Placement of Front and Rear Hangers When Building a Tandem Axle Trailer

Expert Reply:

To determine the location for the front and rear hangers on your tandem axle trailer you will first need to make sure that you have the correct center point for your equalizer hanger.

The center point of your equalizer hanger needs to be located where you will have 60 percent of the frame of the trailer in front of the center of the equalizer hanger and 40 percent behind the center of the equalizer hanger. For example, if the trailers frames length is 10 feet, then the center-line location for the equalizer hanger will be 6 feet from the front of the trailer and 4 feet from the back.

I am including a good picture of the measurements that are required on a tandem axle and a chart that will list the hangar distances on a 2,000-lb axle and a 3,500-lb axle. The picture is from the product page of the Tandem-Axle Trailer Hanger Kit for Double-Eye Springs, part # APT1. This kit uses an 8 inch long equalizer and the leaf springs listed for a 3,500-lb axle have a length of 25-1/4 inches. If your leaf springs have a length of 25-1/2 inches you will need to add a 1/4 inch to the front hanger distance and the rear hanger distance.

I am including links to some FAQ pages on trailer suspensions and leaf springs.

expert reply by: Jeff D