheel. It | | | | Denmark that looks like a miniature tank (without the |
| incorporates a lever-ratchet driven mechanism. You | | | | canon). It has an on-board lithium battery and dual |
| operate the lever like a pump handle to move the rig in | | | | planetary geared motors that make moving my |
| one direction or another. In both of these models, | | | | camper trailer a breeze. It has a lifetime before |
| steering is executed by pointing the jockey wheel in | | | | recharge of 30 minutes and can handle numerous |
| the direction you want to go. If any inclines or rough | | | | types of surface and reasonable inclines. It will even |
| surface is involved though, be prepared for some hard | | | | charge from the built-in solar panel. Happily I can leave |
| work. | | | | the back ointment behind! |
| Motorised movers either work by driving the main | | | | So there you have it, spare the back and get a mover |
| caravan wheels themselves or by substituting for the | | | | for those tricky spots. Be the envy of the other |
| jockey wheel. They are 12 volt DC powered with | | | | campers as they drive back and forth trying to get |
| some having on-board batteries and some using your | | | | their 'van in the right spot. To find out more and see |
| caravan battery as the power source. On some | | | | some photographs of various models visit the website |
| models steering is achieved by moving a 'rudder post', | | | | shown in the resource box below. |
| whereas in others it is achieved by selective motor | | | | |