Antique Keel Rollers

[JohnRuff]

Once more I come dipping into the well of knowledge <br /><br />My 1958 trailer needs new keel rollers. I hope I can draw you a mental picture.<br /><br />Firstly - I need two 20" rollers. They seem to have a large cylindrical center with a piece of rubber around it. The roller is best described as looking like a bakers rolling pin. The roller is held onto the trailer with a bracket on the side of the roller that the pin (like the handle of a bakers rolling pin) fits into. It also has a number of 5 1/2" rollers of the same configuration. <br /><br />#1 - How do I remove the old rollers (do you hammer the mounting bracket?)<br /><br />#2 - Where can I purchase replacement rollers?<br /><br />(the mounting bracket is just a flat piece of metal with a hole in it - one on each side of the roller. It seems that the roller pin just fits into the whole - so you either have to drive the pin out or bend the bracket)

 

[umblecumbuz]

Re: Antique Keel Rollers

Hi John,<br /><br />Often, the steel rod running through the centre has a split pin on the outer sides of the bracket to hold it. The rod is separate from the rubber roller.<br /><br />They are a pain to remove sometimes, because the rod 'welds' itself to the rubber. Your centre rod must be separate from the rubber, because there's no way the makers will deform the bracket just to get it in there. So presumably there must have been some locating device (split pin) originally. Can you see evidence of any small hole drilled through the rod where a pin might have been?<br /><br />If you are replacing them, why not just cut them in half to get 'em out?

 

[Pickels]

Re: Antique Keel Rollers

I can't find replacements

 

[cp]

Re: Antique Keel Rollers

Look at the below link for high quality polyurethane keel rollers:<br /><br />Poly Keel Rollers<br /><br />Our experience out here is that the zinc-plated metal shaft inside the black rubber keel rollers will rust and expand so that you can't get it out of the roller (the roller is often split open by the expanding rust). The shafts are most often held in place by 'PAL nuts' which are like caps that are hammered onto the ends of the shafts after they are inserted to protrude through the brackets. These PAL nuts can be pried off using a pry bar and hammer, but usually not without being deformed or destroyed, so you'll need new ones if you plan to continue to use them. If the shaft has expanded inside the roller, removing the PAL nuts won't help because the shaft won't slide enough within the roller to clear the bracket. Don't bend the bracket, just cut a section out of the center of the roller (including the rusted shaft inside) of sufficient width to allow the remaining outer parts of the roller to be slid to the (removed) center enough to clear the bracket. Hope you can picture that.<br /><br />Because our trailers here see exclusively salt water, the poly rollers with stainless shafts are the best thing going; they keep spinning and don't rot out. Oh, and we drill through the ends of the shafts diametrically and use a stainless cotter pin over a large flat washer to keep them from slipping out of the brackets. Nearly a permanent installation yet easy to remove if we ever have to. Good luck.

 

[JohnRuff]

Re: Antique Keel Rollers

Ok - no more trying to draw mental pictures <br /><br />Here are some good closeups of the 20" roller and its present condition. Any suggestions for replacing them? The rubber roller is not a "V" shaped keelroller. It is just like a bakers rollingpin.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.cir.com/keelroller1.JPG"><br />And<br /><img src="http://www.cir.com/keelroller2.JPG"><br /><br /><br /> http://www.cir.com/keelroller1.JPG <br /> http://www.cir.com/keelroller2.JPG

 

[JohnRuff]

Re: Antique Keel Rollers

I figured out how to post the images here <br /><br />

<br /><br />

 

[cp]

Re: Antique Keel Rollers

Wow, JohnRuff you're right - a picture is worth a 1000 words. Your installation is like nothing I've seen before. Can't imagine from your pictures how the trailer manufacturer put that roller on. Seems like they stuck the ends of the shaft through the brackets then welded the brackets on, but that doesn't make sense to do. And that roller just barely clears the top of the trailer crossmember; not much clearance to allow using anything but a flat roller.<br /><br />If pounding on the ends of the shaft doesn't budge it, I still think you ought to just take a reciprocating saw to it and cut a center section out. Then get two of the 3"x10" flat poly rollers (to make 20"), put 'em on a stainless shaft (or new zinc-plated one since you don't look to have been in salt water much) long enough to extend beyond the brackets and secure with either the PAL nuts or cotter pins. Good luck.

 

[umblecumbuz]

Re: Antique Keel Rollers

As I see it, the welded brackets had to be in position first, then the shaft had to be pushed through one end hole and slid onto the roller and into the other end hole. Is the roller (what's left of it!) pinned to the shaft?<br /><br />Whatever ... it's scrap, so why not just cut it off, then get a fresh shaft, long enough so that you can drill and pin it on the outside of each bracket, and then buy a roller to fit - cutting a longer one down if needed.