Trailer spruce up. (1 Viewer)

[photogod]

Well you all made me do it! Time to get a project in the works for the next camping trip/road trip. I'm tired of hoisting the trailer spare on to the roof rack and it is to big to go under the trailer like I had originally wanted to do. It is also to big to fit on the tongue so the only place left to put it was the tail gate. But no proud fab specialist could just put it on the gate because that is way to easy and I love to weld so here goes...

3/16 tube for the bumper to cary two spindles for swing outs, cut with C&C to get the bore straight, spindle sleeve dropped right in, tighter that a frog's @**, cut to leave enough to weld in and shrink to capture the spindle, then mount to the trailer. 3/16 through to the second cross member and reinforced with 1 1/2 angle on the inside. It is shown here on the outside but we hid it under and inside notched to fit round the mounting tube.

 

[photogod]

Then the swing outs fabbed and mounted along with notching the gate to make a clean swing, latches welded in to keep the gate secure and the tire rack fabbed then a backer piece to make the gate dust and water tight when I add the weather strip. Photos in wrong order but you get the idea.

 

[photogod]

Then the tire mount fabbed and some wings and rack welded behind the tires for storage. These are going to have sheet steel welded in for tail light mounting and storage.

 

[photogod]

Then the tire mounted and some gas cans to even out the massive weight problem I am going to have to deal with because of the weight distribution issue with all that weight in the back. Time for a water tank in front! But that will be another another project for the spring.

More to follow. Comments welcome as always.

 

[titanpat57]

ummmm...


you didn't say you going beserk!!!!



Looks great, super nice mod!


Raised the bar once more with that trailer photogod....


keep playin the lotto and will get er' a fresh coat of paint pretty soon

Pat

 

[photogod]

Do you think I should paint it???

 

[greentruck]

photogod,
Sweet can racks.

I was definitely thinking about adding a couple in front of the fenders on each side to our M101. That would give me the capacity to carry the following:
5 gal water (in truck)
10 gal water in trailer
25 gal gas in trailer

Or space for a total of 8 cans: 1 in truck, 5 across the front of the trailer tub, and 2 more in a pair of can racks.

You're inspiring me to think bigger, as in 2 more can racks, one behind the fender on each side. That would let me add 2 cans/10 gals of water.

The other option would be to add a tank under the front of the tub, but that might put too much weight in front of the axle. So I'm kind of curious how your load balance comes out when loaded.

 

[womacje]

That shop looks like a hell hole! Nice work, you must have a good friend to help you with this... Now lets work on mine!!!

 

[photogod]

Won the lottery...

Prep and paint done. Repainted the entire trailer to give it that not lived in look and finished the rear end and gas can mounts. Also put 120 lb. gas springs in instead of 90 lb. Now the topper goes up all by its self after the first foot opening. Nice bright LED tail lights make a big difference as well. Its a shame it has to sit under a tarp till spring but thats how it goes in the upper midwest for this old man.

The weight is not going to be a problem. I did a dry run without the tire mounted and no gas in the cans up front. The lunette ring made a bit more noise but with a water tank in the trailer everything will even out.

All in all, pretty happy with the outcome.

Inspiration provided by Kowboy!

 

[titanpat57]

Hell...


might as well make the pull out kitchen while you're watching the snow flakes come down...

Mods look great, as does the new paint job, I'm guessing it matches the 80 now. Very inspirational trailer!

Better get that garage cleaned up before Mrs. PG pokes her nose out the door and sees the mess you made!

Know that feeling of working so hard and wishing there was still a month or two before the cold weather...*sigh*



Pray for spring

Pat

 

[photogod]

Pat,

Funny you should mention the slide out kitchen... I am putting my Camp Kitchen on the block and redesigning a smaller more user friendly kitchen. I love the one I have, just to darn big for one person operation and I think about the water tank in the trailer a lot. I would like to put a battery box, water tank, shower and a slide out kitchen in the trailer. I need to get my shower out of the truck to add storage space for my photo gear out of sight. This project will never end!

And as a sideline, you can bet your sweet bippy I get the garage cleaned up before the comes home.

 

[photogod]

That shop looks like a hell hole! Nice work, you must have a good friend to help you with this... Now lets work on mine!!!

Two Land Cruisers, two trailers, a Taco bumper/tire carrier fab, three motorcycles ten bicycles and a reefer full of beer and a grill full of brats... My kinda hell hole!!!











And a good friend to pull this all together.

 

[womacje]

Lookin good. Can't wait to borrow it and get it dirty! Come on money, I need to finish my trailer. Speaking of beer, I owe you a case of peroni's.

I can attest to the improvements, I've used the trailer and followed it. The gas springs make the top easily opened by even a cripple like me. The tire swing out will only break if the frame cracks at the spring hangers... Nevermind, the bumper goes thru the frame! It won't ever break. Got design and good build.

 

[Super Slow Rodeo]

I like the double swing out idea!!!!!
I'm fairly new to this Board, so forgive my intrusion to ya'll conversation. But, I had this thought about your spare tire carrier and thought I'd throw this out as an option to get a little more use out of it. ( I saw this done on the TV show about Tear Drop Trailers, so it's not an original idea.)

He we go.

With your skills at making swivels and such, how about making the spare tire attachment plate swivel up horizontal? This would allow the spare tire, when swung out away from the trailer, to be rotated up and locked into the horizontal position, parallel to the ground.
With a simple round piece of laminated plywood on top of the tire you could effectively make a nice, round, bar type table for food prep and kicking back with your friends.
Some tall folding chairs and you could set up a nice dining area for the Family. Maybe add an umbrealls hole all the way through the table top and tire bracket so the umbrealla pole could pass by and next to the swing out bracket. That would add a nice touch to your camping experience. (Course that would mean not centering the hinge point of the swing up tire mount to get a straight shot to the ground.) I have an old Datsun Racing Umbrella out in the shop, left over from my racing days, that made me think of that.

If the table ends up being too tall in the horizontal, lowering the tire position a little shouldn't be hard to do.

And you may have thought about this, but I'll run this by you as well. If you added lift up table on the inside of the tail gate you could use it for your cook stove and a drop in sink. This would be real convenient with the round table idea next to it on the right. Maybe mount a swing out long necked faucet to the inside of the upper left rear corner of the trailer wall that could be swung over to the drop in sink in the lift up table next to the trailer corner.
The swing outs look beefy enough to support the weight.
Do you have rear stabilazer jacks on the trailer???????
Just some ideas I've been trying to incorporate into my current off road trailer build and it looks like it could work well for yours with just a little tweaking to what you've already built.
The fun part about tweaking is it's never done!

I'll go back to the Balcony now!

CJ

 

[womacje]

I like the double swing out idea!!!!!
I'm fairly new to this Board, so forgive my intrusion to ya'll conversation. But, I had this thought about your spare tire carrier and thought I'd throw this out as an option to get a little more use out of it. ( I saw this done on the TV show about Tear Drop Trailers, so it's not an original idea.)

He we go.

With your skills at making swivels and such, how about making the spare tire attachment plate swivel up horizontal? This would allow the spare tire, when swung out away from the trailer, to be rotated up and locked into the horizontal position, parallel to the ground.
With a simple round piece of laminated plywood on top of the tire you could effectively make a nice, round, bar type table for food prep and kicking back with your friends.
Some tall folding chairs and you could set up a nice dining area for the Family. Maybe add an umbrealls hole all the way through the table top and tire bracket so the umbrealla pole could pass by and next to the swing out bracket. That would add a nice touch to your camping experience. (Course that would mean not centering the hinge point of the swing up tire mount to get a straight shot to the ground.) I have an old Datsun Racing Umbrella out in the shop, left over from my racing days, that made me think of that.

If the table ends up being too tall in the horizontal, lowering the tire position a little shouldn't be hard to do.

And you may have thought about this, but I'll run this by you as well. If you added lift up table on the inside of the tail gate you could use it for your cook stove and a drop in sink. This would be real convenient with the round table idea next to it on the right. Maybe mount a swing out long necked faucet to the inside of the upper left rear corner of the trailer wall that could be swung over to the drop in sink in the lift up table next to the trailer corner.
The swing outs look beefy enough to support the weight.
Do you have rear stabilazer jacks on the trailer???????
Just some ideas I've been trying to incorporate into my current off road trailer build and it looks like it could work well for yours with just a little tweaking to what you've already built.
The fun part about tweaking is it's never done!

I'll go back to the Balcony now!

CJ

You are right, If you lived near by, You wouldn't get anything done. Except work on your trailer or truck!

Great ideas, Like a sweet little oasis behind your truck. Ps. search Mud for PhotoGod's Camp Kitchen, I think he may be a step ahead of you!!!

 

[Super Slow Rodeo]

You are right, If you lived near by, You wouldn't get anything done. Except work on your trailer or truck!

Great ideas, Like a sweet little oasis behind your truck. Ps. search Mud for PhotoGod's Camp Kitchen, I think he may be a step ahead of you!!!

Well I guess it is a good thing I don't live in Minneeesssssota then. I don't have to share my shop or time with your stuff.
Since I retired early 1.5 years ago I have all day to work on my toys. The 3000 square foot machine shop full of equipment behind the house, makes play time fun everyday.

Now that you mention it, I did see his sink in the front. To be honest I'd forgotten it was his trailer I was throwing out my ideas about the sink out on. Very nice set up! Wasn't actually trying to talk him out of that feature. In fact, his front sink really impressed me. Learned on my past Expeditions that everything on a rig must serve a multi function purpose whenever possible. My Off Road Trailer Build going on it the shop now will follow that philosophy. Some of the design came from ideas I got from this Forum. I'll start a build thread once enough of it is finished to hold your interest.

Just throwing out ideas and trying to help! And since I don't wheel with you guys, I have a hard time keeping ya'll stuff straight. But I'll try to do better!

Well, my morning coffee is ready and the shop is calling my name.
I love Mondays.

CJ

 

[Walton]

Really a sweet build. Thanks for sharing.

 

[photogod]

SSR, those are all great ideas for sure. Come down from the balcony any time, your thoughts are always welcome. I will look for your build for sure. I have added a water tank in the "Let there be water" thread and more stuff on the way. I need a slight lift to offset the added weight and I am looking into building, or having one built, stainless kitchen on slides to take the place of the too large but beautiful kitchen I have now. Its never ending.

 

[womacje]

Well I guess it is a good thing I don't live in Minneeesssssota then. I don't have to share my shop or time with your stuff.
Since I retired early 1.5 years ago I have all day to work on my toys. The 3000 square foot machine shop full of equipment behind the house, makes play time fun everyday.

Now that you mention it, I did see his sink in the front. To be honest I'd forgotten it was his trailer I was throwing out my ideas about the sink out on. Very nice set up! Wasn't actually trying to talk him out of that feature. In fact, his front sink really impressed me. Learned on my past Expeditions that everything on a rig must serve a multi function purpose whenever possible. My Off Road Trailer Build going on it the shop now will follow that philosophy. Some of the design came from ideas I got from this Forum. I'll start a build thread once enough of it is finished to hold your interest.


Just throwing out ideas and trying to help! And since I don't wheel with you guys, I have a hard time keeping ya'll stuff straight. But I'll try to do better!

Well, my morning coffee is ready and the shop is calling my name.
I love Mondays.

CJ

I love the ideas! Now stop making me so jealous about your shop! How far away do you live???

 

[Dell]

was contemplating mounting my Scepter fuel cans (x2) in the same location(s)...

But then I keep thinking about rocks and chit,
and could leave me snagging every rock that I come upon.

I noticed yers don't have skids underneath 'em.

I do like that location due to the lower CG...
but seem to think I'd need to do the SO to make up for that blockage inline with the wheels.

^ tho', that seems sorta counter productive for my intended use.

like yer lid tho'... unique fer sure.