Triple Axle Trailer Build

[Silver6.0]

Thanks for the great site.

In the process of building a 3 axle equipment hauling trailer. Started out as a mobile home trailer. Ive since lowered the axles 2.5", added 6 lug hubs and rebuilt the front two axle brake assemblies. Welded in side to side supports every 16" and put on 4 sheets of diamond plate 14ga steel deck. The deck will be 8' wide plus stake pocket width of 2" on each side so total width of around 100". Length hasn't been decided but right now the double I beam frame is 19' without a beaver tail. I plan to have a 2' beaver tail with 2 slide out ramps from underneath. Here's some before pics and some of where I'm at right now. I have a few questions and appreciate all comments and suggestions. Thanks.

Here's where it is now.

4"x 3" angle on side edge with 2"x4" stake pockets. I'm to the fenders now and would like input on how much tire clearance to leave at an empty ride height. My tires are a mix of load range "d" and "e." Can't remember which way it is but its 4 of one and 2 of another. I'd like to have somewhat square fenders but to not have a sharp edge in the corners of the fenders. The one pic shows a cardboard mock up of a triangle in the corner meeting the side and edge then a flat top.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Nice work,thats a lot stouter main rail wise than most house trailer frames Ive come across over the years.
Id ad some stouter cross members before putting too much wait on it,Id also find out what what the actual rating is on the axles and springs.

 

[joshuaz223]

As ZMax stated it would be nice to see what you used as crossmembers as they make or break the trailer. i had a trailer with those same 3 axles and hauled 15,000# on it daily for over 15 years. It was data plated for 14,500# but the 5th wheel version was 17,500#. What i can see of your frame I wouldnt go past 7,000. but again i cant see the cross bracing. the fender design is nice and incorporates triangulation which will make it stronger. i would add supports between each tire and an outer face to help support the outer edge. as for clearance measure the distance between the axle and the frame and add that and 3/8 inch. the axles will touch the frame. be prepaired for a lot of tire wear as thats the nature of a three axle trailer and always set the hitch for a level trailer when towing.

also what are your plans for the trailer because 14 guage isn't much of a deck for heavy equipment?

P.S. nice garage. that trailer is bigger than my garage. but a 50X80 on 33 acres is under way and hopefully wil be usable by next winter. I lived outside port huron for a couple years. riding sucked there.

 

[Silver6.0]

The axles are 6,000 lb each. For cross braces I used extra frame material from the rest of the trailer which was 10" I beam . I cut the I beam in half and put the "t" top side up. I have plenty of tire to frame clearance I concerned about how much tire to fender clearance Will be under fender and on top of the tire . Will be used for hauling a 12k tractor and full size pickups, the deck will be fine.

 

[Silver6.0]

As ZMax stated it would be nice to see what you used as crossmembers as they make or break the trailer. i had a trailer with those same 3 axles and hauled 15,000# on it daily for over 15 years. It was data plated for 14,500# but the 5th wheel version was 17,500#. What i can see of your frame I wouldnt go past 7,000. but again i cant see the cross bracing. the fender design is nice and incorporates triangulation which will make it stronger. i would add supports between each tire and an outer face to help support the outer edge. as for clearance measure the distance between the axle and the frame and add that and 3/8 inch. the axles will touch the frame. be prepaired for a lot of tire wear as thats the nature of a three axle trailer and always set the hitch for a level trailer when towing.



I understand what you mean now about the distance between frame and adding the 3/8". Thanks for the help.

 

[justanengineer]

I dont see anything too awful in your build but I gotta say that I hope you did your homework on the legality of using mobile home axles and also on pulling a triple axle trailer with your license. I know at least in NY, mobile home trailer axles are stamped and if youre caught using them youre in deep doo doo, along with pulling any triple axle trailer with a non-CDL (since NY doesnt offer a non-CDL above Class D). Then again, NY has many funny rules...

 

[Silver6.0]

I dont see anything too awful in your build but I gotta say that I hope you did your homework on the legality of using mobile home axles and also on pulling a triple axle trailer with your license. I know at least in NY, mobile home trailer axles are stamped and if youre caught using them youre in deep doo doo, along with pulling any triple axle trailer with a non-CDL (since NY doesnt offer a non-CDL abov Class D). Then again, NY has many funny rules...

No laws against using these axles and no they aren't stamped. No cdl required for pulling triples either but since you asked I do carry a class A cdl.

 

[justanengineer]

No laws against using these axles and no they aren't stamped. No cdl required for pulling triples either but since you asked I do carry a class A cdl.

Good deal then. Sorry, had to ask as many are ignorant, no offense intended.

Please keep us posted. I love fab ****.

 

[musgofasta]

Good grief! What do you plan on hauling with that?

That's spectacular!

 

[Silver6.0]

Good deal then. Sorry, had to ask as many are ignorant, no offense intended.

Please keep us posted. I love fab ****.

No problem man. Hope to get more done tonight and this weekend

 

[Silver6.0]

Good grief! What do you plan on hauling with that?

That's spectacular!

I plan to haul that truck in picture #3 and other full size trucks. Also I tow my dad's Kubota with it and plan to have my own 4x4 loader tractor some day when I grow up. Lol if I ever grow up . .

 

[steel 35]

looks like it will double as a frame rack when you need one

 

[HOTFR8]

Good grief! What do you plan on hauling with that?

That's spectacular!

I plan to haul that truck in picture #3 and other full size trucks. Also I tow my dad's Kubota with it and plan to have my own 4x4 loader tractor some day when I grow up. Lol if I ever grow up . .

More to the point what will you tow it with ? Will it have brakes ? What about break away brakes ?

 

[Silver6.0]

More to the point what will you tow it with ? Will it have brakes ? What about break away brakes ?

F250 power stroke will be pulling it. I wrote above that I've replaced the brake assemblies on the front two axles (electric) .break away will be the little kit with its own battery.

 

[PCO6]

I'm happy see that you use the same CAD system that I do. "Cardboard Aided Design".

Great job on the trailer too.

 

[HOTFR8]

F250 power stroke will be pulling it. I wrote above that I've replaced the brake assemblies on the front two axles (electric) .break away will be the little kit with its own battery.

Make sure the battery has a charge point from the vehicle as that way you can use the battery for things like lights etc. and not just break away brakes. Extra lights are always good when loading or off loading in the dark.

 

[Silver6.0]

Make sure the battery has a charge point from the vehicle as that way you can use the battery for things like lights etc. and not just break away brakes. Extra lights are always good when loading or off loading in the dark.

Your already ahead of me lol. Didn't think about adding spot lights , great idea. Yes this kit charges off the truck battery to keep it charged in the event of break away. Here's a pic.

And here's my truck, I added airlift air bags to the back when I bought it.

 

[HOTFR8]

If you look at my topic about my shed extension you will see I have been working on my enclosed car trailer. Much of what you are doing I have already done.

 

[Silver6.0]

Damn ducksface that thing is amazing, and sliding axles too??? Very impressive.

 

[Case IH]

Damn ducksface that thing is amazing, and sliding axles too??? Very impressive.

Word!!

 

[joshuaz223]

The axles are 6,000 lb each. For cross braces I used extra frame material from the rest of the trailer which was 10" I beam . I cut the I beam in half and put the "t" top side up. I have plenty of tire to frame clearance I concerned about how much tire to fender clearance Will be under fender and on top of the tire . Will be used for hauling a 12k tractor and full size pickups, the deck will be fine.

not that it is worth changing at this point but in the future install the T upside down. it serves two purposes. when you weld it to the decking you make a top "T" and when you put the plate onto the flat portion of the T you create a huge rust problem. i have done a lot of rust repairs caused by this.

 

[Silver6.0]

not that it is worth changing at this point but in the future install the T upside down. it serves two purposes. when you weld it to the decking you make a top "T" and when you put the plate onto the flat portion of the T you create a huge rust problem. i have done a lot of rust repairs caused by this.

Not sure if i'm understanding exactly , please bear with me and i'll try to explain what I did and you can tell me again if I did what you descibed or opposite.

The plate is sitting on the top of the T, the flattest part. The reason being more surface area (~2 1/2") for the plate to sit on instead of the 1/8" of 3/16 which is the width of the I beam center section.

I can kind of see a rust issue but with proper paint it should last many many years. Are they rusting out from the bottom or the top? I have POR-15 sitting in the fridge waiting to be applied.

 

[dieselgarage]

Years ago I build a triple axle trailer. I mounted the center axle about 2-3 inches higher than the other two. That way unloaded or with a light load it acted and pulled like a tandem axle trailer. When loaded heavy it acted like a triple. Worked pretty slick and saved tire wear.

 

[joshuaz223]

when you put two flat pieces of metal together the area where they are touching cant get paint and moisture will sit in there and rust it from the inside. the close contact appears to fuel the rust problem. just something i have observed over the years.

 

[Silver6.0]

Years ago I build a triple axle trailer. I mounted the center axle about 2-3 inches higher than the other two. That way unloaded or with a light load it acted and pulled like a tandem axle trailer. When loaded heavy it acted like a triple. Worked pretty slick and saved tire wear.

Were your axles hinged together like mine or were they independently suspended? They each had their own leaf spings and hangers and in no way were connected to each other. If I did that I think it would change my suspension geometry?? Maybe not enough to worry about but I like your idea.

 

[Dick in Wisconsin]

The only thing I'm concerned about (after everyone else has voiced their opinions) is the strength of the cross braces. If the frame was mobile home, much of the weight of the MH is around the edges (where you have the big beams). Very little of the weight is in the center; hence we would not expect much of the cross beams. As you haul heavier and heavier loads, look closely at the connection points/welds of the cross beams to make sure they aren't starting to "work" and break. The trailer should flex and that could break those welds (especially if the cross beams aren't strong enough) and if enough break you'll have a serious problems.

Other than that, nice job!

 

[Strouty]

The only thing I'm concerned about (after everyone else has voiced their opinions) is the strength of the cross braces. If the frame was mobile home, much of the weight of the MH is around the edges (where you have the big beams). Very little of the weight is in the center; hence we would not expect much of the cross beams. As you haul heavier and heavier loads, look closely at the connection points/welds of the cross beams to make sure they aren't starting to "work" and break. The trailer should flex and that could break those welds (especially if the cross beams aren't strong enough) and if enough break you'll have a serious problems.

Other than that, nice job!

Did you read the thread or just look at the pictures?

 

[Jose G]

lol...

 

[Silver6.0]

The only thing I'm concerned about (after everyone else has voiced their opinions) is the strength of the cross braces. If the frame was mobile home, much of the weight of the MH is around the edges (where you have the big beams). Very little of the weight is in the center; hence we would not expect much of the cross beams. As you haul heavier and heavier loads, look closely at the connection points/welds of the cross beams to make sure they aren't starting to "work" and break. The trailer should flex and that could break those welds (especially if the cross beams aren't strong enough) and if enough break you'll have a serious problems.

Other than that, nice job!

Thanks for your concern, i'll explain what I have done and why with pictures. First a pic of the cross brace which is 2 and 3/4" wide by 3/16" thick running side to side roughly 78". The inside width of the double I beam frame is 78 1/2 ". I just measured the width of my tires on my ford truck and they were 80". So the weight will be right over the frame rails. Also the crossbraces are spaced 16" apart on center, so there will 13 of these crossbraces if I leave it 18 foot long without a beaver tail.

This is a pic of the I beam I welded up just to show whats welded in place.

Now also in the first few pics you might be able to see the tongue beams go through the frame and back about 4' adding more side to side strength. Then at the back of the trailer will be the beaver tail with full width bumper of 10" I beam thats 1/4" thick, it might be thicker I haven't measured it but its heavier than one man should ever have to lift...

 

[Silver6.0]

On to the fenders

I want to keep the 4x3 angle all the way down the side for strength. So my big concern for fender height I had earlier is thrown out the window after some measurements and some reality set in. See pics.

I set the trailer down on the tires and measured from the axle to the frame and got 2". The tires are above the deck 2" so the fender needed to be 4" above the deck. If I put the 4x3 angle on the outside the 3" side will be 1" from the tires because the tires protrude past the fenders. Which is common with trailers this wide. Soooooooo my fenders will need to be taller now. And actually i'd like a taller fender than 4" after looking at it now.

 

[Silver6.0]

Not much more accomplished but i'll share where i'm at. Had big plans of working on trailer all weekend but went ice fishing instead, haha. Took the fenders over to a friends and bent them tonight, 96" long, 12 3/4" wide bent 60* at 4 1/2". I'm now on plan c for the fenders after talking it over with a friend. Here's some pictures.

Fender in place

Front of left side fender, more cardboard work, has somewhat of an angle to the edge instead of being a blunt edge.

Back end looking towards front end. The back has to shortened yet to set up the corner angles.

Here's the front edge of the fender with a filler piece of angle.

Here's my next dilemma. Keep the 4x3 angle throughout the fender or use a smaller piece of angle, the one to the right of the 4x3 is 1x1x1/8" just for idea purpose. I plan to go with 1/4" angle if I go smaller angle . The reason i'm running the 4x3 down the front is so when I chain bind the truck down I will have it to a strong enough point. I don't plan to bind anything down to fenders hence using a smaller angle like 1x1 or 2x2.

The fender lip now goes outside the tread of the tire. I think it looks better than my previous set up.

 

[HOTFR8]

Looking good.

 

[dieselgarage]

Were your axles hinged together like mine or were they independently suspended? They each had their own leaf spings and hangers and in no way were connected to each other. If I did that I think it would change my suspension geometry?? Maybe not enough to worry about but I like your idea.

They were all independent mounted axles the rubber torque tube type.

 

[glazier]

That is some impressive work. I would use the small angle around the fenders if it was me.

 

[CNGsaves]

Nice work on the diamond plate triple axle.

So "Show And Tell" about your Miller welder and helmet setup . . . and whether you started with a $100 HF 110v welder or cheapie helmet . . . . or started out of gate with Mig Miller?

That's going to be one tough and useful trailer when done! Also has whole trailer been welded with Mig or do you have ARC welder as well?

 

[Silver6.0]

Nice work on the diamond plate triple axle.

So "Show And Tell" about your Miller welder and helmet setup . . . and whether you started with a $100 HF 110v welder or cheapie helmet . . . . or started out of gate with Mig Miller?

That's going to be one tough and useful trailer when done! Also has whole trailer been welded with Mig or do you have ARC welder as well?

Thanks guys, The welder is a miller 210, 2006 model. I bought it with the 320lb tank and 44lb spool of wire for $800. The welder still has the original price tag on the front handle for $1623.00 welder only! The Previous owner bought it from the original who both used it very little. It looks and welds like new.

I was using my dads little lincoln weldpak 100 w/ mig kit when I started building the trailer but soon was on the hunt for 220 welder. I had plans on buying a new hobart 210 but this one popped up craigslist one friday night and by 9:00am saturday was in the back of my truck.

The helmet is a hobart from tractor supply, #10 fixed shade. I do have a harbor freight helmet hanging off dad's lincoln I bought 4-5 yrs ago that still works fine.

These pictures really show my mess of a garage, lol. I think today I'll clean up the pig sty.

 

[Silver6.0]

It's been all mig welded. I do have an arc welder thats not wired for my garage. Hoepfully i'll build a real shop one day with a big enough breaker. This is an A.O. Smith industrial welder that came out of general motors. Has tig leads and arc leads, water cooled. Can be 220v or 440. Way over kill but was priced right.

 

[Twitchr]

Could I trouble you for information on how you did the conversion from mobile home hubs to normal ones? I dont necessarily care about the hubs, but need to replace the brakes on my trailer, which has 6k mobile home axles, and am having troubles. When replacing the hub, did you just cut the old flange off and weld a new one on to use the replaceable backing plate?

Thanks in advance, looks pretty good.

 

[Silver6.0]

Could I trouble you for information on how you did the conversion from mobile home hubs to normal ones? I dont necessarily care about the hubs, but need to replace the brakes on my trailer, which has 6k mobile home axles, and am having troubles. When replacing the hub, did you just cut the old flange off and weld a new one on to use the replaceable backing plate?

Thanks in advance, looks pretty good.

Mine were bolted on originally. But the new hub/drum and new backing plate wouldn't work on my spindles because it moved the bearings outward too far. I kept the old backing plates on and replaced the shoe linings and hardware. Then slid the new 6 lug hubs on which put the bearings in their proper place. Ive read that some guys have to cut off the welded backing plates that came with mobile home axle. See if you can just replace the shoes and leave the welded backing plates in pale.

 

[cyamaha2007]

how much did the hub conversion cost? I like the fenders.