Trailer Build

['05TJLWBRUBY]

Top Rail

Well, it's starting to look like something. I got the top rail built, then fought with the damn thing ALL day. Right back to the slowest builder/fabricator ever as mentioned earlier. Once I got the top rail set in place, I tacked it in at the corners then went around the centers from there and adjusted as needed. Thinking I was OK, I burned in the top 2" strips along the frame. Bad idea. It pulled the whole thing in well over 5/8" at the back end where the tailgate will be-where there's no bar across to hold it steady and level like in front-just the big open gap. So, had to cut it out, cut all my 2" strips on the centers down the sides, and try again. Tried a different approach and got better, but still not good enough. Even with 4x4 bracing and ratchet straps pulling the top rail almost 5/8" over to the opposite side and that far off-center, once burned in, it snapped back with a loud twang once I loosened the straps and removed the 4x4 bracing. Ended up cutting it all out 3 differnet times and finish welding for the 4th time to get it right. Was a real PITA, but it finally worked out. Some optical illusions in the pics looking down the rails-it's all square, level, centered and even. Still have some cleanup to do and some touch-up stuff, but I'm out of materials and need to re-stock supplies.

Here's a few shots of how it sits now:

more to come...

Best of Luck,

Mike

 

[redthies]

It might be the early hour that I am reading this thread, but after all the work and talk about the spacers and changing zerks and miging and tiging etc, didn't you say JT offered his spacers in 1.25, 1.5 & 2"??? Why not just put the 2" spacers on and save a heap of time?? I don't like spacers at all, but if you are going to run them, 1/2" more is probably not a big deal... My $.25

 

[R_Lefebvre]

Wow, that's some great workmanship. And looks like yours will be even heavier duty than mine. I can also relate to feeling like a slow worker, taking too much time, missing dates, etc.

 

['05TJLWBRUBY]

Wow, that's some great workmanship. And looks like yours will be even heavier duty than mine. I can also relate to feeling like a slow worker, taking too much time, missing dates, etc.

Wow! Thanks VERY much for the compliments... While our builds are MUCH different as we have different purposes in mind, I followed yours very closely as I feel the same way about your trailer. EXCELLENT attention to details, Great craftsmanship and build quality in your setup. You did a great job and I thoroughly enjoyed watching it's progress. BTW-on the tongue design, I had an idea of what/how I wanted to accomplish it, just hadn't seen exactly what I had in mind and how I was going to make it work. That is, right up until seeing exactly what I wanted to do on your build. I went about it a little different way, but again, different purposes, different designs. Same joint style overall at the tongue. Thanks for the pics-that is EXACTLY what I was looking for, just wasn't sure how to do it. This being my first build, and being pretty new to fab work myself, I have ideas in mind, just not sure how to execute them. Sure having fun learning though. Oh-diggin the new kitchen setup too by the way...

Thanks again! Schedule changed again, looks like I'll be off the end of this next week and get a chance to work on it again. Unfortunately, I think I've changed plans yet AGAIN, so I need to figure a few more details out and how to execute them for the next phase. Always something...

Best of Luck,

Mike

 

[inked33]

trailer is looking great especially for your first build/fabrication project. have fun with it and personally i think its more imporant to take your time and make sure everything is right, speed comes with experience. look forward to seeing the finished product

 

[805gregg]

Those corner reinforcement pieces are called gussets. You are smart, starting the frame upside down, I wish I would have. Beautiful job.

 

['05TJLWBRUBY]

Those corner reinforcement pieces are called gussets. You are smart, starting the frame upside down, I wish I would have. Beautiful job.

Thanks!

Now, to me though, I always thought a "gusset" would be more like if I had have put the plate up more inside the frame at the corner, or inside the joint, joining the two beams together, say midway vertically through the beam-if that makes sense at all? Instead of being where I put it in the pics above, down inside the joint itself-I thought those were gussets. This is where I'm confused as I THOUGHT where I used them, and similar to where if you would do a frame stretch for instance, you'd put them on the outside of the joint, then they become "fish plates", is that not correct? I guess it's splitting hairs and really doesn't make a difference, I'm just really curious in the correct terminology for my own knowledge.

Anyway, time for a small update...

Best of Luck,

Mike

 

['05TJLWBRUBY]

Tires

Finally broke down and bought some tires. Had a bit of a tough decision after fighting with the local shops on what they recommend vs. what I KNOW works, and ended up going against my own rules for buying local. I generally prefer to support local economy for tires, but with the disagreement on recommendations for the area here, and for the prices they wanted to charge for TWO tires, I thought I could do better searching on-line. I did by over $120 MINIMUM after tax and shipping to my door. It took some work and a fair amount of searching, but I somehow stumbled upon these guys at tire crawler.com. There site is here:

http://tirecrawler.com/

I don't know that I've heard of them before-if I had, I had forgotten. Somehow I found them just at the last minute though just before ordering elsewhere and wound up saving a bunch. They had about the cheapest price I could find-anywhere. I called them up and was pleasantly surprised when they said YES, we do have the tires in stock. I wanted 255/85/16 Toyo MT's, which seemed to be hit or miss and out of stock everywhere local and a special order item. I have to admit I did call one other place prior to finding these guys, and they too were special order. Tirecrawler had them in stock, for the cheapest price I could find. With the cheapest shipping too, I couldn't turn it down. Placed the order and was told they would be on the truck that day, and likely to me no later than Wednesday. I ordered Friday morning, received an email confirmation just a few seconds after hanging up the phone along with warranty info, tire performance, mounting and use info and tire registration link as well. Tires arrived Tuesday early afternoon! I have to say, for the short time on the phone, knowledge they had-or at least seemed to have while we spoke, fast email response and follow through with their word on fast shipping, I am thoroughly impressed with these guys. I'll definitely do business with them again when it comes time to replace my Jeep tires-which will also be Toyo MT's in 255/85/16's when my current BFG's wear out. Thought it was worth posting here as a good source for cheap tires. I'd not heard of them before, at least not that I remember, and from this experience, would definitely recommend them.

Anyway, here's how they look:

I thought they looked a little tall compared to my current 255/85/16 BFG MT's, so I rolled them out side-by-side to compare. Sure enough, they're 7/8" taller, measured from a level. Hard to tell in the pic, but it was level when I measured. This isn't exactly fair as the BFG's have around 25-30K on them right now, but that won't account for almost a 1" difference in height. My BFG's measured about 33.5" tall mounted, aired up when brand new. These Toyo's measure 33.25" UNmounted, sitting here as they are now. I suspect when mounted and with a little air in them, they may grow a little more-will be interesting to see how they measure up once I get that done. Right now, they look big.

Here's a side shot:

Just for giggles, I set them next to the old 245/75/16 MT/R's that I'm using as a "roller" on the axle-they're a full 4" taller, so just as I guessed, I'll gain about 2" in ground clearance once mounted. This means my tongue will be up another 2" and my swingout likely won't open. Looks like it may be time to ditch my Jeeperman rear bumper swingout and come up with something new...

Off to pick up more steel and get back to the fab work...

more to come...

Best of Luck,

Mike

 

['05TJLWBRUBY]

Lid Frame and Shackle Mounts

Did some work on the lid framework and also made some shackle mounts for the rear bumper. The lid was kind of a PITA as it involved 45's again, and I HATE fitting those stupid things. Took forever measuring the trailer box frame, then measuring the lid frame pieces and trying to make sure the lid would work out to the same measurement as the box frame when it was welded together. Trying to fit the damn 45's and work them both length wise and width wise in order to get them to fit and mate up to be perfectly square and meet the same specs as the box frame was a bit of a challenge, but in the end, I finally got it. It fits, and looks like it works well. Main outter frame is 2x2 .120 wall, then the two long center beams are light wall 2x1 .083 standing on edge to save weight, with the 3 cross pieces laying flat running length wise down the middle. This should work and be strong enough for what I need up top-I don't plan on having anything up there anyway. The lid is basically to keep out the weather, and trail dust. I MAY throw a few light weight items up there later on, we'll see, but for now, nothing heavy is planned on going up there so this should be plenty stout enough once it's skinned.

Here's the main frame. You can see the shackle mounts at the bottom as well:

Here's how it fits on the trailer. I didn't take any all around shots, but it's actually square to the main box all the way around. Don't know if I got lucky, or my measurements actually paid off. It actually fits! Now to get some hinges figured out and some latches to suck it down tight, then worry about some weather stripping to seal it up.

Here's another shot of the shackle mounts. I actually had one of the guys at work drill them for me as I don't have a 7/8" drill bit here and sure as hell wasn't going to buy one just for this. They're made from 1"x2" solid bar stock and I had a heck of a time rounding down the edges and getting the scale off. Once I THOUGHT I had them good enough and after taking the pics, I realized I didn't get the scale off where they'll be welded on the front side of the bumper. I'm welding them all the way through the bumper, front and back and they're long enough to stick out the back side roughly 1/2" if need be. I can adjust length as needed depending on how much I want sticking out the front and compare with the receiver. The receiver sticks out 3.25", so I'll likely tuck these back just a hair from that measurement. Not sure on exact placement just yet, as I'll have the recessed STT LED's on the outside of them, then the recessed backup LED's mounted inboard of them. These will also be somewhat of a protection for the LED's against backing into things and breaking the lenses as well. I hope anyway. They aren't perfectly even, and took some time to make, but saved the $30 plus $10 in shipping you'd pay to order them. Plus ordering takes the fun out of doing it yourself. Besides, these add a little character to the trailer. As if it needed it...

That's it for today. Think I'm going to mount the tires temporarily so I can start the fender work and decide exactly what I want to do with the wheels for now, just to get a little further along on the build. If I can get the fenders done sometime in the not too distant future, it won't be too long after that I can start thinking about some sheet material.

more to come...

Best of Luck,

Mike

 

['05TJLWBRUBY]

The Beast

Got the tires mounted this morning so I tossed the axle under it and mounted them so I can start working on fenders. I don't know what I was thinking with the overall size of this in all reality. It's as big as I planned on it being, but you really have no idea how BIG something is until it's life-size and sitting in front of you. This beast sits at 65 1/4" tall at the top of the lid without the sheeting. Considering I'm 5'10", it's just under 5" shorter than me! My wife about had a heart attack when she saw it sitting in the garage. She's happy with it's size overall and thinks it will work great for our camping and useage, but doesn't really know what to think overall of it's sheer mass. She just laughed when I said I still need to add the fenders, which will stick out 13" off the sides. She does like the idea that they'll serve as both a platform and a step to work from and get things in/out of. So far, there's just over 27 1/4" clearance at the bottom of the frame. The Toyo's did gain a tiny bit of height and are every bit of 33.5" tall mounted and aired up. They're now over 1.25" bigger than my current BFG's on the Jeep. While I had them balanced, I also had a 3/4 sipe done, which runs roughly out to the center of the outter lugs. I've had good luck doing it this way in the past, so figured it should work well on the Toyos too. Have a family gathering to attend this afternoon, so no more work for today. Maybe start work on fenders tomorrow. I really hope I don't have to relocate the spring hangars-it feels balanced pretty well now the way it sits, but I can easily see it getting tongue heavy with a box up front and the rest of the sheeting still needing to be added. Oh, and the Jeeperman DEFINITELY has to go.

more to come...

Best of Luck,

Mike

 

[Box Rocket]

What about just flipping the axle and going SUA to drop the height down a little so you don't have to mess with your swing out?

 

[R_Lefebvre]

Wow, that almost looks like it will be almost as big as mine. It's going to have a rear door as well as the lid right?

I think the roof rails should be fine. I used 1x2x.125 and I've got my Maggiolina Large up there, supported solely on them, no problem at all. When you add the sheeting, are you going to weld it to all the bars, or what? If not weld, be sure to bond it with an adhesive at least.

 

['05TJLWBRUBY]

Box Rocket-

I have actually thought about doing just that. I figure going SUA will drop me about 4", which is looking like what I'm over on my receiver right now, so that should theoretically put me even on a stinger. I'm sitting about 27 1/2" or so ground clearance at the bottom of the frame, so dropping 4" roughly would still leave me a pretty respectable 23 1/2" GC, or nearly 2'. Not bad really-I don't think anyway.

Another area I'm wondering about is the front spring hangars are 3-4" tall. I haven't measured, just eyeballing them. The spring mount is clear at the bottom. Looking at my other trailers, these range in size from just an inch or two, up to this size I have here. Other trailers I've seen on the road have varying holes with springs mounted in any position in between. I'm wondering now if I could re-drill a new hole up front mid-way in between the hangar. This would lower me as much as 2" easily. Would that have any adverse effects though that I don't know about right off hand??? Seems like the easiest option right now, but as easy as it is, I'm sure it must have some drawbacks-no? If it is OK to do, that might just be enough clearance to buy me what I need to not have to do anything with my swingout.

As for the swingout, since having our beautiful baby girl, my wife likes to load her in the back of our LJ as it's easy for her to get her over the back seat and into her car seat that way. She HATES opening the swingout tire carrier with our baby in her arms and messing with the latches and such. I've had the tire carrier on for 4 years or more now and must say while it does it's job, I've not been that fond of it either. Thinking of building my own bumper, then designing a separate swingout or tire carrier independant of the bumper anyway. This issue now just gets me motivated to get it done quicker.


R_Lefebvre-

Yes, it will have a rear door. I originally intended on having a drop-down tailgate, which would also serve as a table platform of sorts when camping. Looking at the sheer size of it now though, I'm wondering if there might be a better solution. With the receiver and soon to be shackle mounts sticking out, it won't fold all the way down, so it will stick out 30+", which will make crawling in/out hard to do. This is a multi-purpose utility trailer though as well, so I need mutli-functionality out of the rear gate. Was thinking a ramp-like deal would be handy, but at this height, it likely would not reach the ground, or would be too steep. Thought about a side-mounted door, or double doors, but then would loose the flat table top/platform use. Up to ideas at this point, but the wife will likely have the ultimate say in what she wants-have to keep her happy you know! Oh-I should note I'd like the rear gate/door removeable, along with the lid for when I need to run without them when doing utility work.

As to the sheeting-yes, I intend to fully weld it all to the beams and main supports. That's the plan anyway. I've not had good luck with adhesives or sealants and such in the past, and for off-road use, I just think welding will be the strongest/most secure, solid way to handle it. Should tie everything together and hold it long-term better. I HOPE anyway. Having never done this before, I'm just guessing here.

Need to get back out to the fenders. Having a tough time with some design changes again. Had to take a lunch break, better get back to it.

Best of Luck,

Mike

 

[Zelix]

Great looking build. It looks really strong and durable. I will be watching to see how it progresses. :sombrero:

 

[Trailpsycho]

Box Rocket-

I Thought about a side-mounted door, or double doors, but then would loose the flat table top/platform use. Up to ideas at this point, but the wife will likely have the ultimate say in what she wants-have to keep her happy you know! Oh-I should note I'd like the rear gate/door removeable, along with the lid for when I need to run without them when doing utility work.

As to the sheeting-yes, I intend to fully weld it all to the beams and main supports. That's the plan anyway. I've not had good luck with adhesives or sealants and such in the past, and for off-road use, I just think welding will be the strongest/most secure, solid way to handle it. Should tie everything together and hold it long-term better. I HOPE anyway. Having never done this before, I'm just guessing here.

Need to get back out to the fenders. Having a tough time with some design changes again. Had to take a lunch break, better get back to it.

Best of Luck,

Mike

Mike- A couple of thoughts for you. With two doors, instead of the tailgate, you could have a hinge on the bottom of the door with some drop/fold down tables. Or simply holes/bosses that accept "posts" from a table top that you would insert in to the bosses/holes and use a wire or rod as a limiter to keep your flat surface level. You could have one of these on each "half" of the swing out doors or a single large shelf (folding perhaps) that mounts between them when open....it makes it modular.

As to the adhesives, the body panel adhesives are wicked strong once cured. If you can borrow/rent the gun, it would be a great way to seal as well as eliminate rattling while permanently attaching the lid. I would still put a couple of tacks, but the BP adhesives of today are really strong--typically the sheet will tear before the adhesive gives. Good luck.