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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 1:57 pm 
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Hello smart people. I am here to ask for advice on trailer mods.

I am planing a trip to the cape for next year and I am thinking of towing a trailer. I have a 7x4 gal trailer and I am not sure it will ride high enough. I have looked at changing it and cutting off guards and putting some 17 inch wheels on it but that will mean cutting and welding and its in good condition and I don't really want to do that. Is there an easy way to get an inch or 2 from it for the trip and then revert it back when I get home ? I was thinking of moving the axel under the spring but that's only a small change. I think it's what they call a slipper Spring where one end is bolted and the other is just tucked into a bracket.

And advice appreciated.

M

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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 3:03 pm 
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Swapping the axle from top to under is a good way to get 2" lift and fitting some higher profile tyres helps as well. A couple of years ago I gave my box trailer a 4" lift by doing that. It is over 50 years old and had old holden wheels which barely even turned in soft sand. Now it sits up on top of the sand and a lot easier to tow sitting level with the car, plus I can use the spare wheel off my van if i need to..
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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 3:15 pm 
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O wow I didn't think that moving the axel would make such a big change. Dose any one know the law in QLD in reference to having the axel under the spring ?

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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 4:24 pm 
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No regs for trailer axles, spring over or under is fine.

If it where me I'd be more worried about your slipper springs.
Check our Atari's trailer build in this section for a good easy mod that will help reduce the risk of eating through your chassis on the corrugations.

And from what I've been read I over the last few years I'm starting to really believe a trip up to the cape is not the 'great frontier' it once was.
I'm reading so many stories about caravans and cheap shitty chinese camper trailers going up and back with not a worry.

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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 4:34 pm 
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Thanks I will give the thread a read. The tip isn't really the destination for us if we make it all good but it's just really 2 weeks of poking around and seeing what we come across. I am going to do a little hunting around and see if we can get access to private properties to camp on if anyone knows of any let me know. Go for a fish and explore if I decide to take the trailer I might take a bike also who knows.

I see in the picture above that there is a shackle on the springs I am not sure I have those (away can't check ) could I put them on also if I don't ? Will that give me a bit more height ?

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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 5:45 pm 
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I didn't necessarily mean the tip, just from what I've been reading lately the cape In general sounds like it's not the challenge that it once was.

Last time I was up there was about 15 years ago. We stayed the better part of a month at a beach on private property on the east coast, not far from the tip. Last I heard this one had been handed back to the traditional owners and it was no access. This may have changed, but I have no contacts to know for sure any more.

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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 7:11 pm 
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I read somewhere that thousands of vehicles make the trip each year. So it's a well travelled part of the state. But what's left after the cape in the warmer part of the country. I suppose the NT and gulf country ? The central crossings would be a good trip but a V6 GV I am not sure I could carry enough fuel let alone pay for it.

Surely we can't be out of great adventures ?

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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 8:34 pm 
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No don't get me wrong it's still a great adventure and should be seen if you can.

You're right, there is thousands of vehicles going up there every year. The numbers are just getting bigger every year and so are the vans and campers that get dragged up there too.
"The cape" has always been put up as the pinnacle of adventure touring for my whole life. And back in the day it probably was.
I know there's still heaps of challenges to be had up there, but I guess I've just read one too many stories about vehicles and trailers making the trip lately that you'd never have dreamed of taking up there not so long ago.

If the road was anything like it was last time I did it, I wouldn't take a trailer with slipper springs. The corrugations where so bad it ripped the roof console with my 2 ways off the ceiling of the cruiser and cracked my mates steel canopy frame. But if you can take your Jaco up there these days I'm guessing it's much better maintained.

There's a few guys on here that went this season, they might be able to give you some accurate advice on the current state of things up there and how much work you should put into your trailer to make it ready for the trip.

But most importantly, if you do go, we want photos. And lots of them. ;)

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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 9:00 pm 
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I have been up befor just never driven I lived on the cape and through the islands for 2 years about 15 years back. That's why making the tip isn't that important to me. Defiantly interested in experiences from recent trips. Is it hard to modify suspension to be betterer ?

The stories of people making the trip with lower quality gear could just be a result of numbers also a certain percentage of travellers not having any issues.

M

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Post Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2016 9:09 pm 
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Pretty sure there is still challenges with very deep water crossings, that never goes away if there has been plenty of rain!

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Post Posted: Mon Oct 17, 2016 4:05 am 
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Too many people with 4b's..the whole cape will be closed soon....Mareeba shire council has just decided to put a locked gate on Mt. Spurgeon (head waters of the McLeod river, and only accessable freshwater family camping up here.

Air-conditioning in vehicle has made a big difference, the heat used to stop tourists, now it's just the wet, and it's seems to have moved down south.


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Post Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2016 6:25 am 
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Same thing happened to Fraser Is. It used to be quite an adventure just to get to the ferry but once they paved it all the way to Inskip Pt all the wannabe off roaders with no clue started to flood across.

Slipper springs are something I'd upgrade before a trip to the Cape. Our camper was designed with beach camping only in mind so I used slippers and they've served well for ten years but I wish I'd gone for shackled springs for peace of mind.

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Post Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2016 7:01 am 
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Eye eye springs, trailer tyres ie not MT tyres and appropriate bearings for the size tyre being used. Going from a 14" to 15" car type rim and tyre derates ford bearings 20% so going to a 4wd tyre really messes with the little bearings.

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Post Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2016 9:14 am 
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Thanks for the info. Why dose going to a larger wheel tyre combo derate the bearings? I was thinking of trying to get my old 17 inch GV wheels in but that seems like a bad idea also?

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Post Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2016 12:44 pm 
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The larger the tyre the more leverage on the bearings.

I've currently got 30 inch tyres on my LM (Holden) bearings and I don't really like it, I certainly wouldn't go any bigger then that on my small axle and bearings.

If you trailer has a 45mm axle with the bigger SL bearings you'll be fine with 33s. Guys have been running that sized tyre on those bearings in their big heavy camper trailers for many years.

I agree with Shep that you don't need big chunky mud tyres on a trailer. Unless you are matching exactly what is on your vehicle. Even then, I agree to match sizes, but an all terrain tread pattern would roll a lot smoother.

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Post Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2016 7:06 pm 
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I do alot of km's with with my trailer but my bearings with 225/75r16 on vitara steel rims never lasted as long as they do now with a smaller tyre on plus bearing buddies. Also the Timken bearings seem to be holding up well too.

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Post Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2016 8:30 pm 
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I have vitara rims with 750/15 tyres and parallel bearings. A round oz trip and 2 years of rubbish runs and they are still like new

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Post Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2016 8:49 pm 
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pete_79 wrote:
The larger the tyre the more leverage on the bearings.


I'm not following the logic here - the bearings are in the center of the hub, a larger wheel/tire combination lifts the hub further away from the ground - how is leverage impacted? I understand the impact of larger rubber on gearing & braking but neither of those are factors in this discussion.

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Post Posted: Wed Oct 26, 2016 3:50 am 
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Any side loading (eg corners) will produce stresses on two parts of the bearing as the load tries bend the well in or out.

The force at the centre is much more than that at the edge of the weel as it hits the road. Bigger wheels = bigger force amplification.

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Post Posted: Wed Oct 26, 2016 6:10 am 
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Some consideration regarding the trailer weight should be part of this discussion. Trailers behind Suzukis tend to not be very heavy.

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Post Posted: Wed Oct 26, 2016 6:23 pm 
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The centrifugal forces generated by a 15kg tyre are a bit less then a 50kg tyre.


By a bit I do mean a fuckload

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Post Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2016 5:47 am 
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so is side load the issue or is it tyre mass?

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Post Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2016 6:52 am 
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gyroscopic loads

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Post Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2016 7:01 am 
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so what would be the projected outcome of running heavy tries on these ford bearings? Or is it just a shorter bearing life?

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Post Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2016 8:11 am 
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1" difference in tyre diameter reduces the weight rating of a bearing set by 20% according to ultimate campers. Seeing the damage that ball fixes I would agree with this. Reg see big tyre trailers with ford bearings have total failure in 2500km of highway use.

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Post Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2016 8:13 am 
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Remember that ford and Holden bearing sets were originally for 1200kg cars with 13" and 14" tyres 40+ years ago. Land cruiser size rubber should have land cruiser size bearings.

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