1940 Chevrolet Expedition Trailer

[Mr. Leary]

Current Pic:

Now, back to how the thread started...

Its a trailer. Looks like a very old truck bed. I am not sure what kind of truck it came off of, but its a camping trailer now, after I tweak it a bit.

I got impatient waiting for a military trailer so I just bought something that would work, since I plan on cutting it all up anyways.

So the first two things I did were rip out the rotten floorboards and cut off the 50lb bumper on the back....

... then off came the lights and reflectors mounted all over the trailer. Before...

Then off came the goofy plates on the rear that somebody welded on... these took a while, and are still not completely off...

Test fit the Dallas bling, and they should look pretty good once I rip the home made special fenders off. The after-the-fact welding on this trailer is some of the worst I have ever seen... so I'm cutting it all off.

 

[Mr. Leary]

I also got the fenders off, but it was dark so no pics. I put a pair of really wide wheels that were rollers for the old 80 series on the trailer... looks a little odd... but so do I, so who cares!

With the worn down 315s, it sits pretty level with the truck. In the near future, I will order a coupler from Martyn and cut off the tongue in favor of a 2" reciever. I will also put one in the rear, but need to put some thought into it since I also plan on adding a winch back there to back me out of trouble should I, ahem, "kerplunk" again.

All the usual, with a twist. This thing will be designed to carry cargo. There will be storage boxes below the floor boards that will house the water tanks and the batteries. These storage areas will also be angular and function as skid plates from front to back to stave off getting hung up on stuff.

The heaviest stuff will be carried the lowest to stave off the dreaded floppy day, and I am thinking about hinging the front of the box to allow extra long loads to be carried. There are no plans currently for a lid (If I do it will be removable), but that may change in time depending on my needs. For now, I don't need any water resistant storage that action packers cannot provide.

The floor will also have integrated loops to aid in cargo securement. The_Mrs. has also requested a fold out table and an awning for her kitchen... so that will take priority... cuz' if she ain't happy, we ain't happy. I have been looking through some kitchen threads, but have not decided yet on what I will do... I'll keep y'all posted.

The trailer will be ready to carry an ATV, and a large one at that.

Eventually, a roof top tent may be added on the rack above the bed, but for now, I will invest in one of these. Its cheap, it should fit pretty well, and I can feel comfortable leaving it in the storage area of the trailer at all times, not to mention an RTT could be mounted right above it without interfering... good for guests.

This project is being rushed to useability due to the upcoming cleanup at the PINS. I have a backup trailer I can borrow from a friend if mine is not in one peice, but I'm really going to try to make this work.

The trailer will have the same tire / wheel combination and will carry its own spare. Camping lights will be added, they will match those on the roof rack of the truck. I think I will get a couple of pairs of maxtrax to use as loading ramps among other things (Keep my fingers crossed).

I have ordered a custom Dexter axle with 6 on 5.5 to match the truck. I will lengthen the tongue to match the breakovers of the truck as closely as possible. This trailer is very light, and sits at about 250lbs right now. It will get heavier as I add stuff, but the goal is to keep it less than 1000lbs loaded, unless I am carrying an ATV.

The price was right, and I have been having fun with the build it cheap theme... makes me have to design multiple uses for everything I do to it. This should be a fun build, and will doubtless be its own adventure of sorts. The build will be fast, with some long term changes bound to happen somewhere down the road.

So here it is, gentlemen, enjoy...

 

[achampagne]

Cool, enjoy your build.

 

[Lynn]

I used to have a '36 Ford pickup with a bed that looked a lot like that (sans fenders and other mods).

 

[Maximus Ram]

I have something like that sitting in my driveway. Mine is made from an old Willey's pickup bed. Someday it will get re-habed into a properly functioning trailer.

 

[Mr. Leary]

Got the trailer primed last night after the sandblasting. Cleaned up nice. I'm gonna try to put in some moonlight time next week and get the fenders built. Right now it looks goofy... it has 305/70/r16s on it on some 12" wide rims and its two different colors of primer.

It was still dark this AM when I left, so no pics until I get back in town.

Axle should be here in another week or so... and I will pick up the metal for the tubs and flooring next week.

 

[Mr. Leary]

Found out today that the bed of the trailer is originally off of an early 1940s Chevrolet pickup truck. Neat.

 

[Mr. Leary]

So I got the trailer sandblasted and stripped down to size.

Then in came the new axle and the floor (Sorry no pics of install)

But here are some pics of it out and about with me last weekend.

We did not take any pics of our truck bed tent setup, which now includes a full size memory foam mattress inside the truck bed tent. The tent fit perfectly, as did the mattress, and we had probably the most comfortable night we have ever spent out there.

The trailer is really coming along. I hope to have it painted this week, as it is only primed thus far, and then I will re wire the trailer this weekend, along with my brake controller.

 

[elmo_4_vt]

Looks nice... Big difference so far.

-

 

[Mr. Leary]

The one thing that was bothersome when going through our gear after this trip was just how full of dirt and dust it had become.

We need a weatherproof soft cover or heavy duty tarp to put over the trailer for these trips.

Any suggestions?

 

[TX_TLC]

Very nice! I'm in process on my build based on old Studebaker pickup bed. What are the measurements on those fenders? I like the look of the lights mounted on the fenders. Keeps them out of the way. Any issues with the placement?

 

[Mr. Leary]

Very nice! I'm in process on my build based on old Studebaker pickup bed. What are the measurements on those fenders? I like the look of the lights mounted on the fenders. Keeps them out of the way. Any issues with the placement?

The trailer has only been on one trip so far, but there are no issues witht the lights yet.

The suspension still needs some work and the whole trailer will have to be rewired for the 7 prong. I am debating extending the tongue enough to fit a nose box, but it may end up longer than is practical off road.

 

[TX_TLC]

Well I thInk I will borrow the placement idea. I really didnt want to tack them on either side of the tail gate.

I will be waiting to see what direction you take the suspension as this is one of the first things I need to address on mind.

 

[LaOutbackTrail]

Yes. It is upside down.
Yes. Mr. Leary is shirtless and wearing rubber gloves...

Left to right: Mr. Leary, JSMarine, Bones

 

[Mr. Leary]

I have found a pretty good mix for the suspension. I am down to a one leaf setup after removing the other two. However, I was able to reuse the bottom leaf as an overload by inverting it.

The bottom of the trailer is Herculined. It has performed well so far...

I have been looking at the Yakima bar system for a while, but have been balking at the price. So... I measured the bars at REI, then went to the metal yard and picked up some hot rolled bars. I secured them to the trailer with some 1.125" inner width long tangent U Bolts and some custom made U Bolt brackets that I made from 0.125" flat stock. I now have bars that can be moved into position as required to utilize Yakima accessories. I intend to use this for mountain bikes, kayaks, canoes, and anything else that takes my fancy and Yakima makes an attachment for...

Right now the trailer is carrying the RTT, with a Bigfoot bag in the front to house our clothing and extra bedding. That way, we have a relatively waterproof bag within arms reach of the tent, so we don't have to go up and down to get clothes or bring up a bag.

I have been making every effort to streamline the process. I would like to get to the point of zero to full camp setup with dinner cooking in less than 20 mins. This will be important to us if we ever get to go on our adventure-moon, as we will be living out of the truck for weeks, and covering many miles.