Skid wheels

[RVcircus]

We just picked up our first travel trailer and were a bit concerned about getting it in our driveway. Our driveway it pretty steep, narrow (<9' wide and cut into a hill), and we need to turn off of a somewhat narrow street. I was able to make it up as-is, but this 25' traile is about as big as I can fit.

I've been looking at skid wheels to prevent damage to the trailer and make navigating the driveway a little easier. Our trailer has nohitch and just a stamped bumper. I was thinking of replacing the bumper with either 2"x4" or 4"x4" steel tube to give me something solid to mount to.

Doew anyone have any other suggestions on mounting? Are there any benefits of going withthe weld-on steel wheels as opposed to the rubber swivel wheels?

[beemerphile1]

Remove the weight distribution hitch before backing into the drive. Doing that will allow the tongue to drop and the rear of the trailer to rise.

[valhalla360]

Another vote for flipping the axles.

You want to avoid hitting at all.

Adding wheels at the back:
- Eats up the clearance you are already short on.
- Puts odd stress on the trailer frame.
- Definetly need to be rated for a lot of weight. If loaded wieght of the trailer is 6000lbs, you probably need more like 1500# per wheel capacity.
- If the rubber tires lose all their weight, it actually puts a lot of weight on the truck hitch. You could easily be putting 2-3000lbs on the hitch.

[RVcircus]

Thanks for the info!!!

I'm thinking about lifting the trailer and it seems like the best option. I've lifted a few trucks over the years and should be able to do a spring over in a day. My only concerns are the hitch height and the steps as I have small kids. Our current steps need fixing/replacement anyway, so that shouldn't be a huge deal.

[Golden_HVAC]

Hi,

The term "Flipping the axles" means that the springs normally go under the axle, and you can convert them to sit on top of the axle, raising the trailer by about 6" to 8" taller. This helps out in situations where the trailer will require more ground clearance.

Adding skid wheels might help too. Make sure that they are rated for a lot of weight, they can take on 500 pounds or more each. Also make sure they stay straight, and tiny diameter helps, so that the wheel is not putting pressure on the side of it's mounting point.

Imagine if you had swivel casters on the back. You start to pull into the driveway, and the trailer puts weight on the hitch pivot as well as the swivel casters. Then the center tires stop carrying enough weight, so it pivots downhill, in other words will spin in a 1/2 circle towards the downhill. It can be unnerving to say the least!

I had 2" diameter straight casters on my class C motorhome. My class A Bounder has the bumper 18" off the ground, so it has not scraped.

You want the casters on something strong, like the frame. You also want them in a angle from the rear bumper to the tires, that puts them just a inch or so below that line. So for instance, if you take some string, back the tires onto it, then tie it to the bumper on the left and right sides, you want the tires to sit about 1" below that string, not much more, or it will be lifting the bumper more than required, yet still be low enough that the bumper "Should" not scrape most of the time.

Check this link. http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/ultra-steel-roller-2-5-x-3/64885

My casters where plastic, yet this steel one looks like it will last much longer. You can take the wheel off of that one, then drill a 3/8" hole, and bolt it to the trailer frame.

Fred.

[johnrbd]

The problem with adding skid wheels is that they reduce your clearance and can put undue stress on trailer frame. Better to lower high to gain a few inches of clearance.

[newman_fulltime]

they mount to the frame