First trailer build!

[Gooonu]

I am in the middle of rebuilding a trailer and am working on the tailgate. I have been thinking about a side opening. Are you glad with your decision? Would you do anything different?

 

[b63215b]

Yes guys i am glad I went with the side open, it was really the only option with the dimensions I had. The only thing I would do different if I had to do over again would be to make the box wider. Steelwork the door will never be opened much more than 90 degrees so the lights are not in the way.

 

[steelwork]

Ok, in off road not touch the ground?

 

[matthewp]

Steelwork the door will never be opened much more than 90 degrees so the lights are not in the way.

Ok, in off road not touch the ground?

I see what Steelwork means, I would put the lights above the platform they are attached to in case of a situation where you drag the back end of the trailer off-road (or even on road).

 

[b63215b]

Steelwork and Matthewp, ok now that isn't something I planned for or even thought off. That is a good point, so where would you suggest I post them. On the box, because based on where the mounts are I'm going to have i fab a piece to make it work.

 

[Titanpat57]

I think it's a good first build...have fun with it and good luck.

I'm kind of in agreement with the lights hanging down...might be better served on the side a bit further up.

Looking forward to the camping update.

 

[b63215b]

Thanks titanpat57.

 

[steelwork]

Put one tent on the trailer?,(sorry my english)

 

[b63215b]

Eventually the tent will either Be on the trailer or towing vehicle. Took it for a small ride yesterday and trailered great not bouncing or moving around really smooth even on nasty roads. Tried to post a video but it wouldn't work.

 

[b63215b]

New tabs for the lights, moved them based on others suggestions. Thanks guys!

 

[matthewp]

Great job! I was going to say there is no real hard & fast rule to where you mount the lights, you just want the "hard" parts of the trailer to scrape first.

 

[workingonit71]

Great job! I was going to say there is no real hard & fast rule to where you mount the lights, you just want the "hard" parts of the trailer to scrape first.

And there's the additional need to have your lights/signals visible from various angles - on the road. I was not happy with the limited visibility of my brake lights/turn signals (never moved them from their original location on the "original" frame), so I added a truck-style LED lighting strip (with running lights, brake, and sequential turn signals) where they would be highly visible from all angles. The height limit in Texas is 72", so I mounted them at 67" (as high as I could). Here's another post from another site:

... I've long considered an easy add-on, that stands out at night... a "line of fire" type LED light bar (like added to many pick-ups). There are some that have multi-functions, and a four-way connector for easy hook-up to the trailer wiring. It's on my to-do list. Each day, after work, I pass by the Autozone where I bought all of my 12vdc LED lights for my trailer. Sure enough, they had a Bully "Fire Strip", with the functions I wanted. Bought it. Now to figure out where to mount it. In addition to the 3M tape on it, I'll screw it on as well, so it'll stay where mounted. High mounted, or low? I like my conspicuity tape as-is, so I'm considering two spots on the hatch:

• fire strip LED lights
• possible mounting locations

Either spot will work; I'll tie in the 4-way into the Spectro junction box under the trailer. Running lights, brake lights, sequential signal lights...! Decided on a high-mount, then I taped and screwed (using PL adhesive to waterproof the screw holes) the light strip to the hatch. The control box is inside the galley, and the 4-way plug is there too; I used a matching 4-way to mate with it (so I could use an existing hole in the galley floor to connect it under the trailer to my Spectro wiring center), then I ran the wiring inside the hatch seals for a "hidden look". Programming the sequential turn signals took 20 seconds, and done.

Finished product, AOK:

 

[b63215b]

Lights mounted on the rear, still need to add in the side markers, that will be easy though. Here are some pictures.




Added shrink rap to keep the connector protected. I only had small shrink rap and very limited amounted so this is all I used.


Hooked her up and went for a little ride, pulls better behind my truck but still not to bad.

 

[b63215b]

Thanks guys, still feel like it is missing something to look right.

Now I need ideas on how to mount my awning, I know I want it to be only a few inches taller than my height. Any ideas would be appreciated.

 

[b63215b]

Hey guys back at it again finally or nice enough to work on it. I have some questions an some ideas I wanted thoughts on.

1. What is the easiest way to lock the trailer, meaning all the doors?
2. I need to mount my awning trying to mock how that will look any ideas.

Thanks for any help guys.



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