Modifying Bolt together frames

[aggie79]

I second what dh said. There has to be a local welder in the vicinity somewhere. I bought the axle, coupler, and stabilizers and took them to a local shop. They purchased the steel, and fabricated the trailer for $750. I hauled it home on my HF utility trailer. I like the HF trailer, but I like even better the custom trailer I had made for my teardrop.

[S. Heisley]

When checking out the Design Library, please remember to look for the wisdom that is also found there. Here is an example of that:

Part 6 - Trailer Axle Position 'Rules of Thumb'
Are all those numbers above just unnecessarily complicated? You just want an answer, not to have to take an exam? Here are some really simple 'rules of thumb' that you can apply:
Axle Position, % of body length
(C/A in diagram above) Reasons to pick this value:

40% (eg, 38" from back for 8ft body) A reasonable compromise value for an average teardrop.

45% (eg, 43" from back for 8ft body) Tongue box. Light or no galley. Minimum safe hitch weight wanted.

35% (eg, 34" from back for 8ft body) Well-equipped/heavy galley. Long tongue. Heavier hitch weight wanted.

Please remember that picking the right axle position does not mean that the trailer can be loaded without any thought - how it is loaded will determine the hitch weight, as much as where the axle is.

The above excerpted from here:

http://www.angib.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/t ... tear81.htm

It is linked into the design library, about 2/3’s of the way down on the right, in the trailer balance category.

PS. My trailer is made from a stock, bolt-together 5x8' Red Trailer kit; but, much of MyAway's weight is in the front.

[kinto]

i bought the northern tool bolt together 5x8 that you're looking at & other than needing to get better tires it's unmodified... (bear in mind i'm still in the building stage though...)

i built a front storage box on the tongue which is a bit heavy itself... to add weight up front & well... for storage!


i bolted 1x4's to both sides... both to help support the 3/4" ply walls & to keep a true 5' width on the inside & as much headroom as possible... not seen in this pic, but with the stock fenders on the door bottom clears by a couple inches...


as for the galley, i'm planning to keep it fairly simple & light... you can sorta see the tentative design here...


also, rather than putting full-on cabinets & such in the galley initially i'm gonna raid the plastic storage drawer/ bin department at target... i figure that's a cheap & light solution while i get used to how the camper behaves while being towed around.

kent