Jd,
Using the phrases 'Cabin Car' and 'axle position' in the same post sets off alarm bells with me, because the original Cabin Car has an unusually high hitch weight, as a result of having its wheels set a long way back - they have to go a long way back, as the bed/settee must fit in front of them.
Here is my trailer balance spreadsheet (you can download it
here) with dimensions as close as I can get to an original Cabin Car:
That hitch weight, at 21% of the total, is no problem, providing you have a tow vehicle that can take the 315lb. It is the result of the wheel position, which is only 29% of the body length from the back end. If you want to move the hitch weight down to the middle of the recomended 10-15% band, then the wheels need to go further forward:
This is with the wheels at 40% of the body length from the back end and you certainly don't want them any further forward than this. Something like 35% of the body length from the back of the body is a good first shot - and coincidentally, that seems to be just where Rob put them in his Cabin Car 'replica'.
Building your own suspension seems to be unecessary extra work when using a stock trailer axle doesn't seem to cause other folks any problems - if you want the trailer to ride fairly low, a torsion axle with a horizontal or 'up' start angle will get you real low. If you PM me your email address, I can send you a pdf of a Cabin Car style trailer showing a suitable layout.
Andrew