U-Haul Frames

[Bill J]

A buddy of mine picked up a used trailer from U-Haul and was going to use it for cargo hauling. After looking at the bare frame I was wondering if anyone had ever used such a frame? I know that the tongue was not really as strong as it could have been as it was butt welded to the first crossmember forming basically a tee with two gussets added. However it must have worked.

[angib]

However it must have worked.

Yes, and you would expect that a U-Haul utility trailer has been subjected to much more abuse, from things like misloading, than it would ever get as a teardrop frame - so if it was going to fail, it would have done so already!

Even the frame of this 1,000lb 'sport trailer' would carry a lightly-built teardrop:



But take a photo of the trailer and post it here - it may help someone else too.

Andrew

[brian_bp]

...I know that the tongue was not really as strong as it could have been as it was butt welded to the first crossmember forming basically a tee with two gussets added...

I rented a U-Haul 6'x12' cargo trailer earlier this year, and given my examination of both that trailer and the U-Haul travel trailers of long ago, this tongue description is surprising.

The travel trailers had a pole tongue which extended all the way back to the crossmember of the rubber torsion axle. The cargo trailer had a straight tongue up front, which forked out to two channels which ran in a vee back to connect directly to the front leaf spring mount on each side.
Both were substantial designs.

Were the "gussets" on this trailer just gussets, or were they diagonal extensions of the tongue, like the cargo trailer which I rented?

I agree with Andrew... photos would be good, so even if someone has not specifically used a U-Haul, they might have experience to share with trailers of the same construction. Also, U-Haul designs vary.


In general, it seems to me that U-Haul buys well-constructed equipment, then the U-Haul dealers and franchises let it rot to destruction. The cargo trailer which I rented had one mismatched tire (so I traded it before leaving): one tire had gone flat on the previous renter, and the franchise had it replaced with one of the same size, but lower load rating and different construction (radial versus bias ply). I wouldn't consider a used U-Haul truck as anything but a rough starting point for a complete rebuild, but a used U-Haul trailer might be okay, with the assumption that all bearings, brake parts, tires, and coupler would need to be replaced or rebuilt.

I assume that renters routinely overload and abuse equipment (from anyone, not just U-Haul); however, the trailer which I rented was rated so conservatively (a 4400 lb GVWR and two 3500 lb axles, for instance, with only 6'x12' of space to accumulate load) that this might not be a problem.


By the way, the U-Haul Sport Trailer has a carrying capacity of almost 1,000 lb; the gross weight rating is 1,500 lb. Remove the cargo body and replace it with a teardrop body, and the resulting trailer can weigh up to 1,500 lb (including contents). Although the structure and running gear is probably quite capable (except that it has no brakes), and likely heavier than the bolt-together kits popular here, it probably isn't wildly overweight; it just isn't very big (it only has a 4'x6' body).

[Bill J]

The trailer in question may have been an older design as it had been sold. The gussets I mention were triangluar plate welded for extra support.
The reason I wrote about this was the new owner of the trailer who is a race car fabricator by trade pointed it out to me, adding that he would have to redo the design.

[bobhenry]

The U haul trailers are built by U haul in their own assembly plants and all repair and replacement parts are custom built FOR U-haul including the tires. If you look the tire states U-haul right in the rubber. I have seen these trailers come in with 4000 pounds of books and grossly over loaded and in my 4 years with the company I never saw a frame failure. The old plywood box trailers are the old generation being phased out and these frames are actually heavier than the new units. Bearings and races should be available from any good industrial bearing house and that's about all the repairs that should be necessary. I have been trying for 9 years to purchase an old plywood "AV" series trailer ( the old 5x8 ) and the old fart won't sell it. It sets in the same spot day after day and hasn't moved in over 10 years. I call every year or so to no avail.
Enjoy your find and pull it without any reservations . Just build your box and enjoy your new trailer. These units were designed to go forever and there are several still doing just that.

[Kankujoe]

I would love to buy a 6x12 tandem axle U-haul Cargo Trailer but my understanding is that U-haul will not allow them to be sold for liability reasons. I think their design and profile would be great for a cargo conversion.

[brian_bp]

While the current U-Haul 6x12 cargo is appears to be a well-built and functional cargo trailer, I would not consider one for camping conversion (even if I could buy one which was not already used and abused). It's just too heavy, with twice the axle needed for the job... remember, a travel trailer is mostly filled with air. A current U-Haul 6x12 weighs 1800 lb completely empty; my travel trailer has a body which is a foot longer, a foot wider, and about a foot taller inside, and weighs only 2400 lb with a full interior including a kitchen (with oven), bathroom, water heater, and furnace.

This is the same concern I have with the originally proposed U-Haul trailer frame, and which we have not discussed yet: without questioning whether the design is good for the originally intended purpose, is it really appropriate for this new purpose? The 6x12 can carry 2600 lb of stuff, but there's no need for that capacity, and it comes at the cost of extra structure and running gear weight. A cargo trailer makes sense to me for conversion, but a lighter unit not designed to carry so much load.

It's surprising that U-Haul would not sell a trailer, as they sell their trucks. I assume that you just have to wait until it no longer has business value, meaning that it is obsolete. It takes a loooong time for a trailer to become obsolete!

[brian_bp]

... all repair and replacement parts are custom built FOR U-haul including the tires. If you look the tire states U-haul right in the rubber. ...

This is an interesting part of the U-Haul corporate method. I wouldn't read too much into the name on the tires, though: my guess is that they are completely ordinary trailer tires, moulded with U-Haul in the sidewall to reduce theft problems. When you buy stuff in high enough quantity, you get to do that...

Speaking of unique parts, owners of U-Haul camper trailers (the ones they rented many years ago then sold off when they got out of that business) have noticed that it is a pain in the neck to buy spare or replacement wheels, because they use an unusual (for a trailer) hub pattern. Since U-Haul dealers are understandably reluctant to sell parts to the public, it's tough to find them. These wheels - which perhaps are still used on some U-Haul trailers - seem to be 5-on-4.75" (like many GM vehicles used for many years), but with a high offset - only a Corvair seems to match in bolt pattern, offset, and diameter.

U-Haul wheel search topic in FiberglassRV: tires n rims