Bolt-together fiberglass Jeep-tub trailer kit - Page 6

jscherb · 10-12-2011, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CrawlingForward

You are the Steve Jobs of Jeeps, my friend.

Can't wait to see this develop!

I think that's probably a compliment, so thank you, but I'm not totally sure - you do know he died a few days ago, right? He wasn't that much older than I am

Diverdown87 · 10-12-2011, 12:01 PM

This looks liek an awesome project!

Dabbill · 10-12-2011, 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jscherb

I think that's probably a compliment, so thank you, but I'm not totally sure - you do know he died a few days ago, right? He wasn't that much older than I am

I am trying to figure out what he did. iPhone was not the first smart phone, was not the first touch screen, and they are over priced like the rest of apple products. Oh well, i will stick to android and open source.

Back on topic. Trailers look awesome.

leeejone · 10-12-2011, 12:49 PM

This might be the single most impressive piece of equipment I've been able to afford (assuming your estimates are fairly accurate) for my rig in quite some time. I'm ridiculously impressed and would buy that today if it were available.

Now... stupid question... how do I crawl/subscribe a thread?

**mdm** · 10-12-2011, 12:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jscherb

...you do know he died a few days ago, right? He wasn't that much older than I am

Albert Einstein and George Washington Carver are both dead too but that doesn't detract from what either of them accomplished. Before your head gets too swollen, I'm not comparing you to them. Just saying that death is not a measure of accomplishment unless maybe you got 72 virgins upon your death.

**CrawlingForward** · 10-12-2011, 02:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jscherb

I think that's probably a compliment, so thank you, but I'm not totally sure - you do know he died a few days ago, right? He wasn't that much older than I am

Ha ha, indeed a compliment, albeit it probably a slightly awkward one in retrospect.

I merely meant it to be that you have had such an amazing amount of well-executed concepts, and every time I turn around you have a new cool project that takes a good concept and just ups the ante.

jscherb · 10-12-2011, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CrawlingForward

Ha ha, indeed a compliment, albeit it probably a slightly awkward one in retrospect.

I merely meant it to be that you have had such an amazing amount of well-executed concepts, and every time I turn around you have a new cool project that takes a good concept and just ups the ante.

Thank you very much. And here's hoping I live longer than Mr. Jobs

jscherb · 10-12-2011, 02:48 PM

I got a PM this afternoon with a question about M416 military trailers. Since others might be interested, I'll answer it here instead of privately.

Quote:

If your proposed trailer tub will fit a M416 frame, then I may be interested in buying one sooner rather than later.

There are a lot of M416, and similar variants, trailers out there. Mine, for example, is from 1949. While it's in great shape, it's now in need of significant metal work. There are many others in my situation.

Sierra trailers offers a replacement metal tub for ~$1,500, and to the best of my knowledge, that's the only option available.

So there is some form of existing market looking for a cheaper bolt-on alternative, but the dimensions would have to be similar. From the pictures you posted, your tub height looks short.

When I was shopping for a trailer years ago, I came across every variant of the M416 you could imagine. There was one civilian version that had a shorter bed height compared to the standard M416. Your trailer looks identical to that one. If you find the time, can you post your bed dimensions compared to a M416? Here's a good drawing with M416 specs: http://forum.ih8mud.com/trailer-tech...ons-specs.html

I haven't specifically designed the tub to fit the M416 frame, but I dropped a drawing of a 6' version of the tub on a same-scale drawing of the M416, and here's the result:

I don't know anything about the M416 frame, so I can't give a conclusive answer, but the drawing would suggest that the fiberglass tub may be able to be adapted to the M416 frame.

**armyRN** · 10-12-2011, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jscherb

I got a PM this afternoon with a question about M416 military trailers. Since others might be interested, I'll answer it here instead of privately.

I haven't specifically designed the tub to fit the M416 frame, but I dropped a drawing of a 6' version of the tub on a same-scale drawing of the M416, and here's the result:

I don't know anything about the M416 frame, so I can't give a conclusive answer, but the drawing would suggest that the fiberglass tub may be able to be adapted to the M416 frame.

Here's one option:

http://www.kaiserwillys.com/product/...ts-accessories

I can't vouch for the quality of the product though having never seen it in person, but they might sell the trailer tub separately.

I wish someone would make a reproduction Army Jeep Trailer Tub in diamond plate in a mini-trailer version. There are companies that make large diamond plate hunting dog cages for pick-ups that could bend and weld aluminum into a trailer tub, although it's usually the shipping cost that runs the final cost up.

**EugeneTheTJ** · 10-12-2011, 05:43 PM

I'd buy one of those C/TJ tailgates for the right price. I'd make it myself but it would look like a retard trying to hump a doorknob

jscherb · 10-12-2011, 05:44 PM

I'm not planning to assemble the HF trailer frame until after I've got the fiberglass tub parts made, but I laid it out on the worktable today in the 4'x4' configuration I'm planning just to make sure all the parts are there (they weren't).

Since I'm not using the rear 4'x4' section, I had some extra crossmembers, so I'll use them as shown below, numbered 1 and 2:

Some of the changes I'll make while converting it from a 4'x8' to a 4'x4':

1. Add two extra crossmembers for strength and stiffness.

2. Use another one of the leftover crossmembers to become a third member of the tongue and also lengthen the tongue about 8".

3. Add a receiver tube. The receiver will enable bike carriers and other receiver-based accessories to be used on the back of the trailer.

All of the changes listed above are "drill and bolt" changes, things pretty much anyone would be able to do. That's my goal for this project - no special tools like welders should be required in order to assemble everything. I'll cover the changes in lots of detail when I get to the trailer frame assembly stage of this project.

The axle compares favorably to the 2000-lb. tube axles you can buy at Tractor Supply and Northern Tool; it's much sturdier than the c-channel axles found on the lower-capacity HF 4' and 4'x8' trailers.

I'm putting all the frame parts away for now, I need the worktable to do the fiberglass work on the molds and the tub parts.

Oh and the weight of this one seems to be the heavier weight - 260 lbs., at least that's what's on the "Certificate of Ownership" document that comes with the trailer. The steel is definitely thicker than the folding 4x8 trailer, I compared them in the store.

svtkev · 10-12-2011, 06:09 PM

Any chance the tub could be removable so the trailer could be decked and be used as a flatbed trailer also

jscherb · 10-12-2011, 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by svtkev

Any chance the tub could be removable so the trailer could be decked and be used as a flatbed trailer also

Since this is designed to be a kit, to be assembled on the frame of the user's choice as the user decides, I don't see why someone couldn't set it up to be removable.

95ZeeJay · 10-12-2011, 08:26 PM

this is cool and all, but why is it in the TJ forum? It's TJ-esque in shape but in reality it's a trailer not made of Jeep parts.

(OK, I admit I keep forgetting where I saw it)

jscherb · 10-13-2011, 04:48 AM

When I get to the stage of assembling the frame and putting the tub on the frame, I've got a good range of wheel and tire combinations to experiment with, I've got a pair of each of these sizes to try:

Left to right - 22" tire on 12" rim (came with the HF trailer frame), 26" tire on 14" rim (found this pair on the side of the road, someone put them out for trash), 30" tire on 15" rim (what I've been running on the yellow trailer), 32" tire on 16" rim (matches what I've got on the Retro Wrangler pickup). I'll also check the junkyard for a pair of 28" tires on factory Jeep steel rims to round out the collection, I think those would be a popular and inexpensive option for the trailer so I'd like to try them too.

I'd be interested in hearing what size tire people think should be on the 4'x4' proof-of-concept trailer. For a budget on-road version, the 12" wheels that come with the HF trailer might be fine (maybe would assemble the tub with smaller wheel wells for that configuration), and for off-road use I'm thinking 15" wheels, maybe 225-15 or maybe up to 30x9.50? Since the trailer has more clearance than a Jeep (no diff or transmission skid plate hanging down), a 225-15 on the trailer probably has as much ground clearance as a 33 on the Jeep... I'll have to measure that to confirm.