Chevy 60-66 truck bed trailer

[Mykol74]

Hey all, I'm very new to the forums. I found this place via google while looking for trailer mods/build-ups. Much to my pleasant surprise, I found this place.

I have an early 60's Chevy truck-bed trailer that I picked up off CL a few years ago. It had no wheels, and looked like you-know-what but I saw the potential and took it home. I only used it a handfull of times over the years, but am using it almost every other week this summer. So I decided I needed to do some much needed clean up.

I used a wire brush on the exposed frame and bumper, then painted it. I still need to take off the bed and do the rest of the frame, but I was waiting until I could get the bed floor fixed - the wood was so rotted that your foot would fall through just standing on it. I have a friend with a shop and we're going to get some diamond plate aluminum in the next week or so. We'll also weld on a trailer jack.

I added a bumper hitch on the back and a toolbox at the front. I bolted on the toolbox with a few L-brackets and it's not going anywhere. There might be some room for some jerry cans between it and the bed, something to try further down the road.















The coupling has been solid, but the clip on top of it is not as firm as I'd like. I picked up a new coupling that I'll probably put on next weekend.



A few weeks ago the tread on one of the tires came off on the highway (these tires are easily 20-25 years old, with minimum mileage). Fortunately I was able to get on the shoulder without incident, AND I had my other two "spare" tires in the back with me (which are much larger, you can see below) so changing them out was not a big deal. While they look more awesome, they are pretty old, so I'll be getting some decent tires before the summer is up.





I hope to turn this into a sleeper/hauler. I have an old 1962 Chevy longbed truck collecting rust that I'll end up chopping up and make another trailer out of it (thinking of just a flatbed for hauling). I'll be sure to post pics of the process.

 

[Mykol74]

Here are are some pics from a few weeks ago when I had it all loaded up.





I ended up not keeping the bikes on, partly because we weren't planning on a lot of biking, but also because the bike mount (not the bumper hitch) is a little loose and there would have been more wiggle than I would have liked.

 

[Mykol74]

I need a ladder rack or something. I picked up a cheap aluminum rack but it doesn't quite fit - will need some modification surely.

 

[Mark Harley]

Cool trailer! When you are ready to redo the bed get a classics industries Oak and stainless strip bed kit.
Take the time to make it retro cool. It will turn heads.

Here is another members build.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/65308-show-us-your-truck-bed-trailers

 

[Mykol74]

I definitely gave it some thought to replace the bed with wood, but I don't really have the time or budget. Plus I just want a "one time" solution that I don't have to mess with again. The aluminum diamond plate floor is my most attractive solution (plus I have a friend who has a shop, and he can be a huge help with getting this done).

And thanks for the link, I actually just found it like 10 minutes ago too. :drool:

 

[Mykol74]

Made some more progress today, using the spare tire mount and getting the wood cut for the bed. I probably won't install the wood until I'm ready to take off the body and sand down and paint the frame (challenge accepted!), I'm hoping it's not a lost cause already.

I have an idea for a rack frame, which I should know in a few weeks if it can be done.

I've been scouring CL for the last few days for a set of tires, and it's been exhausting to find a good deal for a good set of tires. My wheels are 15", so you can probably see my pain. Crossing my fingers as I think I have someone lined up for this weekend for a set of used Wrangler A/T's (I was this close to buying some new Chinese brand tires earlier this week).

 

[Mark Harley]

Use a table saw and dado those boards to fit with the original floor strips.

 

[Chili]

While I like the fenders on the old Chevy beds, you'd probably be well served on weight and usability by ditching them and going to a flat top trailer fender.

 

[AA1PR]

if its only for street use I'd cover that rusty finish in clear coat to preserve the patina of it

I have had great success with Permatex extend as a rust sealer/inhibitor once the frame is taken down to as close as bare metal as you can

 

[Mykol74]

Thanks AA1PR, I'll look into the Permatex as I think that might be what I end up doing (instead of sand blasting and powder coating).

I have been working on the trailer through most of August, with a couple of trips sprinkled in, so it had to stay usable for most of the time - which prevented me from doing any tear-downs. However, I was able to get new tires, replace the wood floor, and install new shock absorbers (best to do it with the bed out). I also have a rack that I cobbled together from IKEA parts and parts from a futon bed - it actually works very well.

 

[Mykol74]

Here are the rest of the pictures from the bed install. I didn't think all the way through the bolt solution. Once I got them all in, I realized there were just too many sticking out, so I removed all of them, drilled recessed holes to the existing holes, and put the bolts back in. What a PITA.

The original strips were useless, and I didn't see the point in buying new ones. So, I used the largest plywood I could buy (48 inches wide), which was still 2 inches too narrow in my 50 inch-wide bed. So I used to narrower planks to the width of where the first metal strip would have gone, then trimmed down the large plywood to fit the new width, and squeezed in the wood. Due to mild warping on the smaller pieces, this was not as easy as you'd think.

 

[Mykol74]

I also replaced the tailgate chains, to ensure there were no accidents with loading/unloading.

The rack is a combination of two IKEA parts. The first is the legs, which are from the GODVIN series. I got 3 of these in the as-is section for about $3 each. I had to buy the 4th on brand new for $15. None of the colors matched, so I applied black Gorilla tape (which is mo' better than standard duct tape).


The short aluminum horizontal bars are SKORVA midbeams for beds. My local IKEA had a palette full of them for sale at $10 each, so I picked up two.


The other two longer black horizontal bars are from a full-size futon bed - the length was perfect. I also had a shorter support bar from the same bed that I install on the bed rails so the kayaks have a place to rest while I open the tailgate.










At this stage, what I have works very well for my current needs, but I have some more things I want to do:
- figure out tent solution (RTT, or fold-out Coleman style?)
- figure out rack solution, based on tent solution
- add kitchen solution
- add stabilizer jacks to each corner

 

[Mark Harley]

Nice work! I like it.
When all the cleaning and fab work is complete will you be painting it?