new trailer ?'s

[vanfajo]

I found a local supplier that sells 4x8 trailers...brand new they run about $550 which seems reasonable. It comes painted black, with 14" tires and round fenders...all things I like. My question is this...it has a straight tongue, not the A-frame style that seems to be popular, is this an issue I should be concerned about?

[madjack]

...there are 2 things to keep in mind about a straight tongue...1) is the wall thickness of the tube, which affects the overall strength and 2) when towing at interstate speeds, there can be a shimmy induced on the tongue, causing a swaying effect...side braces eliminate(basically/usually) both of these problems...that being said, there are a LOT of single tube tongues out there doing quite wellllllllll............
madjack

[vanfajo]

thanks for the heads-up. I suppose I could have braces welded on after the fact if it becomes an issue.

[brian_bp]

I can believe that an inadequately stiff straight tongue could flex and cause "shimmy", but it doesn't need to.

Look at U-Haul rental cargo trailers - most of them have straight tongues to reduce collisions with vehicle bumpers while backing up. There were also two models of U-Haul travel trailers, now rare, which were rented and are now privately owned: they also have straight tongues and are highly regarded by their owners. Most boat trailers have a straight forward tongue portion. All of these seem to work fine, although I don't have personal experience towing them.

My homebuilt (by someone else) small utility trailer has a straight tongue of round tubing, with no braces, and I have not noticed a problem; I don't know the tubing size offhand, but it is substantial for the trailer weight.

[Alphacarina]

My 4 by 8 utility trailer has a straight tongue too and it's never ben a problem. It has a 3500 pound axle with 15 inch wheels and I frequently pull fairly heavy loads, long distances and you don't even know it's back there . . . . 'til you go uphill

The trailer is built of 1 1/2 inch angle iron and decked with 2 X 8's. The tongue is a 2 by 3 inch box with a 3/16ths wall, I think

Don

[angib]

And, hey, while we're all hitting madjack, I'll join in......

We have had one person (Chip, wasn't it?) that got a side-to-side shimmy off a long single tongue and cured it with bracing, so it does exist as a potential, if rare, problem.

On madjack's point about thickness, it's worth saying that tube wall thickness does matter, but it's second in importance to the size of the tube.

So for example, if you wanted to step up from 2"x2"x1/8" tube, you can go thicker (3/16") or bigger (3"x3") and both these will weigh the same. However:
- 2"x2"x3/16" is 41% stronger;
- 3"x3"x1/8" is 140% stronger (ie, 2.4 times as strong).

Incidentally, just going to a deeper tube, 2"x3"x1/8", puts up the vertical strength by 77% and the horizontal strength by 40% for only half the weight increase, so you see why it's a popular choice.

Andrew

[madjack]

..................And, hey, while we're all hitting madjack, I'll join in.........................Andrew

....WOW, was I getting hit(ducking behind the couch)...please note I was not saying "not to"...just suggesting a couple of caveats that need to be kept in mind...............
madjack