Off center axle

[acardon]

My husband chopped up an old boat trailer and reassembled it to use as the base for our teardrop. Last night, when trying to attach the fenders, he realized that one tire is 3 1/2" from the frame, while the other tire is 4 1/4" from the frame. He doesn't want to fix it because he said drilling the holes in the axle takes forever, and it's not that off center. Any opinions? It seems to me that if the center line of your trailer doesn't line up with the center line of your car, you'll have towing issues.

[tony.latham]

Hmmmmm... you're husband's always right. (I'm a husband –what'd you expect?). Us guy's gotta stick together.

Opinios are great but I think what might solve this discussion would be a test run. (that's what NASA would do) Find out how it tows empty. Now, I realize that trailers like to be towed with the center of gravity ahead of the axle, but at least you'll have an idea.

I realize it probably isn't licenesed or perhaps doesn't even have lights but I'd still give it a test run. The trailer chassis that I've welded up have all gone for so-called test runs prior to licensing and lighting just for giggles sake. But I live in the boonies.

T

[dales133]

Do what tony says and maybe as a fix you could add the appropriate size wheel spacer on the short side

[Socal Tom]

I agree with your husband. it's probably fine. As long as the axle is perpendicular to the hitch it should tow straight. The worst case is that the trailer would be moved over 3/4 inch further on one side of the tow vehicle. Correcting it would mean redrilling both holes 3/8 inch over. My guess is they are 1/2 inch holes, so the new hole would over lap the old hole meaning he would have to weld up the old hole first. Welding the old hole up could lead to warping the axle. A warped axle can lead to tire wear problems. If you do have to fix it the spacer is the least risky method. Summitracing.com has a large selection
Tom

[Redneck Teepee]

Dumb Question Here...were the mounting holes existing from the boat trailer or husband error? and do the rim's match such as backspacing...just asking.

[KCStudly]

Tony's advice is good. A test drive might reveal a problem, but it might not.

An empty trailer doesn't carry any weight, so issues like scrubbing or overheating tires won't necessarily show up on a quick trip around the block.

As noted, weight balance can have a big impact on how a trailer tows, but so can speed. So try to test at various speeds, and hold different speed ranges for a long enough period of time to see if an oscillation sets up.

My biggest concern would be shortened tire life. The drag from the wider tire will have a slightly higher lever arm relative to the coupler than the drag from the narrow side. This could cause the tires to try to track askew, maybe not enough to see, and maybe not enough to cause alarming heat buildup, but maybe enough to cause reduced tire life over time.

I would at least want to know what is causing the issue, just to be sure that there isn't some other issue that would cause problems down the road. Wheel offset, sloppy spring hangers, misalignment at assembly, hangers welded on in the wrong location, etc.

[Dale M.]

I agree some what with your husband, but in the end it would probably be best to make it right.... What I don't understand is the comment "drilling holes in axle takes forever", should not have to drill any holes in axle other then the small indexing hole for spring alignment...

Dale

[KCStudly]

...and that usually goes into the spring mount perch or spring plate depending on u-bolt orientation.

[dales133]

Dosn't sound like a leafspring axle to me given that setup...

[bobhenry]

and do the rim's match such as backspacing...just asking.

old trailer miss matched rims I bet this is the only problem.

Take both rims off and lay them flat face up and measure from the ground to the center hub hole. I bet they are about 1 1/2" different

[acardon]

Thanks for your help, everyone.

We are thinking we'll try the wheel spacers for now, because, as SoCalTom said, the new holes would overlap the old holes, creating a new can of worms.

To answer your questions, the mounting holes are husband error I'm not exactly sure why he drilled them in the first place (not sure how the axle was originally connected to the boat trailer - this has been his project, I wanted a new trailer), but he says he just measured incorrectly. And the rims do match - we had to buy brand new wheels and tires because the originals were mismatched.