Galvanic Corrosion

I wouldn't worry about it. All the erector set trailers use stainless hardware everywhere and that's all in direct contact. It'll explode from being dragged down our shite roads before that's a problem.

Thanks for the recommendations!

Other than the stainless hardware seizing up because its stainless it won't be a problem. Stainless hardware is going to pretty much fuse together no mater what is done to it and what its in contact with. Its just a matter of time.

High quality Galvanized hardware is also OK with an aluminum trailer. Galvanizing material is primarily zinc which is pretty close to aluminum chemically and electrically. High quality galvanized hardware may be better than stainless as stainless steel, especially low quality stainless steel, when under stress like movement and chafing, and especially when tooled, can bring most of the iron close to the surface making it, for all intents and purposes, high priced "carbon" steel (not really carbon but it will react very similarly). Galvanized hardware will only be a problem where any of the zinc is missing and its in contact with aluminum. When the iron in stainless steel begins to migrate it will be in contact with the aluminum across its entire area. Cadmium is probably the best solution - cadmium hardware is used in current carrying conductors (the impetus to galvanic reaction is current) to bolt copper to copper, aluminum to aluminum and copper to aluminum in the most corrosive environments on the planet and they never cause a corrosion issue....and they can be removed years and years down the road with ordinary hand tools, something that is damn near impossible with stainless hardware sometimes in hours after torquing....

quote:

---

first time you twist the head off a stainless steel bolt you’ll wish you used galvanized or at least put anti seize on the threads

---

Nothing in the world funner than trying to sawzall a 3/8 - 16 stainless steel bolt because the damned thing is rounded off LOL.