Rear axle shorter than the front

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Patnsuzanne

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 2, 2016
Posts
317
Location
North central Florida
Howdy folks:
After a couple of unfortunate incidents, we had to have the rear axle on our trailer replaced. I wasn?t as observant as I should have been when I picked it up after the repair work, but I?ve noticed now that the tires on the rear axle are inside the track of the front tires. I measured from the backing plates to the edge of the u- bolts holding the axle to the springs and there is a half inch difference between the front and rear axle on each side. I confirmed these measurements with a long straight edge held against the front tires and got the same 1/2 inch gap between the straight edge and the sidewall of the rear tires. I should add that all 4 tires are new, having been replaced at the same time as the rear axle.  So the question is, will this arrangement cause premature wear on the tires or the trailer suspension?  The rear axle is centered on the frame, it?s just an inch shorter than the front. Any insights will be much appreciated! 
 
As long as the spring equalizers, hangers, and perches are in line, it should be OK. Just looks funny. I had a class 8 tanker trailer I replaced one axle on. All spring hardware lined up but axle was 1 1/2? shorter than original, 3/4? each side. Looked funny in mirror. Trailer still in use, probably has a couple million miles on it now. Never any unusual tire wear.
 
Axles ends are the place to measure for same width.
Now...if you know the wheels on both axles have the same zero offset/whel width and all the tires were the same brand/size then the tires could be used for checking as you did.

 
Thanks for your replies. We?ve got a couple of thousand miles on the new axle/ tires now with no noticeable wear on the tires and it doesn?t seem to tow any differently than before so I guess we?re ok. It just seemed odd and I wanted to take any corrective measures before a real issue came up. I feel better about the situation now.
 
Use half inch spacer if you have enough lug bolt length and really want it to look equal or shop for wheels with a half inch more offset.
 
jubileee said:
As long as the spring equalizers, hangers, and perches are in line, it should be OK. Just looks funny. I had a class 8 tanker trailer I replaced one axle on. All spring hardware lined up but axle was 1 1/2? shorter than original, 3/4? each side. Looked funny in mirror. Trailer still in use, probably has a couple million miles on it now. Never any unusual tire wear.

Wow! Those are great tires! :)
 
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