PM for a 500 Mile Round Trip

[Iplayfarmer]

better, 4" angle grinder with a cutter blade. Much less cool down time.

Tires touching? Measure twice, mount once!!

Did we ever get a pic of this trailer.


Diamond, it's a dump trailer, one reason to keep it.

I guess that the only picture I've posted of it is of the inside of one wheel hub to show the grease zerk.

I'll see if I can get a picture. It's not much to look at, especially now since it's up on blocks and the wheels are off.

I should have actually measured. The space between the two tires originally was more than 2 inches, and so I figured that going up a size would be fine. I forgot to account for the wear on the older tires. It's almost as if I could put these new tires on something and run them for 10,000 miles to wear down the tread and they would fit fine.

Also, I need to correct you. I wish I had a dump trailer, but this one is just a tilt bed.

 

[john_bud]

. I wish I had a dump trailer, but this one is just a tilt bed.

I dunno, if you keep having problems, you may just "dump it".

jb

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I dunno, if you keep having problems, you may just "dump it".

jb

I think if I could just dive into the project for a full day I could get it all done. The problem is that I've only got a few hours at a time.

My biggest problem right now is still just fighting rusted bolts and corrosion. I cut the bolt heads off that hold the axles and carriage to the tilt part of the bed. One of the bolts slides right out. The other is there forever. I'm thinking I'm going to have to cut that side off with a reciprocating saw and a demolition blade then drill out what's left of the bolt.

An OA rig would come in real handy right now.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I still haven't taken any pictures of the trailer. I haven't forgotten about it, I just keep not getting around to it.

I got to work on it again for a few hours Saturday. I cut the bolt on either side of the frame member just inside the axle carriage. This axle carriage is no longer attached to the trailer. It was no surprise to me that the hole is worn into an oval shape rather than a circle.

About the time I got the axle section separate from the frame of the trailer it was time to do other things, so that's where it sits now. The next step is to get the front axle off so that I can turn it around. Once I get everything apart I'll worry about getting the rest of the cut bolt out of the holes.

The bolt is about an inch and a half in diameter. I'm thinking that in order to get it out I'll have to drill a hole big enough for a hacksaw blade. Then I'll have to cut the bolt into pie sections and chisel it out one piece at a time.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I'm done with disassembly!!

I finally had to drill a 3/4" hole through the stuck bolt with a bi-metal hole saw and then cut a section of it out with a reciprocating saw. Even after getting a quarter section of the bolt out by cutting it, I still had to use a hammer and a cold chisel to get the rest of the bolt out.

The one axle is now turned around, and both axles are bolted to the carriage. I had to pay almost $20 for the 3/4" bolts to re-attach the axles and a few deck bolts. The hardware store didn't have the 1 1/4" bolts that I need for the pivot points on either side of the axle carriage. I'll have to look around and see if I can find them somewhere else locally.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I'm down to the final steps now. I stopped by the local machine shop yesterday after work and picked up a 10" piece of 1 1/4" rod. It cost me $4.40. That beats the heck out of $10 each for bolts.

I took an abrasive cylinder to the one hole that the bolt had been stuck in and ground it out enough that the rod slides in and out easily, but there's no slop. I also cut the piece of rod in half and drilled holes in the end to put pins in to keep it in place.

All I have left to do is to weld a "head" out of 1/4" plate on the other side, and then put her back together.

I'm debating about drilling a hole down the center of the rod and another hole perpendicular about half way in to provide a place to put a grease zerk to keep this rod lubed up. Any thoughts?

 

[RobJ]

pics?

 

[Iplayfarmer]

pics?

Okay,

I finally took some pictures. She's ugly, but she's done what I've needed so far.

The first picture is of the trailer as it sits today up on blocks waiting for the wheels. You can see that I have one of the deck planks removed from when I was cutting the bolts out.

The second picture is of what I have been calling the axle carriage. What is the right name for this assembly anyway?

The third picture is of the pins that I fabricated to replace the bolts I had to cut out. I've drilled a hole halfway down through the center and another hole out the side so that I can tap and thread a grease zerk in. I've got a couple of zerks with 1/8" NPT threads, but the tap drill size charts say I need a "R" size bit. What's an R bit?

The fourth picture is of the hole in the trailer frame that the bolt has to go through. You can see that the hole has elongated a bit over the years. That crack in the left side of the picture has been welded from the back and there's a plate welded on the bottom.

 

[dfkrug]

The second picture is of what I have been calling the axle carriage. What is the right name for this assembly anyway?

The third picture is of the pins that I fabricated to replace the bolts I had to cut out. I've drilled a hole halfway down through the center and another hole out the side so that I can tap and thread a grease zerk in. I've got a couple of zerks with 1/8" NPT threads, but the tap drill size charts say I need a "R" size bit. What's an R bit?

Your 2nd photo is sometimes called a "truck", but "axle carriage" works.

An R drill bit is a "letter drill" and is 0.339". A 21/64 fractional bit will prob be
close enough. An NPT tap has quite a taper to it.

Good luck w/ your project.

 

[radioman]

interesting project. This oughta keep you busy for awhile and out of trouble.
in the last picture you posted, I am concerned seeing a crack that large in the frame. Can you elaborate on that crack, any plans to fix it ?