OT: Ifor Williams trailers

[BogMonster]

This is OT but would appreciate some input from forum members. I have an Ifor Williams GD series trailer about eight months old I suppose. In the time I have used it (no more than a dozen times and I expect about a hundred miles in total, probably less in fact) the jockey wheel clamp has failed (come loose and let the jockey wheel down onto the road) four or five times. Final straw was this morning and its bent the tube and f***ed it completely. It doesn't matter how tight you do up the clamp - I did it as tight as I could with both hands this morning and I drove about 400 yards down a rough rocky track and the stupid clamp had come off and the wheel fallen down. I tried straightening the tube in a press but it is knackered and you can barely turn the handle now with both hands even with no load on it.

I've seen another trailer here just the other day with a completely shredded jockey wheel which was evidently the same thing so it is my opinion that it is a design fault with the clamps. Has anybody else with an IW trailer had similar problems? I'm going to write to them and see if I can at least get a replacement jockey wheel out of them on the basis the damn thing that holds it up isn't fit for purpose

Any comments appreciated please!

[bluespanner]

I dont know if the GD series is the same, but on my little LT105, i had she same problem. I replaced the smooth jockey wheel with a ribbed version off an ifor cattle trailer, which has a much more positive engagement on the clamp.

[kkk2]

Yep ribbed for me too

we welded a small chain on down by the wheel which secures the wheel in the up position too. never had any problem with it since we did this

[V8 90 JON]

Hi i have a ifor williams, the jockey wheel has groves around its circumferance and when you lock it of its imperative to get the pin from the locking clamp between the groves ,however im on my 2nd complete set up for similar reasons to you ,i now have a small "extention"to tighten the clamp. bit of a pain in the ar*e but beter than £80 for a complete assembly.

[Guest noggy]

on our cattle trailer, the jockeys shaft is ribbed () but out ifor horse trailer has the same problem!

welding a link of chain at the bottom sounds a good idea, so you can chain it up whilst in transit!

[OilIT]

on our cattle trailer, the jockeys shaft is ribbed () but out ifor horse trailer has the same problem!

welding a link of chain at the bottom sounds a good idea, so you can chain it up whilst in transit!

got a goods trailer and horsebox from ifor - but not had this problem, - when you pull the jockey wheel out there is supposed to be a 'shoe' which the clamp pushes against the shaft of the jockey wheel - is thi smissing or something?

[TJ101]

Stephen,, have the same trailer IW GD105 (? IIRC) about 15 months old now, and never had a problem with the jockey wheel,, has been towed off road a bit, with the quad in,,

[Ian M]

yeah ive had the same problem on mine a few times, i think it is when you just clamp to up and its right on the edge of a rib, it vibrates loose!

[Rightfoot]

Whenever I'm towing I always make sure I sit the wheel bracket in the chassis (assuming its a c-section profile). Never had one drop when I do this, but have had them work loose otherwise

The best one was towing up the M6 behind a Series II - the jockey wheel came down, lifted the rear end and the whole lot (Land Rover and trailer) spun round and ended up parked facing the wrong way on the hard shoulder!

[discomikey]

what we do is get a piece of piping about the right size to slip over it and use it as extra leverage,

it works a treat (untill you forget where you put the pipe when you eant to take the trailer off:P)

mikey

[Orgasmic Farmer]

had the same problem on a LT85. Ended up over tightening the thing causing it to snap off. I do not recommend this as it is a pic to get out due to the fact the hitch is inside the chassis legs so its hard to reach and secondly for some reason known only to Ifor Williams the thread on the locking pin is a very strange imperial one. I searched the farm for a suitable replacement and ended up taking a non vital bolt off our 40 year old Massey Ferguson

[BogMonster]

Thanks for the replies, not an isolated problem then probably worse here due to the rough roads though, the last half mile down to the house is 15mph max and is where most of the problem has been!

My jockey wheel tube is smooth not ribbed, and yes it does have a "shoe" on the end of the clamp screw. I have got a heavy duty ribbed one I fitted on my boat trailer and it wasn't very expensive so I must measure the tube on my Ifor one and I might just order one of those if it is the same size.

Tim, mine's a GD85 (8ft x 5ft box) so a bit smaller than yours but I expect the same hitch/jockey arrangement. Wishing I had bought a bigger one now and a dropside tipper not a GD as the tailboard is the most useless arrangement ever invented when you try and cart crushed rock in it

Good idea about making something to tie it up, the replacement will be getting that!

[nas90]

Had my LT 126 Ifor trailer for over 3 years now it's 12ft long 5.5ft wide twin axle 2 tonne gross. The top of the jockey wheel has a 'R' clip to stop rotation of the handle put there by one of Ifor's gnomes.

However, when I stow the jockey wheel I always get the tyre of the wheel inside the 'C' section of the drawbar and then tighten the clamp screw. The Ifor website only shows a rear view of the GD so not sure if the drawbar is tall enough to accomodate the tyre? Never but never had a problem with the jockey moving whilst towing.

[upnover4x4]

Ifor williams trailers dont like being raised on the jockey wheel once loaded. Ideally the trailer height needs to be set before loading commences. The internal buttress threads have buggered up on mine due to this fact of trying to get the trailer height up when loaded. Its always better to leave the trailer high than have to elevate it on the jockey. Not ideal but saves the threads.Never had a problem with the jockey dropping, so long as it is positioned correctly in th frame apeture. Hired a ct177 car transporter recently & the lender had had the probs you mention. He had extended the length of the securing lever by 4-6". Done 600miles without any probs when we used it.

[pinny]

when we run 15 ifor trailers twin wheel plant carrying 1.5ton mini diggers we must of had shares in jockey wheels almost daily thay would come back bent twisted or missing the best is the ribbed version with a lynch pin/ rclip to secure the handle ill try to find a part no for the jockey wheel chris

[rusty_wingnut]

i have the ribbed setup with R clip on my beavertail. works a treat.

[BogMonster]

Ifor williams trailers dont like being raised on the jockey wheel once loaded. Ideally the trailer height needs to be set before loading commences. The internal buttress threads have buggered up on mine due to this fact of trying to get the trailer height up when loaded. Its always better to leave the trailer high than have to elevate it on the jockey.

I've had mine loaded to capacity (ahem) with Type 1 aggregate and not had a problem with the jockey wheel raising it to take it off the vehicle but admittedly only on a few occasions - no idea whether it will last but it feels OK. Or at least it did until it hit the road and now you can hardly turn it at all.

I've just sent an email to Ifor Williams requesting a replacement jockey wheel so will see what happens!

[disco_al]

it's a fairly common problem, i have had the same happen on at least 3 different twin axle flatbeds with the ribbed version. the chain idea gets my vote as most useful, other option would be to drill a hole through both tubes at the base by the clamp and insert a pin to stop it dropping too far.

it does seem related to the road surface though....

slightly o/t, but does anyone else think it's a bit weird that it's cheaper to buy a new wheel and tyre than tyre on it's own as well? a friend of mine has got a nice pile of wheels with knackered tyres on now....