MTD's 1946 Bantam T3-C Expo Trailer Build

[MTD]

A full 30 lb. propane tank is going to be pretty heavy. Great progress so far! I used NOS M416 safety chains on my T3-C Bantam, they are longer and worked great plus they are super cheap. Did you have to enlarge the hole for the LED brake lights?

Yeah I have pretty much decided that the 30 lb tank has to go, not necessarily because of weight, but because of the lack of flexibility. I may want to have the camp kitchen set up a ways away from the tent, but this propane setup wouldn't allow for that. Since I already poneid up the cash for these saftey chains I think I will be using them for a while, thank you for the suggestion though I will have to keep it in mind.

As for the break lights, I am not sure what the original setup should have been since someone had clearly modified it and replaced one of the brackets with some kind of flimsy 20 ga steel mount. One of my light holes looked light it was cut open with a acetylene torch. I did have to open them up a little, because the recommended hole size is 4 and 1/2 inches for these particular lights. They are Blazers that I picked up at the local farm supply store.

 

[MTD]

I finished tacking up my lid tonight and tomorrow after duck hunting I will weld it all together and get a couple coats of paint on it.

For a back yard job I think It turned out pretty good, and you can't beat the price. The one downside is that it is a little heavy... The plate steel for the top alone weighs in at about 120lbs. The good news is at this rate it should definitely be done for our little adventure next weekend!

 

[Mark Harley]

Nice work on the lid.

The nice part of using a 20# tank is the ability to exchange them easily when on the road.
Every pharmacy, Gas station and hardware store seem to have Blue Rhino boxes.
just remember They only fill to 17# in them.

Nice work on the trailer.

 

[Ravenmad]

Nice trailer. I picked up a 1947 Bantam T3-C a few months ago. Love it... Looking forward to seeing your finished product.

 

[MTD]

Nice work on the lid.

Thank you!

Nice trailer. I picked up a 1947 Bantam T3-C a few months ago. Love it... Looking forward to seeing your finished product.View attachment 248972

Wow yours is in great shape! Did you restore it at all?

Sent from my XT901 using Tapatalk

 

[Robert Bills]

. . . As for the break lights, I am not sure what the original setup should have been since someone had clearly modified it and replaced one of the brackets with some kind of flimsy 20 ga steel mount. . . .

Originally, the T3-C came with a single Arrow "Model 41" tail light on the left side. There are very few of the original lights still in existence and they rarely come up for sale.

The original owner of my '46 T3-C added a hole for a tail light on the right side and used taillight assemblies from a 1950 Pontiac, seen below, which were a perfect fit. ['50 Pontiac taillights were/still are popular on '30s era Ford roadster customs. Reproductions are currently available (although pricey) from Bob Drake Reproductions https://www.bobdrake.com/ItemForm.aspx?Item=HR-13405]

I had the bezels for my '50 Pontiac tail lights re-chromed and bought 3 sets of replacement plastic lenses from taillightking.com in Montgomery, Texas "just in case."

 

[Ravenmad]

Nope, I bought from a guy in Colorado Springs for $650. The way it sits in the pic. The floor was a little wavy, but all in all it is in great shape. He put all new hubs and bearings on it. I flipped the axle, removed the 2 inc. ball coupler and added a lock-n-roll coupler. I need to pick up a slightly taller set of tires ( current in 28 inc. tall and I want to put a 32x10 on it )... After that a lid is gotta happen to secure my goodies in the trailer ( so I am watching how yours comes along )... I am that guy that has a second set of everything and it's packed in the trailer ready to go...

 

[Ravenmad]

Thank you!



Wow yours is in great shape! Did you restore it at all?

Sent from my XT901 using Tapatalk

Nope, I bought from a guy in Colorado Springs for $650. The way it sits in the pic. The floor was a little wavy, but all in all it is in great shape. He put all new hubs and bearings on it. I flipped the axle, removed the 2 inc. ball coupler and added a lock-n-roll coupler. I need to pick up a slightly taller set of tires ( current in 28 inc. tall and I want to put a 32x10 on it )... After that a lid is gotta happen to secure my goodies in the trailer ( so I am watching how yours comes along )... I am that guy that has a second set of everything and it's packed in the trailer ready to go...

 

[MTD]

Originally, the T3-C came with a single Arrow "Model 41" tail light on the left side. There are very few of the original lights still in existence and they rarely come up for sale.



The original owner of my '46 T3-C added a hole for a tail light on the right side and used taillight assemblies from a 1950 Pontiac, seen below, which were a perfect fit. ['50 Pontiac taillights were/still are popular on '30s era Ford roadster customs. Reproductions are currently available (although pricey) from Bob Drake Reproductions https://www.bobdrake.com/ItemForm.aspx?Item=HR-13405]

I had the bezels for my '50 Pontiac tail lights re-chromed and bought 3 sets of replacement plastic lenses from taillightking.com in Montgomery, Texas "just in case."

Very interesting thank you for sharing! I though it was strange that someone would simply hack up that side of the trailer for no apparent reason.

Nope, I bought from a guy in Colorado Springs for $650. The way it sits in the pic. The floor was a little wavy, but all in all it is in great shape. He put all new hubs and bearings on it. I flipped the axle, removed the 2 inc. ball coupler and added a lock-n-roll coupler. I need to pick up a slightly taller set of tires ( current in 28 inc. tall and I want to put a 32x10 on it )... After that a lid is gotta happen to secure my goodies in the trailer ( so I am watching how yours comes along )... I am that guy that has a second set of everything and it's packed in the trailer ready to go...

Wow nice find! I picked mine up for $700 and you saw the shape it was in. All in all I think this build is going to hit about $1000, but since I am in school I think I will end up caping it there. I picked up the final trimmings today.

 

[MTD]

The lid is finished! I am working on mounting the hinges and Thule bars now, and I got quite a ways tonight. My tap that I am borrowing from my roommate though seems to be made out of mild steel and was dull by the time I finished the 2nd hinge. It was a cheap kit, but seriously?

 

[MTD]

I know this post looks alot like yesterdays but every think is now secured to the trailer.

 

[MTD]

Trailer is finished. We are heading up north this weekend for camping wish us luck!

 

[dstock]

Nicely done!

 

[MTD]

Weather last weekend didn't quite cooperate for our trip. Saturday morning we woke to about a half inch of snow with a rain mix following. We had plans for hiking hinting and fishing but since the weather outlook was bleak we decided to head to town for touristy things. We found an open house at cranberry bog and stopped for a tour. It was a gas and we had cranberry fever going on lol. Jackson county is beautiful though and we will do it again in the future!

 

[MTD]

Went camping/duck hunting down by a local river. Was a good time and took some time to get some cool pictures. No snow this time too which was nice lol.