Trailer Features

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bcody
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by bcody »

I suggest you use wood for the rails you lay on the floor. Using wood gives some cushioning effect if the load tries to bounce. I would much rather pound a depression on a wooden rail v a locomotive wheel.


Bill
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steamin10
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by steamin10 »

I have seen the trailer floor overlaid with 5/8 or 3/4 plywood, with grooves routed into the floor. This allows those pop up rings to be mounted to lay flat on the floor, when not used for binding anything down to the now really sturdy floor. The upside, if you dont mind the weight, is it really protects the original floor, save a few screw holes, and when it is time to sell, the floor of the trailers weigh heavy on price. When empty, it gives you an unobstructed floor with no trippers, for any alternate use.

I used Reese hitches with leveling bars, as it cuts the tendacy for trailers to bob, or hobby horse. It is a world of diference in feel on the road.
Big Dave, former Millwright, Electrician, Environmental conditioning, and back yard Fixxit guy. Now retired, persuing boats, trains, and broken relics.
We have enough youth, how about a fountain of Smart. My computer beat me at chess, but not kickboxing
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makinsmoke
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by makinsmoke »

Richard,
I recently bought a small trailer, or the wife did. She got me a 7 x 10 and I took it back for a 7 x 12. Men always need it bigger....

12 feet allows 2 40 boxcars end to end in 1-1/2" scale.

Anyway, the extra height you will be glad for in not banging your head every time you stand up inside the trailer.

I geared it out with e-track. I thought about the same thing yo did, and after I bought all of the angle, and all the stuff to tie them down, I looked on the Internet. Shameless plug for an excellent vendor. There is a company selling e-track stuff on ebay called JustHarris. Their prices are unbeatable. I bought 8 pcs of 4 foot vertical e-track, 10 loop hooks, and 10 2 x 4 hooks for just a little over 200 bucks. I then found another vendor selling the straps. but found what I needed at Lowe's in pakages of 4. Never looked back.

Take care, Brian
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steamin10
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by steamin10 »

Ok, I have seen the E-track system before. It works well on general cargo. Good thought on the size thing. Makes sense to me. I wanna pull the smallest trailer I can get away with.

How are you carrying your equipment? Do you have a cart inna trailer, or just roll your stuff on the floor on angles?

I described what was 3 tracks grooved into the plywood, would carry the engine centered, and 4 cars to the outside. No junk onna floor beyond the set in rings. Ratchet straps tie it off.

Please explain.
Big Dave, former Millwright, Electrician, Environmental conditioning, and back yard Fixxit guy. Now retired, persuing boats, trains, and broken relics.
We have enough youth, how about a fountain of Smart. My computer beat me at chess, but not kickboxing
It is not getting caught in the rain, its learning to dance in it. People saying good morning, should have to prove it.
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Greg_Lewis
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by Greg_Lewis »

doublereefed wrote: E-track looks nice, but it's pricey, and angle will work better with the shelf system that I will eventually build. Wondering if anyone has thoughts on the angle iron...
In the thread I referenced above, I shot pix of my setup using Unistrut. You'll see that I used this for the track, set into a second floor so it's flush. Unistrut is only $10 or $12 a length at the electrical distributor's (never go to a retail hardware store for stuff like this). The Unistrut has many ready-made brackets from which you can bolt together anything your mind can imagine.

When I was a fix-it-dad with the high school band, their truck was set up with angle iron and it was a major pain to make any changes due to all the drilling required. Unistrut is designed for quick and easy. It's already plated or galvanized and compares in price to angle iron. I'm sold on it.
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Eyeball Engineering — Home of the dull toolbit.
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makinsmoke
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by makinsmoke »

Dave,
I did also run 1 x 3's for the wheels to sit on. I have three tracks. Three pairs of 1 x 3's lengthwise down the trailer. Tacked them in with sheet metal screws. Trailer already had a 3/4" plywood floor. The E-track I ran four rows, one each on the outside, then two between the pairs of tracks. I can use one E-track for tracks on either side. I also used the vertical e-track. It is a little more narrow than the horizontal, and the slots run lengthwise down the trailer instead of across. I bolted the E-track down to the trailer frame crossmembers with 1/4-20 bolts. You can use sheetmetal screws into the floor, but I wanted to tack into the trailer frame.

By the way, depending on where you start on size and price, when I went from 10 foot to 12 foot I went up to 3/4" thick on the plywood floor. Also, from what I can tell, they paint only what you can see from the road. I crawled under with three cans of undercoat and Rustoleum paint to slow down the eventual deterioration, and there was hardly any paint on the steel and nothing on the plywood floor.

This stuff is great. You can buy the ratchet straps with e-track fittings, or I bought packages of four for about 12-14 bucks a package from the local hardwarde store. These have hooks on each end that I just hook into the e-track fittings I bought from JustHarris. I did buy four E-track equipped ratchet straps 2" wide on Ebay, but the rest are only 1" wide with the hooks. I use the 2" stuff on the engine. Everything else weighs dramatically less and the 1" straps are good for more than the engine weighs, so I am good.

I looked at the electrical stuff, but it is angle that sticks up and looks like a good place for me to hook a toe in a dark trailer. The E-track doesn't stick up as high as a 1 x 2 or 1 x 3.

Also found a place that sells replacement jacks for the trailer corners. I bought a box of two just in case my learning curve is steeper than I think......

Brian
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makinsmoke
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by makinsmoke »

Bruce has a couple of photos of his trailer set up, with brackets on the sides for more capacity. One thing I did differently was only use one E-track between 1 x 3 tracks. I have also not installed side mounts yet. Don;t need 'em. Yet.

Take a look at the photos.
http://www.chaski.org/homemachinist/vie ... it=trailer


Here are the fittings - $2.69 a piece free shipping:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/10-E-TRA ... ccessories

Here is the e-track - 5 footers. Price per 10 piece lot plus shipping is about $138.00 or 2.75 a foot:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/10-5-VER ... 483dcfb934

And here is another little box of stuff:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/E-TRACK- ... 483785a48f

The ease of installation, as well as the ease of moving things around with different loads is great.
Brian
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steamin10
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by steamin10 »

Thanks for the 'splenation. I am big on tying things down. I have visions of a rear ender that launches a 500 lb engine out the front of a trailer, or through a truck cab. It doesnt take much to test the law of inertia.

A lawn tractor destroyed the carb and manifold from just a quick stop in a pickup. I am repairing the engine now. The cast iron manifold is crunched, and the sheet metal collapsed. (not mine).

Tie downs are an EXCELLENT idea.
Big Dave, former Millwright, Electrician, Environmental conditioning, and back yard Fixxit guy. Now retired, persuing boats, trains, and broken relics.
We have enough youth, how about a fountain of Smart. My computer beat me at chess, but not kickboxing
It is not getting caught in the rain, its learning to dance in it. People saying good morning, should have to prove it.
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makinsmoke
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by makinsmoke »

Dave,
They sell E-track fittings that have a flange for a 2 x 4 or 2 x 6 for vertical mounting, but it also has a flat back. I drilled two for bolts and figured where the loco would sit and cut a piece of 2 x 6 that was just as wide as the track and bolted it to the fittings. Also bolted a piece of 2 x 4 under it towards the loco. The coupler just sits on top of the 2 x 4. Both are notched for the 1 x 3 wood the wheels sit on.

Now I load the engine, then click the fittings and 2 x 4/2 x 6 piece in, pull the engine tight against the bracket and tie everything down. You can also use the turnbuckles with hooks in them to pull your equipment tight to keep it from rolling forward or back. (I had the same thought you did).

Brian
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makinsmoke
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by makinsmoke »

Here are the cargo beam holders. The fitting is on the left side sitting vertical. I clicked it into the track and bolted the wood to the flat surface that is facing down, and snugged the engine up to it.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/28-HD-CA ... 1594wt_939

Brian
doublereefed
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by doublereefed »

OK, this is all fabulous advice. I'm zeroing in on a 7x16. I will use e-track on the floor. I will build my rack system with unitstrut. I can't weld anyway.

I borrow a trailer, or haul in my suburban, and use 2'x8' panels with 3/4" x 1/2" (roughly) pine rails. That helps keep trucks line up for load/unload, and then I strap everything to tie-downs in the trailer of suburban floor (seat mounts, etc.) I think I'll just run e-track, it's not much of a tripper, and then those same rails on panels.

Many thank for all the advice...

-Richard
David_T
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Re: Trailer Features

Post by David_T »

The old rule I remember, is that tongue weight should equal 10% of the gross weight to prevent swaying (fishtailing). I pulled a boat and trailer that was over 7000lb with about 535lb on the tongue. Tracked like on rails!
Just very hard on the standard tongue that came with the trailer-broke, only rated 200-300lbs. I ended up using a small bottle jack.
Used a equalizing hitch only, no sway bars.
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