Originally Posted by
campfire
Cool project!
Do you ever worry about the tongue fatiguing from cyclical loading caused by the (longer) bending moment? I have a similar (stock) trailer, and I can see the tongue flexing when heavily loaded. Seems like your extra length would make that problem worse. Though your mounting hardware does look more rigid than stock, so perhaps that helps minimize the deflection?
Hmm...
Interesting question.
I have noticed the tongue bar flexing with a lot of weight. That was one of the reasons why I went with the heavy steel parts. The rubber rod/spring hitch on the OEM design was way too weak for my uses. The tongue bar is marginal. I have not had any problem with it yet. However, if it does fatigue I can make a new one easy enough with thicker wall material.