Bolt-together fiberglass Jeep-tub trailer kit

[jeepdreamer]

neat.

Good choice. I think the angular will suit the look of the trailer better.

Agreed. The rounder design also makes it a little harder to get stuff to fit. Sometimes hard cases or boxes or what not just creates huge dead spaces with the rounder style.

 

[jscherb]

Today I had the yellow trailer out of the garage so I thought it would be fun to set up the new molds next to the trailer (and the bed of the Retro Wrangler) for a quick comparison... if anyone wants a big trailer, this kind of shows the largest tub these molds can make:

The yellow trailer tub is 7' 5"; using the longest side panel the molds can make (8') results in a tub that would be 8' 7" long, a foot longer than the yellow trailer.

The proof-of-concept trailer I'm planning to make from the molds will have a tub about 4' 4" long, so roughly half the length of the size mocked up here.

 

[jeepdreamer]

Next to the retro its a little hard to visualize. Not only is the retro distracting (drool) but somehow the stepsides draw the eye away and make the bolt together look really big? Maybe put it next to the LJ for something different? Or maybe its just me...?

 

[jscherb]

Next to the retro its a little hard to visualize. Not only is the retro distracting (drool) but somehow the stepsides draw the eye away and make the bolt together look really big? Maybe put it next to the LJ for something different? Or maybe its just me...?

The interior size of the Retro bed is roughly 48.5' wide x 6' 5" long. The interior size of the largest trailer tub the molds can make is roughly 58" wide x 8' 5" long, so yes the trailer tub is a lot larger than the Retro bed. The inside dimensions of the yellow trailer are roughly 58" wide by 7' 3" long.

 

[jscherb]

I built the inner fender master today, here are some photos of it. The vertical flange is a separate piece, and will be clamped in place when I make a mold from this master, so different width inner fenders can be made from this same master by changing the position of the flange.

Top photo: 7" wide inner fender, correct for the Harbor Freight frame I'll be using for the proof-of-concept trailer.

Bottom left: 12" wide inner fender allows plenty of clearance for trailers with narrower track widths.

Bottom right: 4.5" wide inner fender allows for about 49" between the inner fenderwells so 4x8 sheets could lay on the floor between the fenders. Requires a wider track width.

Over the next few days I'll finish this with wood sealer, high build primer and epoxy primer, and I'll make a mold from it later in the week. It's the last mold to be made to complete the set of molds for the trailer tub.

 

[fasteddy47]

I am soooo in for one of these!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[jscherb]

When I unpacked the Harbor Freight trailer two weeks ago to check it for completeness, it was missing a key part - the coupler mount. I called them right away and no questions asked, they sent a replacement, and it showed up the other day. Here it is:

And here's how it mounts on the tongue of the trailer, and how the coupler mounts:

Seeing this gave me an idea... thinking back to this comment made a week ago:

...there are several styles of articulating hitches on the market that require a receiver mount up front rather than a bulldog or similar. You might want to look at that option as well as a ball hitch will not work all that well offroad.

The shape of the HF coupler mount reminded me a lot of the common bumper mount receivers available for pickup trucks, so I stopped by Tractor Supply this morning and picked one up. It can be adapted very simply into a front receiver for the trailer to accept the type of couplers the person who made that comment was talking about.

Two of the holes already line up, so only two more holes have to be drilled, although the bumper receiver shown above probably isn't optimal for this application, it's the only one I could find in town this morning - the slightly wider HF 67185 receiver below might be better:

These HF ones can typically be picked up for about $20 when they're on sale and using the 20% off coupon.

So for about $20 the HF trailer can be converted to a receiver coupler mount to accept high-angle off-road couplers or an eye coupler for a pintle hitch. No welding, just a little drilling.

You could also could pick up a short length of 2" square tubing and mount a standard ball coupler to it so you could easily swap between a ball coupler for on-road use and a pintle eye for off-road use.

 

[jscherb]

I finished up all the mold work, here's the last mold I needed to make, this is the inner fender mold,

The mold work is complete - all that's necessary to make actual parts in these molds now is to clean and wax them and shoot them with PVA mold release.

The mold above, plus those pictured below, are all the molds necessary to make the complete tub kit.

 

[jscherb]

Initially for the proof-of-concept trailer I'm going to use a soft tonneau - one of the Gr8Tops half cab tonneau covers will fit the short tub perfectly. I'll think about buildling a hard tonneau and/or tent platform after the basic trailer is assembled and rolling.

Here's a shot of the Gr8Tops soft tonneau on a Jeep:

I've already got one of the tonneau covers in hand so I can use it to plan the precise length of the tub:

I'll be making the tub the right length to perfectly fit this tonneau, so the tub will be about 50" long.

You've seen the tonneau on my yellow trailer, that one is exactly the same as the tonneau above, only longer:

The bar that goes across the top of the tailgate opening in the photo above slips right out when you want full access to the tailgate opening. Also it's got a rubber seal that the top of the tailgate seals to; I've driven my trailer many miles in heavy rainstorms and haven't gotten a drop of water inside, and the yellow trailer also has a tailgate on the front as well. These tonneau covers seal perfectly.

The tonneau manufacturer has the patterns in a CAD system, which drives their fabric cutter, so all they have to do is make a small change to the CAD model and have the computer tell the cutter to make a new length tonneau, so if the trailer tub kit gets to market, getting soft tonneau covers made for a range of trailer tub lengths shouldn't be too much trouble.

 

[Espo78]

You've really thought out all the different aspects of this. If I had the means I would start producing these, I'm sure someone will be able to make some good money producing them for you. I don't own a Jeep or even need a trailer right now but I really want one of these after seeing how you've put it all together!

 

[jscherb]

You've really thought out all the different aspects of this. If I had the means I would start producing these, I'm sure someone will be able to make some good money producing them for you. I don't own a Jeep or even need a trailer right now but I really want one of these after seeing how you've put it all together!

I have a meeting on Tuesday with a large automotive/truck/marine fiberglass products manufacturer that's expressed some interest in this trailer project. I'm not sure if they're the right company for this product, we'll have to see how the meeting goes...

 

[Espo78]

Good luck! Just make sure whoever ends up making these doesn't jack up the cost outrageously!

 

[jeepdreamer]

*eats popcorn and taps foot*

 

[jscherb]

Project plan update...

Everything's ready with the molds, the next step in this project is to mold the actual tub parts. Except for one thing... I'm going to Las Vegas this week to attend the SEMA show, so I won't be able to start molding parts until I get back.

I'll try to do a "Daily SEMA Report" for you with photos of cool stuff I find at the show, stay tuned to this thread.

When I get back from SEMA, things will go in this sequence:

1. Mold a complete set of actual trailer parts - two side panels, tailgate end panel, solid end panel, two inner fenders and inner and outer tailgate skins.

2. Modify and assemble the Harbor Freight trailer frame. This is necessary before final assembly of the fiberglass tub so I will know the measurements for placement of the wheel openings/inner fenders. The modifications include shortening the trailer frame from 8' to 4', improving the strength with extra crossmembers left over from shortening it, and adapting things so I can run factory Jeep alloy wheels on it.

3. Assemble the tub, complete with floor, and mount the assembled tub on the trailer frame

4. Details - tailgate installation, wiring, tonneau cover installation, etc.

5. Primer and maybe paint (not sure if I'm going to paint it, just prime it, or leave it in white gelcoat)

Once I get back from SEMA, things should go pretty quickly.

 

[jeepdreamer]

Cool... Enjoy SEMA JS! Keep your eyes peeled for anyone workig on Portal axle kits for the dana 44 for me,ok?