Why are the prices of trailer axles so different?

The axle is one of the key parts of the semi-trailer, which is responsible for the load bearing, braking and maintenance of the vehicle. Many owners in the purchase of axles will face a problem: why look similar trailer axles, the price is so much different? Today, let's have a good talk about this topic.

First, the choice of raw materials.

In fact, no matter what brand of axle, its raw material is basically steel. However, between steel and steel, the difference is quite large, for example, different strength, hardness, weight, toughness of different steel, its price is not the same naturally.

According to the current market price, high strength alloy seamless steel pipe compared with ordinary steel pipe, the average price difference is about 1500-2000 yuan /t.

The stronger the comprehensive mechanical property of steel, the higher the index of load-bearing, durability, safety and other performance of the axle made of it, the higher the price of the finished axle naturally.

On the other hand, although the inferior steel can save a large amount of raw material costs for the axle factory, the performance of the axle is difficult to reach the standard, and there are even invisible cracks, so the axle performance of the manufacturer is afraid to guarantee.

Two, production technology.

At present, domestic trailer axle brands can be roughly divided into two kinds: one is to have its own specialized factory, axle from raw material selection to final assembly and molding, all in their own hands; The other is to buy semi-finished axles and parts from other companies and assemble them themselves, or to recycle old axles and refurbish them for sale.

Under normal circumstances, the former production scale is relatively large, technology, experience and capital strength is also relatively strong; The latter has a smaller production scale, and is mainly dominated by small brands, or even some "three no" products.

As a result, the market of hanging axles in the price is basically divided into two camps. Those selling too cheap, owners will have a good look at the relevant qualifications.

So, those large axle enterprises, its production process is different? To tell the truth, after years of development of the domestic axle industry, the relevant technology and process have been popularized in these large enterprises. The production line and other instruments or equipment are almost universal in the industry, and the difference in the process is not big.

But this does not mean that the production of the axle is simple, we take the axle enterprise of Liangshan commercial vehicle production base - DARO trailer axle as an example, a brief introduction to the production steps of the axle.

1. Selection of raw materials: DARO axle uses 20Mn2 high-strength alloy seamless steel pipe, with wall thickness ranging from 9mm-22mm according to different types of axle;

2. Raw material cutting: According to the axle drawings, the steel pipe is cut to facilitate subsequent processing;

3, hot rolling: the highest temperature can reach 1300℃, mainly through heating to improve the processing performance of steel, reduce casting defects;

4. Preliminary treatment of shaft head: according to the drawings, the shaft head part is cut to ensure the processing size of shaft head;

5, cold push square: if the customer needs square tube, it is necessary to use cold push square technology to process the round tube into square tube;

6, automatic quenching: digital medium frequency induction quenching machine, temperature 865℃, through heating to promote the transformation of austenite in steel to martensite, improve the hardness and strength of steel;

7, heat preservation and tempering: the temperature is generally about 480℃, the role is to eliminate the thermal stress of steel after quenching, stable conversion of martensite, improve the toughness of steel;

8. Shot blasting: clean up the residual oxide skin and oil pollution after the heat treatment process;

9. Axle straightening: automatic multi-point straightening equipment, accuracy up to 0.4-0.5mm;

10, spraying primer: for the axle to provide isolation, moisture-proof, anti-oxidation and anti-corrosion role, improve the adhesion of subsequent paint;

11, CNC machine processing: the shaft body boring, washing and milling, drilling, precision grinding, etc., to ensure the accuracy of the shaft head;

12, medium frequency induction treatment: mainly for the shaft head position to do strengthening treatment, prolong the service life of the axle;

13. Accuracy test of shaft head: processing the oxidized skin of the shaft head, acceptance of the size and thickness of the shaft head, and applying anti-rust oil after passing;

14, finish spraying: with primer, protect the shaft body from erosion;

15, welding semi-finished products: installation of shaft nut locking gasket, welding brake plate, spherical bearing, air chamber seat;

16. Anti-fatigue test: semi-finished axles are randomly checked. After millions of anti-fatigue tests, they enter the subsequent steps;

17, finished assembly: on the basis of welding semi-finished products, install wheel hub, brake drum/brake disc, internal and external bearings and other components. DARO trailer axle parts partners are well-known domestic manufacturers, among the best in their respective fields, parts quality is stable and reliable;

18. Finished product quality inspection: online and offline quality inspection methods are adopted to test the quality of finished axles.

19. Warehousing: After passing the quality inspection, DARO axles will enter the warehouse and arrange delivery according to customer requirements.

Therefore, the production steps of a qualified axle are very tedious, the cost of human and material resources involved is relatively high, and the price of the finished product will naturally rise. But correspondingly, such axles are also more reassuring in terms of performance.

3. Brand premium.

This point follows on from the previous article. Why in the production process of the condition, the same specifications of the axle price will be a lot of difference? That's because different manufacturers have different market positioning for their products and different operating costs.

Some brands take the high-end route, and "high-end" hook, the price naturally will not be cheap, and then do large sums of money for advertising and publicity, these costs will ultimately have to be paid by customers. For example, with the same material and process of production of the bag, the label is different, the price is not the same, although its performance is the same. The same goes for the axles.

It is important to note that brand premium is not synonymous with quality and performance. Those who take the affordable route of axle, such as the DARO trailer axle mentioned above, its quality and performance is not bad, but the price is more acceptable to customers, cost-effective is still very high, very suitable for car owners who are not particularly high budget to buy.

In addition, many owners want to spend a small amount of money to grab a large amount of money to buy the quality and performance, this kind of psychology can be understood, but it is not realistic, after all, the production cost is there. It is suggested that owners also need rational consumption, do not blindly chase cheap, otherwise they may be cheated by bad manufacturers, the early price is cheap, but the follow-up may face a series of use problems, and then spend money to repair, troublesome and costly, it is better to directly buy a cost-effective product.