What size flexiride axle?

[KA]

Hi,
Sorry for asking so many wordy questions...alas, here is another. If I decide to build the Generic Benroy and want to use the Flexiride axle system, do I still need to make the trailer width smaller than the 5 feet width I'm considering for the trailer? I see that Flexirides come in 2 inch increments so do I need to order a 62 inch wide axle? Or, can I just order a 60 inch since the fenders won't be attached to the trailer I'm building until the cabin is constructed?
Thanks.
Kris

[madjack]

...first off, order by phone...when you do, tell them the trailer is 60"s wide...outside to outside...you will also need a hub face to hub face measurement...onna 60 " trailer that is gonna be around 74 to 76 inches based on the offset of whatever wheels you are using.........
madjack

[asianflava]

The most definite way to get a correct measurement is to have your wheels (with tires mounted) on hand. This variable can change depending on tire size and wheel offset. If you have your wheels, you can get a hub to hub measurement by

L offset+R offset+L tire to wall spacing+R tire to wall spacing+frame width

You may need to add wall thickness if your walls hang over the frame.

[madjack]

dang Rocky, ya done cooked it down to an algebraic formula...for all us scientific types ...........

[KA]

Hi Asianflava and Madjack,
Thanks so much for the info. Everytime I think I understand the chassis design, something else pops up for consideration. I'd really have a big headache without this forum.
Thanks again
Kris

[madjack]

hey Kris, no problem...that is what we are here for...just don't forget the pics...that is the price for da info.....

[asianflava]

I know how it feels, I had to mull this one over for a long time before I made the phone call. I measured and added, re-measured and added several times to be shure. The only thing I wasn't so shure about was the start angle. Thought 45 would be too tall, and was afraid 0 would be too short. I just split the difference and got 22.5 which turned out to be jsut right for our tow vehicle. You won't have this problem with a flexiride though.

[dwgriff1]

One of the tear builders wrote the exact specs for his axle/tear combination. His build was the same width as I wanted, so. . .

I ordered just what he said, then I got the tires, wheels, adapters all lined up before I began building, so I could change a bit if necessary.

Not very scientific, but it worked (or at least appears to have worked).

dave

[angib]

Kris,

Here is the drawing of the smallest Flexiride axle from their data sheet:



You will see that if you use the minimum overhang (the dimension shown as 10.25Max 6.12Min), the suspension arms will come very close to your body sides. If you are planning to hang your body sides over the frame tubes, this can cause a clash. So, sadly, it's not just tire-to-sidewall clearance that you need to think about!

One handy thing is that, if you use standard trailer wheels, they tend to have zero offset - that is, the hub face is dead in the middle of the wheel and tire, which makes calculation of axle widths a bit easier. But if you want to buy auto wheels yourself, you will need to know their offset before you order the axle.

Why not say what body width, frame width (if different), wheel type and wheel/tire size you want to use - then everyone can see how it is worked out. Of course if you get three different answers, you might wish you'd never asked!!

Andrew

[mikeschn]

Andrew,

Didn't you put together a cross section of a teardrop body etc on a flexiride axle? Do you have a link to that picture?

Mike...

[d-hartman]

KA

I orderered a Flexride axle last week from Southwest Wheel .
I got a 2000# with frame outside dimensions of 60" and a hub face
to hub face dimension of 73-1/2 .I bought 2 15" wheels with 0 offset
and have also purchesed two p205-75-r15 tires .

My plan is to hang my walls over the frame and it looks as if I am going to have 3/8" of clearece from the side wall to the torsion arm.and plenty of tire room.

The torsion arm itself is on a spline so one could cheat it in or out
by maybe 1/4" on each side without any problems.

My Frame was welded up last night !


MadJack I will try to post some pictures tonight or tomorrow !


Don

[alaska teardrop]

KA

I orderered a Flexride axle last week from Southwest Wheel .
I got a 2000# with frame outside dimensions of 60" and a hub face
to hub face dimension of 73-1/2 .I bought 2 15" wheels with 0 offset
and have also purchesed two p205-75-r15 tires .

My plan is to hang my walls over the frame and it looks as if I am going to have 3/8" of clearece from the side wall to the torsion arm.and plenty of tire room.

The torsion arm itself is on a spline so one could cheat it in or out by maybe 1/4" on each side without any problems.

My Frame was welded up last night !


MadJack I will try to post some pictures tonight or tomorrow !


Don

Living in a colony on the far reaches of empire, I have never seen a Flexride axle in person. However, in looking at the diagram provided by Andrew, I do not understand how you will 'cheat' the hub face to hub face dimension to a greater width. Possibly it has an offset pin?

Some relevant posts from the past:

The flexride swing arm is 6.06" from the hub face to the inside of the swing arm. So, 60" body + 1.580" for both sides + 12.12" for swing arms = 73.7". 75" minus 73.7" = 1.3" divided by 2 = .65" clearance between the body & the inside of the swing arm.

Andrew - Yes, Redneck shows the dimension (6.2") http://www.redneck-trailer.com/2004/A.htm Also Redneck only lists one minimum dimension of 6", which must be the 1" spindle for 8" to 10" wheels. Note that the minimum and maximum overhang dimensions only relate to the construction of the axle. i.e. physical limitation of the minimum dimension and the unsprung(?) load at the maximum dimension. Therefore, as an example, 62" (hub face to hub face) minus 48" (outside bracket to outside bracket) =14" minus 6.2"x2 = 1.6" divided by 2 = 0.8" clearance on both sides. I brought this up because I've read that a couple of builders have been tripped up. If one brings the side walls or trim down alongside the frame, one can end up with no clearance. In conclusion, I guess that I would say to call for a hub face to hub face dimension at least 14" greater than the width of the trailer regardless of the mounting bracket location

My axle is 74in face-face I still had to cut a notch in my sidewalls for the trailing arm to clear.

Our axles are 70.37" hub to hub and our body is 60". This gets the tires nice and close the side walls with a 14 x 6 wheel. We notch the side wall plywood to clear the trailing arms. We use Flexiride axles, I think they have a shorter hub to trailing arm dimension. Cary

Cary, Flexiride must use shorter spindles. It seems that everyone ordering a Dexter for a 60" frame gets 72" hub to hub and a 1/4" swing arm clearance. I could have made a cutout in my plywood, but since I hadn't cut the steel yet, I just decided to narrow the width by 1/2" to get my clearance.

Seems to be a common story. The #9 Dexter torflex measures 6.2 inches from the hub face to the inside of the swing arm. Unfortunately that measurement isn't included in every company's literature. Daves' for example. One can calculate the wheel offset, tire size and gap to the body, but not realize that the arm may be closer to the frame/body than the tire.

Well that wouldn't be too different then. I think the Flexi is about 6.06" Not a big difference. Cary

Andrew, Didn't you put together a cross section of a teardrop body etc on a flexiride axle? Do you have a link to that picture?
Mike...

Andrew, One of your fine & informative drawings in the 'Important Information' section might go a long way towards helping this issue from coming up again & again!

Fred

[KA]

Hi All,
You guys are great! I am overwhelmed. Think I'll print off the replies and go sit down in a comfy chair and ponder for awhile. Then I'll post my dimensions and wants and see what you think.
Thanks again. [/u][/b]

[d-hartman]

Fred

If you look at this picture it may help .



The torsion arm itself is a clamp ,and the silver bolt closes it down onto the splined shaft. The splined shaft comes out of the square box section of the axle that houses the rubber cords.

The torsion arm itself has a internal spline, which allows one to change their start angle. A person could also bump this in or out a small amount .



Don

[madjack]

Don, have you tried this...we did and got no more than 1/8th"...the bolt that clamps the hub, rests in a groove in the spindle and allows very little movement...
madjack