5' x 10' aluminum trailer

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This is the last trailer that I put together. Sorry, no pics from during the build. This project was from before I got into posting on the net. lol. It's 5' x 10' with a 3500lb axle. The sides are made from .100 aluminum diamond plate. I take a 5 x 10 sheet and cut it into 20" x 10' pieces. Bend a 3" down for the bottom and a 1" up and a 2" up for the top, which leaves a 14" side. This is a very efficient way to use the materiel, 10 sheets will almost completely build 10 trailers. That is all the sides and fronts, cross members, and fenders. You just need structural for the tongue, rear member, and ramps or gate, This one is made from left over materiel from other jobs so it has other materiel for cross members. The tongue is 3 x 3 x 1/4 tube and the braces are 2 x 3 x 3/16 angle. The gate is 1 1/4 x 1 1/4 x 1/8 tube and 1" x 3/16 expanded. The floor is 3/4 tongue and groove barn siding with 1/4" floor screws. The lights are all sealed beam and the wiring is all soldered and sealed.  I've built and sold well over 100 of this style trailer over the years. It's very easy and fast to build and very strong and reliable. They are also very light weight so they are easy to move around. I welcome all comments and questions. This is one of the few areas that I consider myself a professional in and will be happy to offer any help and advice that I can. If you like I can post pics of some of the other trailers I've done, they go from lawn trailers to 53' custom semi trailers for hauling race horses. Attached Images
Reply:Nice looking.
Reply:Would love to see a picture of the underside to better understand where you placed cross members and spring or axle mounts.Followup question:  Do your trailers see any wintertime use that you know of?  If so, what steps do you take or recommend to buyers to reduce or slow down the corrosion problems that seem to ruin most of the aluminum trailers I see?  Here in Ohio, road salt eats aluminum trailers up at an incredible pace.  I would imagine that the same problems or worse happen to aluminum trailers near the ocean shore...Last edited by A_DAB_will_do; 07-26-2013 at 09:22 AM.Benson's Mobile Welding - Dayton, OH metro area - AWS Certified Welding Inspector
Reply:Yes, I would love to see other pics, maybe some of the underneath as well. I have made a few trailers and have wanted to built aluminum, but have not followed through yet. Thanks a ton for the pics,  a coupke of the undetneath would be great, thanks for posting.GeezerPower Mig 255C185 TIGBlue 175 MIGRanger 8 Kohler 20HP1974 5K Lincoln/Wisconsin Powered (Cherry)Victor/Harris O/AK 487 Spool Gun
Reply:Originally Posted by A_DAB_will_doWould love to see a picture of the underside to better understand where you placed cross members and spring or axle mounts.Followup question:  Do your trailers see any wintertime use that you know of?  If so, what steps do you take or recommend to buyers to reduce or slow down the corrosion problems that seem to ruin most of the aluminum trailers I see?  Here in Ohio, road salt eats aluminum trailers up at an incredible pace.  I would imagine that the same problems or worse happen to aluminum trailers near the ocean shore...
Reply:Originally Posted by A_DAB_will_doWould love to see a picture of the underside to better understand where you placed cross members and spring or axle mounts.Followup question:  Do your trailers see any wintertime use that you know of?  If so, what steps do you take or recommend to buyers to reduce or slow down the corrosion problems that seem to ruin most of the aluminum trailers I see?  Here in Ohio, road salt eats aluminum trailers up at an incredible pace.  I would imagine that the same problems or worse happen to aluminum trailers near the ocean shore...
Reply:Originally Posted by geezerYes, I would love to see other pics, maybe some of the underneath as well. I have made a few trailers and have wanted to built aluminum, but have not followed through yet. Thanks a ton for the pics,  a coupke of the undetneath would be great, thanks for posting.
Reply:Nice work, man!
Reply:Nice work, but I'm torn. Such a nice trailer, suck an ugly coupler...totally nitpicking, but it's just what I picked up.There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:Very nicely done   Well thought out too.That trailer is too nice to throw firewood at Dave J.Dave J.Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance. ~George Bernard Shaw~ Syncro 350Invertec v250-sThermal Arc 161 and 300MM210DialarcTried being normal once, didn't take....I think it was a Tuesday.
Reply:You are right!! LOL. That was the only one I had in the garage. I just put it on temporary to pull it to town to run it through the wash. I picked up a 2" and put that on and painted it with Rustoleum cold galvanizing paint so it matched pretty well. I just wanted to show those welds to show that if the stars and moon line up just right I can get some that are not too embarassing. lol
Reply:Some of the worst cases I've seen are toy haulers.  People with aluminum trailers hauling 1 or two snowmobiles, or less commonly jet skis.  The snowmobile trailers all seem to have serious longevity problems due to corrosion.  It's frequently trailers with bolted connections; just the problem you mentioned.  Steel fasteners passing through aluminum structure.  Connections for springs bolted to the trailer frame.  Steel mounts, shafts, and springs, etc.  Steel deck fasteners into aluminum angle.  Steel bolt on couplers on aluminum trailer tongues.I'm familiar with using stainless sheet to isolate mild steel from aluminum.  I wasn't sure just what kind of axle you were using under the trailer.  Good to hear you've dealt with the problem.  The trailers I've seen didn't, and I've told more than one owner to scrap a trailer rather than fix it because the corrosion was so bad. Originally Posted by welderjWhat kind of trailers are you talking about corroding?  If you mean enclosed trailers that is because the frame underneath is steel and when steel is next to aluminum they react with each other and the aluminum corrodes away. I stop that by putting a thin piece of stainless between when there is steel, like above the axle. On enclosed trailers they put a thin piece of plastic between the side panel and steel frame and when that wears out it starts the corrosion and that is what you see. If a trailer is all aluminum like this there is very little corrosion problem even in salt unless you let it soak in it. I started making these over 20 years ago and have not come across any corrosion problems yet and I live in Mn.
Reply:Thanks for the added details on the trailer construction.  Sounds as though you've created a solid design and I like the appearance of the finished product. Don't take my prodding for more details too seriously. I'm just prejudiced against aluminum for trailers...I must be getting crotchety as I grow older... Originally Posted by welderjThe front crossmember is 2 x 3 x 3/16 angle and is right at where the tongue ends so the rear of the tongue attaches to it. There are 2 more 1 x 2 x 1/8 tube cross members at the front and rear of the fenders to support the floor and hold the fenders upright. The axle is a torflex 10 deg. down and is bolted through the side panel and a 3 x 3 x 1/4 angle wrapped around the bottom of the panel and tied to the fenders to transfer the stress to the top of the panel and keep the bolts from pulling through. The axle is at 60%, this is further back than most factory trailers which are usually at 55%. I think this makes them pull better and makes them easier to load without getting the sway or whipping you see often. It does give more tongue weight tho, so I make the tongues heavy enough to handle it.
Reply:Boat and snowmobile trailers are notorious for that. They make them so light that any minor corrosion and there is nothing left.
Reply:Great looking trailer. What type of wood did you use?PlasmaCam CNC cutterLathe and Band SawClamps
Reply:A real good looking, solid trailer.About time we had a trailer thread around here where the builder knows what he is doing and building a quality trailer.Which grade of aluminum sheet do you use and do you use 4043 or 5356 wire?"The reason we are here is that we are not all there"SA 200Idealarc TM 300 300MM 200MM 25130a SpoolgunPrecision Tig 375Invertec V350 ProSC-32 CS 12 Wire FeederOxweld/Purox O/AArcAirHypertherm Powermax 85LN25
Reply:I don't remember what the sheet was, it's been to long since I bought it. For mig I use 4043 wire. I only use that where strength is not as important and it leaves less black to clean up. Anything where I'm worried about strength I just tig, for that I use 5356 sticks.
Reply:Just what ever Menards sells as pine tongue and groove.