Old angle iron trailer to start?

[mydogsbear]

Hi
I got a question about a trailer I got to start building my TD on. First I have to derust the frame and wheels. It's all 2" angle iron and has 12" side rails and nice fenders ....5x10 in size. Should I leave the siderails on and build on top or around them for my sides and front?
David

trailer is this design without the ramp

[Eddielbs]

I'm no Expert by a long shot But in my opinion the side rails would just get in the way of the build... I would remove them but its your build so it's really up to you..

[mydogsbear]

Yeah It's hard to decide.....I got the old trailer for nothing its a heavy duty start I'm thinking hard about a weekender off-road. For my Buffalo river runs and also my mini bass boat will ride on top.

[Eddielbs]

I built my 5x10 frame that I'm using for my tear for a lot less than I payed for my small 5x8 utility trailer I got from lowes. And its a lot more sturdy than the utility trailer.

[TomW]

You have the same questions I had when I first started my build. I talked to one of the men in our fabrication shop who used to build the type of trailer you have and here is what he told me.

The side walls are constructed as a ladder which gives the strength needed to make the 3500lb rating. If you cut off the top rail and vertical supports you de-rate the strength of the frame about 35 to 40%.

The good news is that since your floor and walls will be bolted to the bottom frame, the torsion box you will be building as the tear drop shell will add some of the strength back.

My 5 x 10 utility trailer has 2 x 2 x 1/8 angle for the bottom framing and 3" x 1/8" angle for the A-frame coupler. The trailer I built uses 2 x 2 x 1/4 angle with cross members on 24" centers. The trailer was not flimsy to start with and since I have added the tear shell, the thing is solid as a rock.

I do not know the weight of your project but I can not imagine the full loaded weight being more than 1500/1600lbs max.

I am just a beginner at this and have asked many questions and looked at many frames in the albums and based on the frames I have seen, my frame is within the load limits of my materials.

Take the time to look at all of the albums you can and you will find a very deep well of knowledge.

Good building

[mydogsbear]

You have the same questions I had when I first started my build. I talked to one of the men in our fabrication shop who used to build the type of trailer you have and here is what he told me.

The side walls are constructed as a ladder which gives the strength needed to make the 3500lb rating. If you cut off the top rail and vertical supports you de-rate the strength of the frame about 35 to 40%.

The good news is that since your floor and walls will be bolted to the bottom frame, the torsion box you will be building as the tear drop shell will add some of the strength back.

My 5 x 10 utility trailer has 2 x 2 x 1/8 angle for the bottom framing and 3" x 1/8" angle for the A-frame coupler. The trailer I built uses 2 x 2 x 1/4 angle with cross members on 24" centers. The trailer was not flimsy to start with and since I have added the tear shell, the thing is solid as a rock.

I do not know the weight of your project but I can not imagine the full loaded weight being more than 1500/1600lbs max.

I am just a beginner at this and have asked many questions and looked at many frames in the albums and based on the frames I have seen, my frame is within the load limits of my materials.

Take the time to look at all of the albums you can and you will find a very deep well of knowledge.

Good building

Thanks tom for the info . After I clean this frame and prime and seal. I also have the issue of axle location. I may go ahead and cut off the axle. then the worry about door location. I know this build will be heavy but I'm looking towards ruggedness before weight . All my TV's are capable of towing 3500 at least . I thought leaving the rails might give me a better sidewall strength if i go with 5 ft height
thanks

[angib]

Those side rails do add a bit of strength but not a whole lot - if there were diagonals between them, then it would be quite different.

But you aren't going to be adding big point loads to your teardrop and the body you build will be at least as strong as those upper side rails, so cut 'em off without another thought.

If the trailer has 3500lb springs, they're going to be like having no suspension under the weight of your teardrop, so they'll beat the body and anything you carry to bits. It would be good to see how many of the leaves of the spring you can remove to make them softer.

Andrew

[brian_bp]

I second Andrew's spring suggestion. When I checked with the manufacturer of the axle and suspension for my trailer, to confirm the capacity rating, they listed load capacities for the spring pack depending on the number of leaves. It's an equivalent to a Dexter D35 axle, with a capacity of 3500 lb with five-leaf springs (which is what I have). Packs down to two or three leaves (I can't remember which) are acceptable - the shortest leaf would be removed at each stage - and it was very close to simply 700 lb of capacity per leaf. So a 3-leaf pack would have roughly 2100 lb capacity and likely ride much better.

[mydogsbear]

Thanks Andrew and Brian for the great information. I have two trailers .....this 5x10 angle iron and a lighter duty 5x8 bolt together sears trailer. Both are needing work with rust and paint and light welding. I will post pic's on my progress as i get started.
thanks again guys

[b.bodemer]

My trailer was almost like that too.................it was built for my mechanic to haul his touring bike.

He was nice enough to take the side rails off for me but it sure didn't look nice until I added trim and covered the angle iron completely.............


Barb