multi-purpose off-road trailer

[Ironhead Jed]

since I purchased a RTT, the time to build a trailer is here. i've been doing tons of reading on here and gained a lot of ideas and info. i'm at the base level of design and was wondering what the axle location front to rear had an affect on.

Naturally, if the axle is farther back than the center point it will put more weight on the tongue.

would centering the axle be the best overall?

im assuming that having the axle farther forward could lighten the back of my jeep and give me less traction




a bit of the goals of this build.
the idea is to have a fully setup overland trailer that i can pull the kitchen and RTT and be able remove the overland stuff to haul a motorcycle and maybe even a 4x8 sheet of plywood.
upper triangulated 4 link suspension with airbags and shocks
a platform for an RTT that can be raised or lowered to keep the cog low for movement but be able to raise it up for camping. maybe even lower it inside the box and be able to close the lid over it for added protection

i did a base model sketch, just to get some ideas down. trying to make sure i dont do anything dumb from the beginning

 

[MOAK]

I've been pulling trailers of all kinds for over 40 years and currently am dragging a 4x6 trailer, for a few years behind an 04 Rubicon, and now behind our 80 series LC. I would mount the axle in the middle, as too much tongue weight can be just as disastrous as too little. If the axle is set back, you've no way to manipulate your tongue weight. A basic rule of thumb,, No more than 2/3rds of the trailer weight should be in front of the axle, and no more tongue weight on your jeep than the factory recommended spec. Our trailer weighs in at a little over 750 lbs, (approx 600 lbs sprung weight) fully loaded and never ever ran more than 175 lbs of tongue weight. With just our gear, minus gas and water, the weight comes down dramatically and we've run cross country with as little as 100 lbs of tongue weight. I might also add that when stepping up to a trailer, it may be time for suspension mods on your pull vehicle,,, I have used, and am currently using OME "heavy" suspensions which I have been more than pleased with. Here is a shot of my trailer build.. Simple, clean, functional, and everything except the two jerry cans are inside the box,,,,, Good luck with your build !!

 

[Ironhead Jed]

excellent, thanks for explaining that.

tow vehicle is an 03 rubi with 3" front and 2" rear BDS springs with a few other upgrades and a lot of aluminum. just grabbed a SWAG big hit v2 bumper, with frame tie ins, that still needs to be welded up

thats a good looking trailer. custom made canvas cover? how is it held on and how is it in the wind?

 

[Ironhead Jed]

shortened the bed down to 6 feet after measuring some bikes. i like the look a lot more. will have to make something to reinforce the tail gate as it will hold the rear tire of most bikes

 

[MOAK]

The tarp was custom made,, and held down with shock cords. I thought it may be too short on the sides, but I had taken my router and rounded all the top corners and edges... No wind problems at all,, water tight, ( through some very heavy Kansas downpours @ 70 MPH, ) and sand tight through some very windy days outside Moab.. When the spring breaks for us here, I'm going to finally finish my build, ( been tweeking it for a few years now ) and hopefully share a write up on it..

 

[teotwaki]

-----------SNIP-------------

a bit of the goals of this build.
the idea is to have a fully setup overland trailer that i can pull the kitchen and RTT and be able remove the overland stuff to haul a motorcycle and maybe even a 4x8 sheet of plywood.
upper triangulated 4 link suspension with airbags and shocks
a platform for an RTT that can be raised or lowered to keep the cog low for movement but be able to raise it up for camping. maybe even lower it inside the box and be able to close the lid over it for added protection

I would avoid any sort of complications with trying to raise and lower a heavy RTT in and out of the trailer box. It does not need a lot more protection and now the box has to be bigger than necessary as well as deprive you of room to store cargo. Why even raise and lower it at all? Bolt it to the lid of the trailer and save weight and complexity. It is already up and off the ground when on your trailer and there is no real advantage to lifting it higher that I can identify.

 

[Ironhead Jed]

three reasons, there is an annex for the RTT (tepui autana sky), i want to be able to tow a motorcycle with as little hardware swapping as possible, and although I dont purposely go out looking for mud, but this is my tow vehicle


maybe my worries are unrealistic. this will definitely be a several step build, so that can come later. i will say that i have been searching this forum and through a mcmaster catalog and havent found what I want yet. I really like the cover that rubicondon made, its giving me a few ideas

 

[jonnyquest]

I've tried to come up with a way to do a RRT and motorcycle at the same time. It seems that it's going to end up long with the tent high up over the bike or wide with the bike crosswise and the tent lower. If you go with the bike crosswise, you could balance the trailer without the bike by loading the gear differently.

 

[MadH8R]

I kinda went down this road a wile back: http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/127244-MadH8R-Utility-Transformer?highlight=Madh8r

If I were building from scratch and just going to be using it for camping, it would be 6 ft long. I use it far more as a utility trailer and at times wish it were 10 and not 8. Currently my boxes are stacked in the garage because I have been hauling beds, boxes, brush, etc throughout the winter. If I were building from scratch, I would try to integrate them into the sides on top of the fenders so I could reach over them into the box and leave them on. They swallow a ton of gear and keep everything dry and clean. In an ideal world I would have two different trailers!

 

[MOAK]

I get that completely,,, but any longer than a six foot box can really limit you on the two track trails, let alone some of the very tight switchbacks. I've spotted another utility trailer near my home, just sitting in the guys front yard for over 3 years. He even mows around it. I hope to make him an offer he can't refuse, then I'll have two dedicated trailers and be able to finalize the build on my expo trailer, keep it inside the garage, stocked up, and ready to roll. As far as hauling a motorcycle around, I'd mount it sideways in front of the nose of the trailer, if for no other reasons, than to keep wind resistance down and center of gravity low. With your bike and an RTT it sure will be a lot of weight dragging behind that wrangler. Even with our light trailer I was in 4th gear, very rarely ever seeing 5th, and that always equalled around 10 or 11 MPGs. And, that kind of mileage and poor pulling power really sucs on long range journeys. With our 80 series, you don't even know the trailer is back there, Pulling power and MPGs are unaffected.. If I still had the Wrangler and was building from scratch, I'd make it as light as possible, ie,,, aluminum frame, aluminum deck/floor over wire mesh, with composite sides, and a set of very light alloy wheels.

 

[Ironhead Jed]

i have changed the design down to 6' long as it still must be a trail ready trailer.

Good point about the weight, I dont think i would ever have the a motorcycle and the RTT on the trailer for any long distance. it would be one or the other for anything over 20 miles

i've toyed with the aluminum idea, and may use it for the deck, just seems too complicated or i'm not a good enough welder for an aluminum frame

heres the current design plan, its not aas pretty as some, but i'm better with the drawing in my head and material in my hands



once i stop working 84 hour weeks, this will start to actually happen

 

[Ironhead Jed]

its axle purchase time. wheres the best place to buy?

so far i'm thinking a 3500 lb straight axle, 65" hub face to hub face, 5x5 bolt pattern, and electronic disc brakes

dexter? ez lube?

 

[Bluedog225]

Subscribed. Interested in the axle options.