[Rhodes22-list] Axle locattion

[Lowe, Rob]

I agree with Todd that the reference point should be the center of the ball socket.  That's where the tongue weight is measure and where the towing force is applied. - Rob


________________________________
From: Rhodes22-list <rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org> on behalf of Todd Tavares <tavares0947 at gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, May 20, 2021 11:11 AM
To: The Rhodes 22 Email List <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Axle locattion

By looking at these old drawings, I guess the datum point/benchmark really
should have been the center of the ball socket, which would have better
standardized the tongue weight (and balance). That would have to assume the
coupler and extension lengths were somewhat uniform.

Measuring the axle position from the rear of the trailer frame or the rear
bunk support is not the best reference.
Also, the angles of the bunks are a little off (I was never good at trig).
Thankfully my carpenter's calculator has a rise over run function. The
angles for the bunks are closer to 22.5° in the rear and 37° in the front
(from horizontal).

I seemed to remember there was approximately a 6" difference in axle
positions between owners' trailers, but most reported the more rearward
dimension so I changed the drawing. There may be early drawings of the
trailer in the archives before I edited the drawing which show the forward
measurements..but I do not know.

Todd T.

On Thu, May 20, 2021, 10:46 AM Cary Tolbert <retiredtoby at gmail.com> wrote:

> Graham, my boat is an '86 and the trailer that came with the boat is a
> Triad.. Therefore I must assume the trailer is an 86 as well. I just
> measured from the end of the trailer to the center of the axle and it is ,
> DRUM ROLL  . . . . . . . . . 75 1/2 inch. Sorry to add to the confusion..
> My front end measurements may also be off. I had the extension bar replaced
> and last year added a braking system which added to the length of the
> extension with a brake actuator.  Mike is the second generation in the
> trailer company and I am sure the trailer has evolved over the years.   You
> know that Stan is always tinkering with something. I think my trailer was
> manufactured in Connecticut . The newer trailers are made in NC.
>
> Best of luck
> Cary
>
> On Thu, May 20, 2021 at 9:33 AM Graham Stewart <gstewart8 at cogeco.ca>
> wrote:
>
> > I just measured the location of my axle and compared it to the drawings
> > prepared by Todd and found that my axle is 7" forward of what the
> drawings
> > specify. That strikes me as a pretty significant difference. I am
> wondering
> > if the others who have found it impossible to get their boats far enough
> > forward might also measure the distance between the back of their trailer
> > to the center of the axle to see if this is the reason for the
> difficulty.
> > The drawing stipulates that this distance should be 70" but mine is 77".
> >
> > Does anyone know whether this dimension changed at some time between
> older
> > and newer iterations of the boat?
> >
> >
> > Graham Stewart
> > Agile, Rodes 22, 1976
> > Kingston Ontario
> >
> >
> >
>