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I have a Schwinn double bicycle trailer for my kids, but it is broken.

The black plastic part pictured fits at the base of the right wall and connects it to the trailer frame. A bolt goes through the hole to allow the wall to fold-up for storage.

As you can see the plastic has broken, so the wall of the trailer collapses, making the trailer unusable.

I asked Schwinn customer support and their response was:

I'm afraid we don't have that part in stock any longer to repair your trailer. You may be able to find the parts online. I would recommend looking for plugs for canopy frame arms.

Plugs for canopy arms doesn't yield any search results for me.

Does anyone know what this part is called?

Where could I find a replacement?

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  • Are you googling 'schwinn bicycle trailer plug canopy arm' or just 'plugs for canopy arms'?
    – Argenti Apparatus
    Mar 12, 2019 at 20:36
  • I'd take the old one to a really good camping shop, one that stocks lots of odd spare parts for frame tents and caravan awnings. But I've got a reasonably well-stocked shop nearby and an ideal one a few miles away.
    – Chris H
    Mar 12, 2019 at 21:50
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    I can't quite see what its for - there's a black rubbery bung at the bottom of a side-hoop. Is it supposed to be part of the hinge? I can see a pin in one photo. Perhaps talking to a 3D printer fab shop and see what they can reproduce in a hard rubber or a suitable plastic ? This does look fixable, to me.
    – Criggie ♦
    Mar 13, 2019 at 6:19
  • If you have access to a workshop, could be possible to turn and mill this part out of any number of rubbery plastics. Its a trailer - doesn't have to be perfect. You could also look at replacing all four(?) hinges with something different that removes the rubbery buffer completely.
    – Criggie ♦
    Mar 16, 2019 at 2:58

2 Answers 2

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Bicycle Trailer hinge part.

Yes the original is moulded in Plastic but quite easy to replace with a piece of metal.

take a piece of aluminum tube that fits either inside or outside your present tube. Drill a hole through the tube close to the end for the bolt to pass through. Put a bolt through the hole so the hole will not be distorted, then tap the end of the tube down so that it forms the shape that will allow it to hinge up and down without fouling on the square tube frame of the trailer. you will have to cut out the rivet that holds the plastic piece in place and replace it with a bolt, use Loktite to stop nut getting loose.

An alternative, use a piece of flat steel about 1.2mm thick and 20mm wide i guess 150-200 mm long. cut out the rivet that holds the plastic moulded part in place. fold the steel into a u shape so it fits around the outside of the damaged plastic part, mark where to drill holes so that the steel strap now holds the damaaged plastic into place and a new bolt goes through the steel and through where the old rivet was. enjoy cycling again. P

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  • I'd definitely go for a steel solution over drilling an aluminum tube. Especially if I were putting my child in the trailer. Aluminum doesn't handle stress well, and drilling a hole at home is likely to leave a lot of residual stress from the drill action, along with stress risers at the edges of the drilled hole.
    – Andrew Henle
    Apr 16, 2019 at 15:48
  • I like your suggestions - both sound like practical and workable alternatives. Welcome to SE.
    – Criggie ♦
    Apr 17, 2019 at 3:25
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The part is called an "Internal Eye End" or an "Internal Pole Eye End"

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eTrailer

The trick will be finding one that actually fits what you have.
Remove the eye end you have - you'll need to drill out the rivet in your pole - use a set punch to give the drill bit a starting place, then drive the rivet out, then remove the eye end.
Measure the diameter of your eye end and the length.
Might be a good 3D print candidate

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  • 3D Printing might work, depends on the loads applied and where the layer lines end up. Injection-moulded parts like the original are far stronger than 3d printing, but when designing a print one can beef-up other dimensions like the thickness, where possible.
    – Criggie ♦
    Jan 6 at 1:12

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