Torsen axle/hopping

[rmcelroy]

I took my TD out for a test pull again yesterday. I had a pressure difference in the tires from side to side on the last test and fixed that problem, tire pressure for this test was 10lbs on each side.

I have a 2000 lb custom cut torsen axle from S.W. wheel. Is there a way to soften the ride on a torsen axle? My TD is light (prob under 500 lbs). There was quit a bit of hopping over RR tracks and the like. I was not driving I wanted to be able to watch the TD carefully and we went a little faster over those kinda things than if I had been driving.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Mc

[Chip]

More weight,, lots more weight,,, Some will probably correct me but general rule of thumb is to have an axle rated at approx twice the GVW that you are towing,,, and from what you stated you are about 500 lbs, then you doubled the normal weight rating,,,,I hate to say I dont know of any way to reduce the spring load rating on a tortion axle,,, basically some of the rubber inside the tortion tube would have to be removed to reduce the axle rating,,, Its not a DIY project,,, As far as a solution I really dont have one,, hit the bumps slow,,,, good luck with that one,,, one of the pro's on here might have a reasonable solution,,,

chipper

[mbader]

Maybe softer tires.
I see you already have the pressure very low, but can you fit bigger tires.

[rmcelroy]

I have 13 inch rims-I'll have to check into bigger tires. Do you mean taller?

My mounting plates for the axle mounted fenders may need replacing anyway. They picked up a substantial shutter at about 60mph. I would need to make them bigger if I go with bigger tires.

Mc

[madjack]

Mc, there is no way to adjust the spring rate onna torsion axle...you should have a 50% over capacity on your axle, so a 500# trailer should have a 750# axle under it...in your case you have about a 400% over capacity or 3 time what you actually needed...tire/tire pressure is about all you can play with, even a shock absorber adaptation wouldn't help since the axles essentially don't have enough weight on them to cause the torsion action to occur...sorry for the bad news.............
madjack

[angib]

Maybe softer tires.
I see you already have the pressure very low, but can you fit bigger tires.

I would expect bigger tires to give a harder ride - they will need more load to make them deflect the same amount.

10psi is certainly a low pressure! I would worry about going that low for fear of knocking the tire off the wheel, but maybe I'm worrying too much. 13" trailer tires are rated at 15psi for loads of 670lb per tire, so maybe your 250lb per tire at 10psi is OK.

I don't think there is anything you can do to lighten the spring rate in the axle. If you bought from SW Wheel, I'm guessing you've got a Flexiride 2,000lb axle (with trailing arms that fit on a splined torsion shaft?) in which case it can be downrated as far as 1,400lb, but only at time of manufacture. You might see if they would sell you an new axle tube alone rated at 1,400lb, but that's still nearly three times your trailer weight, so you'd run the risk of finding it not much better.

Andrew

[rmcelroy]

If I went with shorties I could get these

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/ ... 5127_25127

or these

http://www.etrailerpart.com/MyWebs/mywe ... 801015.htm

Any suggestions?

Anyone need a 2000lb 46in torsen?

Mc

[Ken A Hood]

I've heard the reliable axles aren't that "reliable" I think it was Grant who used them in the past (or mentioned past experiences) that they had problems. And since your trailer is weighed in at 500 lbs; those axles are at the limit (500 lbs per pair)

[rmcelroy]

Oh, hadn't heard about the (un) reliables. Do you know anything about the 935lb e-trailer parts?

Mc

[madjack]

Mc, I have heard the same about the Reliable brand but know of no specifics...however the pair listed is too light for your application...etrailerpart is the distributor for Flexiride and that is probaby what you have listed, if so they have a good rep and the weight is right on...we got our Flexiride from etrailerpart by the way...
madjack

[Ken A Hood]

Oh, hadn't heard about the (un) reliables. Do you know anything about the 935lb e-trailer parts?

Mc

Sorry, no, but like I said with the reliable it was either Grant......but now I'm thinking it was Cary from Camp-Inn who used to use them/had heard about them..
You could drop both them an email though.

[rmcelroy]

Thanks Mj, I had wanted to go with the shorties from the start for weight reasons. But I decided to use the solid axle for alignment issues.

Any tips on getting the alignment right on the shorties?

Looks like I'm not done yet Huh?

Mc

[madjack]

Mc, I have never used shorties so can't give real specific answers but I would run a cross member at the location they go and weld a plate to each side to mount the axles to...others who have used them may have better ideas......
madjack

[angib]

Any tips on getting the alignment right on the shorties?

The main tip is: don't worry too much. I think because you Merkans mostly use full axles, there's a general idea that aligning half-axles is difficult - it's a bit like: "we don't do that here, so it must be impossible".

Back street garages and every homebuilder manage to put half-axles on trailers over here in Yurp and it doesn't ever cause a problem - I've never seen or heard of one.

When you're using bolt-on half-axles, it makes sense to cut out and drill mounting plates, bolt the half-axles to the plates, line the whole lot up (clamping a straight edge across both half-axles is good), tack the mounting plates and unbolt the half-axles for welding.

Andrew

[Jiminsav]

half shafts are so easy to align, even I can do it..done it twice so far..nary a problem., and on my first Tear, I used reliable axles from northern tools and never had a lick of problems with them.

so, if'n it were me, I'd order two 500 lbs half shafts, bolt them on, and ride like the wind.