I bought this trailer early Summer for $50, rebuilt it for around $65 and darn if it didn’t cost $50 to register and license. Anyhow, I got four months use of it before the tongue broke off right at the frame (right about where you can see the green wire).
My predicament and question are this. I don’t want to spend much more money on it since it’s decrepit, homemade with no springs, and actually really small (44″ x 7′), but it served me okay in lieu of anything else. The I.D. of the remaining tongue portion, that runs the length of the trailer, is 2″. I’m considering inserting a length of pipe 3′ or so into that and through bolting it in several places, as a replacement tongue. I’m not a welder, or I’d try something different. I suspect that the gauge of replacement pipe is of primary importance.
Does anybody think that this goofy repair would work safely? Zbalk
Replies
I think it would work fine, but you should use steel tubing such as race cars etc are made from, not water pipe.
On the other hand, the cost of welding is alot cheaper than a law suit and/or hassle should it break while travelling. Once saw something similar happen.
I'd get someone to weld on an appropriate piece of square tubing. Or ditch the whole thing and spend a few hundred for a new trailer from Northern Hydraulic or some such.
The replacement tongue needs to extend past the front edge of the trailer bed, preferable back to near the axle. When you load the trailer you create a bending moment on the tongue at the front edge of the trailer bed and the tongue needs the extended length to handle this load.
Right. Ideally a piece of 3" square tubing running from hitch to axle. Probably should NOT be welded at the front of the box, but rather held in place with a bracket, without drilling the tube. This will preserve the max strength at that point.
If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy. --James Madison
Another option is to run a truss bar below the tongue.
tongue on my trailer is just two angle iron from under trailer at side to center.
If i was you i'd go spend $100 on a 110v stick welder 90-100 amp or so might cost less at harbor frt...
i have 2 110v units i all but never use but they both work alot better than i ever thought they would even welded a tongue back on at the race track for a guy once with one... use this as an excuse to buy a tool...
if you are any kind of breaktimer you can find the scrap steel for free
i'd find some 3" angle iron and make an A from the hitch back (start maybe 12" back from the tip of the hitch) and run the feet of the A back to the axle or very close to it... now you could do this without a welder and alot of bolts over lapping the angle at the top of the A and bolting thru your existing tongue and maybe beefing up your tongue with another piece of angle... drill a hole and put a carrage bolt anywhere metal crosses and thru your wood deck a few places and i think you'll be ok
btw... glad we aren't required to lic trailers here... i can count at least 20 on my short list...
p
i can count at least 20 on my short list...
this coupled with Junkhounds stash of wheelborrows lends credence to the fact that ponyt and junkhound are the undisputed kings of BT packratism.
be heroes
not to change the subject at hand but to add a point.Welder, everybody needs one.Everybody know I do alot of welding.
I would get a $100 bill and hit the flea market, yard sale newspaper.
the 220 volt lincoln cracker box. there are millions of them out there
I could proberly find five for under 100 dollars in one afternoon.I just dont like the 110 models.
i agree... but i have 2 110v that really weld well..... 1/8" 6013 rod... and they both do really well off a 5000kw generator.... better than my miller 220v off the same genset... I don't use my ranger8 enough that it starts when i need it for small stuff... but i do have over 200ft of leads for it... and my own custom welding trailer it's mounted in...If you get a 220 then you need min 50ft of 10-3 that will plug in where your dryer is... a 110 and you can just keep trip'n your breaker... :)
which BTW i saw 5500kw gensets at biglots yesterday for $450.00 honda knock offs if i didn't have more thn i needed i'd have got an extra... or got a few and waited for the next storm and been one of those bad people that made a profit....