Re: Help Finding Size of Axle-Going From 4 to 5 Lug Hubs...
I am presently doing the same thing with my old boat trailer. It came with 12" 4 bolt rims and there were basically trashed from neglect and rust. But the past owner tried to spray paint them to cover over the rust. In fact he even turned one rim around and installed it reverse to try and high the neglected rust and care. So I am going to 13" rims but haven't made a final decision on newer 13" 4 bolt or 5 bolt styles yet. If you stay with 4 bolts they do make 13" nice rims to fit that bolt pattern and then you just could reuse your present hubs (after cleaning and rebuilding them). If you do go with 5 bolt rims then you will need to buy replacement 5 bolt hubs. Ebay has some hub listings for pretty good prices, even with shipping. You should also know that increasing the size (diameter) of the rims and tires you will also increase the height of your trailer and boat ridding on it. That could make it a little harder to launch your boat at the boat ramps too. I want larger rims/tires to an extent simply for the availability of better tires and a little lower bearing RPMs to ride easier, smoother and cooler. I decided to go with 13” to keep the ride height closer to the ground so not be a huge problem at launch ramps as well. The 12” rim/tire setups I had was around 20” diameter while newer 13” rim/tire setups will be around 24”, only a 2” different in total height. Just a thought...
