trailer reboarding/fixings

[marcros]

I am rebording a trailer, using some 18mm exterior ply. What fixings should I use to secure it to the box section that it sits on?

I am going to put in some anchor points for straps. would some U bolts be as good as anything, with nuts and washers on the underside of the ply? I know that i can buy various other things, but they all seem to rely on wood screws into the ply, which doesnt seem very strong, considering the force on a tight ratchet strap.

 

[stevenw1963]

Nuts & bolts through the pywood & through the box section Mark

 

[Myfordman]

D rings with metal plates on the inside and bolts through.

Nowhere should you be relying on woodscrews.

 

[andersonec]

Mark, Are you sure ply is the best stuff to use? it is going to be standing vertical and if any moisture gets between the individual sheets it will separate and fail, I found this out through bitter experience.

Andy

 

[marcros]

something along the lines of http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=traile ... B972%3B847 bolted on?

 

[marcros]

Mark, Are you sure ply is the best stuff to use? it is going to be standing vertical and if any moisture gets between the individual sheets it will separate and fail, I found this out through bitter experience.

Andy

it possibly isn't, but the trailer is 8x5ft and i can get a sheet of 10x5 ply locally. to do it in anything else is going to cost a lot more, and sheet material should be pretty quick to fix down. i am only redoing the bottom, so if i store it with a tarpaulin over, it should keep the worst of it off, and rainwater should only hit the surface, not between the laminations. I will treat the edges before i install.

what would you use next time, andy?

 

[Hitch]

The ideal thing for speed and quality is phenolic ply fitted with these-

http://www.wentinfasteners.co.uk/fasten ... unk-p1743/

As for the anchors, I'd weld a plate in position to the frame, fix the ply on, then bolt the eyes through the plate....
Ill see if i have a picture...

 

[marcros]

interesting fixings. does the steel need pre drilling with those?

phenollic ply looks great but a bit too £££ for now.

 

[No skills]

The self drilling screws will go straight through the box section no problem, if you use an impact driver it will be super quick as well.

Used loads for various things over the years.

 

[Hitch]

No, no need to pre drill.

The tip and little wings pilot the timber to stop it jacking its self off the metal, the tip drills the metal, then when the wings get there they break off and allow it to work like a self tapper.

No pilot holes required.... but you do need a good power screwdriver and bits.

The other thing, is choose the length and thread (coarse thread for thinner, finer thread for thicker 3mm+)

These self drilling types of screws are very common in industry in various forms.... Good ones will self drill into steel beams etc 20mm thick.

 

[marcros]

they look just the things. will toolstation et al keep them?

 

[Hitch]

Cant find them on TS, but SF have them....

http://www.screwfix.com/p/wing-screws-5 ... -100/16748

Check the length you need....

 

[marcros]

thanks. i will have a ride out to screwfix in the next day or two.

 

[stevenw1963]

won't varnishing (yacht varnish ??) the plywood stop any water & keep it from splitting?
That's what I used on our old trailer tent & a normal trailer & they both kept good for a lot of years

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Off tack, slightly - when I had my trailers (before they were stolen) I always kept a sheet of hardboard in them. It saves an awful lot of wear and tear, especially if stuff has to be dragged or shovelled.

 

[Dusty]

Evening Marcos , My F-inlaw owns a trailer fabrication business , they use either alu chequer plate or 18 / 22mm resin coated ply , very hard wearing . The self tap screws as shown in the picture are the job , If you like I will send you a handfull if you like . they are coalated but you can peel them of the strip . If the box is 3 or 4 mm it may be worth pre drilling as they may over heat and loose their drilling edge . When we used to fit tie down points we would cut the aperture for the fitting and then fit with 6mm bolts and use 6 mm repair washers around 25mm to back them to the board , never had one fail .

I think resin ply is around £50 a sheet .

Kind regards Sam

 

[marcros]

sam,

Thank you. i have ordered some fixings on ebay which will be here in the next couple of days, so that aspect is sorted. The best price that I could get on the phenollic ply was about double your price, and i need a couple of sheets of 8x4. I think that i will risk normal WBP and chuck some yacht varnish on it. If it lasts a couple of years, I will be happy enough. I will look at the thickness of the box section, i don't think it is hugely constructed. The previous owner used it to haul firewood around, so mainly bulk rather than great weight. Most of mu use will be similar- rubbish to the tip, timber, sheet materials across town.

The anchor points may be a bit more of an issue to sort. when i take the old base out of the trailer i can see what i have to fix them down to.

thanks for your offer and for your help.

 

[Lons]

I have an Ifor Williams 8 x 4 which has a phenolic floor. I found the floor got damaged with all the building stuff I needed to carry and I managed to get hold off some Aluminium tread plate offcuts at around 4' x 2'. These are screwed and siliconed down (4 sections) and apart from the odd screw working loose have hardly marked in more than 8 years. Don't know how much a sheet costs these days but it's a great solution.

Bob

 

[No skills]

We use 3/3.2mm box section (cant remember specific) for most jobs with no need for pre-drilling, getting a good amount of pressure on the screw once its started off helps reduce any melted screw tips.

 

[dickm]

FWIW, poplar used to be used as the timber of choice for trailer beds. No idea whether it's readily available anywhere, but it might work out cheaper than ply and individual planks could be renewed rather than a whole sheet if any rot gets in.