Double-Axle Cargo Trailers

A double-axle cargo trailer runs twin braked axles for a 3,000 kg gross vehicle mass. We stock them on 3 m and 4 m decks over a 100 x 50 mm chassis, with 14 inch wheels, 8-blade leaf springs and a damped galvanised cast-iron coupler.

Two axles do two things. They double the load rating, and more importantly they change how the trailer behaves. A tandem sits flatter under an uneven load, resists the pitching that a single axle transmits straight into the tow ball, and stays composed at highway speed in a way a single-axle trailer at the top of its rating does not. If a wheel deflates, the second axle on that side carries the corner long enough to stop safely.

The chassis steps up to match. Where the single-axle trailers use 75 x 38 mm U-channel, these run 100 x 50 mm, which is what stops a 4 m deck flexing in the middle when the load is concentrated over one point.

Deck options cover 3.0 x 1.5 m with 900 mm sides, 4.0 x 1.5 m, and 4.0 x 1.8 m with 1.2 m sides. The 1.8 m wide deck is worth the extra where you are loading pallets, because 300 mm of width is the difference between a pallet fitting square and sitting skew across the trailer for 400 kilometres.

Couplers are rated from two tonnes to 2.7 tonnes braked, in damped galvanised cast iron. High-side mesh versions are available where the load is bulky, and drop sides on all four faces are standard.

This is the specification for hire fleets, contractors and anyone whose trailer earns money rather than helping on weekends.