Looking for some ideas on our Teardrop!

[Martinjmpr]

OK, I'm reactivating this old thread since we are getting ready to do some work on Bubbles!

Got some great ideas at both the Jefferson State birthday gathering in June and the Walk the Winds gathering in August.

I think we're going to try to do the axle first, since it's the biggest project. Most likely I'll go with an all-new axle. I think Murdoch's (farm/ranch store) has some axles that should work. Since our trailer is 5' (60") wide, I'm guessing I'll need a 6' axle at least.

So here's another dumb question: Assuming I can re-use the stock leaf springs (or at the very least, that I can re-use the spring hangers) do I need to worry about "true-ing" the axle, that is, making sure it is perfectly perpendicular to the direction of travel? I don't want to induce any instability in the trailer.

Also any other sources for axles in the Denver area?

Again, something that can use the existing hangers (but with the springs under, rather than over, the axle) would be best.

Thanks in advance!

[JeremiahO]

Most stores sell axles to fit 5' wide trailers and you can reuse the springs and hangers--so long as they are safe and not rusted. I would buy new u bolts and nuts just for precaution though. Here's an example: http://www.tractorsupply.com/carry-on-t ... er-0175415
good luck!

[Dean in Ct.]

I would add that when I put the springs underslung I disassembled them and greased them after a quick wire brushing. There is a lot of surface area there and if it's all rusty the springs won't be working as designed. Besides it doesn't take long and you will only be in there once. Here's a link to one man's axle rebuild with way more than you need but I liked his thoughts on the greasing of the springs
http://48rob.yuku.com/topic/21#.UPcTfR00XTo

[Martinjmpr]

Hey, quick questions:

First, what is this called and where can I get one?



Here's the issue: On our trip out to Wyoming, the simple, single-point latch on our galley hatch broke off, we need a better way of securing the hatch. I'd like to either do a pair of these on the side, or, a locking bar-type setup with a t-handle. We have the t-handle but we don't have the locking bars or the cam that goes on the back of it (hope this makes sense.)

What I'm looking for looks like this:



Any ideas where I can find one?

Thanks in advance!

[nevadatear]

Draw latch. Little bear, grant whip has them.

[Pizzaguy]

Hey, quick questions:

First, what is this called and where can I get one?



Thanks in advance!

Hey thats my trailer!

[grant whipp]

Hey, Martin!

I've got the Draw-type Latches ($16.50/pr) ... Frank Bear at Vintage Technologies has the cam & bars (I don't know his price - http://www.teardroptrailerparts.com ).

It was great meeting you & Liz at the Birthday Bash in Grants Pass last June ... hope to see you folks again soon! Good Luck, and if there is anything I can help you with, please don't hesitate to ask! As always ...

CHEERS!

[Shadow Catcher]

We ran into a problem with the centered latch on our galley working lose and the hatch opening on the highway, fortunately we did not lose anything in the galley. I wanted something to positively close and lock the hatch that would accommodate the thickness and found Perko latches which work very well and look decent and help put enough tension on the hatch to seal tightly on the door gasket.

[Martinjmpr]

We ran into a problem with the centered latch on our galley working lose and the hatch opening on the highway, fortunately we did not lose anything in the galley. I wanted something to positively close and lock the hatch that would accommodate the thickness and found Perko latches which work very well and look decent and help put enough tension on the hatch to seal tightly on the door gasket.

Well, we had a similar setup to what you show on Bubbles and that is exactly what happened to us: It popped open on the freeway (I-80) on our way to Walk the Winds! Fortunately, we didn't lose our camp stove (the only thing back there at the time.)

My thought was to go with both the locking bars and the draw-latch - kind of a "belt-and-suspenders" principle.

Funny thing is, we drove down to the Albuquerque Balloon Festival in October with our rear hatch broken! All I did was secure the handle with 550 (parachute) cord to the frame and the last part of it was connected with a zip tie. When we got to our destination I just cut the zip tie and when it was time for us to leave I put a new zip tie on (I don't go anywhere without duct tape, 550 cord and zip ties!)

[Martinjmpr]

Hey, Martin!

I've got the Draw-type Latches ($16.50/pr) ... Frank Bear at Vintage Technologies has the cam & bars (I don't know his price - http://www.teardroptrailerparts.com ).

It was great meeting you & Liz at the Birthday Bash in Grants Pass last June ... hope to see you folks again soon! Good Luck, and if there is anything I can help you with, please don't hesitate to ask! As always ...

CHEERS!

Thanks for the info. As stated above, my inclination woud be to go with both the bars and the draw latch but I have to run that by the boss to make sure she approves. I know she'll think the draw latches are ugly but I'm more concerned about safety and security than I am about "pretty." Plus as the photo of the other trailer shows, those latches can be mounted so as to be less noticeable.

Hey, where did you get your fenders? Those are gorgeous! We really want to go with some "styled" fenders to replace our boring semicircle fenders.

[Woodbutcher]

Hi Martin, Glad to see you still have Bubbles. I use the 2 bar system and have never had any problems. I can not remember if the underside of your galley is exposed so you can see the ribs. If so it is an easy install.

[grant whipp]

... Hey, where did you get your fenders? Those are gorgeous! We really want to go with some "styled" fenders to replace our boring semicircle fenders.

Hi, Martin!

Are you asking me about fenders ... the ones on our Modernistic at the B'Day Bash? My brother builds them for me ... my molds, his expertise ... ...! You can check out all the different styles I offer here: http://www.lilbear.teardrops.net/parts3.html#fenders
Heck, check out the whole site ... lots of stuff for the teardrop and/or vintage trailer builder/restorer! Just let me know if there is anything I can help you with.

As always ...

CHEERS!

[Martinjmpr]

Thanks, Grant, I will definitely check those out.

I'll be taking Bubbles to a local sand/gravel yard on Saturday morning to get her wieghed. This is the first step of the build/rebuild, as I want to get some "baseline" information before I start pulling parts off. If possible I'll try to get both a complete weight and a tongue weight.

[Martinjmpr]

First step done: Weights and measures.

Went to the gravel yard on Saturday afternoon. The place was dead so the guy working the scales was happy to help me out.

First weight was tow rig (2007 Toyota 4runner 4x4, V6) and Trailer together (Combination weight.) Weighed out at 5530 but since my ~40lb Cattle Dog "Shaila" was on board I subtracted that for a combo weight of 5490.

Next I drove the truck off the scale but left the wheels of the trailer on, so I could get trailer weight minus tongue weight, which came out to 910 lbs, and finally I unhooked the trailer and dropped the wheel on the scale for a full trailer wieght which was 1115 lbs. So not quite the 1200 that the builder said it was, but pretty close.

By subtraction that gives me a gross vehicle weight of my tow vehicle of 4375, which is just a little over what Edmunds says a V6 4runner should be (and of course I had my usual "stuff" in there: my emergency box with tools, first aid kit, e-tool, flashlights, extra coat, road flares, jumper cables, air compressor, etc, so that probably accounts for some of the weight, too.)

Quick question: What is a good trailer-to-tongue-weight ratio? With a tongue weight of 205 and a gross trailer weight of 1115 mine works out to 18% or a little less than 1/5. Good or bad? For what it's worth, I've never noticed any problems or issues towing the trailer, no swaying or poor handling, even in heavy headwinds and crosswinds in Wyoming. I think it helps that the axle is pretty far back on the trailer.

Next thing I did was measure the axle so I could figure out what will work to substitute it. Came out with 60" spring-center to spring-center, and about 68" hub face to hub face (obviously I had to kind of "guesstimate" that since I didn't have 4 jackstands to take the wheels off.)

So now that I've started to gather data, I can start shopping and comparing in earnest!

[Martinjmpr]

OK, after posting the above, I consulted the magic oracle of Google, and came across a number of web pages, all of which seemed to show that the ideal tongue weight is 10-15% of trailer weight.

So we are at 18%, slightly high.

Of course, removing and replacing the heavy Dayton axle should help reduce overall weight and (presumably) tongue weight as well.

Now for a trailer geometry question (please keep in mind I'm one of those people who studied the Humanities so I could take the absolute bare MINIMUM amount of math required to graduate!)

Currently, the trailer sits rather high, which means that when towed, it angles downwards from the back to the front, i.e, it angles towards the hitch, like this:



So am I right in assuming that some of the tongue weight can be attributed to this downward angle? IOW, if I can pull the trailer level instead of angled towards the hitch, some of the weight will shift from the tongue towards the axle?