Spare tire carrier hinge idea/help

[net4n6]

I have a custom rear sparetire carrier made for my 4runner. The tire and the swing out vibrated bad on trail and when I drove over street bump/railroad track.

I would like to add more quick release hinge/brackets to hold the swing out to the fix frame (see picture). I don't have any welding skill or equipment.

I want too see what I can order then that them to the welding shop to have it work on.

Your advice are greatly appreciated.

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[net4n6]

bump...I need to get this done in two weeks for a trip.:smiley_drive:
Thanks.

 

[Ted_Z]

A few things.

First, those hinges look undersized for the weight you are putting on the carrier.

Second, the toggle clamp is pulling in the wrong direction. It needs to be pulling the swingout into the bumper, not tangent.

Third, all tire carriers that use a single shear type hinge is going to vibrate with a big tire on it. Its hard to avoid with all that leverage.

Here is an example of the toggle clamp configuration I'm talking about

 

[net4n6]

Thanks Ted. Can I add more toggle clamps (from swing out to fix frame)to prevent vibration?

I am thinking about take it to the fab shop to "re-engineer" the whole thing, but I think it will cost me an arm and a leg due to I already spent too much on it.

 

[Ted_Z]

I think re-doing the toggle clamp will get you 80% of the way there.

Take a look at this pic, you can reuse the toggle clamp that is already on there, but just move it.

 

[net4n6]

Thanks for the great idea. The two swingouts are too close to each other. I don't know where to relocate the toggle. I have to look for a fab shop and relay the idea to them. They might have to cut/shorten the swingout arms.

 

[ExpoMike]

I like the overall design of the bumper/swing outs but without a doubt, those hinges are NOT up for the task. I have seen many pictures of much larger, stronger hinges fail. I realize you have a trip coming up but for the safety of everyone around you (especially behind you), do not drive with this setup. It is a failure point waiting to happen. They look very similar to the hinges I used for my gate. They are designed for a light load and not dynamic forces. When you drive, as the vehicle cycles, the G force makes the load on the hinge way more than it is ever rated for. People have used 3500# spindles for hinges and have had them fail. They are an 1" or larger in diameter, much larger than your.

No amount of clamps is going to fix this flaw. Please redo the hinges!!!

 

[colodak]

I need that setup for my Dakota

 

[4671 Hybrid]

To buy you some time on the hinges and stop the squeaks and rattles, I'd look at putting a wedge between the two horizontal bars and then putting some ubolts around both bars and clamp them together. This would effectively squeeze the two bars together and minimize the rattling. In the event that the hinges break, it would keep the top bar from falling off and giving the guy behind you a bad day.

The negative is that unless you have a deep socket and electric impact to make pulling off the ubolts easy, getting into the back liftgate is going to be a pain. Then again, once you get to the trail and are traveling at low speeds, it won't matter as much if the rack falls apart so you can take them off anyway.

 

[4671 Hybrid]

Wait, I just had a better thought for securing the rack in case of hinge failure. Instead of ubolts, drill two vertical holes through both horizontal bars (closer to the hinges the better) and use a bolt and cotter pin through each one. This won't do much for your rattles but it will keep the top bar on if/when the hinges break. To make the hinges last longer, I'd look at using wedges or stops (cutting board material works great) to minimize the up,down, fore, and aft movement.

For the rattles, you could drill a horizontal hole through each top bar close to each end (the end that's closest to the middle of the truck). Behind these holes have the welding shop weld a vertical piece of steel with a nut welded to it (welded to the bottom bar). Then have a bolt with handle that goes through the horizontal hole in the top bar and screws into the piece of steel with the welded nut. I'd also have them weld a washer to the bolt so that the T part of the handle doesn't bottom out against either bar and scratch it up. If you wanted to keep it simple, you could just use a bolt without a handle and buy one of those harbor freight ratcheting wrenches and keep it safety wired to the rack.

In case that description isn't clear, the idea behind it is that it allows the top bar to be securely tightened into the bottom bar, but on a horizontal, and not vertical plane. This will have the same effect as moving your toggle clamp but should be easier and cheaper to do. Plus, the distance between the two swingouts won't matter so he/she won't have to recut or reposition anything.

To open the swingout, you'd have to spend 10 seconds pulling the pins and another 5-10 seconds undoing each bolt. All in all about 30 seconds of work but I think it'd be worth it for peace of mind as far as safety goes, and peace of travel as far as lessening squeaks and rattles goes.

 

[net4n6]

You guys are correct about the hinge way underload. I used ratchet-tie to tie the swingout and the fix frame.

You correct about the safety for those behind me. After a light trail, the swingout "pop up" due to light body flex and G-force. It scared the :cow:" out of me.:Wow1:

I bought this custom made from accross country so I didn't physically see the build up. I only saw it in pictures.

Temporary, I use the ratchet tie up the keep it from rattling and safety.

 

[ExpoMike]

Glad to hear you understand the issues and risks with the current hinges. You should be able to have a local fab shop redo the hinges with something much better/safer.

 

[net4n6]

I went to the local fab shop. They quoted me more than what I paid the the whole thing. Damm me. I should do more research before getting it.

I used the rachet tie to hold them for now. The fab shop told me EXACTLY what xj_mike commented here regard the hinge and safety.

I really want to yank that thing out and throw in the trash.

 

[net4n6]

One of the fab shop quoted me $900 to replace the hinge with heavy duty one but he doesn't warranty the "wiggle" of the tire.

 

[78Bronco]

Maybe look for a fellow expedition portal member that might be able to lend you a hand. $900 sounds waaaay toooo much.