Tandem or single axle

[VTLee]

I'm currently downsizing from my fifth wheel and looking at TTs with 17 to 19 ft. floorplans (less than 23 ft. overall). Some of the models have single axles and others are tandem. Assuming that the axles and tires are sized correctly which I will check, are there any advantages for either setup? I will be towing with either a Tacoma or a Chevy Colorado. Thanks for any suggestions.

[FrankShore]

Tandem Axle, for safety reasons!

[naturist]

Dual axle is inherently more directionally stable.

[rbpru]

The max TT vehicle weight should be higher with the dual axle. Check how much cargo capacity each unit has.

You want to make sure that you have enough capacity for all the stuff you cannot live without.

The single axle has less thing to go wrong or need replacing.

[poppin_fresh]

bobndot wrote:
just want to clarify. backing up a single axle seems more difficult with the more narrow bodied single axle. A full bodied TT should back up easily because you can see it in the mirrors...

Nope. My old 18ft single axle hybrid camper was a total b*tch to back up. It would jack knife very easily, regardless of how slow I tried to back it into a spot.

I think a lot of it has to do with the axle placement and how much tongue weight it carried. It made for an odd pivot point, BUT it towed like a dream even without a WDH. Never swayed an inch while towing.

[hohenwald48]

I broke a leaf spring a couple of months ago on my tandem axle TT. I have reason to believe I probably towed it over 100 miles (not on purpose) with the spring broken. Doubt I could have done that with a single axle trailer. May have even had trouble just towing it to the shoulder of the road.

Redundancy equals more maintenance but also equals more safety.

[Trackrig]

I would go with only a dual axle trailer for better braking, better load capacity / safety margin and better control if a tire blows out. Other than pop-ups, tear-drops and so on, I didn't know they still make single axle TTs......

Bill

[bobndot]

As of now I have 4 trailers, 3 single axle and my dual axle TT .

I would like to have 4 tires on the ground while towing a TT .
Crosswinds and bow waves from overtaking trucks , seems to handle it better but that might be because of the WD hitch and sway bar, not really sure.

Dual axle : To support weight , to track straight that offers a little security over just 2 wheels. Think about a flat tire while in motion.

It seems to me that the single axle trailers i tow, jackknife faster than the dual axle while backing. Backing the dual axle, seems to take less effort.

just want to clarify. backing up a single axle seems more difficult with the more narrow bodied single axle. A full bodied TT should back up easily because you can see it in the mirrors. Tire scuffing while turning will be less with a single axle.

[poppin_fresh]

The single axle rigs will probably all be about 3500 GVWR. You will be lucky to find one that has much payload left, especially if you intend to carry water. Some are as low as 300# of payload, which is nothing.

At least with the dual axle setups you should be able carry a decent amount of stuff. Plus you will probably find they have less tongue weight because they dont need to offload so much weight from the axle and onto the tongue.

[korbe]

Years ago we had a single axle, now we have a duel axle setup. The reason for the duel axle was because of weight. Both pull and back up easily.