Surly Bill Bike Cargo Trailer (Discontinued)

The Surly Bill and Ted trailers fill the gap between smallish cargo trailers (that can’t carry more than, say 150 pounds), and cargo bikes (which can carry alot of weight, but can be difficult to ride and store — in addition to being another bike you have to own). Haul up to 300 pounds on this 63 by 24-inch load bed. (The Ted is still huge, but about half the length.)

Bill and Ted also fill the gap between mass-produced purpose-built trailers that aren’t easy to customize, and large DIY custom trailers that get the custom functions right (hot dog stand, mobile home, etc.) but don’t quite get the trailery parts right. These trailers are a solid platform for building whatever you envision a bike trailer can do — be it utilitarian, or all-out weird.

The beds have threaded eyelets for bolting down decking, corner posts, or creating other custom accessories using readily-accessible materials from your local hardware store, lumberyard or home improvement store.

The beds and hitches of Bill and Ted are constructed with TIG-welded 4130 CroMoly steel plus 304 stainless steel hardware for corrosion resistance and a long life.

Sixteen-inch wheels keep your cargo low to the ground for better handling, and tip resistance. Surly designed the hubs to meet the requirements of this frame. The rims are double-wall with stainless eyelets. The spokes are stainless steel, radially laced.

And than there’s the hitch. Regardless of the configuration of your bike frame — full-suspension frame, disc brakes, rear racks, fenders, 20-inch wheels, 29-inch wheels — the hitch will probably fit your bike. Instead of clamping to the bike’s frame tubes, it attaches using a proprietary axle skewer or thread-on axle nuts. The hitch adjusts to keep the load bed level no matter your wheel size, to align the center line of the trailer to the center line of the bike no matter your hub width (120 to 145mm).

The frame is a solid unit constructed of welded CroMoly steel square tubes.

The wheel covers are load-bearing, and keep cargo from shifting into the spokes. Mount fenders and spoke guards (not included) to the threaded bosses, on the wheel covers.

The hitch is highly adjustable to fit most types of bikes and a wide variety of wheel diameters and hub widths.

• Tubing: 4130 CroMoly steel. TIG-welded.
• Color: Beds are silver. Hitches are black.
• Trailer tire clearance: Our trailers come with 16 x 1.95″ tires. There is clearance for 16 x 2.5″ tires.
• Braze-ons: 6x1mm threaded barrels for securing a platform; corner stake eyelets

• Platform dimensions, Bill (longbed): 63 x 24″ (1608 x 610mm)
• Weight: (includes hitch and wheels): 16.8kg (37lbs)
• Maximum tongue load: 22.7kg (50 lbs)
• Maximum total load: 136kg (300 lbs)

• What Surly says:

Surly trailers are guaranteed to be free from manufacturing defects for three years from the original date of purchase. What this means is that if we screwed up something in the manufacturing process that resulted in the premature failure of the product, we’ll fix or replace it at our discretion. This warranty is for the original buyer of the product and is not transferable. It should go without saying that we won’t even consider your warranty problem without a dated proof-of-purchase. What this warranty doesn’t cover is damage resulting from any sort of use other than “normal” use, and the inevitable wear and tear resulting from “normal” use. Never carry live people or animals on your Surly trailer! Surly products are built to be used vigorously and we wouldn’t expect you to treat them gently, but we can’t be responsible for the inherent danger to body and property you face each time you use one of our products. We’re hip to the “just riding along” phenomenon and frankly, we’re just not having it. Sorry, the paint-job isn’t covered, nor is any damage that happens to you or your other components as a result of any failure of one of our products.

Lastly, if you modify or neglect our products we can’t be responsible for them or what might happen to you while your using them. We hate to spell it out, but hey, it’s the 21st century. We’re known to back up our products, but we’ve seen too many peoples’ parts come back to us that were not defective and did not meet our warranty guidelines. Save yourself some time and shipping money by reading this and making a decision for yourself. If you and your shop think your Surly product is indeed worthy of a warranty inspection, please return the product to the original place of purchase, accompanied by a sales receipt. In the unlikely event that this is not possible, call or email us and we’ll do our best to get you riding again.