Trailer Improvements

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Fred
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Trailer Improvements

Post by Fred »

This past weekend I had a wee mishap with the trailer and damaged it. I also had peace of mind issues with it loaded on the way up to our section. I want to record the things that need doing on it to make it safer and more usable in one place and chart progress, hence yet another pit lane thread.

Prioritised:

Immediate:
  • Jockey wheel mechanism: Fix damage to hinge/lock
Before next serious use:
  • Chain connection point: Replace 3mm plate with 6mm plate
  • Hitch mechanism: Replace s/s fasteners with grade 10 cap screws and nylock
  • Safety pin setup: New better pin with spring loading
General:
  • Jockey wheel mechanism: Lighten over-built bracketry
  • Spare tyre: Remove from draw bar and fit beneath rear of deck (balance improvement)
  • Front/rear gates: Rebuild with stronger construction for heavy timber loads
  • Front/rear gates: Add more hinge points for increased strength/load capability
  • Guards: Triangulate towards extremes with foot holds for climing up safely
  • Deck: Reinforce centre 50x25 U beam that is under spec
  • Deck: Replace working surface with new material, possibly hardwood or some laminate
  • Sides: Add tie rail and running rail for carrying heavy wide things (eg my truck deck)
Possibly create removable cage sides to drop onto it, consider this if/when doing sides and gates.
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Re: Trailer Improvements

Post by Fred »

Cage design of a rental trailer at a random gas station that I happened to be stopped in for a few minutes: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 9411177472

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Will do something like that to my trailer sometime soon as it's going to get some work this coming summer for sure.
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Re: Trailer Improvements

Post by Fred »

I think the uprights are about 40mm OD with caps already on there from when I renovated it 15 odd years ago. So I think the best approach would be this:

25x25x3mm box or even better 25x25x3mm or 25x50x3mm channel on top of the uprights so the ply can be fixed to it, which will also give a little more height to the base capacity without cage.

Then the tie rail can be welded on the outside of the uprights 15-50mm down from the top and there'll be sufficient gap to pass ropes/straps/hooks through it.

Triangular pieces from the guard to the corners can still be installed to keep the turning clearance good (unlike the pictured rental).

Rear lights can possibly get some mods/clearance/lightening/etc by removing the central part which will also give more access clearance to the new spare location in the event of it being needed.

Will be a lot better balanced then. Will try to measure this evening and edit.
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Re: Trailer Improvements

Post by Fred »

Close, 37mm uprights. Still ample for the above plan. https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 4391977984

Deck size is 1360x2400, minus the side board thickness, approximately 36mm combined, leaving 1324mm usable width.

Last time I split the deck half way front to back and wasted two pieces of ply from the two part sheets I needed to use.

This time I might use this tongue and groove H3.2 treated flooring ply, which will give me the deck with a T&G reinforced seam, both sides, and either the front of the back, with a small piece needed to do the other end, and one offcut left over to make a dolly out of. Link: http://pprpenrose.co.nz/plywood/ply-floor-h3.2-tg or similar.

Or if I can get a sheet of 1500 wide ply, I might use that and a normal sheet for sides and front/back as I think the sides are under 300 high, or not far off.

I like the idea of the T&G seam running length ways, especially if epoxied into effectively a single piece, as if you have sand or dirt or whatever you tend to be sweeping/hosing it down and off the end of the trailer, so the seam running across the middle is sub optimal, especially as it lets water soak down onto the steel beam.

That's a job for a dry weekend once the cash flow recovers from the crappy old job.
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Re: Trailer Improvements

Post by Fred »

EDIT: Got out and put together a fairly comprehensive trailer improvement plan this afternoon! Photos and measurements and design and so forth.
EDIT: ^ yesterday's message, never quite posted from a different machine than I did the following on, added after the fact, as context for:

Media, pics yet to be pulled in:

Handle on the front: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 3749767170
Ute tie down rails, eg: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 5757747200
Jockey wheel lowering: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 2226702336 & https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 0156451841
Foot steps/guard guards: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 9043632128 & https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 7869357056 & https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 9078204416
Tail gate design issues: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 9778036736
Spare tyre relocation: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 8286728192
Tail gate size and detail: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 8767931392
Side height profile current: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 0197236737
Hitch and chain weakness: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 5119519744
40x40x5mm angle needs: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 6145721344
All detailed mod notes: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 2241731584

Next up, materials purchase list and costings and units of work list/descriptions.
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Re: Trailer Improvements

Post by Fred »

Independent jobs to do on the thing:

1) Hitch fasteners, hitch straighten, hitch brace, chain fixing
2) Jockey wheel lighten and lower and stiffen
3) Straighten uprights, side top rails, and tie down rails
4) New tail/head gates - requires side top rails done first
5) Remove sides and old deck plywood, slice into firewood
6) Spare relocate - better with the deck off
7) Centre cross member - requires deck off to do
8) Line deck with new ply, new sides, new timber for gates
9) Diagonal braces and foot steps around guards

1 is a matter of safety (as is 4, actually, with a high load) and requires minimal materials
2 requires no material outlay and can be done any time
3,4,7,8,9 require materials
5,6 require materials to be ready

Even 1/2 require extracting the MIG from the garage, though, and 1 requires a trip to a fastener shop which I think I can do on a Saturday morning, actually. The rest require some funds, so must be delayed a few weeks.
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Re: Trailer Improvements

Post by Fred »

Materials list and costings:

1) 9m of 12mm round bar stock - for side and front/rear tie down rails and bracing
2) 5m of 40x40x5mm angle - for diagonals and front rear gates
3) 11m of 50x25x3mm TF channel - for side rails, and tail/head gate cross members
4) 1.5m of 50x50x5mm angle - for centre cross member
5) 5m of 20x20x1.5mm alloy channel - for capping plywood sides - maybe
6) 1 sheet 17mm H3.2 treated plywood - for sides with lots left over
7) 2 sheets 19mm H3.2 treated tongue and groove flooring plywood - for deck and gates, lots left over
8) 12.9 cap screws, nuts, washers, etc - for attaching hitch to trailer
9) small triangle of 6mm or 8mm steel plate - for bracing end of draw bar

Costings? Ultra rough guesses:

50 + 50 + 120 + 20 + 100 + 80 + 240 + 30 + 10 = 700 if I'm vaguely accurate, unlikely. We'll see. Next pay.
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Re: Trailer Improvements

Post by Fred »

Forgot number 10 on the upgrade list and parts for that aspect:

The cage! A project for another day.
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Re: Trailer Improvements

Post by Fred »

Cage musings:

1200mm sides are about the max you'd want as past that you'd struggle to throw stuff over the top and into it. Eg 300mm sides plus 900mm cage, or 350 + 850 or whatever, around there.

You also wouldn't want them any smaller or it severely limits the volume of eg hedge trimmings you could fit in there.

Today I saw these two at a gas station: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 4357658624

Left: 300 + 650 = 950
Right: 300 + 960 = 1260
Mine, probably: 350 + 800 = 1150

Good enough? Probably a bit better than 1260 IMO after standing next to this one today:

Image
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