Tiny Cargo trailer conversion...???

[GPW]

My spousal unit is in the habit of dragging home expensive clothes and shoes and jewelry every week , for which I say Nothing ... Funny, she never consults me for that ...

Rather one sided, nay ???

[GPW]

Pics in my album ...


And Magnets stick to the outer skin , framing is square steel tubing ... All pre-finished steel , save the ply doors ... I thought it was kinda' STOUT...

[d30gaijin]

My spousal unit is in the habit of dragging home expensive clothes and shoes and jewelry every week , for which I say Nothing ... Funny, she never consults me for that ...

Rather one sided, nay ???

GPW,

That is odd how that works, but consistent. I experience the same thing.

Congrats on finally getting the CT home!

Don

[GPW]

Don , I think now she's warming up to the idea after I gave her "The Pitch"... a thoroughly planned out explanation seems to help ... a little ...

Funny , this thing's all steel , everything riveted with SS rivets (I didn't know they made those ) .. Even the inside ply ...

So It's right to the shelves and painting ... Maybe put some tiny windows and vents in the doors... plywood and all ....

And yes, while cleaning it and leak testing , I did manage to spray some water under the back doors... I'll have to watch that or put some flashing to extend beyond the floor ...

Well , I was the one doing all the complaining about trailer roofs...
Guessing steel roof is about as secure as it gets ..

[TurboandMe]

Looks great! So how's the sale of the 20' TT going???

[GPW]

It's not !!! She wants to keep it ... But guess who gets to maintain it ???

[GPW]

Crawled under the trailer yesterday evening ... The floor is made of boards laid crosswise in the frame with a top plywood covering ... Must undercoat ... as the wood is bare ... and I have a wheel rubbing ( going over bumps) on one side .... seems the axle is slightly offset , so either I correct that or replace the axle with something a touch WIDER... and I want to go with bigger tires and rims too... 12" tires (4 lug) seem a bit small for me ... I do have that boat trailer with a wider axle , I can swap in .. have to take some measurements to see if it's workable ... and it may require new fenders... A little wire brushing and paint on the frame is warranted too...

Since the inside is riveted it , the only way I can think to insulate it is to drill several holes and pump expanding foam into it .... tricky ... may have to forgo the insulation ... That or drill out several dozen SS rivets ... grrrrrrr!!!!



It would appear the rubber spring bushings are shot too ...

[d30gaijin]

GPW,

If you're planning on replacing the wheels with larger perhaps you could find some with greater offset to clear the trailer frame/body?

Don

[GPW]

That's what Angib suggested too , but I only have 12" 4 lug wheels and hubs ... At this point I don't have a clue ... do they make offset 12" rims ??? or 4 lug 13" rims ????

May be easier to just change the axle out ... I dunno' ???

[bd354]

Maybe you could just change the hubs to five lug hubs and use the same axle. Then you would have more choices of wheels to use.

[GPW]

Please excuse my ignorance of such things , but could I do that? ... would the spindles support the extra weight and stress??? And even if I do that , the axle still comes up short , even if I loosen the U bolts and center the axle properly (it's slightly offset now) ... I could even take the axle down the street to my welding buddy and have him lengthen the axle a bit ... couple extra inches on each side would sure improve the clearance..

Maybe I'm just over thinking this , maybe 12" wheels would be OK on such a small trailer ... with the proper load range as Angib pointed out ...

First thing I need to do , I guess, is pull the hubs , check the condition of the bearings and spindle ... supposedly the trailer wasn't used much , but the grease fittings didn't look used much either ..
Just trying to make it reliable ...

[bd354]

Some axles with 4 lug hubs can be changed to 5 lug. Depends on the spindle size. You would need to measure the diameter of the spindle at the bearing surfaces (the place where the bearing rides on the spindle) to see if 5 lug hubs are available for that spindle.

Is the axle straight or does it have an arch in it? If it's straight it should't be a problem for a good welder to add a small section to lengthen it. I usually cut the axle in the center to add or subtract a section if it's a straight axle. With an arched axle I would add a section at each end near the spindles to preserve the arch.

The reason I suggested the 5 lug hubs was maybe you could find 5 lug wheels with more or less backset to keep from having to lengthen the axle. Before buying new hubs I would search for the correct wheels.

I hope this helps but please keep in mind these are just my opinions and others may have better/easier ways to do it.

George

[d30gaijin]

Please excuse my ignorance of such things , but could I do that? ... would the spindles support the extra weight and stress??? And even if I do that , the axle still comes up short , even if I loosen the U bolts and center the axle properly (it's slightly offset now) ... I could even take the axle down the street to my welding buddy and have him lengthen the axle a bit ... couple extra inches on each side would sure improve the clearance..

Maybe I'm just over thinking this , maybe 12" wheels would be OK on such a small trailer ... with the proper load range as Angib pointed out ...

First thing I need to do , I guess, is pull the hubs , check the condition of the bearings and spindle ... supposedly the trailer wasn't used much , but the grease fittings didn't look used much either ..
Just trying to make it reliable ...

GPW,

The spindles are already supporting the weight so going to five lugs and larger wheels won't make a difference. The spindles see the trailer weight not the wheel weight. Be that as it may, if you have your buddy cut and extend the axle length/width make darn sure he has the capability of ensuring its straightness otherwise you're going to experience either tow in or tow out, or off camber, which means excessive tire wear in any case.

I suspect the 12" wheels will more than carry the load of your tiny TT, just make sure you have suitable 6 ply trailer tires.

Don

[vreihen]

Instead of cutting the axle, how about 1/4" wheel spacers between the hubs and wheels?????

[GPW]

There's an old trailer store down the hwy. , grouchy old guy running it , but he's pretty knowledgeable ... I'll go down there and see what he has ...
I'd get some more pics , but now it's raining ...

The axle is straight square tubing ...

Thanks guys !!!!