Placement of axle

[Pattersob]

Hi all After 5 years of wanting to start my tear drop I finally got started.
I had the frame welded up for a length of 114 7/8.
The welder placed the axle 52 inches from the back frame member and after reading other sites I am worried that it was put too far ahead.
It wouldn't take much to cut off the front axle bracket and place ot further back.
Any comments?

Thanks

[madjack]

...if you are building a common type of layout, the axle needs to be moved to about 40-42" from the rear of the body...the "perfect" balance point can be determined by an exact examination of where all your goodies will be placed BUT, the 40-42"s will get you in the ball park and further adjustments can be made by placement of those goodies...................
madjack

[Kevin & Sandy]

If the welder builds utility trailers, that might have looked like the right distance. But for a teardrop it might not work so well. The 40-42" from the rear is a good place to start.

Before you have the welder change it, is there any chance you could complete your trailer, then have him change it while you weigh the tongue? That way you could have it perfect and only move it once.

I tacked my axle in place and finished welding only after the TD was completed to be sure the balance was exactly where I wanted it.

[grant whipp]

The general rule of thumb when it comes to teardrops is 1/3 of the body length from the rearmost part of the body. On a 10' body (120"), the 40"-42" measurement is pretty close, but in your case, 38-40" would be more like it.

Of course, a lot depends on how much and where you locate your cabinetry (as well as any appliances you plan to install), if you have a front closet/storage-area, and/or if you plan to install a tongue-box (or anything else) on the tongue. Some of us have been doing this long enough that we can look at all of that and say the axle centerline needs to go "there" ... others need a formula to follow ... but it usually all works out in the end ... ...!

Good Luck! In the meantime ...

CHEERS!

Grant

[kennyrayandersen]

Some of it also depends on you build technique. For really light-weight sandwich-type construction you may need it very aft, and if you’ve no kitchen, appliances, water, cooler or AC, you may need it pretty far forward (in both cases out of the normal range). If you are doing a ‘standard’ constructed regular tear, then the usual rules apply. It’s a bit tedious (since you have to figure weights and whatnot), but you can use the spreadsheet in the design section to help you locate the axle.

But as mentioned previously, the only way to get it exactly right is to finish it (sans fenders), load it up like you would normally do, and then measure the tongue weight and locate the axle to get the exact weight you want on the hitch.