Foamie Cargo Trailer

[donrebyct]

I wonder how a foamie cargo trailer built on a Harbor Freight trailer would hold up on a trip to Alaska? I'm thinking about one to pull behind my minivan. My thought is to use the minivan for sleeping and the cargo trailer to carry most of our camping stuff. My thought is to use a tent to connect the van and trailer when camped. I've been thinking about adding an A/C unit, and maybe even a small generator to the trailer.

My concern is the durability of such a rig for such a long trip, not to mention some rough roads; frost heaves, repair stretches, some gravel roads. Any thoughts and opinions?

donrebyct

[KCStudly]

It really has more to do with the workmanship and elements of the design. If you build it smart and strong, it will be strong.

The foamie techniques and materials of construction are well documented and proven reliable here.

You can also make the argument that a lighter trailer will be less prone to beat itself up; less loading due to less mass trying to accelerate and decelerate over obstacles

[donrebyct]

Good points. Thanks for the input.

I need to go back through the foamie threads. It's been a while as my plans changed a year ago, and now have changed back to a foamie, at least for a cargo trailer.

[GPW]

Don , here’s one we proposed a while ago ... just for some ideas ...

[aggie79]

I have a HF trailer that I use - actually "abuse" at times - to haul woodworking and landscaping materials. It has held up well beyond my expectations. I would not however recommend it as a platform for a lightweight trailer. The suspension is extremely stiff. The small wheels and tires don't have much sidewall "give". Unless the loaded weight is very near the rated capacity the trailer will bounce around quite a lot on washboard surfaces. I'd lean toward a NT or TS welded trailer with larger 13" or 14" tires for a base.

[atahoekid]

I can't speak to the durability of the Harbor Freight trailer, but I know the foamie techniques work well. From my home in Northern Nevada, I've been up the Oregon Coast and back, down to North San Diego County and back and to Spokane, WA and back, throw in a couple of side trips to Yosemite National Park and a gathering here or there and I'm pretty sure that by now I have about 5 thousand miles on my Road Foamie. I've had a wheel fly off, (shouldn't have tried to use that wheel adapter) and the Road Foamie came unhitched when I hit an unexpected railroad crossing. The Road Foamie has survived it all, looks new and shows no sign of wear and tear. I'd build another Foamie in a hot second. No worries about durability here....

[GPW]

Mel, 5K in a Foamie .. that’s really SUPER !!!

[alaska teardrop]

Don, Knowing the roads that you may want to travel to and around Alaska & the distances between services, I agree with Tom, and recommend that you look beyond the Harbor Freight trailer as chassis base. A breakdown in the middle of nowhere can be costly, dangerous & ruin a vacation. If you can't make or have made a chassis, as Tom said, there are better manufactured trailers available. I'll take it a step further & suggest a torsion axle because of it's simplicity in resolving issues such as matching the trailer gross load to the axle rating, wheels and tires for a smoother/safer ride & brakes. IMO, with a loaded van & trailer you'd be unsafe without brakes on a trip to Alaska.

Here is Zach's thread about installing a torsion axle on a manufactured trailer: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=58078

Have a fine adventure. Fred

And, GPW, I won't say anything about Grizzly Bears & foam trailers.

[charchri4]

+1 for brakes. I'm working on a trailer with the target of dragging it around Alaska too and feel like with all the ups, downs and corners in that part of the world brakes are a must. Nothing worse than having your trailer pass you on a down hill curve 2500 miles from home...

However I am not at all a fan of using a torsion axle for a trailer with this mission. When you are out in the sticks you want the most common components possible not something that shops have never heard of and could take weeks to get parts for.

Just my .02 on the matter...

[KCStudly]

+1. Leaf springs are low tech, but there are a lot more ways to fix them if something goes wrong in the boonies.

Blow out a rubber isolator on a flex axle and how are you going to fix that? With a leaf spring if something breaks you at least have a chance of lashing a branch (or something) to the spring with rope or a cargo strap, and you can limp your way to help.

I bet you could loose the spring entirely, prop something between the axle and frame, lash the axle fore and aft so it doesn't kick out, and drive with no suspension on one side.

IMO, civilization is more likely to have leave spring stuff in stock than the correct length torsion axle.

[alaska teardrop]

Jim & KC, without getting into an argument about spring vs. torsion, my point to Don is to start with a base reliable chassis including tires, brakes & suspension. Either one would probably do just fine if it is designed in order not to beat itself to destruction on a long trip on rough roads. From all I've read on this forum, store bought trailers don't live up without extensive, correctly done, modification & investment.

A 10,000 mile round trip over sometimes poor road conditions with few services shouldn't be taken lightly. For instance, other than long road repair stretches, the Alcan is a pretty good road. But it could be a long wait for parts or a long tow to repair services. The usual Alaskan tourist roads that run from Fairbanks to Denali & on to Anchorage & the Kenai or over to Valdez & up the Richardson to Delta are all normal paved roads, but still short on services. If car or trailer parts need to be ordered, they would come from Fairbanks or the Anchorage area or beyond.

That leaves some of my favorite best but worst road conditions to travel & the least access to parts & services; the Dalton across the Yukon River & Artic Circle & over the Brooks Range to Prudhoe Bay, the Steese out to Circle & the Yukon River, the Elliot to Manley Hot Springs & Tanana River, the Taylor to Eagle on the Yukon & the McCarthy road to McCarthy & the Kennicott River. Other than flying or boating to remote Alaska, those roads are about the only way to experience a bit of rural Alaska.

Anyway, Don, your adventure will be a whole lot better & allow you to roam Alaska carefree with a well planned chassis, tires & suspension.

Fred

[donrebyct]

Thanks for all of the replies. I was afraid the Harbor Freight trailer would be a bit lite for what I'm thinking.

Fred, knowing my wife, I doubt very seriously I will be able to go to any rugged areas. Maybe some gravel roads, but not too many. Maybe you can recommend some areas that will give two novices a good Alaska experience without having to be banged around too much by rough roads. From all of my reading, the best recommendation is to drive for the conditions, i.e. SLOW.

I have the latest Mile Posts and the Church's Alaska Camping books, and a Rand McNally map. And, I've been reading a lot on RV.net.

Thanks again for the suggestions. If I go with the minivan as a camper, maybe I need to build a foamie roof box; no more concerns about banging around a trailer.

Don

[alaska teardrop]

Don, please don't let me discourage you on building a trailer for your Alaska trip. Just emphasizing preparedness.

This map link shows all of the connected highways in Alaska. That's it. Of course there are secondary roads around population centers & a few sketchy side roads. http://fairbanks-alaska.com/images/lgalaskamap.jpg

The roads that I mentioned first are all good paved roads. The second list (plus I forgot the Denali Highway) are mainly gravel/rock/dust/mud roads. That's not to say that they are rock crawling off road type situations.

I think a good way to get a feel of what Alaskan roads are like would be to follow the roads that might interest you on Google Street View.

As far as suggestions, that would depend on how much time & money you want to spend, your interests and camping mode. I'd certainly recommend working into your trip, the Richardson from Delta Junction to Valdez. Wide open scenery of the Alaskan Range & Delta River, wildlife & plenty of places to camp for free just by pulling off the road aways. You can park at the base of Canwell Glacier & ski to the top in two or three days or raft a river in complete isolation. Over Thompson Pass to Valdez & halibut fishing. Maybe a side trip to Chitina and/or McCarthy.

Fairbanks is a small town, but it has a lot to offer in the way of an Alaskan cultural experience. In town camping, the university & museum, music, riverboat rides, Pioneer Park & theater, Musk Ox Farm, gold mining, the view from the top of Ester Dome over the Tanana Valley to the Alaskan Range & Denali in the
South and the White Mountains to North, theater & the Golden Eagle Saloon in the village of Ester, the Alaska Railroad, the antique auto museum, canoe the Chena River, the Howling Dog Saloon in Fox (farthest North Rock & Roll bar in the world) & it's crusty Alaskan characters, the brewery in fox, Ivory Jack's Saloon in Goldstream Valley with it's wonderful hippy culture & music.And the Fairbanks area is the mushing capital of the world with miles & miles of back country trails, cross country skiing & skijoring.

The trip I'd most recommend is the Haul Road from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay if you're up to it (look at the road on Google). It will take you across the Yukon River, north of the Arctic Circle, over the Brooks Range & down the North Slope to the Arctic Ocean. Wildlife, open sky & colorful scenery abounds on the most remote connected highway in Alaska. Pull off & camp most anywhere. Services at the Yukon River, Coldfoot & Prudhoe Bay. (No trees to jury rig your axle with, KC).

An old list of links that might be helpful: viewtopic.php?f=37&t=7350

Ha, I should be a tour guide.

Fred

[KCStudly]

Thank you for sharing your first hand knowledge!

No trees, use high lift jack shaft.

[atahoekid]

OK... All you MacGyver types. Please stand up and be acknowledged. I know, I know, supposedly a roll of duct tape, some cable ties and a tube of good glue can fix almost everything. But if I snap an axle, break a spring, rip off a shock mount, etc., etc., etc. I am screwed. That's why God invented AAA tow service and why I would be very leery of trying to explore Alaska without a caravan of folks.