tire to camper spacing

[Silvrzuki77]

Hey guys, Im in the initial phase of planning my offroad build. I going to be using the basic Benroy setup but with some exterior design changes but overall the samething. I am going to be using stock Hummer H3 rims with 35" tires to match my truck. I plan on using Old Man Emu leaf springs SPOA for the suspension. I am trying to keep the tire as close to the camper as possible to match the H3T's track width of 68". I know I am going to be going past that but any suggestions for spacing? Worst case if its too close or rubs is wheelspacers but Id like to avoid that.
Thanks for any advice!

[KCStudly]

Some guys will go as little as 3/4 inch, but on an off road build, I am much more comfortable with my target of 1-1/2 inches. The tires can bulge, the springs can sway, the axle can tilt when hitting uneven obstacles, and with soft 4x4 springs, like my Jeep leafs and your OME stuff these factors are only magnified. Taller tires magnify the effect.

The only downside I see so far to increased side wall clearance is the need to run wider fenders.

Good luck!

[Silvrzuki77]

Kind of what I was thinking for spacing. I am really thinking about doing a trailing arm coil setup to tuck it in closer. Price wise it might be cheaper or the same as OME springs. Then I would have to worry about any kind of flex besides tire bulge like you mentioned. I was planning on building tube fenders with rocker guards off the front of the frame connecting to the front of the tube fenders and doing the same thing in the rear soo I can drag it along rocks if I had too. driving my self nuts prepping!

[KCStudly]

Take your time planning. The more things you work out in the beginning, the easier things will go while building. Materials are expensive and you want to maximize usage, and minimize waste and mistakes.

Plenty of guys build nice campers with no plan and no prep, but the nicest ones are well thought out long in advance.

I spent 2 years researching, planning and making CAD models. I've had a couple of things that didn't go quite as well as planned, but nothing that couldn't be fixed or adjusted to work.

Check out my build for the custom swivel coupling I have 90% built (just waiting on final ride height to set the final draw bar u-joint yoke position).

[jss06]

Ask yourself. Do you want wheel wells or not?

I built my trailer to match the track width of my Jeep LJ. It is also the same body width. I planned on using the same tires and wheels on the trailer as on the Jeep.

With those requirements I took the wheel off the Jeep and meassured the back spacing with the tire mounted and aired up. Then I added 1 inch to clear the tires. This gave me the axle width WMS to WMS and the widest I could make the trailer frame to clear the tires (47" for this). In my case I had to build wheel wells into the body of the trailer to allow for the tires/wheels.

What I came up with was this for the frame:



And this for the body layout:



The entire build thread is linked below. With the new tires and wheels I just put on my LJ, I will have almost 2 inches of clearance between the tire and frame.

[48Rob]

Plenty of guys build nice campers with no plan and no prep, but the nicest ones are well thought out long in advance.

A quote to remember.

Rob

[Forrest747]

I have about 1-7/8 to 2 inch clearance for mine way too much. I ran the same tires as on my jeep. I had to use spacers and move my fender out about an inch so the tire would not bite into the tire if bounched hard. My measurement for the axle was off oh well I will do better next time.

[Oldragbaggers]

Plenty of guys build nice campers with no plan and no prep, but the nicest ones are well thought out long in advance.

A quote to remember.

Rob

I thought mine out in advance. The only problem was that I KEPT THINKING while I was building. So the things I thought about before aren't necessarily the things I'll end up with after.

[Silvrzuki77]

Thanks guys for the response's back. KcStudly and jss06 your guys build have gave me alot of good ideas. I plan on not having wheel wells. Trying to keep a full mattress for me and squeeze my little boys in it. I am going to keep with the leaf springs at this time i decided in a spoa setup with about 1.5" space between the tire and camper body. Now let me run some numbers by you guys and make sure i have this right before I order a axle lol.
Hummer truck measurements with 35" tires
WMS 68"
outside springs/frame to outside spring/frame = 44.5"
distance from inside tire to inside tire 52"
distance from tire to leaf spring 4"
Sooo If I'm going to build a 58" wide trailer to fit a 54" full mattress (accounting for walls and insulation 2" per side)
44.5" + 13.5 = 58 so the outside of my leaf spring will be at 58"
Take my WMS of 68+13.5 = 81.5" now I have 4" each side from tire to frame/spring and if i set a 1.5" gap from frame to tire I would subtract 5" more from the overall WMS 81.5"- 5" = 76.5 round up for fun and i need a trailer axle with a WMS of 77"??????
lol in flaws in my math or should i have had one less beer tonight?

[KCStudly]

What I did was find the stock size axle WMS-WMS that suited my planned frame width (wall sits on top with no overhang) and choice of wheel/tire with enough clearance. I did not want to have to wait for a custom length axle to be made, nor did I want to get stuck on the road if something catastrophic happened and I needed a new axle. The spring perches came separate and can be put anywhere within the specified limits away from the hub.

Make sure you measure your actual tire and wheel.

[Silvrzuki77]

All the measurements are the actual wheel and tire combo. The trailer side will sit on top of the frame and not overhang. I cant find a generic trailer axle that is close to what i need. I dont mind waiting for a custom built one and its going to be a 3500 pound axle so i dont see to many problems down the road. I hope lol. I was planning on just weldin my own perches on.

[KCStudly]

We're mostly on the same page.

I guess my concern with the custom length was mostly if a bearing were to spin and take the spindle out with it. Most trailer/RV dealers will have a stock length axle on hand, or can get one quickly from their networks. Maybe get back on the road in the same day. Whereas a custom length axle could take a few days or more waiting on the factory and what does it get you? In my case it would have meant 1 inch tire side clearance with a custom length axle, instead of 1-1/2 with a stock length. So I may have to add a spacer to shift my fenders out a touch. I'm okay with that.

I'm interested to see your build develop. Sounds like a good one.