Tongue - say ahhhhh

[Ken J]

Along with replacing axle, springs wheels etc - I'm thinking about replacing the hitch that is attached to the tongue on my 58. I figure that I would go to the next size ball and have an updated attaching mechanizm. What do you all think? How hard is it to unweld the old one, and when you do unweld it does it weaken the frame?

All thoughts appreciated

Ken

[markdoane]

Ken,

When we replaced the coupler on my '59 with a larger one, we were able to clean up and weld shut the openings where the front of the frame is open to the elements and dirt. I think it's a great idea.

This picture is a little cruddy because I just treated it with POR-15 metal prep, which leaves a coating on the metal.

[53flyingcloud]

Originally Posted by markdoane

Ken,
When we replaced the coupler on my '59 with a larger one, we were able to clean up and weld shut the openings where the front of the frame is open to the elements and dirt. I think it's a great idea.
This picture is a little cruddy because I just treated it with POR-15 metal prep, which leaves a coating on the metal.

I can't help but ask this:
Is that upside down, or what??
ciao
53FC

[Tripp]

Nah! its the new style coupler. Haven't you seen those?

Tripp

[74Argosy24MH]

Originally Posted by Tripp

Nah! its the new style coupler. Haven't you seen those?

Tripp

No weight distribution needed.

John

[53flyingcloud]

Originally Posted by Tripp

Nah! its the new style coupler. Haven't you seen those?

Tripp

Noooo, that's BS.....lol
ciao
53FC

[Tripp]

My own sick sense of humor. Sorry!

Tripp


BTW. Markdoane (Don) does excellent work. Anyone considering frame/shell separation should read his posts. 59Toaster and a few others also come to mind as well. I guess it makes sense, if you're gonna go all the way, do it right! My 56 frame off is looming closer!

[markdoane]

Originally Posted by 53FlyingCloud

I can't help but ask this:
Is that upside down, or what??
ciao
53FC

Awww.
Gotta start over. Thanks for pointing that out.

Hey, can't I just put the ball upside down in the reciever?

[BobbyW]

Its an Austrailian Hitch. You're just looking at it from North America.

[53flyingcloud]

Originally Posted by markdoane

Awww.
Gotta start over. Thanks for pointing that out.
Hey, can't I just put the ball upside down in the reciever?

You might ask CAN-AM to fix it up for you...lmao
Looks like a nice piece of art~
ciao
53FC

[markdoane]

Ken,
back to your question:

I took me about three hours with a grinder to get the old coupler off. It's not a pleasant task.

If you have the time, space, and inclination, I think taking the axle off and turning the frame over makes the job of replacing and painting the frame a lot easier.

Two men and a boy can flip the frame without any equipment.

[Ken J]

Yes that's the kinda hitch I was looking at - an upsidedown hitch - its new physics

Anyway - thanks for the info - you confirmed my thinking.

My thinking if I have new coupler, new running gear - life is good. Plus a larger ball is a stronger connection - probably overkill, but won't hurt.

Do you have a box frame? Mine is a C frame so don't see a need to seal off the end - I do think its a great i

[Ken J]

oops pushed the button too quick.... Anyway I do think its a great idea - should do that on my 75 instead of stuffing steel wool.

Did you have any problems finding a hitch to fit - most of the newer frames are 4-5 inch - mine (or yours and mine) are 3 inch.

My plan is to have the shop who is doing the welding for me cut it off - my understanding is they have tools to do that. I'm also going to have some cross member welding done - except all mine is being done with the shell and wheels still on the trailer .

Ken

[markdoane]

Originally Posted by Ken J

Did you have any problems finding a hitch to fit - most of the newer frames are 4-5 inch - mine (or yours and mine) are 3 inch.

Ken

Nope, my frame is 4".

[Ken J]

Hmmm I'll have to check mine - I assumed it was 3 inch "C" channel

Ken

[Ken J]

Don - Your right, went and checked my frame yesterday, it is 4 in also. Guess gotta get my eyeballs cleaned a bit - soon as I looked at it I thought thats a big 3 inches - sure enough it was 4. It is C channel though.

Another little problem is now that I have all the cabinets out, when I jump up and down, the walls bow in - think I have shell seperation - gotta get the belly off next and see how its all bolted together. The good news is the only rot I found is in the front and in a small area, so my thinking is the outriggers are broke, or the floor is loose from the frame - from what I can tell, this trailer has been over some pretty rough roads. Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

Ken

[upallnight]

Ken

I know your post wasn’t directed to me but I might be able to give you a little insight. I found I had a problem with mine when I brought it home, my brother-in-law was following me and he said the bumper was loose. He said it was moving up and down about 4 inches while traveling down the highway, the PO had replaced most of the floor and had not bothered bolting the shell back down to the floor, thus the problem. Another problem was he had severely overloaded the trailer. You can see some of the floor patches in the link below:
http://www.airstreamphotos.com/photo.../cat/500/page/
I am replacing the floor without removing the shell, I’m going to cut the new floor 88 1/8" then split it in half, the 1/8" is for the saw curf. I have welded in a 2" wide strap the length of the trailer on the centerline for the plywood to rest on, it will also be a platform to bolt to. This is just a poor mans way of doing a complete floor replacement with only one person. See picture in link below:
http://www.airstreamphotos.com/photo.../cat/500/page/
The strap welded in has added a lot of stability to the frame without adding a lot of weight. Once the plywood is bolted down at the seem I believe it will be as strong as a complete sheet, anyways I'm doing this alone and can't lift the shell. Also in the second picture you can see part of an outrigger I welded in. The one that was there went on a walkabout. Don't know what happened to it.
Leonard

[Ken J]

Yea, it kinda helps to have the shell bolted to the floor.

In my case the PO cut the last few cross members - so I know I've got to get those fixed.

My floor is origianal so I know something is bolted to something - from what I can tell I don't have very much floor rot, so either the bolts have pulled through somehow or I've got some broken out riggers or one more possibility is because the cross members are cut, its allowing the whole thing to bow, anyway, I need to get under there and pull the belly, get my wife to jump up and down while I watch whats going on. I'll you all posted

Ken