Where to Locate Axles on a Triple Axle Trailer

Published 03/01/2018

Question:

how do i determine where to mount the axles on a trailers. im building a tilt bed with a 10 foot stationary that has a 16 foot tilt. its going to sit on three torflex axles. is there a formula that i can use to determine the exact location of the axles.

asked by: Colter

Expert Reply:

Determining the location of the axles on your triple axle trailer can be difficult, but basically you want to locate the axles so that the tongue weight of the trailer is 10 percent of the total trailer.

Typically on triple axle trailers the center axle will be located 60 percent of the way from the front of the trailer and 40 percent from the back. This isn't always the case as boat trailer and some flat bed trailers have the axles more to the back of the trailer.

For example, if the trailers frames length is 28 feet, then the center-line location for the center axle will be 16.8 feet from the front of the trailer and 11.2 feet from the back. This would be a great starting point.

expert reply by: Jameson C