Spare Wheel on Trailer

Submitted: Monday, Jul 23, 2012 at 20:55

ThreadID: 97041 Views:5450 Replies:4 FollowUps:2

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rnrphantom

G'day everyone,
Have a trailer for camping that had the spare wheel mounted horizontally on the drawbar. I want to mount a toolbox and relocate the spare to vertically in front of the tool box (open to other suggestions).
Initial plans are for some 10mm plate, u-bolted to the drawbar and 50 x 3 RHS welded vertically with 6mm gussets on 3 sides, using a U-bolt to attach the spare (and chained to the drawbar).
The trailer is heavy duty 7x 4, extended drawbar, 21" sides, to be used 2wd only. The wheels are 14" sunraysia with LT tyres.We will be carrying tents, drifta, Engel, etc for a trip of 9 weeks from Melbourne to Uluru - Darwin - Undara - Cooktown,etc. and then back to Melbourne.
Tow car is a Volkswagen Passat Diesel wagon.

Any thoughts or recommendations appreciated?

Cheers & Beers

Rob

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Reply By: Mudguard - Tuesday, Jul 24, 2012 at 10:05

Tuesday, Jul 24, 2012 at 10:05

Yep everyone loves a project just be mindful of your ball weight and ru going to use some sort of PROTECTION? (flying rocks) , can u access the back of the wagon easily after the mods, will the drawbar handle the extra task

AnswerID: 491547

Reply By: ozjohn0 - Tuesday, Jul 24, 2012 at 11:55

Tuesday, Jul 24, 2012 at 11:55

Do the drawbar specs allow for the legal mounting of a tool box and it's contents along with the weight of the spare?
Ozjohn.

AnswerID: 491555

Follow Up By: rnrphantom - Tuesday, Jul 24, 2012 at 12:36

Tuesday, Jul 24, 2012 at 12:36

Drawbar is 50 x 70 RHS so should have no issues with weight as the spare was mounted there in the first place and toolbox is Aluminium and will only hold leads, lights, a few tools, etc,.

I don't know what the legal requirements are though, but the trailer manufacturer was gong to provide a toolbox in the same area.

Will mount the toolbox with u-bolts as well and not have to drill into the drawbar. Have tec-screwed the toolbox into the old frame for the spare wheel as well.

Plenty of room for the tailgate to open and won't be using anything for stone protection as we are staying on the bitumen this trip.

Any thoughts on my method of attaching the spare?

Cheers

Rob

FollowupID: 767051

Reply By: CSeaJay - Tuesday, Jul 24, 2012 at 13:01

Tuesday, Jul 24, 2012 at 13:01

Many people overload the drawbar without fully realizing the negative consequences of towing stability. I am often amazed at what people put there.

Just because the space is there to be used, it means it is safe to do so. When travelling at high speed and you have to swerve for a roo or dog, you will be amazed of the difference of a correctly loaded trailer as opposed to one with too much weight upfront.

I would suggest to put only light objects in the toolbox; if that is the case I would ten put the heavier spare behind the box rather than in front to reduce the towball weight and improve the balance of the load

Cheers, CJ

AnswerID: 491561

Follow Up By: rnrphantom - Wednesday, Jul 25, 2012 at 07:52

Wednesday, Jul 25, 2012 at 07:52

CJ,
Thanks for the response,
Will be loading light weight items in the tool box and ensure that I keep the ball weight down to around 70 - 80kg as recommended by car manufacturer.

Cheers

Rob

FollowupID: 767120

Reply By: Member - John and Val - Wednesday, Jul 25, 2012 at 08:54

Wednesday, Jul 25, 2012 at 08:54

Rob,

Is it an option to mount the spare on the BACK of the trailer? Weight on the towball would need to be considered, but it works well for us. Our chassis members extend back to a rear bumper that carries cradles for a couple of jerry cans and a frame to accommodate the spare wheel. The only change I'd make is to somehow incorporate a little table space - horizontal surfaces are really useful!

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Cheers

John