Trailer to fix

[KMB]

If my explanations are not clear enough I can sketch something out and upload it tomorrow from work (high-speed connection there).

HTH

I read your post a few times over and I would like a sketch...please and thank ya.

Congrats and keep us up to date on your status. These fellas are pretty helpful and we will try to help where ever we can.

Thanks. I'll try to remember to have the camera along as I get things done.

Kevin

 

[KMB]

KMB, good luck on the trailer rebuild, I hope it works out for you. Remember to take pics along the way. I would like to sugest putting solid lumber in between your vert, supports . I think 24" sides are a little to much for that trailer, with no brakes or brakes on one axle. To be safe I would stack it to the top of your rail and maybe a little more towards the center. Keep us posted of your progress.

Beefie

Thanks. With 24" sides, I wouldn't be filling all the available space on the trailer to that height. A rough calculation would be 16' x 76" x 24" = 1.6 cords x 5200 approx. (green Oak) = 8320 lbs. So that would be to much for that trailer and my 1/2 ton. But I would use the sideboards more for throwing (vs stacked) a measured cord. I don't have pics (next time) of a thrown load, but I made 24" sides for the car hauler I borrow (Big Tex 70CH-18, 7K rated, 2K empty according to specs, brakes on one axle) and a thrown cord fits nicely in the 16' that I use (2' of dovetail...total of 18'). Using the 5200 lbs as a max, I would be 600 lbs over my trucks 6600 lbs tow rating. My truck pulls it okay, and the brakes are very nice. I take it real easy when I'm going down the road and stay out of OD. So I'm thinking I should be able to do the same with this trailer (with brakes on one axle to start with) and be ok.

Here's a pic of a load of Oak rounds that I went across some scales with one time a while back. 7520 lbs for trailer and wood.

Kevin

 

[indiansprings]

I run used 10 ply truck tires on my trailer all the time. No issues, they are much better than the made in china tires that come on them new. My 16' trailer gets 3 cord stacked on it all the time, but it has 5k or 7500 lbs axles. I don't use trailer brakes, but drive with caution at very moderate speed. Have never had an issue with a 2" ball, but can see where a 2 5/16" would stop people from borrowing it.
As in the earlier post, you ever come up to visit your friends in Springfield, just drop the trailer off and it'll be done when you come back by all fixed up for a 12 pack of cold Dr. Pepper, just throw a little angle iron on and it'll be done in a few hours, complete with a new coat of paint, it's just got to warm up a little.

 

[KMB]

KMB, you bring that trailer up my way, with a little angle iron and a cooler of Dr.Pepper and the rest will be on the house, it won't take that long. Just wait until it warms up a little. I'd run with a ball hitch on that baby.
Man, that daughter of yours is growing and cuter than ever, glad to see you posting. I'm serious on the trailer repair, got all the goodies to fix in. Welders, torch, grinders, sawall and plenty of time.lol
You got a heck of a deal.

Thanks man for that offer. I believe you told me one time that you were near Aurora, MO...which is about 6 hrs. away from here...where some good friends of mine live.

I'm gonna try closer/locally first. The friend I mentioned that welds and has a cutting torch is a pretty busy guy, his shop is about 1-1/2 hrs. from my house, but we'll see. A neighbor down the road from me welds and is helpful...but he can be fairly busy also. Another neighbor has welded a trailer jack to my bro-in-laws 5'x8' utility trailer and is a good guy...but he too is a busy fella. I have heard of a trade school in Bossier/Shreveport (hour or so away) that will do welding for free (I supply the steel).

For curiosity, I might borrow a big sledge hammer and see what happens. I don't have a come-along. I wonder if a fella would apply heat from a torch and pound away...I've been meaning to buy one of those bottle torches for a while...anybody think that would work? Just something I'd try, while waiting to get 'proper' help.

About my little girl. She's quickly becoming 'daddy's girl' more and more. When we all go to town, and if I'm going to Lowes or Home Depot, my wife will usually just wait in the car...but Kayleigh wants to go with 'daddy'. :msp_smile: She loves being outside. If there's sticks, rocks, dirt or sand and water...she's good to go!

Kevin

 

[KMB]

I run used 10 ply truck tires on my trailer all the time. No issues, they are much better than the made in china tires that come on them new. My 16' trailer gets 3 cord stacked on it all the time, but it has 5k or 7500 lbs axles. I don't use trailer brakes, but drive with caution at very moderate speed. Have never had an issue with a 2" ball, but can see where a 2 5/16" would stop people from borrowing it.
As in the earlier post, you ever come up to visit your friends in Springfield, just drop the trailer off and it'll be done when you come back by all fixed up for a 12 pack of cold Dr. Pepper, just throw a little angle iron on and it'll be done in a few hours, complete with a new coat of paint, it's just got to warm up a little.

Well with an offer like that...how can a fella refuse...:msp_smile:. It would take a bunch of fuel in the old Ford...there's some pretty good hills along the way! But...I'm always looking for an excuse to get up to that part of the country and to visit our friends...good people! We'll see.

If you don't mind me asking, how much do you usually pay for those used 10 ply's?

Kevin

 

[KMB]

Can't help you on the steel part, but, when it comes to the decking, here's my story about mine as told on one of the F150 boards last summer:

I haven't gone to read your full story yet, but I have read elsewhere about how fellas replace the floor boards. I wonder is a floor jack would work the same way the 6x6 does. I had thought about having the welds on the front steel strip (that holds the boards in place) ground/cut off and then after the new boards are laid, use the proper screws to fasten the steel strip down through the wood and through the angle iron below (like I've seen some trailer builders do).

Kevin

 

[KMB]

for you--i would--ALSO,,,tho no one said it--id replace the hitch, with one for a 2 5/16 ball--why??? its called borrowing--that stops nearly allll of it!!!! and get the same type locking mechanism--they are the best!! if you ever decide to get a new jack--D O N T get another top wind--they are prone to dirt and water getting into the top of the jack--and theres a needle thrust bearing undereath there---that loves to rust up--then try to turn the handle with a load of any type on it!!!! the diff in price,,between a side wind,,,and top, is near nothing!!!!!!!! and if you have a bit extra--try and buy the jack--with a drop foot option--

Thanks for the jack advice. For now, I'll fix the handle and use it as is.

I hear ya about the borrowing...but I really can't say much because up until now, I was borrowing a trailer also. Not to boast, but I take/took better care of that car hauler than the owner. I've adjusted the brakes, tried to keep the lights working, replaced the jack and just tried to treat it as it were mine. I know it's just a trailer that is meant to be used...but it doesn't have to be abused either. Maybe down the road I might switch out the coupler...but for now I'll keep the 2" coupler. I will be getting a coupler lock though. I live close to the road and wouldn't want someone helping themselves.

Kevin

 

[KMB]

But in the end, as long as my weight was at or below the rating of the trailer, they never said anything.

I hope that doesn't cause me grief since it says 4K for the GVWR of this trailer on its tag. I know that this trailer can safely haul more than that. I've seen trailers with smaller sized angle iron frames rated for 7K and with out brakes. I doubt the local law would look at the plate, but the State boys might. I wouldn't be hauling big firewood loads to often anyway, and I'll have brakes.

I'm curious...was that 6K you mentioned wood alone? 2-3500 lb axle trailer? I'm not trying to critique what you do...that's your business....

What size trailer tire were you getting for $125 a piece? good advice on the wheel bearings. From what I've seen, a set of bearings should come with the drums for the brake axle. The other axle will also get repacked for sure. A friend recommended 'bearing buddies (?)'...anybody use them?

Kevin

 

[KMB]

i too been following the chronicles of kevin's trailer quest (yours are some of the more interesting posts)

LOL...I'll try to put an end to it.

glad to see you're progressing in your equipment acquisitions. steady as she goes.

Thanks. As I'm able...I'll stay the course and get it done.

Kevin

 

[KMB]

I said rear brakes since most modern trucks sit so high. On our shop trailer is a goose neck tri-axle with one brake on the front axle and would slide more than it stopped. The dually we pull it with just sits so high that it rides on the rear axle the most.
Since you found a welder to help you out, go with the ramps. I would avoid a gate as running empty, you might get the trailer to wag from a light tongue weight.
good luck with the trailer, post up when you get it all cleaned up.

Thanks. I never thought about the angle of the trailer causing it to ride more on the rear axle. On my truck, the car hauler was a touch higher at the front empty...but loaded it leveled out nicely. I'll have to see how this 'new' trailer does.

Kevin

 

[avalancher]

I hope that doesn't cause me grief since it says 4K for the GVWR of this trailer on its tag. I know that this trailer can safely haul more than that. I've seen trailers with smaller sized angle iron frames rated for 7K and with out brakes. I doubt the local law would look at the plate, but the State boys might. I wouldn't be hauling big firewood loads to often anyway, and I'll have brakes.

I'm curious...was that 6K you mentioned wood alone? 2-3500 lb axle trailer? I'm not trying to critique what you do...that's your business....

Hate to admit it, but I am the worse guy you will ever run across when it comes to overloading a trailer.Just cant help myself I reckon.When I cut wood, I just get to cuttin and heaving wood that I keep on going until the wood overflows the 16 inch sides, and more than once got so overloaded I couldnt even get going without shifting into 4wd cause the rear wheels spun on the gravel.I once went for gravel at the local gravel pit and was floored when I went to the scale house to pay for the gravel.I had 9000lbs of gravel on that load.Anyone with any sense would have grabbed a shovel and started unloading, but I decided to go ahead and head to the house.Not my smartest moment,but I did get home with the load safe. The tag on my trailer was just stuck on there when it was made with some two way tape instead of being riveted on, and it fell off years ago.If it wasnt for that, the State Patrol would have wacked me years ago for being overloaded.

What size trailer tire were you getting for $125 a piece? good advice on the wheel bearings. From what I've seen, a set of bearings should come with the drums for the brake axle. The other axle will also get repacked for sure. A friend recommended 'bearing buddies (?)'...anybody use them?

Dont know what size they are, I THINK they are 255X16 but I could be wrong.But I know our local tire shops will not put a truck tire on a rim designed for trailer tire.I have an old 4X6 trailer that I pull around the yard with the garden tractor, and when I went down to our local tire shop they wanted $80 a piece for the tires.I explained that I just pulled it around the yard, but they refused to mount some cheap car tires to the rims unless I brought the whole trailer down there and they could assertain that it was indeed a low speed garden trailer.had to go home, put the tires back on, and pull into my big trailer, and take it down there.Only then would they mount up some cheap $30 tires.They said it was the law in our state.And like I said before, I have been stopped on the highway three times by state troopers and every single time they have inspected the tires to ensure they were trailer tires mounted on the trailer rims.But every state is different.

Kevin

I yanked the bearing buddies off of my trailer after constantly getting them pulled off in the brush.I thought they were a good idea at the time, but after loosing one and never finding it in a deep mud rut, I went back to the good old caps.I schedule my trailer for a once a year inspection that includes pulling the wheels and hubs,cleaning and inspecting bearings, and then repacking.You can figure an hour per side for this,and its cheap insurance.With the bearing buddies, it kind of leans a guy into ignoring the bearings, and regardless of the amount of grease a guy has to shoot into em,they still wear and need adjustment.

 

[les-or-more]

A friend recommended 'bearing buddies (?)'...anybody use them?

Kevin

They work ok but you need to be careful not to over grease the brake axles. A lot of the Dexter axles we put under our trailers had the easy lube option, which is a rubber plug in the dust cap with a zerk for lubing the bearings. More than one customer thought that they should give 'em a few pumps every time they used their trailer. The extra grease will cause the brakes to lock up and not release.They would bring their trailer in on a borrowed trailer, give us the what for on the junk brakes just locking up and not being able to get them to release. One time we had to cut the drum off our hub puller wouldn't pull it. Most of the time we would pull them apart show them the drum full of grease, clean things up slap a new set of shoes in and send them on their way. They would shake their heads and say they can't believe too much grease is a bad thing. My advice is take them apart and repack them once a year, for 99% of them that is plenty, if its not being towed all day 6 days a week.

 

[KMB]

I yanked the bearing buddies off of my trailer after constantly getting them pulled off in the brush.I thought they were a good idea at the time, but after loosing one and never finding it in a deep mud rut, I went back to the good old caps.I schedule my trailer for a once a year inspection that includes pulling the wheels and hubs,cleaning and inspecting bearings, and then repacking.You can figure an hour per side for this,and its cheap insurance.With the bearing buddies, it kind of leans a guy into ignoring the bearings, and regardless of the amount of grease a guy has to shoot into em,they still wear and need adjustment.

They work ok but you need to be careful not to over grease the brake axles. A lot of the Dexter axles we put under our trailers had the easy lube option, which is a rubber plug in the dust cap with a zerk for lubing the bearings. More than one customer thought that they should give 'em a few pumps every time they used their trailer. The extra grease will cause the brakes to lock up and not release.They would bring their trailer in on a borrowed trailer, give us the what for on the junk brakes just locking up and not being able to get them to release. One time we had to cut the drum off our hub puller wouldn't pull it. Most of the time we would pull them apart show them the drum full of grease, clean things up slap a new set of shoes in and send them on their way. They would shake their heads and say they can't believe too much grease is a bad thing. My advice is take them apart and repack them once a year, for 99% of them that is plenty, if its not being towed all day 6 days a week.

Thanks fellas. I was also looking into the Dexter EZ lube bearing system that Les is talking about and was going to ask about them...but don't have to now.

Kevin

 

[gwiley]

I weld and do other fabrication and repair on my own equipment (trailer, skid steer, etc.).

Considering that this is a wood hauler I recommend a lively session with a sledge hammer. Then inspect the joints around that bent spot for cracks - if you find any get someone to weld them up.

Hauling wood beats the hell out of trailers - I don't think it is worth putting time into making them pretty if you are going to actually use them to work. I may be hard on stuff, but I find it impossible to avoid bent and mangled gear over time when I am "getting it done".

If you want to use the trailer to impress folks, clean it up but don't use it for regular wood hauling then

 

[Intheswamp]

Something else to look out for on a trailer is if the trailer uses dayton type rims and 14.5 inch tires. That is a mobile home size tire and many trailers have been built using mobile home axles and wheels and wedges. Mobile homes usually have tires rated for "Mobile Home Use Only". Don't be caught with one of these tires on your trailer...DOT will put you out of service instantly. The tire must be an "ST" (Service Trailer) rated tire to pass muster rather than mobile home rated. I've seen where "LT" rated 14.5 inch tires have passed inspection...Carlisle, a very large trailer tire manufacturer rates all of their 14.5 inch tires as "LT" as do they their 700-15 and 750-16 sizes. I believe all of their radials are rated as "ST". Just in case someone has this situation....

Ed

 

[dancan]

Something else to look out for on a trailer is if the trailer uses dayton type rims and 14.5 inch tires. That is a mobile home size tire and many trailers have been built using mobile home axles and wheels and wedges. Mobile homes usually have tires rated for "Mobile Home Use Only". Don't be caught with one of these tires on your trailer...DOT will put you out of service instantly. The tire must be an "ST" (Service Trailer) rated tire to pass muster rather than mobile home rated. I've seen where "LT" rated 14.5 inch tires have passed inspection...Carlisle, a very large trailer tire manufacturer rates all of their 14.5 inch tires as "LT" as do they their 700-15 and 750-16 sizes. I believe all of their radials are rated as "ST". Just in case someone has this situation....

Ed

From the pics KMB posted he has no worries about 14.5's and up here there are many trailers that use them . We do motor vehicle/trailer inspections at my day job , in 14 years I've only had 2 with MH designation and I can get new DOT tires for my costumers at around 89.00$$ for load range F .

 

[dancan]

At roadside checks (unless trailers are the target) our DOT guys look at the tags and permit , lights , coupler and safety , safety chains and look to see if your tire rating adds up to what it looks like your hauling .

 

[KMB]

dancan is right, those are 15" rims on that trailer. The tires are 235/75R15's. They are not ST tires...I can't remember if they're even LT's. But they will (need to) be replaced before any good sized load is put on that trailer.

Kevin

 

[Intheswamp]

dancan is right, those are 15" rims on that trailer. The tires are 235/75R15's. They are not ST tires...I can't remember if they're even LT's. But they will (need to) be replaced before any good sized load is put on that trailer.

Kevin

Morning Kevin. Sorry for the confusion, I wasn't inferring that they were mobile home tires. Looking at them it is easy to tell that they are M&S rated tires (MH would be ribbed, non M&S). Going by the rounded crown they appear to be P-metrics, but being as worn as they are they could be LT's that have been low on air at times. I was just throwing the MH factor in there for anyone following the thread since it seemed there was earlier discussion about ST vs. LT and government regulations and some times these tires/wheels/axles end up under utility trailers.

You got a bargain on the trailer. Best wishes on the refurb/mods.

Ed

 

[KMB]

Morning Kevin. Sorry for the confusion, I wasn't inferring that they were mobile home tires. Looking at them it is easy to tell that they are M&S rated tires (MH would be ribbed, non M&S). Going by the rounded crown they appear to be P-metrics, but being as worn as they are they could be LT's that have been low on air at times. I was just throwing the MH factor in there for anyone following the thread since it seemed there was earlier discussion about ST vs. LT and government regulations and some times these tires/wheels/axles end up under utility trailers.

You got a bargain on the trailer. Best wishes on the refurb/mods.

Ed

Mornin'. I understood what you meant in your first post about MH tires and I should have replied differently by simply stating what size tires were on the trailer, period...or not responding at all . Even so, thanks for the info.

Kevin