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      01-10-2013, 10:45 AM   #21
07lilredwagon
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Drives: 07 328 wagon
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: New York

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Efthreeoh View Post
So the best way to make the tonneau cover is out of fiberglass. You need to make a wooden form for it and make a match mold from the wood form, then layup your fiberglass in the negative mold from the wood form. You could go crazy by sandwiching some structural foam between the outer and inner layer of fiberglass; lay-in some aluminum plate for the piston attachment points and hinges, etc....

I liked the trailer for the E30; it looked like the front was a "tailgate" (frontgate? LOL).

But really, using an Audi A4 clip would be some much more fun. Just sayin'

what am I missing with the Audi A4 clip reference?...simple competitive statement, or is there more to it?...I have not been a Bimmerphile that long and am missing the reference...

I did find this about trailer tongue weight...I have always found that if you can lift the trailer tongue without too much effort, you are good....
(This is not from me, but lifted from the net......)


Finding the tongue weight (TW) of any trailer can, at first, seem like a difficult task. Fine-tuning the tongue weight to fall within the 9- to 15-percent weight range of the gross trailer weight (GTW) might seem nearly impossible. You'll be happy to know that it doesn't have to be complicated at all.

Most trailer owners already know their gross trailer weight -- the actual weight of the trailer. If you don't know your gross trailer weight, then you'll need to plan a trip to the local public scales. With an investment of only a few dollars and just a little bit of your time, you can get some valuable information. Knowing your gross trailer weight is critical to properly adjusting the tongue weight of your trailer. In fact, it's your starting point in a very simple equation.

As an example, let's say that your gross trailer weight is 564 pounds (256 kilograms). If you're trying to adjust your tongue weight to 11 percent of the gross trailer weight, then you want the tongue to weigh 62 (28 kilograms) pounds. Easy enough -- but how do you find out how much the tongue weighs right now?

Since this is a smaller trailer, you can measure the weight of the tongue using a standard bathroom scale. The trick is to make sure that the scale is at the same height as the hitch ball on the tow vehicle. Usually a small box or a cinder block will do the trick. Next, carefully place the tongue of the trailer directly on the scale and read the weight. This is your tongue weight. If the tongue weight is more than 62 pounds (28 kilograms), then you need to move some of the trailer's cargo rearward so that more weight is carried behind the trailer's axle. If the tongue weight is less than 62 pounds (28 kilograms), then you'll need to adjust some of the cargo toward the front of the trailer so more weight is carried in front of the trailer's axle. Keep your eye on the scale and you should be able to hit the target tongue weight.

Shopping for a trailer tongue today.....It looks like at minimum, I should use a 2" steel square tube with at least 3/16 wall thickness...at 36-42" with triangular bracing, I think Ill be okay....any thoughts on this, guys?


thanks!


JP
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