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No springs on a trailer?

maynah

Stainless
Joined
Mar 24, 2005
Location
Maine
I'm looking at trailer with no springs on the axles. At first thought, I don't like the idea. Seems like it would bounce quite a bit if you hit a sizable pot hole. But I do like how low it sits. I asked if it was a homemade trailer but haven't heard back yet. Is this a common set-up? Would you use it?
( it does have a deck on it now )
 

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I'm looking at trailer with no springs on the axles. At first thought, I don't like the idea. Seems like it would bounce quite a bit if you hit a sizable pot hole. But I do like how low it sits. I asked if it was a homemade trailer but haven't heard back yet. Is this a common set-up? Would you use it?
( it does have a deck on it now )

Do I see a walking beam between the front & back wheel (black bar) ?

Or are they torflex axles ?
 
That beam looks red in this picture.
It may just be the trailer frame.
 

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I'm looking at trailer with no springs on the axles. At first thought, I don't like the idea. Seems like it would bounce quite a bit if you hit a sizable pot hole. But I do like how low it sits. I asked if it was a homemade trailer but haven't heard back yet. Is this a common set-up? Would you use it?
( it does have a deck on it now )

That beam looks red in this picture.
It may just be the trailer frame.

Qty (26) minutes later, and it now has wood decking ?....:D

Could be some cheap SOB thought springs cost too much when they built it....:toetap:
 
We'll assume no suspension.
I don't know enough about trailers to know if that's common.
I can just envision hauling the empty trailer on a Maine road during mud season when the pot holes appear and looking in the rear view mirror to see it bouncing 3 feet in the air.
 
Someone abandoned a trailer outside my brothers house .... it was a two axle race car trailer ,"Chassis" as such was a flat steel plate about 1/8 thick....two axles were welded to the plate ,and sort of low box on top to take a small race car and a dozen spare wheels and tyres......he towed it up to his farm ,and said oddly enough,the flex in the plate chassis made up for the lack of springs and rockers......problem with the OPs trailer is the excess load thrown onto one wheel every dip and hole in the road.
 
If its cheap enough ,I d just add four springs,hangers and rockers.....car trailer suspension stuff is incredibly cheap ,the cost in a trailer is in the steel frame and drawbar.
 
Homemade IMO. Somebody spent good money on fancy fenders and wood deck, cheaped out with no springs and too-small frame tubing.. I'd buy it only if it was cheap enough for me to add second square tube below the existing to strengthen frame, and springs so two tires will not have to cally all the load
 
Thanks for the input.
Another negative would be how fast it would bottom out backing up a slight grade.
I think I'll pass on it.
 
The farmers down the road had a real low trailer like that, except it had a pin attachment instead of a ball and had an orange triangle instead of a license plate. I pointed it out to a buddy of mine commenting on how odd of a setup it was. He replied that with a pin hitch it could be called "farm equipment" so it didn't need a plate and had effectively no weight limit. Only drawback is that you would be technically limited to 35MPH, if someone was watching.
 
You do get some suspension from the tire sidewalls.
My first Bobcat trailer had no springs and no problem short haul or if speed kept down.
I would not recommend for general road use but around the slow on farm or if on nice freeways it works.
Why do sprung trailers not have shock absorbers? I'd think the damping would ease the ride and they do not cost much.
Bob
 
Trailer springs are typically short and stiff,and dont have a lot of movement...sideways stiffness of the main leaf is important in stopping the trailer from side to side oscillations that can drag the tow vehicle off the road.You could attach them if you wanted to.
 
2 wheel car dollys have no suspension, I have a single axle trailer with such stuff springs it bounces everywhere when unloaded, it also skids like crazy when I take turns in the wet, tire are hood.

I would avoid too unless it was ment for low speed, as stated they tires are the suspension so under load it’ll have some decent spring to it
 
Load equalization between the wheels is probably more important than springs.....Have a look at the old Hendrickson beam truck suspension.....a short massive spring pack that didnt give an inch when 8 ton of bulker bags was loaded on one side of the truck,with axle loading equalized by a cast iron beam pivot mounted to the spring.......best tandem drive truck suspension ever made ,and almost zero maintenance.....the cast iron beams would crack ocassionally,but plenty of warning of failure.
 
in my younger days a former nascar builder, when his son was getting into oval track, has us build a trailer with no springs so it was low. he said springs were not nec because the springs on the car took care of it. never had any issues

i did always wonder about towing empty however if the trailer is sprung stiff enough for a large car towing without then it would be over sprung too
 








 
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