Teardrop for my Jeep

[johnp]

hi all new to the group, im selling my 17ft layton trailer and moving up,
to a self-built teardrop, in my past life i was a contractor/cabnetmaker,boatbuilder,,so im not afraid of corners,
ive got a stick-welder and am a little rusty, as i havnt realy welded since highschool, a long,long time ago,
,
so heres my questions,
as ive ben married for seven years, and the honeymoons over i want to build a 5foot wide X10 ft bdy, bigger bed,
my jeep tires are 60inches center to center,and ive got a 2.5L engine
with a five-speed tranny,

id like to be able to use my jeep rims,,

i would be traviling across country and on old logging roads,,aka washboards,
but nuting extream,

could someone point me to an axel i can order?
with order/part- numbers

or an already made trailer?
lows have some trailers ive been eying,
also was thinking of a small boat trailer,

help wanted
thanks,
johnp

[JunkMan]

Welcome John.

Many builders in this group use the Harbor Freight trailers. Probably similar to the Lowes one.

If you want to build your own, here's a link to an axel supplierhttp://www.redneck-trailer.com/Redneck Trailer Supply. The torsional axels in the 1000 - 2000 pound range are what many guys use. You have the choice of several different angles on the torsional axels, so you can make it ride as high or as low as you want.

I'm getting a 900 pound one since I will be pulling my tear with a VW Bug, and want to keep the trailer as light as possible.

Lots of great information here!

[mexican tear]

My axle came from Northerntool.com.

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/ ... 41&R=32041

It is the 2000lb snowmobil axle. it sits high for off road use and uses the 5 on 4.5 wheels like the jeep does.

kai

[norm perkiss]

John, check out Dave's web page. I'm sure he has some saged advice you can use.
http://TD.roughwheelers.com
Norm

[johnp]

Welcome John.

I'm getting a 900 pound one since I will be pulling my tear with a VW Bug, and want to keep the trailer as light as possible.

Lots of great information here!

Thanks, how many horsepower is that bug? ive got a 2.5L mousetrap,
in my jeep,
i loke the Unimog,,there cool my dad brought one home when i was 13,
all written in german, took me a week to figure it out, it was an oldie,
i bombed around in the apple-fields and woods with it, couldent get it stuck,

anyways, thanks,
johnp

[johnp]

John, check out Dave's web page. I'm sure he has some saged advice you can use.
http://TD.roughwheelers.com
Norm

Thanks, man theres a wealth of info here,,,
too many ideas,,,not enough time,,,grin,,

johnp

[Cruiser]

Dont forget to check out Larry's site for his off-road tear, also pulled by a Jeep. http://www.outbackteardrop.com/
I'm also building a teardrop for behind my Tj, I have the 6cyl. and I have towed 2500# without power issues but the wheelbase of the jeep reminds you it is a Jeep!
Good Luck and keep us posted.
Steve C

[johnp]

Dont forget to check out Larry's site for his off-road tear, also pulled by a Jeep. http://www.outbackteardrop.com/
I'm also building a teardrop for behind my Tj, I have the 6cyl. and I have towed 2500# without power issues but the wheelbase of the jeep reminds you it is a Jeep!
Good Luck and keep us posted.
Steve C

Thanks Steve, i just went through his web-site, cool, im going with leaf-springs and shocks,
youshoulda seen my poor YJ with my 17ft layton hooked to it,
i got a 10inch front lift, and a 6inch drop, instantly,,,ha,,,
didnt even think about towing it ,,,,need a pic of that,,,,grin,

im a little worried about my poor 4-banger, so ive got to build light,

were wanting to take a cross-country trip in 2006(spring) from WA-to
AZ-folks,-toMaine,,grew up there, and back to WA-home,
and i wont drive nuthin but the jeep,,,grin,,,
maybe a mount on the trailer frame for another set of jeep axles,,,grin

johnp

[doug hodder]

John, for what it's worth, I would recommend using a larger wheel and heavier frame than the HF. If you are doing logging roads and washboards, perhaps even crossing creeks, smaller wheels might be a problem. Something to think about is maybe mounting up something that can be used on the jeep and the trailer, as stowing a spare is going to eat up storage space for you. Tiny tires turn way fast and are murder on washboards. The HF is really a bargain, but is it going to work for you? I'm using a 4" drop axle with 2 750# springs, 5 lug with 205 75R15 trailer tires, overbuilt, maybe, the originals had tall tires on them, and I wanted that look. Just my opinion. Doug Hodder

[JunkMan]

Thanks, how many horsepower is that bug? ive got a 2.5L mousetrap,
in my jeep,
i loke the Unimog,,there cool my dad brought one home when i was 13,
all written in german, took me a week to figure it out, it was an oldie,
i bombed around in the apple-fields and woods with it, couldent get it stuck,

anyways, thanks,
johnp

The Bug is a turbo diesel, puts out about 96 hp (the Unimog only has 94!). Don't know how it will pull the tear, but other VW owners say it should be Ok as long as we keep the weight down. It has plenty of power on the road, so I'm optimistic. Just ordered a trailer hitch for it yesterday, so I will be able to try towing with it soon.

It took me a week to figure out how to shift the darn Unimog, it has a 20 speed tranny, and there are 7 different shifters between the seats! Took us 2 hours just to figure out how to get it in high gear so I could drive it home when I bought it. The seller didn't even know what all of the shifters were for.