Year-delayed continuation of another mod project, drop-shank

[working on it]

* A year ago, I installed a drop-shank so my trailer could ride level, at long last. I bought a 12" drop piece that replaced the 6 inch drop that my Weight Distribution hitch head was mounted on, but I measured wrong, due to uneven ground, and it was too low. I raised the head, and it was OK, but there's a bit of shank that is below the WD head, and it can sometimes contact speedbumps or driveway entrances when pulling my 2150 lb/260+ lbs tongue-weight TTT. I rarely use my trailer, so my planned solution was delayed, but now I'll act on it. http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=70367&hilit=drop+shank#p1232841

* While measuring for another project, I took some photos to consider before doing anything, as I hadn't thought about it for awhile. I've decided to use a bolt-on hitch protection roller, instead of welding on on as I had planned, because I really shouldn't have a problem when not towing, and welding it on would permanently make the point of contact 2.75" lower, on city streets if I start to use my truck more (I've made mods to do so, after letting the truck sit for years between campouts).

* For about $40, I can put the roller on, and take it off without any problem. I just don't want the drop shank to hit something hard, and dig in, when far away from home, and with possibly losing the hitch and trailer on a really bad spot. Around home, w/o a trailer, I don't care if it digs in, as I'll probably get to replace it with a custom one then!

ground clearance issue with WD drop shank.jpg (185.78 KiB) Viewed 1397 times

adding a hitch protection roller for trailering.jpg (210.58 KiB) Viewed 1397 times

[bentrotor]

Why not forget the bracket and just use a couple of hockey pucks with a 5/8" hole drilled thru, a 5/8" x 5" bolt and just slide a puck on each side thru the last hole on the drop. this way you don't lose as much ground clearance and spreads the load farther apart. Remember, sizes and descriptions are just for visual affect, the wheels and size are up to you, but you appear to be to be resourceful. Bearings, IMHO are not required and just add expense, but that is entirely up to you. Mike

[bentrotor]

I forgot to mention, trimming off any excess material below the last hole and bottom of drop, along with beveling the bottom of the drop may reduce the size of wheel required, however, the larger the wheel, the easier it will roll over the obstruction. Mike

[working on it]

Why not forget the bracket and just use a couple of hockey pucks with a 5/8" hole drilled thru, a 5/8" x 5" bolt and just slide a puck on each side thru the last hole on the drop. this way you don't lose as much ground clearance and spreads the load farther apart. Remember, sizes and descriptions are just for visual affect, the wheels and size are up to you, but you appear to be to be resourceful. Bearings, IMHO are not required and just add expense, but that is entirely up to you. Mike

* I think I might just try that, since I can't find anything near the size I need (caster wheels about 3-3.5" diameter, with 1/2"-5/8" center bore) that are cheap enough to experiment with. But hockey pucks aren't expensive, and probably the best diameter to fit (3"), it seems. I have never touched a hockey puck, so I don't know how hard and shock-resistant they are, so I might have to get a couple from Amazon and see. I like the idea better than using the pre-fabbed steel roller bolt-on, though I'm sure it would withstand the shock of contact better than a soft rubber or most plastics.

* I previously thought about using some UHMW wheels I had a machinist friend make for me (for future use as wheelie bar wheels, when/if I reached that stage in my drag-racing progression), but I can't find them. I may have given them away to another racer, but that was 12 or so years back. I know those would've worked for the set-up you described, but they're gone. If I can find a 3-3.5" diameter piece online that I can center-bore to 5/8", then I'd prefer it. But for now, the hockey puck idea is first on my to-try list.

I forgot to mention, trimming off any excess material below the last hole and bottom of drop, along with beveling the bottom of the drop may reduce the size of wheel required, however, the larger the wheel, the easier it will roll over the obstruction. Mike

* I decided not to try sawing-off the portion of the drop shank below the WD head, since I don't have the right equipment to get thru it without a lot of effort (Ryobi angle-grinder with cut-off wheel, 30-year-old Craftsman recip saw, and a Milwaukee M12 Hackzall), and I don't have a cut-off saw or bandsaw either. But I have another heavy duty angle-grinder with a flap wheel that might bevel-off the sharp edges. Of course, since I've almost permanently mounted the drop shank on my truck (using a special locking J-pin with red Loctite), and the WD head to the shank with lots more Loctite, I'll be doing the work on my back under the truck, in the sandy/rocky driveway.

[working on it]

* I just went outside with a plastic container top (3.5" diameter) that I used to test the possibility of making 3" hockey pucks work as the hitch protector rollers, or just how large a wheel (maybe of UHMW) could be. From earlier quick measurements, I thought 3.5" diameter might work, and looked around for something in that diameter to try (I'm absolutely useless cutting my own circles). I found a top of a "kitchen wipes" container matched that dimension. Here's the graphic, and results:

3.5 inch plastic with 3 inch red puck-sized overlay.jpg (238.3 KiB) Viewed 1313 times

[bentrotor]

OK, how about plan #2, 2 pieces of flat stock about 6 - 7 inches long, 3 ea 5/8 holes,1 in center and 1 at each end, bolted to each side of the lower receiver. then place a wheel in front and 1 in rear. This makes the wheels sit between the plates and supported on both sides. what do you think? Mike

[working on it]

OK, how about plan #2, 2 pieces of flat stock about 6 - 7 inches long, 3 ea 5/8 holes,1 in center and 1 at each end, bolted to each side of the lower receiver. then place a wheel in front and 1 in rear. This makes the wheels sit between the plates and supported on both sides. what do you think? Mike

* Sounds good, but too simple for me, haha! How about my counter-plan, Plan C (my plan A was a welded roller initially, Plan B was the bolt-on roller, and now Plan C, a version of your Plan#2); it addresses possible rattle and play in the dual wheel arms ( flat angle bars), though it looks like it'd work fine, plus it also allows using a single larger diameter wheel (which may use a larger center hole), and uses a bumpstop that may partially absorb some of the shock involved. Like in your plan, the shank hole will be utilized with a single thru-bolt, and the single wheel will, too, but as the front is the center point of the angle stock, bent into a Vee, it will not need the third bolt/axle/shaft. and I like using adjustable bumpstops anyway. I adapted a honkin'big one for my active trailer suspension, which has been great.

* Since the only shank-to-ground contact I'm worried about is during forward travel, at higher speeds than when backing up, the the hitch protection roller wheel needs to directly under the shank, or in this design, forward of it. At any speed that contact is made when backing up, then there will be much less possible damage (particularly since my speed is <5 mph, and my tongue-mounted scissor jack or single spring-bar will make contact first, I would imagine).

*

revised from earlier graphic, where I used only the bumpstop at left...the one on right is the most-needed one

Plan C, revision 1, single wheel on triangulated steel arms with dual bumpstops.jpg (177.25 KiB) Viewed 1264 times

Edit, same evening: I revised my graphic when I realized I had left out the main bumpstop that absorbs jolts during forward -motion contacts. While the one on left works during reverse-motion contacts, and its' main function is to position the ride height of the wheel support arms, the one on right is needed to contact the shank gusset to snub the movement. It also requires another welded plate between the arms to mount on (unless I can find one that is cylindrical, and can bolt thru both side support arms). Maybe Plan#2 will be easier to implement, we'll see.


* Thanks for your suggestions! I like your innovative thinking!

[working on it]

* I can't stop thinking about this modification. Here's another way to do it: by using a modified 2" (or 2.5") receiver extension tube instead of flat bar stock, or the bent and welded piece of 1/4" thick 2" angle. If the tube is 2", I'll have to remove a section on both top and bottom, so the smaller drop shank can fit inside, with proper spacing for the 5/8" pivot hole, whereas is it's a 2.5" tube, there might be clearance to just insert the shank thru the top cut-out, and there might be enough wiggle room for rocking fore-and-aft. But, the 2" tubes are cheaper, and there might be a better fit overall, too.

receiver tube extension as substitute for flat bars or bent angle steel.jpg (225.53 KiB) Viewed 1262 times

* This way the two bumpstops will have the tube to be mounted on, instead of a weldment, and will definitely be a stronger assembly. The only other change I see is that I'm back to dual wheels again. It might just work, despite the unusual leading-arm disposition. The leading arm is rarely (nearly never) used on vehicles, as it can jar the suspensions loose, by contact with upright objects too large to easily ride over. Despite this, it was used successfully on the Citroen 2CV-Sahara, if you can call a 2CV that.

Citroën-2CV-Sahara-leading arm and trailing arm, both.jpg (121.56 KiB) Viewed 1258 times

* If any of this seems like a round-about complication of a simple fix for some incident that hasn't happened, or might never occur, then you are correct. But, it's just the way I think. Like Wile E. Coyote, I always think "It might just work".

it might just work.jpg (75.59 KiB) Viewed 1262 times

[working on it]

* Termination of project notice! after making more drawings late last night, compiling parts lists and learning all about caster and skid wheels, I've finally arrived at the decision to just get good quality Diablo metal cut-off discs for my angle grinders (both are 4.5"), and spend an afternoon cutting away the excess shank. It may take awhile, but the end result will be NO excess to contact the ground (at 9+ inches up), and I'll smooth and bevel and paint it black for a better look

* Sometimes I just get carried away by my desire to make/assemble things, ever since I quit building up my trailer, race car, and old trucks. When I see an opening, I just jump in. Finally, I'll either come up with a way to make it become a reality, and other times I decide that it's impractical, too costly, or both. This is the case here. It was a good exercise in oddball designing, which I like, but I no longer have the access to special machine-shop tools that I could use to make just about any contraption work, so I just use a few hand tools here at home, with lesser results.

* My final design, with the dual wheels turned around facing the rear, on a trailing arm, which I didn't save, had a parts list totaling $150 (6" cast iron/polyurethane wheels, $60 bumpstops, 5/8"+1/2" bolts and associated hardware, 18" receiver tube, etc....). For $150, I could get 2.5 more drop shanks, or 75 cut-off discs. Project over....

[featherliteCT1]

[bentrotor]

I feel your pain. I do the same thing - try to over engineer something simple. Then I realize that I am basically lazy and say - to hell with it. Later on I come up with a very easy solution and do. A friend once told me I was just lazy enough to be efficient!

[working on it]

* Done. I waited until the sun was almost over head about noon today (waiting for the mosquitoes to disappear back to the neighbor's stagnant pool), before I took my angle grinders out to the truck to begin removing the excess shank. After about 10 minutes or so with the Diablo metal cut-off disc, I had it almost off, but had to use a BFH and pry-bar to finish removal (the much-used disc was already worn enough to not be able to reach the center...I didn't want to put a new one on).

* I then used my more powerful grinder with a worn-down 60 grit flap wheel to get the sharp edges off, but it still ended up a bit rough, though good enough, as I was out in the heat. So I spray-canned it black, and called it done. Under 30 minutes and I gained 2.5 " clearance. Now there'll be about 8-9+ inches on level ground I think, w/o trailer attached, and about 6" clearance with the loaded trailer hooked up (the spring bar dips down that low). Should've done this last summer.

drop shank excess removed 1.jpg (104.6 KiB) Viewed 1122 times

[featherliteCT1]

By any chance did you save the piece you cut off?

[working on it]

* Metal scrap pile. It's too jagged to use for anything but a paperweight. I had trouble trying to keep a straight line, since it was continually showering my face & arm with sparks, so I kept shifting position.

drop shank remnant1.jpg (84.5 KiB) Viewed 1068 times