handirifle
Veteran Member
My neighbor gave me a small trailer a year ago. It measures just over 4' x 8' inside the bed. The trailer was previously used to haul a pair of 2,000 lb grape bins behind the tractor with a pin hitch. It uses the mobile home style axle (single) and wheels and the associated oddball 14.5" tires.
The trailer needed new tires in order to remove it from his property. I got two new tires and hauled it home, and proceeded to convert it to street trailer. I added sides, a 2" ball hitch, a tailgate, and a full light system. It is a very heavy duty trailer, since the bed was made of the dual row rollers that allowed the heavy bins to roll on and off before. I covered those, left in place, with 3/4" plywood. The entire frame of this trailer is made from 2" x 4" x 1/4" box tubing.
I also made ramps that will allow me to drive my small 16hp tractor onto the trailer, but I still need to make some sort of brace that will go under the rear of the tailgate, in the down position, that will support the tractor when I do this. I built a frame under the trailer rear, to slide the ramps into for storage, but here is where I ran into issues.
For all the tongue weight of this trailer, when I have the ramps in their holding brackets I made, the trailer is almost perfectly balanced. I can just about lift the tongue with one or two fingers.
I can solve this issue, and have, by placing the two ramps cross ways in front of the trailer, attached to the front wall, right behind the "triangle". Buyt the problem goes deeper than that I discovered. I have hauled some very heavy loads of sand and brick and gravel with this trailer, and it handles it in stride. The last load I brought home of sod, one full pallet in front, and a 3/4 pallet in the rear, shoved up against the front one. They were 4' pallets and it's an 8' bed. I noticed on the way home, with this load, I got quite a bit of sway above 50 mph so it was a slow ride home.
Now the question, finally, sorry for the long prep story. This axle is a straight axle and I am considering a 3500lb drop axle for easier loading of certain things. In the meantime, I am considering relocating the current axle rearward to correct this problem, but how far back is too far? That is my question, can it be back too far? I was only thinking of another 2 or 3 inches.
The trailer needed new tires in order to remove it from his property. I got two new tires and hauled it home, and proceeded to convert it to street trailer. I added sides, a 2" ball hitch, a tailgate, and a full light system. It is a very heavy duty trailer, since the bed was made of the dual row rollers that allowed the heavy bins to roll on and off before. I covered those, left in place, with 3/4" plywood. The entire frame of this trailer is made from 2" x 4" x 1/4" box tubing.
I also made ramps that will allow me to drive my small 16hp tractor onto the trailer, but I still need to make some sort of brace that will go under the rear of the tailgate, in the down position, that will support the tractor when I do this. I built a frame under the trailer rear, to slide the ramps into for storage, but here is where I ran into issues.
For all the tongue weight of this trailer, when I have the ramps in their holding brackets I made, the trailer is almost perfectly balanced. I can just about lift the tongue with one or two fingers.
I can solve this issue, and have, by placing the two ramps cross ways in front of the trailer, attached to the front wall, right behind the "triangle". Buyt the problem goes deeper than that I discovered. I have hauled some very heavy loads of sand and brick and gravel with this trailer, and it handles it in stride. The last load I brought home of sod, one full pallet in front, and a 3/4 pallet in the rear, shoved up against the front one. They were 4' pallets and it's an 8' bed. I noticed on the way home, with this load, I got quite a bit of sway above 50 mph so it was a slow ride home.
Now the question, finally, sorry for the long prep story. This axle is a straight axle and I am considering a 3500lb drop axle for easier loading of certain things. In the meantime, I am considering relocating the current axle rearward to correct this problem, but how far back is too far? That is my question, can it be back too far? I was only thinking of another 2 or 3 inches.
