Tire Rack Suggestions/Plans

[Matt M.]

I have just moved up to a small (7x16) enclosed trailer and need to outfit it on a budget. My first priority is building a tire rack. Does anyone have any good suggestions or plans for one?
- Frank C

[ChuckU2]

Frank,
I've got an unused roll-around tire rack in the shop along with a wheeled pit box that needs a "home". I can take digital photos and send them to you.

Write or call me if you are interested. Perhaps I could deliver them too. Chapman, Kansas is not too far from Stillwater, Oklahoma.

Best regards,
Gerry Dedonis
[email]dedonis@kans.com[/email]
Kansas Racing Products Inc.
785-922-6644

[timmy]

I have built some small "L" brackets that I installed along the upper walls. I just hang each wheel on the wall. They stay put, out of the way, and easy to grab in a hurry.

[Hvonert]

I also have a 16x7 enclosed Pace trailer.
After you get the car in there room is at a minimum. What I have done is up front I have a work bench. Under the work bench is were I keep the 4 extra tires. They are sidewall to sidewall shoved over to the L/S. I have a bungee cord that attaches to the leg of the bench, through the wheels and to a eye-bolt that is attached to one of the front frame uprights.
I could not figure out anywere else other than outside stacked on the tongue.
Or as the frog suggest, hang individually from the wall. In a 7' trailer that would work but it would be a problem working around the car.

If it requires a picture Let me know.

Chris

[Chuck Gillis]

Frank: Might as well plan on hanging the tires at the outset, believe me, you'll end up doing it later anyway. You can use T-Track with the locking tie down attachments or fab your own.

gm

[ennis bragg]

Frank,
The Frogs idea of Hooks to go through the centers with the wheels flat against the wall will probably work the best. I have a friend who uses a 7X16 for a FM and that's the only way to fit in two extra sets for him. The only other idea is a rack against the front wall over a work bench that is high enough for all your other stuff to go around it. You are going to have to go UP with the tires, otherwise you'll never get the car in and not damage it.

One other idea I have seen is Darren Browns, He has two removable bars that provide the platform for the tires to "sit in" and then runs a tie down across the trailer through the centers. The bars are mounted to the walls of the trailer and hold the tires above the car like the front rack, but you can put it anywhere that it makes sense from front to back. The only problem is loading and unloading the car under the tire rack...gotta watch your head...and if it fails...it fails onto the car with all tires, not just one like the wall hooks.

Good Luck,

Dave

[RACERMIKE23]

Frank:
Since I prefer the tire storage to be up front and not at 'head-banging' level on the sides, I used E-track on the trailer side walls and two expandable aluminum beams to cradle the tires. I run a ratchet tie-down through the wheels from wall to wall. I got the beams from Racer Wholesale. I've got cabinets above and below the tires and use a fold-out workbench on the side wall.

[Matt M.]

Thanks - these have got me thinking. High and in the front was my plan for the tires. The E-track and beam idea sounds like a good alternative to welding something up out of angle, though more expensive.
- Frank

[timmy]

Frank,
Sice you say you got a 16' trailer, and I know you are selling an old open trailer... I'm guessing you are not pulling this with a diesel dually. [img]smile.gif[/img] If you are using a 1500 or smaller caliber tow vehicle, then tongue weight is a serious issue. Be careful of how much you stack in front.

That's part of the reason I mounted mine on the walls over the trailer axles...

Of course I also roll my car in on top of twin 12' long, 38" high benches... so the golf cart can ride over the axles and under the racecar. All in a 18' trailer. And I can keep my tongue weight way under the 750 max for the wife's Expedition.

[Matt M.]

P.F.
Thanks. I have been giving that some consideration and concern. My boxes of spares also are fairly heavy. I plan on doing a test before building. The E-track/shoring beams over the car's nose approach may be a solution. This will be a big change, as my old Don Parker trailer was perfectly balanced for a FF. I first towed it with a Chevy S-10 with a 2.8 V-6 and 5-speed! That truck was replaced with an S-10 with 4.3 and 5-speed, which had nice power for towing. I think an S-10 with the 4.3 is probably a cheap, very capable tow vehicle for open trailers. I now have an F150 with the 4.6 V8 and automatic. I still do not like automatics, but it is nice for towing. The F150 is rated (and equipped) for 7000 lbs, but does not have excessive power. It will be nice not having to load eveything into the truck. Using a bicycle instead of a golf cart will make my load smaller than yours.
- Frank

[size="1"][ November 21, 2002, 05:16 PM: Message edited by: Frank C ][/size]

[timmy]

OK,
With the 150, you have the smaller engine, but it will work. Watch the tongue weight. Your first purchase should be one of those $115 anti-sway bars that attach from the trailer to the hitch. If you don't, you'll soon figure out why you should have (hopefully not while resting in the ditch).
You should not need load levelers, but trailer/hitch shops will try to push them on you.

You may find you have better wet traction with some weight in the bed of the truck, else the trailer will tend to push you around a bit.

Get the little anti-sway bar. You'll be glad you did.

[Walter Renna]

Purple frog,
How do you load your car onto the benches, a lift gate? It seems like it would be hard to use ramps for that. Always looking for new ideas.
Steve Wilson

[timmy]

I have 12' ramps that slide in behind the cabinets. A small Warn winch is mounted up front and I use the jumper battery from the racecar to power the winch.
I can actually load and unload by myself.

Above the ramps in each side, in another compartment I store all the canopy poles for a 20 X 20 canopy, and then above that is a compartment to hold the scale pads. All of these compartments are between the cabinets and the wall of the trailer. There is a 48" open walkway running front to rear, where we roll in the 4-wheeler/golfcart, tool boxes, ice chests....

OBTW, the cabinets have sliding doors so we can reach things even when the trailer is loaded.

Think like a sailboat, everything has it's place. It does make it possible to get a racecar, 4-wheeler, 8 spare wheels, canopy poles, scale pads, and all the spares in a 18' trailer.

One nice feature is the 20' of counter top with overhead lights that we have when the car is unloaded, and I have yet to bring enough stuff to load all the cabinets.

I have a rough electronic version of a sketch of the whole deal.

Spent $100 on the winch, and about $200 building all the cabinets.

[Chuck Gillis]

Frog: Would you post or e-mail me the sketch?

Thanks. gm

[timmy]

Greg,
I tried to email tham to you. But your server told my server that it wouldn't accept a file that large. :( I was using the email address on the members list on F2000. I can't get the members list on F1600 to come up.

[Chuck Gillis]

OK. Thanks for trying. Love that Yahoo. gm

[Jeff Smith]

P F,
When are you coming out to play again? I would like to see you cabinet set up? Maybe Sebring this weekend for the trots?

John

[Dennis Cleary]

Hey Frog,
Send those drawings to me and I'll post them for all to download. It sounds like a good idea!

[timmy]

Motor is apart. Seems to be the story every November. Ever since 1962 I have wanted to drive the 12Hour course. Maybe we will do the National in January... be a moving chicane for all those Yankees.

[Dennis Cleary]

Here's a link to the plans for Frog's trailer design described above:

[url="http://www.totaltelemetry.com/ff1600_links.htm"]Useful FF1600 Downloads[/url]

[Jeff Smith]

Tim,
I d/l the file but it wont open. Box opens and says wont run in DOS mode. Any suggestions?
TIA
John

[X Racer]

Frank,

We have a slightly larger trailer but I think our tire rack solution may be worth your consideration.

We decided to use the area over the wheel well intrusions on each side of the trailer.

On one side, we face the rear spares flat against the trailer wall, the fronts on the other side, bottoms resting on the well intrusions. At the both ends of the wheel wells we placed 2x6 'nailers. (screwed into trailer wall studs)

From each nailer, we attached a 2x4 at 90 degrees at a height matching 1/2 the spare tire height when it is in place resting on the flat against the trailer wall.

2x4 length was determined by measuring a length that would accommodate a 1/2" hole in the 2x4 end opposite the nailer which allowed us to thread a 1/2" piece of conduit tubing lenthwise along the entire wheel well pinching the tires flat against the wall.

Finally, we supported the 2x4's using additional 2x4 triangulated back to the nailer.

Weve had the this installed for 2 years w/o a problem. It keeps the tire weight down low, centered, and the tires out of the way.

Man, this was tough to write..... Next time I see you, just come over and take a look! It'd be a lot easier.

Gary Payne
St. Louis