Here in Finland (and in many other Nordic & European countries) we have thing called light trailer. They are, as name states, light trailers for transporting things like sacks of gravel, soil, leaves, etc. Or lawn mover. Nice and handy, somewhat economical and come in different sizes. We have had numerous debates on what is The Best Way to use them for transporting your modelling stuff. Hopefully in one piece. This HowTo tries to explain one way to do it. There are numerous attempts, this just my humble way. It does have it’s merits as I’ll soon explain.
Before starting : get an trailer which has both leaf springs and shock absorbers. If you opt to buy cheaper model which has only leaf springs and possibly rubber grommets to limit movement of wheels you will be sorry. That type of trailer is extremely jumpy. And it will break your planes soon enough.
Key reasons of structure:
- It has unlimited adjustability, as everything is based on matrix of attachment holes it can be modified easily.
- It is not screwed to trailer. It holds in place because of main timber elements are sized so that they do not move.
- You can pick support up from trailer easily in case you need to use trailer to something not so nice. Like transporting dirt.
- When not in flying season it can be easily dismantled and stored for next season.
- If you get new trailer, or as I dream of getting mobile home you can make new set of matrix structure (longitudial and cross elements) and supports are again usable.
I will explain the structure via an number of pictures. You should check out rough sketch I draw of the design. Check it here 169-01 Transport support 01. (yeah, strange name? project 169, sheet 01, version 01..). Pics enlarge by clicking them. Hover over pic’s to read captions.
Everything starts with empty trailer. You need plenty of timber to make this structure. Best timber is fully planed and corners rounded. Actually it is (almost) most economical stuff here. Good lumberyard is your friend. First elements must be full-length compared to trailer floor. You must drill holes to to centerline of timber with distance of X between hole centers. This is not critically precise. Just keep distance constant. I used one short plank as an guide. Suitable distance is approx equal to timber width. ie. 95 x 19 timber = 10cm distance. Hole size should be 1mm (or 2mm) larger than screw size. I am using screw size 6mm (= M6) so hole should be 7/8mm. To get suitable size check your blind nut size.
At the same time you should cut crossing timber, again covering the whole floor of timber. I use approx 3 longitudial pieces and 5 crossing pieces. My trailer is 3m x 1,3. Again, drill holes with same measurements. Then proceed on making needed number of supports. Some rough examples are in drawing, feel free to design more. Send me pic if you build something awesome :).
EDIT : Corrected screw size. It was supposed to be M6, ie. 6mm screws etc.
Pictures for your viewing pleasure:
