Will it work?

[angib]

i take it people generally weld all the possible connection points between frame and tongue?

Interestingly, the Australians seem to recommend that transverse welds across the tongue are not made at the front crossmember - there doesn't seem to be a problem with the longitudinal welds along the tongue (ie, either side).

I think their reason is that the transverse weld just weakens the tongue at its most critical point and as most tongues that fail seem to do so with the coupler going up (or front of trailer body going down, depending on which way you're looking at it), there's no requirement for that weld under this loading.

But I've seen Australian sites say that the tongue shouldn't be welded to the front crossmember at all, which seems a bit extreme to me - I would expect this to produce 'chatter' as the tongue comes off the front crossmember (maybe only by 1/32") and then bangs back on it again.

Andrew

[Steve F]

i take it people generally weld all the possible connection points between frame and tongue?

Interestingly, the Australians seem to recommend that transverse welds across the tongue are not made at the front crossmember - there doesn't seem to be a problem with the longitudinal welds along the tongue (ie, either side).

I think their reason is that the transverse weld just weakens the tongue at its most critical point and as most tongues that fail seem to do so with the coupler going up (or front of trailer body going down, depending on which way you're looking at it), there's no requirement for that weld under this loading.

But I've seen Australian sites say that the tongue shouldn't be welded to the front crossmember at all, which seems a bit extreme to me - I would expect this to produce 'chatter' as the tongue comes off the front crossmember (maybe only by 1/32") and then bangs back on it again.

Andrew

If you live down here and you weld the tongue to the front crossmember across the tongue then everyone who sees is will tell you you shouldn't have It's one thing I made sure I didn't do when I made my trailer Never seen any that say not to weld it at all though.

Cheers
Steve

[G-force]

The front logitudinal weld is normaly in compression so really it is not doing much. Welding across it could possably cause a weakness in the heat affected zone. Personaly, for a mild steel trailer, with a properly done weld, I doubt it matters at all. A poor weld that is undercut could nearly seperate from the trailer if the undercut weld is on all 4 sides, that square of material could tear out if the tounge of the trailer was put in tension, perhaps on a bouncy road.

i take it people generally weld all the possible connection points between frame and tongue?

Interestingly, the Australians seem to recommend that transverse welds across the tongue are not made at the front crossmember - there doesn't seem to be a problem with the longitudinal welds along the tongue (ie, either side).

I think their reason is that the transverse weld just weakens the tongue at its most critical point and as most tongues that fail seem to do so with the coupler going up (or front of trailer body going down, depending on which way you're looking at it), there's no requirement for that weld under this loading.

But I've seen Australian sites say that the tongue shouldn't be welded to the front crossmember at all, which seems a bit extreme to me - I would expect this to produce 'chatter' as the tongue comes off the front crossmember (maybe only by 1/32") and then bangs back on it again.

Andrew

[Tx River Rat]

The reason for the weld not going across the tongue is flex instead of spreading it over several inches it fastens the trailer tongue and frame rigidly and concentrates it all right at the weld after a while the flexing in one spot will cause a crack.
Its the same as holding a piece of wire a foot long and flexing it over its length never will break but hold it stiff in one place and start bending it will break where it is held rigid
I was in the steel business for 40 years
Ron

[Muggnz]

creekslick,

hi,

do your cross members have any holes for water to escape from?

My donor trailer didn't & the front cross members rusted to the state where they weren't repairable & the middle have rust holes of various sizes.

FWIW - I bought the trailer when it was 34 years old.

david

[creekslick]

creekslick,

hi,

do your cross members have any holes for water to escape from?

My donor trailer didn't & the front cross members rusted to the state where they weren't repairable & the middle have rust holes of various sizes.

FWIW - I bought the trailer when it was 34 years old.

david

No they do not have any holes, but some could be drill from the underside.

[brian_bp]

creekslick,

hi,

do your cross members have any holes for water to escape from?

My donor trailer didn't & the front cross members rusted to the state where they weren't repairable & the middle have rust holes of various sizes.

FWIW - I bought the trailer when it was 34 years old.

david

A local cargo trailer manufacturer will not use closed box-section tubing on his larger trailers, because they have seen too many problems with rust from the inside. Either ensuring that the tube is clean and dry, and then sealed in fabrication, or that it can drain, seems like a good idea.

[TD4FREEW/CTD]

A local cargo trailer manufacturer will not use closed box-section tubing on his larger trailers, because they have seen too many problems with rust from the inside. Either ensuring that the tube is clean and dry, and then sealed in fabrication, or that it can drain, seems like a good idea.

Interesting. we have some 2"x2" square tubing at the shop that has been sitting outside for well over a year. the outside is covered in surface rust. when i made a cut about 6' into a piece i was pleasently surprized to find that the inside of the tube had not yet begun to rust. i should have a look to see how rusty it is right at the original opening and see if i can see where it stops.

[G-force]

Interesting. we have some 2"x2" square tubing at the shop that has been sitting outside for well over a year. the outside is covered in surface rust. when i made a cut about 6' into a piece i was pleasently surprized to find that the inside of the tube had not yet begun to rust. i should have a look to see how rusty it is right at the original opening and see if i can see where it stops.

The problem lies when the tubes are welded up. If its not totaly sealed, as is typical if any holes are drilled for wiring, mounting suspension, etc it traps water inside and the corrosion really takes hold. I work in the marine industry, and we see it all the time with boat trailers. Many boat trailer manufactures have gone to channel or I beam members to prevent areas where water is trapped. As long as the steel is allowed to drain, it will typicaly only form a surface rust, which then becomes a protective layer to prevent additional rust as you have seen in your tube. If you trap water, then the rusting continues.

[James Ellington]

Nice setup. How long is that tongue and whats the tongue weight capacity

[Boodro]

I had a friend with a boat trailer that was tubing . He sealed the ends with caps & installed an air valve on one end & filled the frame with nitrogen. he checked his pressure once in a while to makes sure there were no leaks , it worked great. Never had a rust problem. Just more ingenuity for ya!

[2bits]

EXCELLENT point about the water inside the tubes! I totally didn't think about that, but you definitely need to have condensation drain holes! I learn something new every time I hit this site! Stuff that just makes sense! It's like not learning new stuff, but using stuff you already know in a really creative way! It's awesome. You just added one more "bullet" to my to do list! Great thinking on that one.

[Trailer411]

A-men on the drain holes!

My companies learned the hard way on tubing with-out drain holes. For some reason a drain hole, even though water flows in and out, flowing out is the key. We have seen tubing rust almost threw in less than 2 years with-out drain holes! Especially if any winter driving happens.

Our trailers can't afford problems, check them at http://www.ultracomptrailers.com and http://www.schantzandsons.com.

Check out more trailer info at my site listed below.

Just trying to bring important trailer info to one place!

[Muggnz]

I've been told that it's possible to fill up the tubes with oil to stop rust.

I'm not about to try it, as I don't want the extra weight. I'll probably use drain holes & some sort of car rustproofing product on the inside & hammerite on the outside.

Cleaning the inside is going to be a challenge.

[Juneaudave]

Oh great!!!! You guys are making me worry that my frame is going to go to crap before I even get it out of the garage!!!