Harbor Freight wheel adaptors?

[CCRV]

During a recent flat tire episode with our 1450# HF trailer, a tire (and trailer) dealer in Searcy, AR told me that there were wheel adaptors made for that trailer that would allow it to go to a more standard and larger 14-inch wheel and tire. He would have had to order them, otherwise I would have had it done already. I have been searching the forum, but haven't found any discussions about it. Has anyone ever used them and made that change? If so, what can you tell me about them? (i.e., where to buy them, how much width does it add, do I have to set the fenders out farther or use different fenders, etc.).

We blew one tire before we got ten miles from home with a brand new trailer, and I'm sure we weren't overloaded. So we went to 6-ply tires, got our load delivered about 1800 miles away and then blew a tire again 50 miles later with an empty trailer! That was when we went to the trailer place in Searcy. After another 3600 miles, we discovered that one of the tires had a bubble on it, and had that one replaced at Walmart! And from everything I have determined, these tires are ALL made in China. No one in the good old USA makes a tire this size! THAT is why I want to go to different wheels and tires!

It also scares me to think that the larger 1950# trailer (which they did not have when I bought mine) uses the same exact wheels and tires on it! If ours had that much trouble, I hate to think of even more weight on those tires! I definitely want mine upgraded!

[LDK]

Maybe this will help.

search.php?keywords=HF+wheel+adaptors

[les45]

Any kind of adapter will cause your wheels to be offset and result in unbalanced loading on your bearings. If you want to stay with the HF trailer, you can simply buy new hubs with 5X4.5 lug bolt pattern. Not sure if HF still carries them but you can find them at Northern Tool or Tractor Supply. Then you can use standard trailer wheels (zero offset) in any size that will fit. FWIW - I just upgraded to 13" tires on my NT teardrop trailer that already had the 5X4.5 hubs. The largest size I could go without rubbing the frame was 175-70R13. I also had to raise the fender slightly. There are a lot of threads currently on the Trailer and Chassis Secrets section that are talking about this same subject. You might want to do some research there.
Larry S.
(ps - I have the same 1,450# HF trailer that I use for general hauling. I've loaded it to the max many times over the 10 years or so that I've had it and I've never had a probem with the 12" tires. I have just recently replaced the original tires because they had started to crack on the sidewalls. I have put about 1,000 miles a year on them.)

[CliffinGA]

I have a Carry on trailer base on mine and when I went from 12" to 14" I bought my wheel adapters from Summit racing and there made of billet Al. They work great just install properly or they can be dangerous.

Cliff

[CCRV]

Thanks for all the great recommendations. I'll check out those hubs at Northern Tool and any other places. That sounds like the better way to go, rather than adaptors.

We're getting ready to build a five-foot wide design on it, and if I have to move or modify the fenders, now is the itme to find out about it.

Thanks again, everyone!

[LDK]

If you want to stay with the HF trailer, you can simply buy new hubs with 5X4.5 lug bolt pattern. Not sure if HF still carries them but you can find them at Northern Tool or Tractor Supply. Then you can use standard trailer wheels (zero offset) in any size that will fit. FWIW - I just upgraded to 13" tires on my NT teardrop trailer that already had the 5X4.5 hubs. The largest size I could go without rubbing the frame was 175-70R13

I may have to look into this myself.

[louis c]

Tire pressure could be a problem, a slack tire will get hot and fail, would probably be better to run the highest pressure recommended by tire manufacturer.

[wingloader]

Thanks for all the great recommendations. I'll check out those hubs at Northern Tool and any other places. That sounds like the better way to go, rather than adaptors.

We're getting ready to build a five-foot wide design on it, and if I have to move or modify the fenders, now is the itme to find out about it.

Thanks again, everyone!

Ditto. I am in the "Sketchup hell" design phase and I am making a 5' wide over a 4' HF trailer. I think I am going to design it for a 14 inch wheel. I didn't know the 12 inch tires were such crap.

I should have just gone with the 5 ft wide NT trailer. I'll spend more now just to retrofit the wheels.

I've never pulled a trailer. If you blow a tire, what is the probability of rolling the camper?

Joe

[Kharn]

With a standard hitch, you can't "roll" the trailer without rolling the towing vehicle as well (which does happen, but usually with a full-size camper in horrible winds), but a flat certainly makes things exciting until you can stop.

[Corwin C]

I've never pulled a trailer. If you blow a tire, what is the probability of rolling the camper?

Even the worst blowout is really quite unlikely to roll the trailer. I'm not going to go so far as to say it won't happen, but really, really, close. The important thing is to react just as you would if it were a blowout on the tow vehicle. Don't over-react and make things worse by swerving or panic stopping ... pull over and stop as quickly and safely as you can. There have been some extreme cases but most have resulted in damage to the trailer rather than an accident/rollover.

With a standard hitch, you can't "roll" the trailer without rolling the towing vehicle as well (which does happen, but usually with a full-size camper in horrible winds), but a flat certainly makes things exciting until you can stop.

This is true, most hitches mechanically won't allow this much movement without breaking, bending, or coming apart. Teardrops, being rather light comparatively speaking, are less likely to "pull" the tow vehicle over than other trailers.