Towing

A long draw bar will tow better than a short draw bar because any side movement of the towing vehicle will be induced more gradually in to the trailer axle via the longer draw bar. This will result in less chance of loss of control due to sway. It will also be much easier to reverse the unit. A jack knife situation is less likely due to the extra distance between the trailer axle and the towing vehicle.
Not sure if you are asking if braked or non-braked is better. Legally you will need brakes if the loaded trailer exceeds 750Kg.
An aluminium trailer outback would be just as good as a steel trailer provided both are constructed to suit the duty.

Long drawbar will make it a lot easier to back!

A normal 6 x 4 isn't really suited to outback rough roads unless the suspension is improved. The short high curve leaves of most trailers don't perform well on rough stuff. Longer supple leaves with shocks is quite an improvement. Bigger section tyres help a lot too with lowered but suitable pressure for the load.
As mentioned, the longer drawbar will trail better and reverse more controlled, not in tight places though, but the longer drawbar will help if you meet slippery surfaces and the vehicle slides a bit, the trailer will really step out.
On hard clay with blown sand on it I have had my modified 6 x 4 at 45 degrees sideways on a slow normal corner without trying to be silly, far from it.
If the trailer steps out, first have your brain trained NOT TO make the vehicle brake, otherwise the unbraked trailer will decide to lead.

The A frame, depending on cross section size and wall thickness may require a full length doubler of RHS material to strengthen it. Often the A frame doesn't transfer the tow forces direct to the suspension hanger and they can break/crack near rear of A frame where it mounts/welds to body work. Best to have that gap filled with an extension to the suspension front hanger.


A long drawbar lessens weight on the towball, ie, downforce and also when negotiating dips etc. The transferred weight onto the ball will be less than a shorter A frame. The longer A frame cross section size has to be sufficient to resist bending through dips, and sudden vehicle bumps and towbar sudden change in height.

An Aluminium trailer gets damaged easily by stones and although lighter, nice as it is, if any welds or cracks or repairs ever need to be done out there a steel trailer can be much more easily patched up or repaired properly so the holiday isn't ruined.
If aluminium, to have sufficient strength it will need to be proportionately thicker in many areas and will then approach the weight of a steel one.

HI
Longer draw bar ,far better.
Longer draw bar and going off road requires a stronger draw bar 75 x 50 x3 or 4 mm. for a 6x 4 . Connect draw bar to front spring hangers as mentioned prior .

Alloy is 1/3 the weight of steel but to acheive the same strength the use of alloy is doubled eg 2/3 weight of steel. Not everything on a trailer canbe made outta alloy so . Keep the frame steel "dura gal " and flooring, wheel guards , wheels. alloy. But u will be surprised ,on my last trailler I only saved 100kgs on a 14 x 6.5ft trailer

Aluminium is always regarded as a light duty product. If you want a heavy duty ute tray, you use steel.
My Hilux tray (which I built) is steel RHS all through (including 300mm spaced crossmembers), and I put 3mm chequerplate in the floor.
It's designed for serious work, because I haul heavy parts and components and heavy drums and tanks.
Aluminium bends too easily, it will also crack with constant repetitive stress loads - and you need specialised welding equipment and trained welders to repair it.

Long trailer drawbars ensure better handling and easier reversing, at the expense of a little more tare weight.
Make sure the drawbar is made of heavy enough material to withstand rough roads.
The greatest single common failure area of trailers is the drawbar area where it meets the front of the trailer. This area suffers from constant flexing.

VSB1 gives the legislative requirements for trailer construction. Make sure you follow them, or you won't be able to register it.

VSB1 - trailer building - vehicle standards

Cheers, Ron.

Thank you all, for the questions answered.
Aluminium has well and truly crossed off.
Yes RMD I will be building a rather stronger chassis than the crap Chinese, all those cracked trailers, made/assembled in Australia laying strewn over our landscape

I am now in a 2012 Toyota Landcruiser Prado Altitude Auto.
I don't think I'll be needing brakes because the only weight on it, will be a James Beroud roof-top tent, that weighs 60 kgs.???
Because I can't climb the ladder. So bringing it down to a lower level that I can just fall in, lmao

Strength will be formost, since I'm starting from scratch. Long draw bar it will be. How long is a piece of string? Will be putting on 4WD tyres and wheels, plus added shockies with longer leave springs

Thanx for everybodies help, much appreciated

I think you aren't giving your fellow countrymen due credit, plenty of Australians had the ability to make a crap product long before they outsourced it to China. I've repaired more than a few Australian trailers where a lot of the frame is 1.6mm sheet folded into a Z or hat section.

So, yes, a longer draw bar is better. A draw bar that also runs back under the trailer to become part of the front spring hangar is good too.

I had an 8 x 5 trailer yrs ago it followed the wheel tracks of my cruiser better and the extra width makes it a lot easier to see when reversing. Probably bigger than what your after but you can also get 7 x 5 which would give you extra storage space.

The type of vehicle you have may be good with a long or short draw bar depending on your vehicles wheel base and how far the tow ball is behind the rear axle.

I will be showing this thread to my engineer, so we get it right the 1st time, now thinking of 7x5, damn you ppl are good for advice

Thank you again

Amongst the replies above there seems to be a fair consensus that a longer drawbar is desirable. I agree and perhaps you might like to consider a design that gives you enough clearances so you can deliberately jack knife your trailer 90 degrees to your vehicle. This allows greatly increased maneuverability in tight spaces.

It may not be so important with a smaller trailer such as yours, and I don't know what you'll be towing with, but with my rig (Kimberley Karavan behind a BT50) I have found it indispensable.

My personal preference would be 7x5, long draw bar, eye to eye springs, and shocks, and running as large a size tyre that you can fit under your guards. This type of trailer runs very true is easy to tow and reverse, and stands up to rough roads very well. Stay clear of sliding springs as the wear factor on rough roads is high. I would steer clear of alloy as they tend to shake to bits on rough roads. Best of luck with your build.

I have an "off road" Treg trailer that is about 20+ years old.

I converted it to a tilt trailer (to make it more useful for gravel, sand, firewood etc). The operation of the tilt is via a dolly wheel screw mechanism operated via a battery drill. The dolly wheel adjustment is also via a battery drill.

It uses the same wheels and tyres as the OKA. Essential for the bush.

I extended the A frame as a single bar (like a boat) by about 1m. That means that I can jack knife it by over 90 degrees without it hitting the back of the vehicle. That is what determined the extension length, for me.

Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 motorhome