Wheel spacing to the TD Shell

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Wheel spacing to the TD Shell

Postby Ozarkwalker » Sun Jun 11, 2017 6:24 pm

How much distance should you have from the inside of the tire and the side of the TD camper body. I've started with a 4' 8 " wide by 8'10" long popup camper frame. I added a bracket to the back to make the body 10 feet in length. Now I am looking at making the width 59 and 1/4 inches wide which will a 10 by almost 5 foot wide floor to work from. The angle bracket I plan on adding to the sides of the frame puts the clearance to about 1/2 inch from the side of the TD camper and the 14 inch tires. looking at spacers but how much clearance do I need.
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Re: Wheel spacing to the TD Shell

Postby working on it » Sun Jun 11, 2017 7:05 pm

  • Are you measuring that 1/2" space at the widest part of the 14" tire? What type, and what weight rating is your axle (and leaf ? springs) supposed to carry? What types of roads (or not) do you intend to travel on? All these questions need to be answered, at least in the ballpark, to be able to give a good answer. Otherwise, assuming that you are not going off road, not overloading the existing suspension, and that the 14" tires are in good shape (inflated properly, decreasing sidewall flex), then 1/2" clearance should be enough. But, if you have a trailer that might shift the load side-to-side during travel, then one or both tires may incidentally rub on the body. I have raced cars with 1/2" tire clearance (drag race with flexible drag slicks), and didn't have rub problems, but no twists and turns were involved. On my trailers, I have tried to keep the thickness of my hand as a minimum safe measurement (about 1.5"), but that's just me. I'd rather have more than less, and I used 1.5" spacers on my TTT's first axle, to get that space. My new axle was specified for more, without spacers.
  • tire clearance first axle vs second axle.png
    tire clearance first axle vs second axle.png (323.02 KiB) Viewed 700 times
    lots of tire clearance, just in case (extra clearance was needed for brake backing plates; brakes not installed on first axle)
  • Another factor I always considered was tire flex. If you use bias-ply trailer tires, the sidewalls flex less than radial trailer tires, both called ST tires. If using passenger tires, then there is more sidewall flex, especially if under-inflated. I always preferred bias-ply ST tires on my trailers, having no love for the Chinese radial ST tires I bought (tread separation problems), but bought stiff sidewall light truck tires this time for my TTT. They're 14" tires, like yours, but General Grabber AT-2 s, in the 27 x 8.50-14LT size, all terrain. LT tires have more sidewall flex than bias-ply ST, but not so much as radial ST, and definitely less than passenger radials. You can get by with 1/2" clearance, but watch your loading and tire inflation!
Last edited by working on it on Mon Jun 12, 2017 11:52 am, edited 2 times in total.
2013 HHRv "squareback/squaredrop", rugged, 4x8 TTT, 2225 lbs
  • *3500 lb Dexter EZ-Lube braked axle, 3000 lb.springs, active-progressive bumpstop suspension
  • *27 x 8.5-14LT AT tires (x 3) *Weight Distribution system for single-beam tongue
  • *100% LED's & GFCI outlets, 3x fans, AM/FM/CD/Aux. *A/C & heat, Optima AGM, inverter & charger(s)
  • *extended-run, on-board, 2500w generator *Coleman dual-fuel stove & lantern, Ikea grill, vintage skillet
  • *zinc/stainless front & side racks *98"L x 6" diameter rod & reel carrier tube on roof
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Re: Wheel spacing to the TD Shell

Postby aggie79 » Mon Jun 12, 2017 8:49 am

The spacing from the widest portion of my tire to the sidewall is a hair over 1/2". Clearance has never been an issue. I used a torsion axle. If you are using a solid axle and leaf springs, you may want to increase the clearance to 3/4" - 1" since a solid axle can pivot and have more movement than a torsion axle.
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