I learned from one of our mechanics that heim joints (<a href="http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_end_bearing">http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_end_bearing</a>) are a burly upgrade for off road 4x4 and rock crawling vehicles.  They also make for really really really strong bicycle trailer hitches with good articulation.<div>
<br></div><div>He used one for competing in the &quot;been hurt&quot; chariot races at the most recent mini bike winter.</div><div><br></div><div>The heim joint actually broke between the casing and the threaded shaft (see Wikipedia picture).  A bigger one would have been fine, or welding gussets between the casing and the threaded shaft would have also worked.</div>
<div><br></div><div>But chances are your heim joints won&#39;t have to withstand being rolled over by a giant hamster ball with two people in it.<span></span></div><div><br>On Sunday, May 20, 2012, Mark Rehder  wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div style="word-wrap:break-word">Nicely done!<div><br></div><div>I&#39;ll chime in once again with no-weld trailers I&#39;ve built using ideas from Bill Sullivan&#39;s Cart book (found at my local library many years ago):</div>
<div><div><br></div><div><a href="http://drumbent.com/trailer.html" target="_blank">http://drumbent.com/trailer.html</a><br><div><br></div><div><a href="http://drumbent.com/trailer_big.html" target="_blank">http://drumbent.com/trailer_big.html</a></div>
<div><br></div><div>Other cargo trailers I&#39;ve built using existing frames, plus trailers built by others using the above instructions sent in by others:</div><div><br></div><div><a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.ca/search/label/trailer" target="_blank">http://drumbent.blogspot.ca/search/label/trailer</a></div>
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<div><div style="font-size:12px">Mark Rehder - Coordinator</div><div style="font-size:12px">re-Cycles Community Bike Shop</div><div style="font-size:12px"><div><a href="http://re-cycles.ca" target="_blank">http://re-cycles.ca</a></div>
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<br><div><div>On 2012-05-20, at 12:17 PM, Froilan Eliseo Landeros wrote:</div><br><blockquote type="cite">wow.  these are fantastic.<br><br><div>On Sun, May 20, 2012 at 11:14 AM,  <span dir="ltr">&lt;<a>veganboyjosh@gmail.com</a>&gt;</span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote style="margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;margin-left:0.8ex;padding-left:1ex;border-left-color:rgb(204,204,204);border-left-width:1px;border-left-style:solid">

here&#39;s a no-weld trailer i built a while ago. it&#39;s based CLOSELY on the one that&#39;s depicted in the back of Aaron Weiler&#39;s fantastic bookelet/zine, Community Bike Cart Design. the zine, more pics, and resources on diy bike trailer building are available here:<div>




<a href="http://bikecart.pedalpeople.com/" target="_blank">http://bikecart.pedalpeople.com/</a></div><div><div><br></div><div>Microcosm Publishing also sells the zine. </div><div><br></div><div>here are some photos i took of the trailer i built. once the image loads, you can click on it to zoom:</div>




<div><br></div><div>the full trailer:</div><div><a href="http://i.imgur.com/n8ZxE.jpg" target="_blank">http://i.imgur.com/n8ZxE.jpg</a></div><div><br></div><div>the hitch, which is basically three links of normal/loop chain. one is bolted to the trailer. one is bolted to the derailleur hanger. the middle link provides the swivel in 3 axes. you can&#39;t see the chain because i covered it with inner tube to make it look a little more slick and to provide a little bit of stiffness. and yes, it&#39;s a bolt-on trailer. i wanted it to be as usable for as many types of bikes as possible, including bmx and big box types. </div>




<div><a href="http://i.imgur.com/XSSox.jpg" target="_blank">http://i.imgur.com/XSSox.jpg</a></div><div><a href="http://i.imgur.com/XyAhZ.jpg" target="_blank">http://i.imgur.com/XyAhZ.jpg</a></div><div><br></div><div>the hitch arm connected to the trailer body. the bolts are standard carriage bolts, but you could use any number of nuts+bolts from a bike. i clamped the rim to the tubing where the bolts go through in orrder to both drill out the spoke holes in the rim as well as line up the tubing.  </div>




<div><a href="http://i.imgur.com/VVZ3F.jpg" target="_blank">http://i.imgur.com/VVZ3F.jpg</a></div><div><br></div><div>more hitch arm closeup:</div><div><a href="http://i.imgur.com/nCRho.jpg" target="_blank">http://i.imgur.com/nCRho.jpg</a></div>


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</div><div>wheel connected to fork/handlebar. this is the one thing i&#39;m not completely stoked about. if you have to replace a tube or tire, you have to unbolt the frame of the thing. for the handlebar ends, i flattened them with a hammer/anvil, and then bent them to 90 degrees in the vice. obviously you&#39;ll want to use steel bars for this. </div>




<div><a href="http://i.imgur.com/h7DH8.jpg" target="_blank">http://i.imgur.com/h7DH8.jpg</a></div><div><br></div><div>i&#39;ve been asked about how it tracks when you ride, and i think i just lucked into getting it right the first time. my plan was to use the stems where the forks connect to adjust one wheel or the other if the tracking was off, but once it was assembled, i found that it didn&#39;t need any. your mileage may vary. </div>




<div><br></div><div>i have a commercial trailer that i&#39;ve used for cargo for a long time, and it has a floor and sides and a regular hitch that fits the one on my bike, and is much better suited for hauling cargo quickly/easily, so i didn&#39;t really use this one to haul anything other than to try it out around the block when i first built it. i did lend it to a friend for a bike move, and got good feedback from the person who used it for that. </div>


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<div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br><div>On Sun, May 20, 2012 at 9:24 AM,  <span dir="ltr">&lt;<a>christopher@holisticcycles.com</a>&gt;</span> wrote:<br>




<blockquote style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;padding-left:1ex;border-left-color:rgb(204,204,204);border-left-width:1px;border-left-style:solid"><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:10pt"><blockquote style="padding-left:8px;font-size:10pt;margin-left:8px;border-left-color:blue;border-left-width:2px;border-left-style:solid">




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<span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:10pt"><div>I have a no weld trailer, I made it with a Tubing benders, Drill, Bolts, 1&quot;,3/4&quot;, 1/2&quot; conduit, solid axles and stroller wheels and a little imagination. This design can be made small or big, If you ask for photos I can show you the large one is supporting 600 LBS +2-200#men 1-200# sofa sleeper. Try to stop that on a down hill!!!!</div>




<div><br></div><div>Christopher Wallace</div><div>Holistic Cycles</div><div>140 Harrison St</div><div>Oak Park, IL. 60304</div>&lt;</span></div></blockquote></span></div></blockquote></div></div></div></div></div></blockquote>
</div></blockquote></div></div></div></div></div></blockquote></div><br><br>-- <br>Sincerely,<br><br>Jonathan Morrison<br>Executive Director<br>Bicycle Collective<br>2312 S. West Temple<br>Salt Lake City, UT 84115<br>w: 801-328-2453<br>
c: 801-688-0183<br>f: 801-466-3856<div><a href="http://www.bicyclecollective.org" target="_blank">www.bicyclecollective.org</a><br><br>The mission of the Bicycle Collective is to promote cycling as an effective and sustainable form of transportation and as a cornerstone of a cleaner, healthier, and safer society. The Collective provides refurbished bicycles and educational programs to the community, focusing on children and lower income households.
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