Motor mover and jockey wheel combination
Last year I got a motor mover (manual engagement type) fitted to my Bailey Ranger and it is a great help for a solo caravanner. The main observation is that off tarmac there is an issue, the jockey wheel drags badly, especially turning in mud or loose chippings. Makes a big mess, slows it right down and puts high load on jockey wheel assembly. Thinking about it there is around 50kg noseweight sitting on a small moulded plastic wheel so no great surprise.
So what is the solution? My ideas so far are :-
1) Move heavy objects to rear of caravan before siting but even awning isn't that heavy
2) Fill water drum & waste container and place to rear of caravan a mess about & they could slide but 2x 25L would give 50kg albeit at less distance behind axle than hitch is in front
3) Change jockey wheel for something larger and pneumatic pneumatic tyres are standard on building site wheelbarrows because they have less rolling resistance in mud
Any other sensible ideas, or practical experiences, would be welcome
Comments
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I did think about changing ours to a pneumatic one to make it easier for the mover, but then there's the problem of what happens if you get a puncture. Our TA Bailey has a noseweight of about 95kg and is fitted as standard with a wider solid plastic wheel. It does struggle a bit coming up the kerb edge, across grass and then gravel before getting it onto the drive at home, but it does get there eventually. On balance, I have decided to stick with the wider plastic wheel as being the safest, most reliable option.
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I replaced my standard wheel with this one
It is described as being 'soft' but it is not really, just softer than the hard original. The tread is different as well.
Going over gravel is now much easier and the wheel does not dig in.
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We experienced the same problems and changed the wheel for a pneumatic which has solved them completely.
If you do change please check the max weight the wheel will carry and that it has a high psi (57 psi). We bought an Alko wheel which has both points covered.
It is correct that they can puncture however as we were kindly given another Alko wheel by a kind neighbor, all that is needed before each trip is to check both wheels along with the vans tyres air pressures.
In over 8 years to date we have only encountered 1 problem which was trying to move the van too sharply before checking the psi.
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We had the same issue with our new swift.
I changed the standard jockey wheel with a twin pneumatic item, this worked a treat, but ........
The wheels are larger than the original, and because it's a twin wheel, the wheels don't tuck up into the A frame.
So I have retro fitted a quick release on both wheels so I just pop them off when hitched.
Also, after 8 months the tyres have perished.
So I changed them for 70mm wide plastic wheels which are a smaller diameter and gives me a bit more ground clearance. But I haven't towed with them in situe yet.
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I stick some thin sheets of plastic under the jockey wheel. Sold in sixes as worktop protectors for about £4 at your local Lidl Caravan Shop.
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There is also this recent thread on pneumatic jockey wheels, in which I suggested a possible alternative, in the shape of the Alko premium jockey wheel. You might like to consider that.
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When, a good few years ago, we swapped our nose wheel for a pneumatic one, we suffered from periodic deflation, perishing and not fitting in a high position when retracted. So we moved across to wider plastic/ rubber wheels - and won’t be going back to inflatable ones. We tend to help the wheel mount kerbs, by lifting and avoid soft mud where possible. It’s not perfect, but it’s a huge improvement on the narrow ones found in days of yore.
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For the short time you are using the motor mover, get your passenger or nearby volunteer to sit in the caravan doorway with the door open and the jockey will be much lighter on the ground. Always being careful the passenger isnt too heavy to lift the whole thing oyff the ground and assuming the door is behind the axle.
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That should entertain those already pitched up and sitting outside their outfit and enjoying a nice glass or two
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If you keep the standout of the jockey wheel assembly as small as possible (but without getting the inner into the slot come across.) I have found that this reduces the bending load on the jockey assembly meaning that it works well on all the surfaces we have come across.
Don't have it fully extended and the tube clamped at a large amount of extension.
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As I said, am solo
I suppose 31Kg of Goldie would do as counterbalance if laying in end washroom & she is probably old and calm enough to do that now 
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