Jerry rigged tilt trailer from my past

wroughtn_harv · Dec 18, 2005

Almost thirty years ago I was playing with dirt track cars in Southern California. Budget was tight and I needed a trailer. With a street stock-figure eight car you need a tilt trailer. They're low to the ground and invariably when it comes time to load up at the end of an evening of racing and banging around for grins, well, a tilt works best.

I'd helped a friend clean up a double wide mobile home fire. So he gave me what I could salvage out of the mess. I found two decent axles and a couple of straight sections of frame.

wroughtn_harv · Dec 18, 2005

I laid the I beam frame sideways and trimmed out the flange where two pieces made one ramp.

wroughtn_harv · Dec 18, 2005

What made it work was blocks of wood.

The tongue was hinged back by the front axle. To keep it low and since I was only hauling about five miles each way I didn't use springs.

To tilt the trailer I'd release the tongue retainer. Of course the trailer would still be attached to the tow vehicle.

Next I'd place a four by six block on top of two by eight block in front of each wheel on the front axle.

I'd pull forward centering the front axle wheels on the blocks.

This would tilt the trailer.

When I sold it I put a coat of paint on it and a hydraulic cylinder jack so the new owner didn't have to look so country bumpkinish at the track.

wroughtn_harv · Dec 18, 2005

It wasn't the greatest trailer, but I was young, it worked, and a the next season after I built it there were copycats in the pits.

I guess I wasn't the only guy on a budget those days.

So if you're wanting a tilt trailer you can use scrap materials available and a little southern engineering and get by.

KennethBrown · Dec 18, 2005

So wheres the picture of the car Harv?

wroughtn_harv · Dec 18, 2005

This was the second car I built for myself. It was deadly fast, terribly fun, and suffered a horrible fate.

KennethBrown · Dec 21, 2005

I like it. I know I'm hijacking but I'm keeping it up top too. What was the name of the track that was IN Dallas?

8NTX · Dec 23, 2005

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I like it. I know I'm hijacking but I'm keeping it up top too. What was the name of the track that was IN Dallas? )</font>

As I recall, the old Devil's Bowl Speedway was located in Dallas, near John West Rd. and Buckner Blvd.. It's now in far eastern Dallas County east of Mesquite.

Steve