Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

[RAI]

I have a 20 year old boat and trailer that I just recently puchased. The boat is about 20' long. With the engine and a full tank of gas, the whole package weighs about 2600 lbs. The trailer is tandem magic loader weighing about another 1000 lbs. The trailer is rated for over 5000 lbs including the trailer or 4400 lbs of additional load.

I noticed that after replacing the bent axle (that I missed during purchase negotiations), that the wheels are not 90 degrees to the ground. They look like they are noticeably tipped in at the top which would make the treads wear on the inside of the tires.

The new axle rating is 3500 lbs alone so this is making me scratch my head a bit and wonder what's going on.

Any one have experience with this sort of issue?

Thanks!

 

[j_martin]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

Axels can support their rated load only if the spring attachment is as close to the wheel as possible. I've seen trailers with the springs several inches inboard from where they should be, and they always bend the axles.

hope it helps
John

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

Axles are sold as over slung and under slung. Hold that thought. Axles also have camber built into them. That means the axle is bent upward in the middle so that when the trailer is loaded, the axle will flex a little and actually allow the wheels to ride perpendicular to the ground. If you bought the wrong axle and installed it upside down the camber would be in the wrong direction. Your trailer is not overloaded unless you missed the weight estimate by a bunch. So stand well back from the trailer -- like 30 feet or so. Look carefully at the very center of the axle. If the axle bends down in the middle, it is the wrong axle or installed upside down. That's where the over slung/under slung comes into play. They have the mounting plates on opposite sides of the axle.

 

[fishmen111]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

Probably time to replace at least one of them. Quite often the older galvanized axles corrode from the inside out. Broken axles are no fun to change out on the road. Been there...done that on the side of the road. You might also want to weigh your setup. It may surprise you the difference between what it should weigh and what it actually weighs.

 

[RAI]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

Thanks gents. I knew about the axle camber and attempted to order the correct type (sits on the spring). I have it on the correctly for the manufacture since the one sided spring tabs dovetail with the spring. I have the trailer up on blocks at the moment and can't detect any noticeable bow to the axle one way or the other. They both seem straight so if there is a bow it is very slight. Unfortunately this axle has the mounting plate on only one side. It was mail ordered so if this is wrong I will have a real situation.

As for the distance from the springs, it is the same 84" hub face to hub face as the old one and matches the other on the tandem axle. The distance from the first spring clamp to the back of the hub is under 5".

Since even the old (bent axle) looked better than this one on the unbent side, it seems like the new axle is the most likely the cause by process of elimination. Arrrrg.

I know this is a stretch, but could old tired springs play into this somehow?

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

No -- the springs make no difference. If they are old or new, the weight being transferred to the axle is the same. It is possible however, that if the springs are weak or somehow bound up, that all the road shock is not being absorbed by the springs so yes, then it could add additional stress and bend a spindle.

 

[reelfishin]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

First off, start with the obvious.

Are the wheel bearings tight, with no excessive play?
Do the wheel come back into proper position when you jack up the trailer or remove the weight from the axles?
Are both axles cambered the same way or is it just the new axle?

Maybe they sent the wrong axle?

Maybe the boat weights far more than estimated?
Water logged foam? Full of unknown water weight?

Got any pics? Rear view, showing camber sag, closeup of spring setup etc.

 

[RAI]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

Thanks for the reply. I crawled inder the trailer which is up on blocks and checked for axle camber on the shaft visually and with a straight edge. The 2" box channel is straight as an arrow on both the old and new axles.

Wheels on rear axle seem straight up and down to very slightly towed in without weight on them. The front wheels are off getting new tires so I will need to pit a longer straight edge on the hub face to get a decent read.

I figure the way the camber must be done is by welding the axle spindles angled down so that with weight on them they straighten out level. This would explain the lack of a bow in the center section of the axle.

The wet foam idea has crossed my mind but does not explain the fact that the wheel canver was better before I replaced the bent axle.

I will post the more observations later.

Thanks for the ideas.

 

[Ezrider_92356]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

i would go to the truck stop and get it weighed just to double check your weight.

 

[RAI]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

i would go to the truck stop and get it weighed just to double check your weight.

It is a great idea to weight the rig. Problem is that I am in Mass. and they do not have permanent weigh stations. On the weekend I have almost no chance of finding one open. I called the championtrailers.com where I bought the axle and they verfied that I have the correct axle to sit on the springs. They recommended pre-loding the bearings. That process basically tightens the hubs and then you turn the hub 5-10 times. Then you back off to hand tight and back to next cotter point. This ensures that the raceways are seated properly. Guess it won't hurt to try that next although it may be another dead end.

 

[reelfishin]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

If your looking for a scale, try a local salvage yard. If not, some truck stops have scales. Even a local landfill will have a scale.

An axle is normally cambered in the middle, the axle has a bend at the center to compensate for axle flex under weight. Not all are cambered.
If the bend appears at the spindle, and the bearings are properly adjusted and the axle doesn't appear installed upside down, then the spindle is most likely bent or mis-welded.

When I custom make an axle here, I build the axle as a straight axle, then I run a hot bead of weld across the middle which will shrink or curve the axle slightly.
The amount of camber isn't much, it's not hardly even noticeable without measuring.

 

[Hunky Dory]

Re: Wheels on tandem trailer seem angled out at bottom

We bought two new axle sets as the cheapest/easiest way to upgrade the bearings (this works with 2k axles and a great supplier). We went for Dexter E-Z Lube hubs with through-the-axle grease injectors. I found a description here: http://i.b5z.net/i/u/1080235/f/product_flyers/E-Z_Lube_Flyer_11-05.pdf/ Jury still out on the setup -- but it looks right on paper!...

Anyway, I'm sure it was our fault that we did not notice the camber setup so we neglected to specify -- and good Ol' Murphy was doing the welding on our order, so the perches came mounted on the wrong side. Axle company comp'd us new perches and $35 got them welded on.

Of course this affords any serious blockhead the opportunity to mount one positive and the other negative, so I did. Then the camber is easily seen and it looks plenty weird. Good news is that it only takes a few minutes to make it right after all that practice...