Stiffening up the skeletals by Ashley Taylor
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• With the object of avoiding troubles that can arise as a result of the "spreading" of the frame of a skeletal semi-trailer a new design has been intr9duced by Kariwell Trailers Ltd., Wilmsldtv Street, Salford 5. Lancs., the prototype of which has been supplied to G. Priestner Ltd.
Despite this strengthening the unladen weight comes out less, if anything, than that of many units of similar capacity, it being possible to carry a full 20-ton payload.
For the main frame 16 in. I-beam members are used with cross-bearers of 10 in, box section, reducing to 5 in, on the outside. These are built of 0.25 in. plate, bottomed up with 0.375 in. plate. The container trunnions are welded to the individual arms by the low temperature method before the arms themselves are welded to the plate. Any
twisting of the main frame longitudinals is checked by the use of three stabilizing crossmembers in the form of 5 in. tubes. These have 0.375 in. steel-plate gussets to give support for 10 in. along the tube and are similarly linked from the tube to the top of the main rail.
In general the skeletal trailer is similar in specification to the Kariwell tandem-axle trailer. This has a length of 33 ft. overall and a width of 8 ft. 2.5 in. The suspension and axles are RuberyOwen 2000 Series with nineleaf springs. Landing gear is Jost two-speed. The fifth wheel coupling is of 0.375 in. steel plate with 2 in. diameter kingpin. Three-line air brakes are employed.
A 1.125 in. hardwood floor is fitted to the standard semi-trailer. In this case the chock rail is of 6 in. by 2 in. by 0.125 in. channel or 3 in. by 2 in. by 0.25 in. angle with 3 in. by 6 in. channel front and rear.