TitaniumTT's from scratch Track Trailer
 

Soooooo I figure I'll post this up as a few members here have helped with the design of it, and they've been asking for progress pics. I do need to get some more pics taken as the thing is rolling, although it's not completely finished yet.... hopefully in the next few weeks I'll have the time.... Any who, this will probably take a few days to get the whole thread up.

All of the tubing used is 2"x2"x.125" 6061 AL, the round tube is 2"x.125" 6061. The gussets I believe are 5052... not entirely sure actually

This is the basic design layout. From the back of the round tube to the front of the square tube is 53", the outside to outside dimension is 53" as well. I based these dimensions on the tires I was planning on buying, and some that are larger for when.... or IFF I ever get the FD done and start taking that to the track as well.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317269048

Without a perfectly level and true surface to weld on, I had to improvise. The though was, if I start making the side completely square, and tack them together, then when everything comes together, it will also be perfectly square. It actually worked out. I honestly cannot measure the trailer out of square. It is literally perfect... I was shocked.

So here is the first side. The square tubing on top keeps them on the same plane.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317269048

That would be the leg of my engine hoist :lol: It was the only piece that I had around that was long enough to make the spread. Made sure everything was square before welding it all together

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317269048

There's the tongue. I guessed at how long it would be, and then added a little bit because it's always easier to take metal away than add it :rofl:

Welded everything in place and kept checking for square at every step of the way.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317269048

All the jigs removed and rechecked.... weeeeee!!!! still square!

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317269048

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270062

From the back..... that piece on the right all by itself is going to mark the back of the box that I will use to haul tools, jacks, stands, chairs, food, etc etc etc...... Then there will be 10gals of fuel, and of course the tires. One of the keys to TIG welding is to keep things as tight as possible. That piece is held in by tension. However, I have also found that what you need to do before welding a piece like that in place is leave the last little bead open, or drill a small hole in the tube. As you weld, obviously shit gets hot, shit expands the air inside, and you go for that last little piece of weld and the escaping air blows the AL all over the place including up the torch.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270062

Supports for the tongue, all jigged up, notice the square tubing keeping everything on the same plane

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270062

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270062

Here is where I started getting a little out of control with the gusseting. It started with this little piece underneath the tongue where there isn't a piece running side to side. I figured this would be a good joint to strengthen as it's about dead center in the trailer, and the box will sit right there, and right there inside the box is going to be a heavy series 24 Deep Cycle battery.... so that's where it started

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270062

And this is where it started getting a little out of control......

I started with a .125" piece of 5052 (I think) and cut it into a gusset.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270325

Then I looked over at the dimple die set that I had bought 3 months prior for a project that didn't materialize and decided it was time to start playing around with it.

Start by cutting out the appropriate size hole

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270325

Then press, weld, and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and repeat and take a picture

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270325

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270325

It might be a little overkill, but I don't care, it had to look symetrical.

I also had a bunch of 3031 perforated AL left over from my hood project. I knew I wanted to carry a bunch of fuel with me to the track in 5 gal Jerry Jugs, a solid floor would collect a bunch of shit, so this stuff was perfect. Welding .050 perforated AL to .125" 5052 is a BIOTCH!!!!!!! but the look is alot cleaner than using rivets.

I didn't think it would have been strong enough, and honestly it might not have been, but I decided to hold off on reenforcing that until another time. As it turned out, when I started positioning the axle, I didn't need to. The axle tube fits flush underneath the flooring and center in the tanks. Got lucky there.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270325

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317270325

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Enkie 18" RPF1's and Hoosier R6 in a 245/35/18 front and a 275/35/18 rear... yum.... and sticky:reddevil:

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317271166

Here you can start to see the general layout and what I was going for. Box in the front for everything you could possibly need (and it seems everytime I go to the track, the list get's longer) including a charged battery, 10 gallons worth of fuel, and of course the tires.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317271166

It took a while to find a box that would fit where I wanted it too. Then it took a while to figure out how far to spread the round tubes to get the tires at the right hieght, then it took me getting lucky to already have access to a pair of jugs that were at the right height. At the end of the day, it was my OCD that lead to me having everything at the same height on the same plane, yes I am that guy.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317271166

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317271166

More pics to come, it's time for bed now. Like I said, the thing actually moves and I've used it a few times, BUT, there are always things to do to make these little toys better :D

Very nice Brian! Are you going to pull that to events with the FC? I meant to catch you at DGRR to show you the hitch I have (I believe you were the one that asked about it before). I'm anxious to see the final result and what wheels you are using.

Thats pretty bad ass!!!

Always gotta do it the hard way... :rofl:

:o16:

I need one of those.... but it has to be big enough to fit an entire FD :D I already got the tow vehicle.

more robot welds i see..... -_- haha

Thanks Zach! Yup, already used the thing to haul a set of tires and a tranny out to PA, then loaded it up with all the goodies and hauled it to LRP for an event up there. The thing pulls really nice, it's light enough that you don't really know it's back there... all total, fully loaded I calculated it weighs about 485lbs sans the trailer tires. I figure total weight to be 530ish? I need to get it to the dump and put it on the scales to really get a good weight, they're accurate to within 20lbs, it'll be neat to see. Hell, I caught myself doing 80mph with it a few times. Bearings got a little warm becuase the only wheels/tires I could get were some little 8" ers, need to change that.

Yup, that was me asking about the hitch. I actually ended up building one of those from scratch as well :rofl: Used the rear tow points as a tempate and went from there. All .25" steel and 10 bolts holding it together. To take it off all I need is my Makita impact driver and about 45seconds.

Just out of curiosity, do you have any pics of the hitch that you built?



Thanks Phil! I'm pretty sure I'll be towing it down to DGRR next year.... or someone will anyway

What you talking about? What's the easy way?

:smilielol5: I thought about buying a Trailex trailer, but they're a little too pricey for what they are. Then I thought about buying an old car trailer, but you can't find those for what I would consider a reasonable price either and they're fricken heavy. My Jeep will tow 5-6000 lbs so I could tow the car, infact, I have many times, but it puts a big strain on it being right at the limit. The Trailex would be the way to go, but too damn pricey, I would build my own if I could come up with a set of engineered and approved plans, but I couldn't find those either, plus this was a little more fun and cheaper too. $273 for the material, $250 for the Axle, $400 for the box, and then $140 at West marine for the coupler and tires.

That's what happens when you work way too late..... it's all rhythm and no thought :lol:

Nice white Volkswagen fgt

Not mine, good friends that we built a kayak rack for.... also owns that white landi... he's got a thing for white diesels...... did you get permission to make that post? I do like how your language has gotten better since saturday ;)

Do you like showing off those BBS wheels :fawk: ?? they are in almost every picture in a different position then the picture before :rofl:

That looks like ass......
















































































































































































































































Glorious ass.

:rofl: I do love those wheels. They will be the dedicated street wheels come the spring they get new rubber as they can fit my brakes without a spacer, the Works will be refinished and live on the 'vert.

I was using them for measurements and mockups etc etc as the Enkei/hoosiers hadn't shown up yet.


Thanks man
When are you going to get me those pieces for your overflow tank so I can weld those up?

I'll shoot you a PM about it. I'm a bit swamped designing the HPA and getting that started and rolling (I'm basically the Chief Engineer on this project so my time is absorbed with it).

I have the basics outlined and designed, I just need to measure up the mounting locations.

I've done that many times, i figure the 80 KPH speed rating is just a recommendation since I have yet to have a tire failure (knock on wood). I do eventually want to put some vert BBSs on my trailer to add as a finishing touch eventually.

Yep, I found the PDF installation manual for it too (at the bottom of post). You pretty much did it as this company did but exceeded by a few bolts LOL.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...9&d=1317343361
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...0&d=1317343467
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317343520

Well don't you suck, that was my idea too damnit!

I don't know what the speed rating is on mine, but I know they're definately too small. I think I to do some research into finding some like 1" to 1.5" spacers.... cuz I REALLY want to use my 'vert wheels..... Or I even thought about using 2 of the enkei spare wheels


Haahahaa... yup, a little bit. The one thing that I REALLY wanted to make sure of was that I could do was make sure that I could take the damn thing off as quickly and as easily as possible because it does weigh a fair bit.

Soooooooooooo let's get back to the last 2 batches of pics I have before I need to do some more work and take some pics.....

So after quite of while of packing up the entire trailer as if I was heading off to the track, I took a length of pipe, suspended it between 2 cinderblocks and found the proper tongue weight, I marked that location and started pulling some measurements off the axle and transferring them to the trailer frame. Then I drilled holes from both the top and the bottom, and took some 3/4" OD .125" wall tubing and cut that to fit. The bolts for the trailer are .5" so they'll fit inside that tube just perfectly. The fear was, as I cranked down on the bolts to mount the axle, the 2" square tubing would deform. So I decided to support it with the round tube installed.

Oh yeah, I had already run the wires for the lights at this point ;)

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317351166

All 4 ready to go

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317351166

Very tight, and very almost ready to be welded.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317351166

And finished welded in place. The snake survived and ended up being exactly where it needed to be,

Closeup before I sanded everything down because the bracket needs to be flush mounted

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317351166

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317351166

I cut the brackets for the lights out of .185" AL, and yes it was a tremendous PITA. The lights are LED and very bright, very easy to install/take out

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317352246

1/2x20 SS Socket caps to attach the axle to the frame. Very pretty, I think they'll ook even better when the frame is powdercoated ;)

So far I love the axle, it may weigh as much as the entire frame, but it's very soft and very forgiving. I'd rec Dexter Axle for just about anything.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317352246

Here's the inside of the box, those are 3/8 fine thread SS socket caps that are bolted through the trailer frame to secure it.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317352246

And here you can see the wiring, just about the only part of the wiring you can see. The wiring goes down the tongue to that gussett, comes out of the tongue, into the gussett where it spits to the two different lights through the frame I like it, it's pretty clean... Hopefully I don't need to add any other lights as it would be a PITA.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1317352246

The TII spares? Not a bad idea! although I would still worry about the load/ speed rating of the "temporary use only" tires being used on a trailer.

Bitch you bought a box instead of making one. For shame!


Jk- looks really nice.

The 'vert and FD had the enkei spares didn't they? Either way, I'd be swapping the tires out becuase that temp use thing worries me too. Even though there's 250 lbs on it as opposed to 700lbs.


Actually, I didn't buy it, 'twas a gift for doing the roof racks on the VW. Either way though, the thing was $400 delivered, think about how much I would pay in materals and shop time, then how long it would take me to weld it up..... it was actually cheaper to buy the damn thing than build it... soooo yeah,

Thanks man.... I gottta hop on it and finish it so I can have it inspected Thursday

Not to nit pick but I'd put some grommets on your aluminum holes where your wires are traveling through. Having had wires short out in a similar setup it became a pita to try and track down the issue.

Nice. I was also going to suggest an electrical wire plastic cover.

I wish I had the tools to weld AL. my Hobart 180 is 1000 miles away. sad face I miss so so much. Living in the barracks sucks.

Some sexy looking welds T. I've always wanted to try ally but you sorta need 3phase power for a decent welder, can't do that in a rental. Then again my stainless skills are still pretty average lol. I'm with you on buying the toolbox though, I thought about making one a while ago. Buying decent rollers costs more then most boxes on the market lol.

Sooooooooooooooo I figured out how to make the 'vert wheels work... I think... Need to pul one off tomorrow and verify a measurement, but if I'm right, oddly enough it will be an aftermarket Jeep part that makes it possible.... and some new 5x4.5 hubs courtesy of NorthernTool.

Planning on it.... Also need to de-pin the connectors and get some Raychem or that expandable sleeve tubing on the wires.... that shit right there is just sloppy

Wait till you see the pass-through's for the 2ga battery cable :D Wait...... why would someone need 2ga battery cable on a trailer? Ok, maybe 4ga... I need to check my stock to see what I actually have left over.

That blows, I couldn't live without my tools.

Thanks man. I need to get back into practicing TIG welding SS. I was doing alot of really thin shit and it wasn't turning out so good, so I said fuck it and just MIG'ed everything that was SS. BUT, with some future plans that I have, I need to sack-up and get practicing.

Sooooooooo with the exception of a few "finished" photo's withen the next few days, the trailer project will be put on hold for a while as the car needs a little rear end attention before a 2-day track event in 2 weeks. Oh well.... that and I'm waiting on some parts for some sexy finishing touches as I had a few good ideas tonight.

Someone is going to put a generator and a welder on that trailer. :)

Curious, what's the issue? Is it this? If so what trick do you have up your sleeve, mind sharing :suspect:
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...7&d=1317613847

lots of smart asses out there,guess they have no skills .the trailer looks great. some people must be bitter they had to pay the high cost for one already made for them.

My favorite tool is my 4 1/2 angle grinder. The thing is so damn useful. I can cut anything with it super fast. But my newest fav is my cordless dremel best $100 I ever spend.

Dremels are useless, they burn up in fear when I open the box. 4.5" grinders are great, but for cutting, if you think those are good, you've nevered used an oxy/acytlyn torch or a good plasma cutter ;) those are the tools I reach for when I need to cut steel.

Thanks man, yeah there are some smartasses in here, but thyre just busting balls, I know and have met them all personally, so its all good.

And onboard air ;)

From what I've gathered over too many years in the marine industry, trailer wheels and hubs are 0 offset. And MOST of the axles are 1" stright spline so interchangeability is pretty easy. So, found me a 5x4.5 hub, and the spacer..... well, I'll just get a pic of that when it comes in :D

Very, very, nice.

Get another battery on there and you can use one of our portable MIG welders :) Throw an aluminum spool on there and you can weld aluminum with 100% Ar as well :)

http://www.goweld.com/
http://www.goweld.com/images/welderBatteryHP.jpg

That's cool. There were actually a few times at the track over the weekend that the battery would've been nice for something other than ballast. We had a few cell phones die, gopro's to charge, laptops to run, tires to inflate.... it's on the list and hopefully will be 100% with the exception of the final tie down done next time at the track.

I still have a bunch of pics to upload too.... I've been busy, what can I say.

Well alrighty.... lets upload a few picks of what was supposed to be a few days off worth of work that I just keep adding shit too.... as I always seem to do:001_302:

Soooooo, one of the last things that I wanted to address was the shitty choice in wheels and the very low ground clearance... 4" seems like alot with the cars, but it just doesn't really work with the trailer, and if it bottoms out, there will be some repercussions.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319954040

Sooooo I had designed the trailer and axles to work with the BBS 'Vert wheels that I have, and that's how I set everything up. Running some crappy ass 8" wheels just wasn't cutting it.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319954040

So, how to adapt the 4x100 trailer hubs to a 5x114.3 wheel and space the thing out 1.5" to fit, remember that all the trailer wheels that I've seen are a zero offset, and the 'Vert wheels are 40mm I believe. So.... I looked at a few options. Hub adapters - have something cut that would adapt the hub patterns and space the wheels. A custom bit would have been more expensive than a set of wheels that do fit. Not to mention the designs of the ones that I did find, where much less than ideal.

What I decided to do was swap hubs, and get a real adapter. Jeep guys like to use stock rims, but with bigger tires. The hub patterns are the same. And finding a 1.5" spacer was easy, cheap ($30 a spacer) and it came in a few days. Here's what we've got, 8" wheel, new hub, and the adapter.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319954040

New hub installed

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319954040

Spacer installed with loctite on the lugs

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319954040

Yeah, it's a thick spacer :rofl:

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319955293

Sadly though, the BBS wheels still wouldn't fit. That last 1/4" of the new hub that protrudes past the spacer is too large to fit inside the hub off the 'vert wheels. It's off by .0150" :banghead: Looks like my machinist will have a job 11/7 turning those down ever so slightly... oh well.

Regardless, I used the ASA rims that I've been wanting to sell to set up the fenders. The diameter is the same and the offset was off by 2mm, close enough for fenders. So with the fenders mounted and the new rims, I went to go get the trailer inspected.... it failed. Apparently I was short 4 lights.....:beatdeadhorse5: Damn I hate the DMV with a passion. I needed a set of red markers in the rear, and a set of amber markers in the front. The fronts were damn easy, the rears were a pain, only finding a spot for them. Once I found a 1" LED with a .75" ID that would fit in the fender support, I was set. Snaking the wire was also pretty easy ;) Here's the fender supports with the axle removed

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319955302

Here's a pic of the light and the snaking

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319955302

Once I had the lights all set and I felt that the thing was ready for another inspection, I set about getting a much better way to secure the tanks other than the ratcheting strap and a piece of line. Effective, just not sexy. These tie-downs I've used in the past. I love em. With the hoop removed, al that remains is an anodized dome piece of AL.... and they're supposed to support 2000lbs to boot... I kinda doubt it's that much but whatever.

Here it is secured

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319955302

To remove it, you grab the almost H shapped piece, pull up, and slide out

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319955302

Very very quick. But now I needed the same quick and sexy way to get tension on the webbing. I looked at a few different options before deciding on these straight pull latches from De-Sta-Co. I actually used this same latch on the rear swing out on my Cherokee, just a much bigger one. These aren't doing much bit tensioning some webbing to secure a 50lb tank of gas. Don't need all that much so the smaller was definitely the way to go.

Released with no tension

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319955302

TENSION!

Yup, lots of tension, hold the tank really snug.

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319955302

http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_foru...1&d=1319955302

The last little bit that I can think of is a way to quickly and easily secure the tires themselves. I know exactely how to do it, I just need a tubing bender and I'll be ready to roll with that.

Then, break the whole thing down, powdercoat it and then put it in storage till the spring :rofl: