New "old" trailer- tri axle

[Kaliburz]

Got to use the trailer last weekend for a short haul (less then 10 miles round trip). Buddy wanted to borrow my 2030 JD & 3pt hitch backhoe. We pulled it behind his 92 7.3L IDI w/ an ATS turbo. Tractor didn't even squat the truck, granted most of the weight was on the axles.

Good news, lights work good. They were 'kind' to get the marker lights all working and well as the tail/brake lights. Bad thing is, the brakes are MIA.... granted, it could have been the adapter I was using (7 way RV flat to 6 wire round small) or it could have been his truck (controller didn't light up????). Yes, yes, I know, I know.... playing w/ fire not having a proper braking system. This is ag country.... you should see what is going around w/out any brakes here. I'll have to get my truck and test the brakes (I have that plug wired)... granted, it's only a 1/2 ton.

My planned tow rig is a 1999 E350 Extended van w/ a 7.3L PowerStroke. If needed, I can change the pental hitch on it to a 2 5/16" coupler to use a weight distributing hitch. I plan to just use it w/ in a 15 mile radius, but may use it for the occasional long haul to pick things up.

 

[Pops15]

Common sense? Puh-leeeze.

They may be rated for 6K, but it's LIMITED USE. Why the "limited use" designation? If you want the straight scoop on Dexter's line of axles, you can go directly to THEIR site. There's no need to go searching for a reply on another message board that aligns with your thinking.

direct from Dexter's site:



Here's a link:

Dexter Axle - Trailer Axles and Running Gear Components - FAQ'S

Thats very interesting but at some point mobile home builders must have used Dexter UTG axles. I suspect they didn't have the cheaper MH limited use axles back then. I've had 4 trailers with the UTG axles. 2 home made, and 2 factory built. A friend built one of the home made trailers and my Dad and I built the other. The axles on the 2 home made trailers came out from under house trailers and were narrowed. None of those axles had "limited use" tags. Brakes, bearings etc were interchangable between all 4 trailers. We even bought replacement brake parts from a local mobile home dealer! That was at least 22-24 years ago. We also had 2 other trailers that had different (I presume limited use MH) axles. I don't recall exactly what the differences were, but backing plates rings a bell. I do remember seeing the two types of axles side by side and there were clearly differences.

 

[brokenot]

Yes, there are mobile home "style" assemblies that take the same bearings and such, but those aren't the actual mobile home axles Dexter is talking about. Here's a web page with a selection of Dexter hubs and their components. Towards the bottom of the page you can see the rim-clamp mobile home style hubs. These have been used by equipment trailer manufacturers in the past, and maybe still are in some instances.

These hub assemblies aren't used on traditional mobile home axles though, and that's why the 'limited use" designation exists. Check out the pricing on the rim-clamp style hubs on this link....it's a dead-giveaway.

Dexter Axle - Trailer Axles and Running Gear Components - Hub Kits 5.2K-6K

There is simply no-way, no-how that all of the mobile home axle fans would be actually using these axles if the original mobile home application spec was written so as to equip the mobile home axles in this manner. Everyone that chooses to use MH axles does so because of the pricing. You can buy complete MH axles from hub-to-hub just about everywhere for $50-75....often including a set of springs. The places selling the axles wouldn't let them go for next to nothing if they were originally equipped with components that are more expensive than standard 6K rated axles are.

They cost little, (and carry the limited use recommendation), because they were made with bottom shelf bits and pieces.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Pops15 the link at the bottom of this post is from post 15 in this thread. We are not sure why brokenot is so hung up talking about limited use axles as if the wheels fall off after so many revolutions.

MH axles are "limited use" axles as they come from the factory BECAUSE they require permits to be used because they are too wide for unlimited use.

brokenot knows the truth that bearings, seals and brake parts are available as common size parts. Because the back plates are welded on no you can not buy a loaded back plate (back plate with all new parts already installed) but you can buy the replacement parts and replace them on the welded back plates just like with tractors and older vehicles with drum brakes.

Besides the axles having to be cut in the middle and shorten for legal unlimited use (no wide load permits required) they typically have one heavy weight spring instead of several light weight leaf springs so they ride better for hauling the trailer empty or with very light loads.

DOT approved highway tires are available and affordable.

Do not let brokenot lead you to pass on a quality built trailer just because it is builted on limited use MH axles that have shorted for legal (no wide load permits required) unlimited use like Dexter/others sell that are made short enought from the factory so they can serve as unlimited use axles that do not require wide load permits to be purchased before towing on highways in the USA.

I have read some state laws do not permit the reuse of MH axles for NEW MH construction. This would provide a source of limited use MH axles that can be shorten so they are legally unlimited use (no wide load permits required) axles.

Official Mobile Home Axle Info [Archive] - Pirate4x4.Com Bulletin Board

"You are correct that your axle is NOT the "one time use" axle that everyone thinks it is. The axles with the bolt on brake are the utility version which was very similar to the true mobile home axle with the weld on brake."

 

[brokenot]

Gale, the reason I'm so hung up on it is because you're wrong....and your misinformation is only serving to muddy the waters further for anyone that wants accurate information. The "limited use" designation has NOTHING to do with the axle length. It has EVERYTHING to do with the componentry involved in their construction.

Please quit posting someone's quotes from the Pirate 4X4 forum. Especially since it's totally obvious you haven't read that person's entire post and have only chosen to take out of context the tidbits that you believe support your point. He was fixing up a trailer himself, and it was his FIRST such endeavor. (In other words, far from an expert on the subject.)

He asked someone at Dexter if the stuff he was using was included under the limited use umbrella, and he was told by the Dexter Rep that it was not. Read, (perhaps for the first time), what you've quoted yourself:

"You are correct that your axle is NOT the "one time use" axle that everyone thinks it is. The axles with the bolt on brake are the utility version which was very similar to the true mobile home axle with the weld on brake."

Long story short, the axle HE was using is NOT a mobile home axle! Someone at Dexter told him so. Remember Dexter? They're one of the companies that makes the axles. They say the mobile home ones are for limited use only, and you can read it right on their website or call 'em if you wish. You needn't wade through numerous internet ramblings from novices on the subject until you happen across a quotable snippet that you think *proves* your point.:confused2:

Since the axle HE was using was NOT a mobile home axle.....the mobile home axle caveats don't apply to his situation. So I guess the real message, (which is what I've been saying all along), is.....if you don't want to put up with the compromises that mobile home axles come with, then use something else.

Dexter Axle product information: (574) 295-7888

The truth hurts sometimes.....

 

[Pops15]

Yes, there are mobile home "style" assemblies that take the same bearings and such, but those aren't the actual mobile home axles Dexter is talking about. Here's a web page with a selection of Dexter hubs and their components. Towards the bottom of the page you can see the rim-clamp mobile home style hubs. These have been used by equipment trailer manufacturers in the past, and maybe still are in some instances.

These hub assemblies aren't used on traditional mobile home axles though, and that's why the 'limited use" designation exists. Check out the pricing on the rim-clamp style hubs on this link....it's a dead-giveaway.

Dexter Axle - Trailer Axles and Running Gear Components - Hub Kits 5.2K-6K

There is simply no-way, no-how that all of the mobile home axle fans would be actually using these axles if the original mobile home application spec was written so as to equip the mobile home axles in this manner. Everyone that chooses to use MH axles does so because of the pricing. You can buy complete MH axles from hub-to-hub just about everywhere for $50-75....often including a set of springs. The places selling the axles wouldn't let them go for next to nothing if they were originally equipped with components that are more expensive than standard 6K rated axles are.

They cost little, (and carry the limited use recommendation), because they were made with bottom shelf bits and pieces.

I don't dispute anything you're saying about the current style light duty, limited use, MH axles.
My point was at some point in time MH's used the current UTG style axles so it's not accurate to make a blanket statement about ALL mobile home axles.

 

[Kaliburz]

I don't dispute anything you're saying about the current style light duty, limited use, MH axles.
My point was at some point in time MH's used the current UTG style axles so it's not accurate to make a blanket statement about ALL mobile home axles.

So that means, if you see a UTG hub, don't assume it started as a mobile home axle. Look behind it and if it's welded, it was a mobile home axle. If it's bolted, then it means it's a regular HD axle.

 

[Pops15]

So that means, if you see a UTG hub, don't assume it started as a mobile home axle. Look behind it and if it's welded, it was a mobile home axle. If it's bolted, then it means it's a regular HD axle.

If you see a UTG hub chances are it didn't come from a house trailer. The majority of house trailer axles I've seen are the "light duty" versions........but not all. I just wanted to point out that some MH's used UTG axles so its not fair to make a blanket statement.

 

[crusty 1]

There are probably thousands of narrowed MH axels in use today with no problems.Might be a difference of manufs. but I have had the MH axels narrowed for my use and never a problem

 

[brokenot]

Lots of people have used them....I've used them myself. But they aren't comparable to standard axles, and that's the point I've been trying to make. If the OEMs describe them as being for limited use, then there's a reason. If that same axle company builds another "line" of axles that they don't tag with the limited use designation, there's a reason. If you can find mobile home axles everywhere in piles, and the asking price is $50 a pop, there's a reason. If you go browsing the new factory-built equipment trailers at your local dealer and none of them are equipped with mobile home axles, there's a reason.

There's nothing mysterious about it, nor is it a conspiracy of any kind.

I'm not saying that users posting up about having used them and not having problems holds no merit, but it's hardly the only thing to consider. Like I said in the other thread, it's akin to someone posting up in a light truck thread and saying whichever 3/4 ton or 1 ton truck the original poster is asking about is a completely unnecessary waste of cash because he could buy a 1/2 ton and bolt on some overload springs and have something that "will do the job just fine".

"It works for me and I've never had any problems.....", has never trumped any manufacturers' recommendations for me. Folks that buy into that logic hook, line, and sinker actually help keep me busy at work though....