My history with off-road trailers, plus a couple hangers-on

[Mundo4x4Casa]

I'm one of the Ancients on this forum, maybe even an Elder of the Tribe of off-road, remote location Zealots. This happens to be THE most creative and pulse raising forums anywhere with extreme attention to form follows function, and even a little art work. However, we all had to start somewhere and, as it works out, we stand on others' shoulders in terms of design concepts and what works and what doesn't. What follows is my trail of trailers. Some were doomed to a narrow stratum in the Burgess Shale.
My very first homemade jeep trailer in Rockhouse Basin, a place you cannot even drive to anymore. This is December 1968. No spare. Broke the tongue right off on this rough trail. Used bailing wire to wire it up enough to get home. Bro John on the left was 8 years old; now 57. Bro Jerry, on the right, was a teenager and died three years ago.


The next has no photo. It was a 1942 M-100 Bantam Jeep Trailer in stock form with pintle. It was one heavy sucker, around 600 pounds, so I traded it straight across for the Con Fer below.

The 2nd of my homemade jeep/camping trailers. Canyonlands/Jun/1971. That toe head kid in the pic is now 48.


The 1969 Con Fer Toyota Land Cruiser specific waterproof with 4 gas can equipped jeep trailer in the middle of the Vizciano Desert in Baja. The main spring broke, and after trying to repair it good enough to get to civilization realized we needed to empty the trailer and remove the axle completely. We then hoisted the trailer body onto the Tomba Burro with the trailer tongue on the roof of the FJ-55 and drove the 85 miles of sand back to Guerro Negro for repairs. You had to drive with the doors open to see around the body of the trailer. El mechanico worked all day fashioning a new spring pack from something laying around. Mexicaneering at its best.






Our 1968 Viet Nam War issue M-714 with SOA, integrated tail lights, and civilian wheels. Also very heavy.


recent pic of our 1999 locked XJ with our 1955 Bradley utility trailer sold by Sears and Roebuck. With the wooden stake sides on it's our firewood gathering container. This one is a keeper. Very light weight for its size and strength. double diamond plate floor and stout hardware like hinges and joints. Still around 300 pounds.


A close up showing the 8 ton pintle and the 16 ton lunette hitch arrangement. Clanky and over-kill but bullet proof on undulating terrain.


Bradley and Camper on the Mojave Road. This was the chuck and support wagon for 8 people on motorcycles and bicycles.


Why you need a pintle: click on pic to start vid:


I still have my 14 foot, 7K pound capy, wood plank car trailer with SOA and fold down crank style jacks welded onto the rear (to avoid taking the heavy ramps along for disembarkation) It weighs 1100 pounds, probably 1000 pounds without the ramps. With the narrow track, and SOA, I could pull this loaded trailer down some pretty bad roads to get to the trailhead.

I bought it because it was very light and the same length and track width as the CJ-8.


Our two axle trash trailer formerly a horse trailer after the bears pulled down the bars and raided the contents.



Our rental trailer on the Mojave Road. You can go anywhere with a rental trailer.


The state of the off-road camping trailer art has zoomed way up in recent years, mostly due to the fine engineer heads on this very forum. I thought you'd have stroll down my trailer lane.
regards, as always, jefe aka Jeff Reynolds.

 

[chunko]

Wow, great write-up! I drool over some of the designs and builds on here that include all sorts of cool accessories but I certainly admire the simplicity of your lightweight trailers. After all, the point is just to get out there.

As someone looking for their first adventure trailer, though, I wish those little jeep trailers were still plentiful. Everyone around here wants $1000 for them in poor condition.

 

[Mundo4x4Casa]

chunko,
Yes, this is the place for ideas about adventure trailers. Too late for me, but our cozy TC fits the bill. Our first M-714 was $300. My first M-100 Bantam was $100, cash. The best of the lot, IMHO, is the Bradley which our neighbor sold to me for $100. Why do I like the Bradley?
Very sturdy AND lightweight. It has a track about the same width as a 1954 Ford F-1, so not too narrow and more interior space than a MilSpec even with those low sides. With the sides off I've picked up a couple Jeep axles. It's a snap to lower the tailgate and throw them in. It has a tailgate with those classic 50's "S" hooks on chains for latches. Plenty of ground clearance, approach, breakover, and departure angle. I've loaded this one with 2000 pounds of crushed rock, or Oak rounds, piled high, over and over again. Amazingly, the leaf springs still have some flex. This was made back when they used a heavier gauge metal than trailer manufacturers do now. The tongue has a two foot long truss underneath right where the tongue meets the front of the body. With a pintle, it will go anywhere I can take my Jeep. It's also a good starting point for a real adventure, off-road trailer, maybe with a RTT?
jefe