homebuilt Subaru IRS trailer

[alfio]

back on post 9 I got a "close guess" of about 56" for rootmoose. You could run 1" spacers. 6 hole Toy/Chevy bolt pattern is dirt-simple, since the Suby happens to share the same bolt-circle diameter.

thanks, i had overlooked that post. i guess a 1" difference wouldn't be too big of a deal, especially since i usually favor skinny tires.

i know about the bolt-circle diameter from that brat page you linked and it does look very doable. my only concern (other than the fact that finding the parts is going to be a challenge around these parts) is the height.

what do you think is a possible range in terms of height? ideally i'd like to get up to the height of my truck ('92 toyota, stock height with 31"s). it's hard to guesstimate from your pics since your trailer is so overloaded in every pic and obviously it would depend on how much metal i end up putting between bed and subie suspension but do you think it could be built to match the toyota in terms of height? i may be misunderstanding the way you set yours up but it seems like with a larger diameter rim+tire and a lower mounting point for the shock, it would be feasible to match stock height on a 3rd gen toyota. or is that totally wrong and the suspension is fixed and the only way to match heights is to add more metal between the bed and the subie suspension?

sorry, don't mean to drive you crazy but since you are the expert in this area, i figured i'd ask before i go chasing subaru parts all over the midwest. thanks

alfio

 

[deepmud]

all 10 pics here
http://www.supermotors.net/registry/7029/66591

I guess I owe a set of real measurements, like frame width, ride height, etc.
EDIT: as for ride height - I'm going to say you might need a block of steel to "lift it" - also you can tweak the angle - which is a bit like turning up the torsion bar - which you can also do if you start w/a 4x4 rear.

 

[walking eagle]

I've been keeping my eyes peeled for junk Subaru's around. No luck yet


Erich

Try VW beetle - same basic set up - only a couple million of them around though....

Edit: make sure it's post '69, or '68 from an autostick though, cause you want the IRS not the swing axle. Could use a bus rear too, after '68 it's IRS, it would have a bigger weight rating and I think a little wider.

 

[deepmud]

Shoot I was going to link the thread about VW since it has pics but I can't find it.
But yeah - Type 3 VW is supposed to be "it" - removable, and as a bonus, you get to decide track width, it's two individual pieces. Not a bad option, especially if you happen to be in an area with more VW stuff than Subaru stuff to choose from :sombrero: .

 

[walking eagle]

Not a bad option, especially if you happen to be in an area with more VW stuff than Subaru stuff to choose from :sombrero: .

What area DOESN'T have more VW stuff than Subaru?

 

[deepmud]

What area DOESN'T have more VW stuff than Subaru?

Alaska, lol - we have more Subaru's than anyone, and very few VW's.

 

[ntsqd]

As it happens I can help with the T3 VW version. I have one for sale. I'm mostly just wanting it to go to someone who can use it, so if you're able to retrieve it from the 93003 zip PM me. I was going to build a trailer for the avatar DB, but it just never happened.

On to pictures of what these look like, note the two shallow pads just above the shocks - these along with the three other more obvious places at the OE mounts:

The four lugs centered on the torsion tube are for the forward transaxle mount. The whole assembly could easily be split centered between the lugs to make it wider.

 

[walking eagle]

Alaska, lol - we have more Subaru's than anyone, and very few VW's.

Ah.... makes sense - air cooled engines don't provide alot of heat. I usually think of Subaru's being a NE - Vermont ski trip vehicle... well, that and serving postal and parking duty in WI.

 

[deepmud]

I found this pic of a vw type 3 axle, set up as a tandem axle.

and I should have kept the link to where I found it - a tractor forum, the guy said he'd made it as a single axle many years ago when he had no money (like mine, lol) and then after about 20 years hard use, he added a second axle - and then really got to abuse it, because he says it weight over 6000 pounds when he weighed it with those stumps on there.

Note, he says that he welded front spindles in the rear axle assembly, to take care of those drive axles/bearings. Anyway, it's a good example of another swing axle trailer - proof of "tough" is how really old his trailer is, and mine, with lots of abuse and many, many miles.

 

[ntsqd]

I'd have kept the stock rear VW bearings. They're bigger than the front outers and possibly slightly bigger than the front inners.

 

[deepmud]

Doh!
I checked history
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/build-yourself/35871-car-axles-used-utility-trailers-2.html

It's WAS 34 years old in 2004 when he posted up - and had been from Canada to Baja. He mentioned having built many more using the transaxle, including a 3 axle race-truck hauler - but used the welded-on trailer spindles to allow the trailer bolt pattern to match up with the tow rig - good trick.

I did a little searching - the builder passed away in 2006, so no contacting him for info - he seemed like the type to be happy to help.

 

[deepmud]

bump. Found a video my son took as we diverted off the Denali Hwy a bit - nothing spectacular as far as the trail goes, just shows the trailer behind the Expedition, with tundra in the background.
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/B_uKyLCAuJ2F1_l9FreYbQ?feat=directlink
It made me think about how it works across rough terrain - going slow, even the soft-sprung subaru axle doesn't move much. "Articulation" is ALL about the trailer pivoting as related to the rig - At the most basic, the trailer just keeps level to the ground. Suspension action happens at speed, on bumps and dips. When building your trailer, think it terms of "what will happen when it hits a 4" deep pothole at 35-40mph". On the Rubicon, it's mostly just going to be "will this tire be big enough to easily roll up that ledge like my Jeep?".

I think this is why I see so many "meat trailers" - trailers built for hauling moose meat behind 4 wheel atv's - without any suspension at all. They go slow, the fat atv tires take the small bumps, and the trailer just tips and tilts to follow the terrain.

discuss....

 

[deepmud]

Update - finally re-drilled the bolt pattern - while a chevy/toy 6 hole pattern would easy, I have a bunch of 5 on 5.5 Suzuki/Ford rims lying around so that is what I did.

Removed the drum/hub from the trailer, knocked out the 3 studs, bolted a rim to the hub, and lined it up by eyeballing the on-center of the wheel vs the hub, then tightened down the one remaining lug nut. I got a good center punch and marked the 4 holes, drilled 1/8th, then 1/4, then 1/2" holes.

Not the BEST method - I think the holes are off, just slightly.

On the second hub, I took a deep-well chrome lug nut, and drilled out the threads - it left a collar that I could push down on the wheel with a 14mm wrench - I then pushed the drilled out lug nut cone on to the cone of the wheel, and drilled thru it, so that it acted as a centering guide. This seemed better.

The old tires were 13" rims, and I just don't have any lying around anymore. The 15's have a higher load capacity, even with the low-profile 60 series tires from my MX-6

I still love this little trailer. I found an OLD video of when it was smaller, and thrashed it off-road - it's pretty bouncy, but fun to watch it getting thrashed as I was rescuing my old Honda ATV

http://www.youtube.com/watch?list=UUWv3vDKZ9b6I7ZVIvCALSvw&feature=player_detailpage&v=eDZDIPxPnVA

 

[Mark Harley]

Wow almost two years since the last post, Neat idea with the sub frame axle. In Pa, we cobble trailers together with Dodge caravan trailing axles.

 

[jeep-N-montero]

I always wondered about those Subaru Torsion axles, and now I know, can even go looking for the VW version as well!