Expedition trailer made from FJ40 tub

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

I loved your 40 Adam. Sorry you dont have it any more. You and I actually met years ago at cruise moab. Must have been 99' or 2000? I dont have my 40 any more either. Traded flip dog straight across for his Fj80 last month. I love the 80 and so does my wife but I still have my eyes open for another 40 - this time as the 3rd vehicle.
 
More progress

I had a short day at work today so I worked on the trailer project a bit. After a couple of hours of hacking, grinding, pounding, and cutting I succeded in removing one of the rear halves. All of the Body mounting bolts broke off.

Now Im getting excited. I want to run out and cut the other one off the 78' so I can start putting it together and get an idea of how it will look. I think that the 78' will be easier because there is'nt a tool box to work around. That was the hardest part. It was difficult to get the cutting tools down in by the door. I ended up cutting into the main cross support and the tool box is ruined. I had hoped to save it. I guess it was a good thing because it revealed some damage from a side impact that I will be able to address.

My plan is to attach the 2 halves and then strip them down for restoration. Both tubs have rust issues so there will be a fair amount of cutting and welding in new metal. Once the halves are connected I will build the frame.
DSCN1539.webp
DSCN1544.webp


DSCN1545.webp
 
Last edited:
A couple more pictures.
DSCN1542.webp
DSCN1543.webp
 
Damn you... :doh:

you just cut up a tub that's in better shape than most you would find up here in the northeast... another one bites the dust. Another cruiser never to roam the roads (or off-roads) again!
 
woytovich said:
Damn you... :doh:

you just cut up a tub that's in better shape than most you would find up here in the northeast... another one bites the dust. Another cruiser never to roam the roads (or off-roads) again!
Click to expand...

Not true. That front 1/2 and frame is a perfect truggy candidate and the rear of the tub will still be in use. The cruiser can still be used just in a variety of ways......at least that's how I like to think of it.;)
 
Box Rocket said:
Not true. That front 1/2 and frame is a perfect truggy candidate and the rear of the tub will still be in use. The cruiser can still be used just in a variety of ways......at least that's how I like to think of it.;)
Click to expand...

Agreed. Some have to die so others can live.
 
Volcanic Iceberg said:
Agreed. Some have to die so others can live.
Click to expand...

How does that apply here?

Hey, I think Adam can do what he wants... it's just a truck after all, nobody dies when one gets cut up. But in this case this is not a donor to make another 40 whole...

Can't wait to see the finished trailer Adam.
 
I got the rear off the 78'. It came off a lot easier than the 65' with no tool box to work around. Some of the body bounting bolts actually came out without breaking.
1.webp
2.webp
4.webp
 
woytovich said:
How does that apply here?

Hey, I think Adam can do what he wants... it's just a truck after all, nobody dies when one gets cut up. But in this case this is not a donor to make another 40 whole...

Can't wait to see the finished trailer Adam.
Click to expand...

Obviously my reference to dying meant the cruiser and not a human being. In one sence it is dying because the cruiser is being dismantled. And others "live" because the spare parts are being sold to other cruiser owners to keep thiers on the road. Fact is both orf these cruisers were rescued. They were rotting away until I found them and found a use for them. Niether of which was a good candidate for restoration, or that would have been thier fate.
 
Looking good. Those are in fact two relatively good shaped tubs. I can fully understand what Mark is saying since it's very hard to find any 40s in that kind of shape back east.

I'm anxious to watch this build. I love Kurt Williams trailer and if you end up even close to that it's gonna be sweet. My only suggestion would be to make it slightly longer than Kurts if you can.
 
I havent talked to kurt but judging by the pics his looks like it is as long as it is wide. That would put him at a 5'-4" long box. Mine will be longer for sure. 6'-10" outside to outside is what I am planning. That would give me 6'-6" inside to inside. Long enough to sleep in. The added length will be in front of the axle because I want to maintain the same departure angle. It will also be deeper than kurts in front maintaining a similar profile to an fj40 rather than obvious looking combination of two rear ends. I will have to fab a new floor in front and much of the sides. This should give me addequate space for water tank, water heater, batteries, power inverter, furnace, propane, etc. While also leaving room in the back half for canping gear.
 
Sounds pretty good. If you put too much length in front of the axle combined with a deeper tub and then use that space for watertanks/batteries etc you are increasing your tongue weight substantially. That could make it much more difficult to move around by hand when you need to. Too much tongue weight might also weigh down the rear of your tow vehicle more than you'd like as well. Maybe it won't be a big deal, but something to think about.

Just a thought.
 
I have been considering the weight balance. Id Like to do 2 swing out full size spares on the back. i have heard that an OEM tube style carrier can be reworked to hang on the passenger side. I think that will compensate for the water tank kitchen weight somewhat. Also the back will be reserved for gear. Right now I carry 2 dutch ovens Because I love to cook with them. I am also considering building a compartment and locating the batteries on each side in the corner wheelwell space behind the axle. What do you think?
 
Here is a picture of my 40 trailer. I put this together in a weekend and a few nights after work. I did the same thing you are doing by splicing 2 back halves together. I saved the 2 backs from some 40 crawlers that we made at the shop. The two tubs were pretty haggard and the wheel well openings did not match up since they were cut for flares. I wrapped the tubs in AL diamond plating for an easy fix. Maybe someday I'll remove the diamond plating and do proper body work to it.

The trailer axle is old FJ40 drum brake components on a piece of tubing. The top is made from 2 back pieces of 40's.

The trailer handles great on and off road. I have about 2000 miles on it and plan a bunch more for this summer. It is great because I can store most of my gear in it when we go camping. I would like to add some batteries, water, and other goodies when I get a chance.

I have about $150 in the trailer and most of that was the AL diamond plating. The rest was made out of scrap Land Cruiser pieces that were bound for the metal recycler or dump. Land Cruiser recycling at its finest.

Good luck with the build.
DSCN0419_2.webp
 
Nice build. I like it. Looks like you cut off the flange where the top attaches to the bed. That is how kurt did his. He has had trouble with dust infiltration. What has been your experience?
 
Well, I went into the woodworking shop where I work today and my boss..... let me go. No real explaination other than he has found someone that he thinks is more experience to take my place. Money is tight right now as it is. Could have done without that.

So, before I start pounding the pavement, I blew off some steam by working on the trailer. I cut off 16" from the red tub. My recipricating saw gave up the ghost durring the cut. It broke where the blade attatches. Harbor freight, so what can you expect. Then I tacked the two halves together. Took a little work to get everything to line up straight and square.

Its cool to see the two halves together. I think the porportions are going to look really nice. Next step is to weld on some sides then a new floor in the front section. After the new floor is in I wil cut out the old.
DSCN1551.webp
DSCN1552.webp
DSCN1550.webp
 
Last edited:
Sorry to hear about your job man. That sucks. Keep your head up and good luck finding a better gig. Most of the people I know (including myself) consider the loss of a job a good thing because they found something better to replace it. Good luck.
 
Volcanic Iceberg said:
Nice build. I like it. Looks like you cut off the flange where the top attaches to the bed. That is how kurt did his. He has had trouble with dust infiltration. What has been your experience?
Click to expand...
The top lip (flange) is still there, I did not remove it. Kurt and I were comparing trailers at Cruise Moab 2008 and they are somewhat similar. I have a piece of weather stripping (FJ60 inner door frame welting to be exact: more Cruiser recycling) all along the that top flange. It goes right over that flange and my fiberglass sits down on top of it fairly tightly.

The trailer is by no means dust proof but I have not seen any water in there. I've seen a bit of dust but it's not too bad. I have all my gear in Rubber Made boxes which keeps the dirt out of all my personal stuff.

One thing that I wish was a little different would be the height of the bed. My boxes fit fine in the trailer but I have to open the lid to be able to get the boxes out. They don't slide out the tailgate opening when the lid is down as the boxes are too tall. It's not that bad to open the lid as I have learned to remove the boxes when I get to camp before I have the tent set up. It's not a big deal if I have to open the lid with the tent up but it just makes it easier if I don't have to. Also, my lid opens either from the passenger side or the driver's side but I mainly open it from the driver's side.
 
Box Rocket said:
Sorry to hear about your job man. That sucks. Keep your head up and good luck finding a better gig. Most of the people I know (including myself) consider the loss of a job a good thing because they found something better to replace it. Good luck.
Click to expand...

X2 - every time I've found my self out of work I have come out ahead in the long run - not bragging, it's true. Keep your head up and view it as an opportunity.

Really cool trailer build, I'll be watching... :popcorn:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Back
Top Bottom