'47 Bantam T3-C (1 Viewer)

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

Recently located this 1947 (!) Bantam T3-C to replace my 1951 M-100. Originally a southern CA trailer and owned by the same person for the last 38 years. Always stored inside while in CA and NC. Rust is surface only. Frame is perfect. Really lucked out to find one in such good condition!

The PO was a really nice guy. Kinda sentimental about his trailer. Had it since he was 17 years old and bought it from a military auction in CA. Used it behind his Jeep CJ-5 and had installed 15" CJ-5 wheels to match.

This trailer is so nice I hate to modify it, so whatever I do will be reversible. The historical Bantam T3-C guys can breathe a sigh of relief.
Here are some pics:

 

[Phulcrum]

nice purchase, what are your plans for it?

 

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

Planned modifications noted above in first post...but need it to be capable of being used in multiple situations. Primarily to haul extra gear for family camping up in the NC/SC/TN/VA mountains...or as two-man tent for just me and older son. Also very involved with my son's scout pack as a den leader, so it will get used in that capacity too, again mostly gear hauling for camping but it will see food drive and parade duty too. Need to probably forego a hard-top lid so it can be used to haul firewood, mulch, or large items.

 

[Mike Shull]

Nice trailer! We have the same one..it's been in the family for 30 years...have taken it camping a million times..workes great!...it's not in as good of shape as yours...he he.

 

[94SRUNNER]

Very slick trailer! I would love to get my hands on one.

Have fun with the project.

 

[photogod]

That will fix up really nice, and as a side note, I think my CJ2A had 16" wheels.

 

[Thornton]

Looks like you found a great start for a build. Good Luck on it

 

[mike_az]

axle width

You have great lookig trailer there. I have the same type of trailer and need to replace the axle. Would you know happen to know what the hub face to hub face measurement is on the axle? Thanks in advance
Mike

 

[sirenmoses]

purdy. I like the integrated stake pockets.

 

[Brian in Oregon]

Here's what I did to extend the tongue. Replaced the (broken) civilian hitch with a home made assembly that allows telescoping. Basically all it is are steel plates with a 2" receiver tube welded together. The main plate is a trapezoid that lays on top of the extension rails. It has two rectangular plates welded under it that rest against the extension rails. The receiver tube lays on top. A long 2"x2" tube slides through the receiver tubing, allowing me to extend or shorten it. I've put a lunette on it, but I have the parts to put a regular 2" hitch on the end as well. Haven't gotten around to putting panding gear on it yet.

https://forum.ih8mud.com/trailer-tech/219343-my-other-jeep-trailer-bantam-civilian-model.html

 

[Grease Cruiser]

Nice looking Bantam T3-C. Do you mind sharing your serial # ? I just picked up a T3-C and I don't know what year it is but I'd like to see if it is around yours or not. Thanks.

 

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

'47 Bantam T3-C

You do know about the Bantam T3-C website and registry, right? Most anything you want to know about these trailers can be found here...T3-C Registry Link

 

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

So after only 5 years I'm bringing this thread - and finally the Bantam - back to life! Lots going on over last 5 years prevented me from building it up as planned, but it's been a great little utility trailer.

So the build begins...and I need this trailer to support camping, surf fishing, family vacations, and even double-duty as a yard/utility trailer. Will have to turn to someone else to do the welding. Would like to learn to weld myself, but 4 kids and hectic work schedule prevent that from happening now...

Located a small off-road shop outside of Atlanta: Granite Off-Road (contact info = Robert Irwin @ 678-316-6227).

Phase 1 Build:
- fill and patch misc holes & rust spots
- sandblast & prime the tub
- hinged steel lid with rubber seal...gas struts to support it when open
- keep the OEM tailgate set-up
- weld a brace across the inside top of the rear tub (side walls flex slightly on these civilian model Bantams)
- roof rack rails
- cross-bars (attach tents, roof racks, bike mounts, canoe, etc)
- extended tongue length with extra bracing
- jerry can mounts (either rear or front)
- period correct 16" combat rims
- military non-directional tires
- Lock N Roll hitch
- new rear lights
- basic trex wood type floor (to level floor back out & provide tie-down points)
- paint the tub
- spare tire mount
- awning mount (basic manual up/down tubes with pins)
- rear stabilizer
- side table and mounts

Phase 2:
- tongue box
- high-lift mount
- shovel mount
- large water supply tank
- large roof top tent

Here's a mock-up of the extended tongue with 3' of receiver tube:

Total length from tub wall to end of hitch would be ~5'-8" (3' tube extension + 20" original a-frame depth + 12"+ lock n roll hitch). Seems too long to me. Decided to shorten it down to ~5' total length from tub wall.

And here's a 1"x3" tube bolted around the perimeter of the tub:

The tubes will be welded together at the corners and capped. Provides tub perimeter strength and prevents any hacking/welding on the trailer tub.

More progress soon...suggestions welcomed.

 

[titanpat57]

How adding a rear bumper with supports coming up from it, allowing the tub to remain open across the top.

May make loading and unloading a bit more convenient.

Nice to see you resurrecting the build.

 

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

That's a great idea. But I can't leave the tub open. Really need a lid to close everything up from the elements.

 

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

More progress pics from over the weekend...

Tub was sandblasted and the lid frame was mocked-up:

Another view of the lid frame mock-up:

While structurally sound, the lid frame mock-up doesn't lend itself to hinge and latch installation. So the lid frame was modified:

 

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

And here's a teaser shot...a little bit of Bantam T3-C trailer porn...16" Willys combat rims on new Military NDCC tires:

Paint was simply rattle-can Rustoleum. Wanted wheels to be darker than the tub, but I think I like the color so much it will be the color of the tub too!

 

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

More updates on the trailer's progress...

Lid frame covered in 16 gauge steel:

Hinges installed:

 

[LakeNorman_FJ40]

The trailer is home for now...and was able to get some test color sprayed on it. And I set the Ford Expedition roof rails and Ford Aerostar roof cross bars on top of the lid to get an idea of what was going to be needed to install these parts and how much length I'll need to cut off each cross-bar to fit.

Still filling a few small holes in tailgate...so no paint yet on tailgate.

For now at least, I'm going to paint the tub this color. Will mask it off and paint the frame and tongue rails semi-gloss black as well as the roof rails.

Haven't decided yet what color to paint the lid. Would prefer to paint the lid the same color as the tub, but the sheet metal in the angled lid sections has waves in down the entire length of the lid. Painting the lid anything other than flat black will just amplify the waves. Probably going to ask the fab shop to re-skin the angled sides again (its too wavy to smooth with filler) or lay another section of flat sheet over it to smooth/straighten it out. We perhaps should have gone thicker than 16 gauge sheet, but with a heavy duty frame (stout enough to support a large 3 - 4 person RTT) we were trying to minimize overall lid weight via thinner sheet.

Still have the awning frame and mounting points plus rear landing leg to do.

The tailgate can currently be opened with the lid locked and closed. For those of you with one of these trailers, how often do you need/want to access inside the trailer without lifting the lid? The more I think about it, I'm leaning towards welding 2 or 3 tabs or a long section of angle across the back of the lid to prevent it from being opened unless the lid is open too. Thoughts?

 

[myquestoyota]

I'm not seeing any pics.