Putting Tires on?

[shelley w]

We bought new rims (but without the 1/2" offset) and tires 175/80 13" ... took the old tires off, but no matter what we did we could not get the new tire/rims to fit between the shell and the axle Is there a trick to this? Is the axle arm supposed to drop down when the frame is jacked up? Cause mine is stuck solid.

[Roy in TO]

You might be able to "jack your axle down" but then your tires may scrub. I had the same problem. Restoring Our 1972 Boler American

Your three fixes are to go to a different tire size, raise your trailer or swap out your axle. You don't need to do all the changes I did on the link below, but the thread will describe the problems.
Replacing an Axle - leading arm to trailing arm

[shelley w]

But I thought this was the recommended replacement tire size? That what everyone said to use. I just want wheels on my Boler so I can use it ... what other tire size can I use then? No one has 165/80. The ones that were on there are 155/80, but we can't get those. By raise the trailer do you mean 'lift it' like I've seen some people talking about, or just removing it to put the tires on the frame? Ok, now I'm feeling distressed. I just spent $200 on these new tires ... I can't just give them back They've already been mounted on the rims.

[Roy in TO]

In all honesty you have not had time to read and digest the problems and solutions I just provided.

Chances are you still have the original axle. That most likely needs changing. If so, you have to determine the right "down angle" to give you the lift you need.

By merely lifting it with the 2x2" tubes like I did initially, you will not have the full spring and torsion damping (shock absorption) of the original.

Sorry there is no quick and easy fix. Maybe someone can use your tires and you can take their rims finding a lower profile tire. They exist but are very hard to find. Having lost a tire on the road with our Trillium, it was easy to replace with a stock size. Would have been up the creek with out a paddle, if we had non stock sizing.

[Roy in TO]

Shelly,
I've since seen your pictures posted on Facebook. I can tell by how low your trailer is sitting that you need to replace your axle. Been there, done that. Sorry to have to be the one to bring you the bad news.

[Thomas G.]

It sounds like the issue is the new tire and wheel won't fit between the outer wheel lip and the hub.

What size tire was on the old rims? If the new ones are close, it seems possible that you can finesse the new tires and wheels into place as a temporary measure, but if the arm doesn't drop when you jack up the trailer, the axle is clearly in need of replacement.

Maybe you can deflate the tire and reinflate it in place. If that works, check for clearance above the tire - you can't have it scraping the wheel well.

[Roy in TO]

You got it Tom, as I posted; been there, done that. I too listened to the others and spec sheets on tire replacement size. Faced exactly the same problem as Shelly.

Deflating the tire to install was a good temporary suggestion.

[Des Nolan]

Hi Shelley,

At what point are you jacking up your trailer? The original instructions with our 1977 Boler says to do it at the bumper "place your car 'bumper jack' on the bumper). This lifts the body and the wheel dangles somewhat.

We recently replaced 13 ST 175/80R13 G/Y 6P Marathons (yours are radial are they not?).

Yes, it does take a bit if wiggling to get the tire into the wheel well, but ours then fits -- granted, with only millimeters of space, tire to fiberglass shell.

Good luck.

Des

[Roy in TO]

Here is a picture from Shelly's facebook page. Her boler is riding pretty low. Ergo the suggestion for a new axle.

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by Roy in TO

Here is a picture from Shelly's facebook page. Her boler is riding pretty low. Ergo the suggestion for a new axle.
Attachment 48070

Looking at the rest of the pictures, I can see that it is an older unit and I can understand her reluctance to spring for a new axle. But that said, you can't have an unsafe situation.

[shelley w]

Originally Posted by Roy in TO

In all honesty you have not had time to read and digest the problems and solutions I just provided.

Oh trust me, I read, digested and regurgitated it! I really do appreciate your input even if it is bad news. I wish I had known this would be a problem before I purchased the tires/rims. I'm just a little disgruntled and trying to figure out what to do - much of this technical/mechanical stuff is beyond me (I'm a right-brained girl after all) and I don't have a lot of extra money so to purchase what I was told were the right tires only to find out they aren't is a harsh blow. We needed tires to haul the frame in to be looked at/repaired so it's disappointing to know that these tires probably won't work for my Boler. Clearly they are not the right size based on the image on your other thread and I can't understand how that would have become a reasonable replacement suggestion on the charts that the tire shops reference.

Sadly, I can't afford to replace the axle with a new one that has brakes, but can someone recommend a standard axle replacement for my original axle? Hopefully it will work with the new rims/tires.

PS We did start to deflate the tires but got rained out and gave up for the night.

[David Tilston]

Shelly,

A new axle, with brakes is ~$400. Installation is extra. You will need a welder.

[shelley w]

Originally Posted by David Tilston

A new axle, with brakes is ~$400. Installation is extra. You will need a welder.

I can't afford that. I will need to install one without brakes. What model of axle should I purchase?

[Thomas G.]

Try deflating the tires to install the wheels on the trailer. It might work and you have nothing to lose.