Trailer

[Walt Barney]

Get yourself a Gorrilla lock for the coupler, a long chain, put it through the spokes of the wheels, and around the nearest tree, and pad lock the ends together.

Agreed! The Gorilla lock rocks, got one for mine. B)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GORILLA-2-C...sspagenameZWD1V

If you have a tractor supply arround you, they have tires and wheels already mounted, mine cost 54.00 for a spare, It does have a Trailor Tire only, cannot use it on you car.

Walt Barney

 

[piper_chuck]

Thanks for all the recommendations. Definitely need the hitch lock. Will look into a long chain. What the heck, maybe I can use it at home too (did he say that? ) For the spare tire, I'll check the suggested places. Note that it does have radials, so I suspect the cost will be a bit higher. I'm also going to have to figure out shelves, perhaps something along the lines of Don's mobile castle. Also looking into a place to put a battery and perhaps installing a box on the tongue to store things like a jack, wrench, etc. Lots of choices and so little $. It's a good thing the trailer's so small. Wonder if I'll have room for a fan and a small generator??? Hmmm, getting kind of full. What was I saying about a 5x8? :unsure:

 

[Andy]

Looks like you found yourself a nice trailer Chuck. I too need an enclosed trailer since my collection has grown. With the rise of fuel I have decided to use the unused space in my Jeep Wrangler. I put together an all stainless steel adjustable rack. The boat stands simply lock in using a plastic pipe clamp. 3 boats on the top 2 below and in the process of building a ss rack for the reciever for the table, tent etc.

Watching your thread got me thinking and this is what I came up with.

 

[gurugary]

I would definitely check your cars towing capacity.......I believe it is 2000lbs. max. Check your owners manual. You do not want to create an unsafe condition.

The car might be able to pull more lbs., but can it stop it?

 

[piper_chuck]

I would definitely check your cars towing capacity.......I believe it is 2000lbs. max. Check your owners manual. You do not want to create an unsafe condition.The car might be able to pull more lbs., but can it stop it?

The trailer I bought will be comfortably be within the 20 square foot frontal area and 1000 lbs max towing capacity. A 5x8 would have exceeded both of those limits, hence why in the end I decided against that size.

 

[piper_chuck]

Looks like you found yourself a nice trailer Chuck. I too need an enclosed trailer since my collection has grown. With the rise of fuel I have decided to use the unused space in my Jeep Wrangler. I put together an all stainless steel adjustable rack. The boat stands simply lock in using a plastic pipe clamp. 3 boats on the top 2 below and in the process of building a ss rack for the reciever for the table, tent etc.
Watching your thread got me thinking and this is what I came up with.

Looks like a good solution. I wonder when your collection will outgrow that too? :lol:

 

[moparbarn]

chuck, as you design & lay out your trailer, think about tongue weight. remember the 10% rule, 10% of total trailer weight on the tongue. not an ironclad rule, but a tail heavy trialer WILL sway & not track/pull well. tongue heavy is just more load opn your cars suspension, & less weight on the fr. tires - where 75% (approx.) of your braking comes from. just something to be aware of, fyi.

 

[piper_chuck]

chuck, as you design & lay out your trailer, think about tongue weight. remember the 10% rule, 10% of total trailer weight on the tongue. not an ironclad rule, but a tail heavy trialer WILL sway & not track/pull well. tongue heavy is just more load opn your cars suspension, & less weight on the fr. tires - where 75% (approx.) of your braking comes from. just something to be aware of, fyi.

Yup, I'm working on the balance as I do the drawings. I've drawn out a plan, but I'm going to refine it more before I buy the materials:

 

[moparbarn]

looks good, chuck! i like the heavier stuff down low. i think i might go with a ss cable over chain. cable doesn't cut as easily as chain.......

 

[Brian Blazer]

Chuck

Are you still happy with your purchase? I would like to see some pictures of the inside. I have a 5X8 and would like to get a 4x6 for both gas milage as well as garage space. Even if I can't get all of my stuff in it, I hope it will fix most. I usually take 3-4 boats (Thunderboat, Sport Hydro, Gas Cat, Crackerbox. I hope to fit three of the boats with the EZUP and table.

Thanks for any information.

Brian

chuck, as you design & lay out your trailer, think about tongue weight. remember the 10% rule, 10% of total trailer weight on the tongue. not an ironclad rule, but a tail heavy trialer WILL sway & not track/pull well. tongue heavy is just more load opn your cars suspension, & less weight on the fr. tires - where 75% (approx.) of your braking comes from. just something to be aware of, fyi.

Yup, I'm working on the balance as I do the drawings. I've drawn out a plan, but I'm going to refine it more before I buy the materials:

 

[Terry Keeley]

Still like my 4x6 fruehauf, solid frame and axles but a light aluminum box:

They're around if you look:

http://corpuschristi...1756116042.html

http://chico.craigsl...1778437073.html

 

[Walt Barney]

Something you might consider is modifing a pop up tent trailer they are light and can hold pretty much stuff. I know some racers in Texas use one for the Internats.

OOPPS jsut saw Marks post he beat me to it.

Why not rent a trailor untill you find what you and your car likes then go out and buy one that suties you, and you will have and idea what you want or need

Walt Barney

 

[mark voorhies]

Still like my 4x6 fruehauf, solid frame and axles but a light aluminum box:

They're around if you look:

http://corpuschristi...1756116042.html

http://chico.craigsl...1778437073.html

Nice ! New ride, wheels still match!

 

[Terry Keeley]

Still like my 4x6 fruehauf, solid frame and axles but a light aluminum box:

They're around if you look:

http://corpuschristi...1756116042.html

http://chico.craigsl...1778437073.html

Nice ! New ride, wheels still match!

Thanks! Yup, it's Zaker's fault... :lol:

 

[Ron Olson]

A lot of trailers have the hubs drilled to accept Chevy wheels so getting those wheels on there must have taken some work.

My 5' x 8' V-nosed Haulmark hasn't moved since I brought it home 3 weeks ago today as I've been working on the inside. The tile is laid and have been wiring up a stereo, a generator, deep-cycle battery, power inverters, etc. but about to rip out the shelving that I put in. The pop-up tent fits nicely in the nose upright, fold-up chairs on both sides, a folding table and the oars for the retrieve boat. I'm heading back out to Harbor Freight tomorrow to get some load locks to hold all of that in place. I'll be laying down some rubber mat to keep things like toolboxes from sliding aorund on the floor and are great for tables. Look me up at the Hobart race, Flint record trials and maybe Saginaw and I may have some extra mats, just ask.

 

[Terry Keeley]

A lot of trailers have the hubs drilled to accept Chevy wheels so getting those wheels on there must have taken some work.

You're right! It's all Ron's fault!

The trailer came with 6 x 5" hubs (Corvette I'm told?), couldn't find metric hubs anywhere to fit the axle so I bought 5 x 4" hubs and made 1 1/4" thick steel adapters to take the 5 x 100mm wheels. :blink:

The new hitch is another story.

 

[Ron Olson]

I'm trying to remember what your hitch looks like but remember that it's a little different from the norm. My problem on my SUV is that it rides high and I had a heck of a time trying to find one that dropped down far enough to keep the trailer level. Mine came with a receiver from the factory. The problem was not only the drop but finding a hitch in 1-1/2" square. After hitting a lot of online shops and stores I finally had to slap myself upside the head as I pass a hitch installers shop every day on the way to work. This guy had just what I needed, a 5" drop-down. He told me that it was a common problem with my model so he keeps them in stock.

I don't know what's going on with the author of this thread, I haven't seen Chuck online in a long time.

 

[piper_chuck]

Chuck

Are you still happy with your purchase? I would like to see some pictures of the inside. I have a 5X8 and would like to get a 4x6 for both gas milage as well as garage space. Even if I can't get all of my stuff in it, I hope it will fix most. I usually take 3-4 boats (Thunderboat, Sport Hydro, Gas Cat, Crackerbox. I hope to fit three of the boats with the EZUP and table.

Thanks for any information.

Brian

Brian,

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you, I don't get over here much and was surprised to see this thread back on the front page. Yes, I am still happy with the trailer, although it's not in racing mode any more. Due to a variety of personal reasons, I haven't run boats for over a year. I can't really provide any pics right now, we're in the middle of building a house and the trailer has been converted to a storage place for tools and supplies for the sweat equity I'm putting in it. I ended up just putting 3 shelves along the front wall. This left floor space for other stuff. I was able to stuff the trailer with a bunch of things. The list typically included:

EZUP

2 folding tables for the tent and another non-folding for the pits

Several tool boxes and plastic parts boxes

A couple folding chairs

Yamaha 1000W generator

Fan

Smelly rubber boots

Gas can

3-5 boats

I am happy with the purchase. It did what I needed without spending a fortune and it was small enough to have minimal drag when towed behind our minivan.