What's the best way to go for a traditional "home-built" off-road trailer?
Something like this????
http://abctrailerparts.com/axles.html
thanks
jg
Something like this????
http://abctrailerparts.com/axles.html
thanks
jg
Offroad Trailer Axle input
- Thread starter jgolden
- Start date
Stouttrout
Adventurer
That is what I am using on mine. Planning to use a 3500# with 5 on 5 lug pattern. I may run some shock on it if I get alot of bounce.
R_Lefebvre
Expedition Leader
That's the problem I see. The 2000lb springs are short, and have several leaves so they are just too stiff. Heck, by 1500lb rated utility trailer doesn't settle down until it has at least 2000lbs (plus the 500lb empty weight) of stuff in it. :Wow1:
I wondered about buying a 3500lb leaf spring, and removing all but the main leaf.
Martyn
Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
For off road use you need the eye to eye length to be at least 36".
Most trailer leaf spring that are commercially available in North America are pieces of junk. You'd be better of using springs from a Suzuki Samurai for the spring quality and length.
You can remove leaves to give you the spring rating you want, but in doing so may lose the load rating. In this case I think using a single leaf as an axle locator and air bag as the spring is in order. If you go this route dampening is an issue that needs to be resolved.
valkyrie
Adventurer
You can source springs from almost any application. I don't know what you wheel, but I would suggest looking at setups you are familiar with and see if you can configure something that makes sense.
Our local club built a camp trailer and made a cobbled together set of leaf packs from Tacoma packs and various discarded AAL's.
The guy I got my trailer from was a jeeper, and he used 2.5" lift YJ springs, and they work very well (both empty & loaded). Here it is:
(I have since upgraded to a 3,500 axle and swapped to 6 on 5.5 to match my truck).
Our local club built a camp trailer and made a cobbled together set of leaf packs from Tacoma packs and various discarded AAL's.
The guy I got my trailer from was a jeeper, and he used 2.5" lift YJ springs, and they work very well (both empty & loaded). Here it is:
(I have since upgraded to a 3,500 axle and swapped to 6 on 5.5 to match my truck).
Martyn
Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
I agree that there are a lot of spring choices out there, it's a matter of researching the matter to find what works for you.
There are some very fundamental differences between SUV's and trailers when it comes to their springs, and it revolves around Curb Weight vs. Gross Vehicle Weight Rating.
" Load: A typical SUV 's (Jeep Grande Cherokee) curb weight is 3669 lbs, the gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) is 5700 lbs. a payload of 2031 lbs. The payload is 55% over the curb weight.
When we look at our trailers we realized that the curb weight was 700 lbs, and the GVWR was 2700 lbs. a payload of 2000 lbs. The payload was 285% over the curb weight !!! Extrapolating that out, to get some idea of the GVWR of an SUV if it's payload was 285% of the curb weight, we found that the vehicle would have weighed 10,457 lbs." from http://www.adventuretrailers.com/suspension.html
The variations a trailer has to deal with are far greater than that of an SUV. This is the main reason that trailers do not perform well when empty or lightly loaded, their springs have been rated for their maximum load.
This is the crux of why AT invested in developing their own suspension system that performs well from light load to heavy load and everything in between.
There are some very fundamental differences between SUV's and trailers when it comes to their springs, and it revolves around Curb Weight vs. Gross Vehicle Weight Rating.
" Load: A typical SUV 's (Jeep Grande Cherokee) curb weight is 3669 lbs, the gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) is 5700 lbs. a payload of 2031 lbs. The payload is 55% over the curb weight.
When we look at our trailers we realized that the curb weight was 700 lbs, and the GVWR was 2700 lbs. a payload of 2000 lbs. The payload was 285% over the curb weight !!! Extrapolating that out, to get some idea of the GVWR of an SUV if it's payload was 285% of the curb weight, we found that the vehicle would have weighed 10,457 lbs." from http://www.adventuretrailers.com/suspension.html
The variations a trailer has to deal with are far greater than that of an SUV. This is the main reason that trailers do not perform well when empty or lightly loaded, their springs have been rated for their maximum load.
This is the crux of why AT invested in developing their own suspension system that performs well from light load to heavy load and everything in between.
BlueBomber
Adventurer
not to hijack the tread. but why does a trailer have to perform well when lightly loaded or empty? wouldnt the trailer be loaded about 80% of the time?
Also, Valkyrie, does your shock setup work well? would you change it?
Also, Valkyrie, does your shock setup work well? would you change it?
Martyn
Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
Good question.
I think we can all imagine running the trailer empty at times and getting a bouncy ride. But we see variations in trailer weight between our owners of 600 lbs + or - depending on what they are carrying. So from a generic point of view we have to take that into consideration.
On the liquids front, a trailer may return from a trip 222 lbs lighter than when it went out. If you add to that consumables the trailer may weigh 300 lbs more at the start of a trip to the end of a trip.
If you are aiming at a responsive suspension then the fluctuations in weight will have a marked effect on the characteristics of the trailer, was well as it's ride height.
BlueBomber
Adventurer
would adjustable shocks help? or maybe air shocks. has anyone done a trailer with air bags instead of springs? that might work. im sure it would'nt be very profitable for a company, but might work well for a custom build.
i would like to add ive never built a trailer. so all of this is, more or less, just looking for ideas for when i do want to build one.
Martyn
Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
We use both, spend some time looking over our web sites there is lots of information there.
valkyrie
Adventurer
It works well enough. The nice thing about the angled shocks is that they do reduce the dampening effect somewhat, so my little trailer (~300lbs) is a little less bouncy when empty/light load. No changes planned, in fact when I swapped axles I kept the setup the same.
BlueBomber
Adventurer
man, you wer'nt kidding. there is TONS of info on ya'lls web site!