Trailer lid hinge, strut, seal and latch advice please

[cgalpin]

Hi Folks

I need to start a build thread, and will do so soon, but want to get some advice on the right hinge setup for my trailer. I'm not too far gone to change, but I'll explain what I am going for and you perhaps you can either give me some advise on the hinge I need, or give me a better idea

My trailer is essentially an old rover tub, and I am making a cap/roof out of two old rover tops (yes it's a rover trailer). So it's pretty much two flat surfaces sitting on one another, say 2.5 - 3" wide. I'd like the hinge to be a piano/continuous one that sits between the to pieces, and therefore it needs to have a bit of a offset to allow room for a bulb style seal. Searching McMaster Carr and narrowing down my hinge options to stainless, 6 ft, 23/64" offset my choices get limited to one:

http://www.mcmaster.com/#14835a48/=5kuggt

Is this thick/strong enough to support the weight of the lid with a RTT? It will be rather heavy as the RTT is a Eezi-awn Series 3 1800 model which is probably 200 lbs itself, and I'm guessing the lid will be another 100, so 300+ lbs. The rough dimensions of the tub/lid are 7' x 5'

Also, the tent is so big that I have no choice but to fold it out sideways, and given that and it's size I don't think a front hinge will work. If I hinge it on the same side as the tent hinges, I could open the lid if needed and only the roof half of the tent will lift with it, and spread the load across a longer hinge. If I did a front hinge, the whole tent would have to be lifted, with half of it off to the side and causing tremendous torque which I don't think the lid can withstand. Anyone disagree?

My only concern with the side hinge is that I have to mount one of the struts at the rear, which has a tailgate. I have about 11" from the side of the tub to the tailgate which doesn't seem further enough away from the side to mount the bottom of the struts. Any opinions on this? I am still making the lid so I can't mock it up and try it yet, and it affects the length of hinge I buy. I plan on mounting them inside.

Lastly, can anyone make any recommendations on a good latch to buy? I haven't been able to find the kind that have a centered handle that you twist which pulls spring loaded pins from the sides inward to release. But perhaps a simpler kind?

The following pictures try give an idea of what I am up to. The first two show how the top will look (too lazy to photochop them together). The 3rd one shows the bottom drip rail of the top sitting on the tub, with a piece of the roof sitting on top of it. The 4th picture is simulating the lid hinged on the side in the open position. You can see the room I have to work with at the rear of the tub to position a strut. The last picture is my RTT.

Oh, more pictures can be found here if interested: http://gallery.lhsw.com/rover_trailer

TIA
charles

 

[cgalpin]

Anyone? How about just the hinge question? I don't think the mcmaster one will work but can't find any HD continuous hinges with a offset to allow for a seal.

 

[UK4X4]

You have a hinge 1/2" wide and a 2" seal face ?

put the seal in the 1 1/2" of space you have spare

or if your really worried put the hinge on the outside

as long as the hinge and screw holes are siliconed

Piano hinges are surprisingly strong as each lttle segment absorbs the stress

Opeing like the AT trailers with half the floor moving.

Catches, any spring over center style will work to keep the tension on

http://www.mikenchell.com

search for hinges they have loads of info

 

[cgalpin]

I don't think that one is going to be strong enough (1/8th" pin), but perhaps it's worth a try at $20. I do agree the load is distributed, but since they have no load rating I am not sure if I'm even in the ballpark. I did call them and they said no, but that could just be them covering their behinds.

It's not the lateral space for the seal that's the issue, it's the gap between the hinge faces when closed. If it closes completely flat you just squash the seal and the seals are only effective if only partially compressed. I guess I could make a big shim on each side of a regular flat closing hinge though to make up the space because as you say there is plenty of room next to the seal - hadn't thought of that, thanks! :beer:

 

[elmo_4_vt]

Just in case your still looking for a piano hinge, I'm selling a 3/16" thick job that I bought for my trailer in it's past configuration and am getting ready to sell. It's rated for 500lbs and is 6' long by a little over 4" wide when open and a 1/2" pin, but it doesn't have any offset, so you'd have to add a filler piece of flat stock.

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[jeeper92]

elmo

do you have pics of your hinge? and how much? I am very interested

 

[SAR_Squid79]

If I had to build my trailer all over again from scratch, the hinge is one of the main things that I would change.

I used the same type of hinge that you're looking at (McMaster Carr # 11785A33). It does the job. It supports the weight. It doesn't bind. What it DOES DO is rust like a ********. Water gets inside the hinge and causes streaks of rust to run down the sides of my trailer.

I would use like 3 of this type of hinge ( http://www.mcmaster.com/#1852a61/=5q0hgw ) more like the AT Chaser. This type of hinge will be easier to mount, do the job 100%, and will give you less problems, I think.

As far as a latch, me and some others have had good success with the Dest-A-Co Latches. Like this: http://www.reidsupply.com/Detail.aspx?itm=TC-331-RSS

 

[UK4X4]

"It's not the lateral space for the seal that's the issue, it's the gap between the hinge faces when closed. If it closes completely flat you just squash the seal and the seals are only effective if only partially compressed. I guess I could make a big shim on each side of a regular flat closing hinge though to make up the space because as you say there is plenty of room next to the seal - hadn't thought of that, thanks!"

if you put the seal on the lip inside of where the hinge is, you will have the width of the closed hinge as your gap

 

[cgalpin]

if you put the seal on the lip inside of where the hinge is, you will have the width of the closed hinge as your gap

Yes as long as the closed hinge height is appreciable I would not need a shim. That mcmaster one is not. I looked at that teardrop site and saw some links to some alternatives. I need to call one of these places but looks promising. Got nothing done on the trailer this weekend due to the storm

Just in case your still looking for a piano hinge, I'm selling a 3/16" thick job that I bought for my trailer in it's past configuration and am getting ready to sell. It's rated for 500lbs and is 6' long by a little over 4" wide when open and a 1/2" pin, but it doesn't have any offset, so you'd have to add a filler piece of flat stock.

This sounds like it wouldn't need a shim, but might be too wide. How wide are the sides not counting the hinge/pin itself (it can stick out)? Sounds like maybe 1 3/4"? And whats it mdes of and how much?

And yes this thing needs to be rust free, so stainless, aluminum, or plastic

thanks,
charles

 

[cgalpin]

Oh and thanks for the great feedback everyone!

 

[elmo_4_vt]

I'll get the specific dimensions of the hinge tonight, but yes, it is 304 Stainless.

Don

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[cgalpin]

I got time to work on the lid this weekend and came to the conclusion that it needed more structural support to handle the weight of the RTT. Based on your advise and ideas here on the forums I added a 3/4" tube around the lip which both covers the joint and rivets, but also gives much more rigidity. I'll do external hinges that will mount to brackets welded to the tubing which the roof racks will mount to as well, so the weight will go directly to the hinges. I like the idea of the latches Jamie suggested, and will get some hinges like the ones he suggested too I think, (but in stainless). This should keep the seal surface clean and easy to work with, and also make removing the top easy (because I plan to use the trailer without the lid in "utility" mode at times)

I really need to start a build thread.

 

[TrailTrackers]

Hinges and Latches

I know you already decided on hinges but I thought I'd throw this out there as an fyi. I used a pair of continuous hinges on my lids and sealed them using strips of 1/4" flat gaskets; this worked out well and i haven't had any problems. I got the idea from Martyn out at AT.

As for the latches, I used inset (flush) latches for a couple reasons. #1: I just like the flush look. #2: I didn't want something sticking out to get caught on by rocks or branches and such. Not to say that the kind you are thinking about would get banged up, I just didn't want to chance it.

You can view my lid, hinge, latch setup here. If you are interested in knowing more about the latches that I used, I'll either dig up the receipt or make a phone call to the trailer place were I purchased them and get the make and model for you.

Hope this helps.

 

[cgalpin]

I am by no means committed to anything for the hinges and latches yet since I haven't had time to research them and buy some! So I'm still open to any and all ideas. I have changed my mind on things more than a school girl picking a dress for the prom!

Call me vain, but I too wanted a clean/flush look. Not too worried about stuff sticking out as nothing could be worse than roof racks and a RTT anyway, although I do care if there is too much stuff on the inside in case gear gets in the way of the mechanism.

How tall are those latches? Trying to decide how I could fit them. I'd be interested in know what hinge you used too.

I used the trailer a lot in the last few weeks carting my snow blower around. It has reinforced the desire to be able to remove the top and use it as a utility trailer. So it needs to be easy and leave a clean tub when off if possible. I was thinking a piano hinge would be harder to install/remove each time, but maybe not.

So for now the driving factors are

KISS
No chance of rust!
Easy to remove top
strong - keep in mind I will have a rather heavy RTT on roof racks.

Otherwise I'm open to anything.

 

[cgalpin]

On this note, does anyone know of these weld-on type hinges can be galvanized? I have no idea if they would be too high tolerance to handle an additional layer of zinc on the pin (or pin hole) or in the case of the brass ones be affected negatively by the hot zinc dip. Those look beefy and would give a clean look I think.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#hinges/=5w248s