M416 buying advice wanted

[SARCruiser]

After some discussion, my wife and I have decided to look for a M416 or M101 Canadian to use for camping. Ultimately, we plan to modify it into an expedition-type trailer but that will be a slow-ish build so we want it to be something we can use as I work on it.

I have found a couple M416's for sale local-ish (within a reasonable drive) on craigslist and on ExPo but each has it's issues so I'm hoping for a bit of advice from existing owners about what is and is not worth the time, effort and money to fix on these trailers. Also looking for some advice on what a reasonable price should be (trying to stay under $1500 for just the trailer).

Thanks, all!
I am looking forward to sharing my build on here once I find a winner

 

[SARCruiser]

Just talked with a guy who has one for sale. He's asking $1300. It looks to be in good shape. He said the previous owner had restored it to tow behind an old jeep in car shows. The original lunette and drop leg are gone in favor of a standard ball and a more modern drop foot. That's not a huge deal to me and I will probably eventually go to a lock-n-roll type hitch. It has a CO title already so that makes my life easy from that regard. Only downside is that it is almost a 12 hour round trip for me Couple photos from the craigslist ad:

Thoughts?

 

[myquestoyota]

I don't know much about these except they are getting hard to find that nice. I think it's a good deal for the price but let hose with more knowledge chime in here. That looks like a nice specimen.

 

[titanpat57]

I will say that the more and more I look at these..... the harder I actually look AT them.

It seems that people treat restoring a trailer much different than a vehicle...meaning I've seen some pretty shady stuff done. At that price for a little more money you can have a Ruger type trailer, brand new with no issues. I realize every dollar counts, but I think you might be better off saving for a little while than jump on a purchase you have to dump a crap load of dough into to fix up to your standards.

Good luck,

 

[GLTHFJ60]

I think that's too much coin, especially considering it's been modified already. Top looks nice, but what about the bottom? How rusty is it? Do the lights work well? Are they original or aftermarket or what? Is the wiring factory?

 

[Mark Harley]

After searching Craigslist in your area I see there are several 101 and 416 trailers but the prices are too high
for them. I would contact Josh Manley at Manley trailers and see what he has to offer.
http://manleyorv.com/

 

[SARCruiser]

I think that's too much coin, especially considering it's been modified already. Top looks nice, but what about the bottom? How rusty is it? Do the lights work well? Are they original or aftermarket or what? Is the wiring factory?

Lights are aftermarket and wiring was re-done by the previous owner. I had a conversation with the seller about a few things and he sent me a couple extra photos. From the pictures he sent, it looks like the only rust is some surface spotting on the inside of the tub. Everything in the undercarriage seems to be rust-free (aside from a bit of surface here and there).

After searching Craigslist in your area I see there are several 101 and 416 trailers but the prices are too high
for them. I would contact Josh Manley at Manley trailers and see what he has to offer.
http://manleyorv.com/

That's the problem I keep running into as well. Anything for sale that is within a day round trip is either stupid expensive or in terrible shape and still expensive.

I haven't looked at the manley trailer before but the price seems a bit more reasonable for what I'm looking for right now. I love the AT products and the newer Schutt xventure but the price tags on both of those are ludicrous since I have fabrication skills.

I've thought of building from the ground up (and have done so before for a friend building his teardrop) but time is what I'm paying for in looking at something pre-fab or at least as a base platform I can modify and move forward with.

 

[Living in the Past]

Did I see that right the Manley starts at $5,500? Before I paid that much I would buy one like this to modify. http://phoenix.craigslist.org/nph/snw/4481924790.html This is at the upper end. I paid a third for mine in about the same shape. A Pretty clean was on Flagstaff CL just west of town about a month or two ago. I believe it was around $500. If I didn't have a couple of 1/4 trailers I would have hopped in my cruiser and bought it.

On mine I replaced the NATO tail lights for the earlier military housing using Goma Goat lenses. Converted to a flat four pin plug by making adapter for the junction box in the tongue. Got a pair of Specialty Tire NDT tires. Other than adding a 60 series spare tire carrier I haven't done a thing to it including repacking wheel bearings. Those continue to run cool even in the desert heat. Being close fifty years old doesn't bother me. I figure at some point if I decide to sell it I've increase the market because not only is it a good base to modify it can go back to stock real easy. With price of new aftermarket 1/4 ton copies the value of these originals is only going to go up.

 

[Blueegg]

My guess is $1300 asking price is not out of line for the pictured trailer. The more original condition, the more the price. A 12 hour drive would be a deal killer for most. The key to finding what you want is being patient. Also offering less than the asking price is expected.