Burley_Industries prototype expedition trailer

[Burley]

I am enjoying your build narrative and all of the pictures. One comment is the flat fenders may allow rocks and mud to be thrown forward into your tow vehicle and backwards into other vehicles following on the same trail.

I've got a question about the axle leaf springs. I can't claim to know the "correct" answer and the ones in the pictures look similar to those on smaller and lighter trailers. In my first read through of this thread I don't think I saw how you arrived at the selection. They seem to be a "standard" trailer length (25"?) that I've seen at e-Trailer but would a longer leaf spring allow more axle articulation? The folks that built my trailer used springs that are roughly 3.5 feet long based on Jeep JK rear leaf springs.

Thanks!

Agreed about the fenders. I just haven't decided yet on what to do about. I also want to tie, what ever I do, into the jerry can holders.

As far as leaf springs and axle sizes go, I went with a #3500 axle and matching spring based on the gross payload I wanted to have for the trailer. The leafs are the standard 25" leafs. It's funny when you start doing research on trailer articulation and extra long leaf springs versus smaller one, everyone has a different idea on what works best. I don't claim to be anywhere near an expert but after researching it here is what I came up with. Articulation in a VEHICLE is, in part, based on having four wheels. One on each corner. For the left front to compress it has to push or pivot, however you want to say it, off of the right rear tire other wise the truck just rotates. So with that in mind, a trailer with only two wheels can only 'articulate' side to side. When a two wheeled trailer approaches an object with one tire, the way I see it, two things can happen. 1) The leaf spring can compress, allowing the tire to articulate or 2) The hitch rotates on the ball. The second being the path of least resistance and most probable. I think there is more to it than that but that is the basic idea, right or wrong. There is one other thing to consider and that is shackle angle. Basically, the more vertical the shackle the stiffer the initial compression of the spring will be. The closer to 45 degrees or even more the smoother the leaf springs acts.

Anyone one else feel free chime in with this subject.

 

[XJSuperman]

On the fenders: Mud flaps front and rear like a military truck would work, but Im not so sure it meets your criteria. Jerry cans can be mounted outside of the flaps if you desired.
Looking for a pic, unsuccessfully, though Ive seen it on steelsoldiers.

 

[BSR]

I'm still working on this. Most stabilizer legs are to short.

Why not fab your own on each rear corner, drop down on a pivot with a pinch bolt for height adjustment? Like a simple version of the (proven) Sankey set up.

As for your welding of the axle, if it's a good weld then its fine. Standard road axles are welded in the centre either side of the diff casing.
I'm an engineer and coded for welding; I'd have done it your way.

Great build, really enjoying it come together. Can't wait to see it with Tepui on top, going to be great.

 

[Burley]

On the fenders: Mud flaps front and rear like a military truck would work, but Im not so sure it meets your criteria. Jerry cans can be mounted outside of the flaps if you desired.
Looking for a pic, unsuccessfully, though Ive seen it on steelsoldiers.

I agree, mud flaps would work but definitely not the look I'm going for.

 

[Burley]

Why not fab your own on each rear corner, drop down on a pivot with a pinch bolt for height adjustment? Like a simple version of the (proven) Sankey set up.

As for your welding of the axle, if it's a good weld then its fine. Standard road axles are welded in the centre either side of the diff casing.
I'm an engineer and coded for welding; I'd have done it your way.

Great build, really enjoying it come together. Can't wait to see it with Tepui on top, going to be great.

I'll have to look into the Sankey set up, I've never seen that before.
Thanks on the welding reinforcement.
I can't wait to see the tent on top too!

 

[Biscuit1980]

What a great project and enjoyable read. Very jealous!

 

[teotwaki]

Agreed about the fenders. I just haven't decided yet on what to do about. I also want to tie, what ever I do, into the jerry can holders.

As far as leaf springs and axle sizes go, I went with a #3500 axle and matching spring based on the gross payload I wanted to have for the trailer. The leafs are the standard 25" leafs. It's funny when you start doing research on trailer articulation and extra long leaf springs versus smaller one, everyone has a different idea on what works best. I don't claim to be anywhere near an expert but after researching it here is what I came up with. Articulation in a VEHICLE is, in part, based on having four wheels. One on each corner. For the left front to compress it has to push or pivot, however you want to say it, off of the right rear tire other wise the truck just rotates. So with that in mind, a trailer with only two wheels can only 'articulate' side to side. When a two wheeled trailer approaches an object with one tire, the way I see it, two things can happen. 1) The leaf spring can compress, allowing the tire to articulate or 2) The hitch rotates on the ball. The second being the path of least resistance and most probable. I think there is more to it than that but that is the basic idea, right or wrong. There is one other thing to consider and that is shackle angle. Basically, the more vertical the shackle the stiffer the initial compression of the spring will be. The closer to 45 degrees or even more the smoother the leaf springs acts.

Anyone one else feel free chime in with this subject.

I've used two different types of multi-axis hitches and believe they still are not a complete solution to hauling a trailer over rough terrain. In the picture below my 4Runner is twisting to the right and the trailer is clearly articulating to the left despite the fairly new and well greased Lock-N-Roll hitch. I've watched my trailer in the mirror countless times as I've gone off road and am thinking that just a good hitch is not enough to avoid the trailer tipping over. Adventure Trailers uses independent arms for each wheel to get the ultimate flexibility but regardless of the solution the trailer's suspension has to easily handle rough terrain independent of hitch articulation limits.

As for the fenders, why not combine your flat shelf with a couple of 45 degree sections that will mimic the front and back of a regular fender and limit the tires flinging junk around?

 

[Burley]

I got a lot done on the trailer this weekend. I decided to take a few steps back and rebuild the tailgate. I went with a single stainless steel lockable center latch. I also got in the rear stabilizer jacks and got them mounted. I added interior mounts for them when traveling and a mount at the front of the trailer for the front jack.

 

[Burley]

A few more...

 

[Burley]

A quick walk around video of the trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCG1teJDqqg

 

[Rwhat]

Trailer looks good. However since you plan on selling it here's my opinion.

Not diggin the fenders. No protection for rocks breaking your back window. If it's used for a cook surface I would skip cooking drunk food, i.e. fried foods. Gonna make a mess on the side. I would not want to be behind it on a paved road or especially a gravel.

The stitch welds on the skin are over kill. I would have just left stitch welds on the inside or used angle iron with hardware and used seam sealer. The spare tire is a waste of space on the tongue which the area could be used for storage to distribute tongue weight or used for a big cooler.

The jack storage on the inside is wasting usable space for certain sized totes, ect. You own a jeep so you should know this.

Front tongue jack look like it has to be removed, unless it's stored facing foward at 90*. So unless it stored facing foward it had to be installed before every time you have to un hitch or hitch up.

Tailgate has to be heavy especially skinned with steel and that bracing. Dropping down 180* is gonna be heavy. You probably better off with a swing out tailgate that could have a table intergrated in and maybe storing the spare tire on that and freeing up the tongue storage.

I would skip running off the shelf trailer leaf springs and run something else. Although keep the leaf spring set up since it's user friendly and very durable.


The list can go one. I'm only giving my opinion since you plan on selling them.

 

[jscherb]

How about the Dinoot Wide M416 Style fenders? They're the same as M416 fenders but 12.75" wide (about 3" wider than standard M416 fenders) so they completely cover the wide tires you're running. They'd go well with the styling of your trailer. They're at the bottom of this page: http://dinoot.com/components-pricing/fenders.html. These:

 

[Burley]

How about the Dinoot Wide M416 Style fenders? They're the same as M416 fenders but 12.75" wide (about 3" wider than standard M416 fenders) so they completely cover the wide tires you're running. They'd go well with the styling of your trailer. They're at the bottom of this page: http://dinoot.com/components-pricing/fenders.html. These:

Those probably would work great. I'm looking to build something really close to that that wouldn't be $200 though.

 

[1store]

I

I'm looking to build something really close to that that wouldn't be $200 though.

Good to see you want to look out for the end user

 

[jscherb]

Those probably would work great. I'm looking to build something really close to that that wouldn't be $200 though.

Understood. If the fenders work for your design, you might check with Scott at Dinoot - I expect he'd sell them to you at an attractive price if you were buying more than one set for production purposes.