NEED advice on DIY Trailer Build

[HendersonJL]

@canorisa beautiful trailer! Attached is my "restored" Vietnam era M416 that I turned it into a camper. This may answer some of your questions. The trailer was rattle-can painted and the drilling didn't cause any "damage." We've gone camping a few times and four of us (two adults and two kids under 12) slept in the tent comfortably. In terms of the trailer capacity, I am not sure if you need to update the axle. As someone has pointed out.. the trailer is "bullet proof" as it is. If you want to just change out the tires to match with your towing rig, all you need is a set of hub converters to match the Bronco wheel pattern.

Good luck!

 

[canorisa]

@canorisa beautiful trailer! Attached is my "restored" Vietnam era M416 that I turned it into a camper. This may answer some of your questions. The trailer was rattle-can painted and the drilling didn't cause any "damage." We've gone camping a few times and four of us (two adults and two kids under 12) slept in the tent comfortably. In terms of the trailer capacity, I am not sure if you need to update the axle. As someone has pointed out.. the trailer is "bullet proof" as it is. If you want to just change out the tires to match with your towing rig, all you need is a set of hub converters to match the Bronco wheel pattern.

Good luck!

@HendersonJL love what you did with your M416 trailer. Thanks for posting a picture of it. Looks pretty sharp. I have the same no-weld brackets X6 of them just like you. I think we might have gotten them from the same guy, lol ?. Where did you get the cross bars and how much did they set you back, if you don’t mind me asking.

Also, happened to noticed, is your trailer a B1 by any chance? If it is, I had two of them. They are pretty nice and tough little trailers. You’re lucky to have it. I only wish I could still have mine but was forced to sell it and I don’t know what became of it after that.

I was thinking of maybe swapping the axle and tires for a 3500# axle with tires and wheels to match the Bronco but then I started thinking that I would take all originality away from the trailer and so I have changed my mind. I guess I’ll be keeping the current setup that I have now.

I just wish the trailer would be easier to maneuver while backing up. I have heard lots of guys extending the hitch part in order to accomplish this. I have no idea if that would resolve the issue for mine. Any thoughts? Do you have any issues backing yours up? I don’t know what your pull vehicle is but I would guess you would have similar issues when backing it up.

Got any more shots of your trailer you would like to share? I’m looking at the RTT setup you have.

thanks ????

 

[HendersonJL]

@canorisa Hey Thank you. I got the cross bar from the same guy i brought the no-weld brackets Compact Camping Trailers. The cross bars were $99 for three 56" bars. They cost a little more now with inflation.

The previous owner didnt have any paper work for the trailer, but it does look like the B1.

My tow rig is a 2018 JL (2 door). I definitely had troubles backing it up the first few times. I've gotten better at it now... however, not quite "pro" at it yet. I do believe that it'll get better over time.

Here are a couple more pix of the rig.

Thanks

 

[canorisa]

@HendersonJL. From the looks on your pictures you definitely have a B1. The dead giveaway is the location of the hand brake. Unless you did that yourself, which I doubt it, that’s a B1 my friend. ????

Thank you for the lead on the cross bars. I knew it was the same guy/company but it’s been quite some time since I purchased them which I still have in the original box they were shipped in.

im sort of glad I’m not the only one having these difficulties backing up the 416 or Bantam. When backing up it’s like you’re fighting to get the trailer to go where you want it to go but it always wants to do whatever it wants to do if you don’t react quick enough. I’m sure you know all about it.

I have not gone out to price out a RTT yet but I’m sure I;l be looking at any where of $1800 - $3500 for a nice 4 man RTT. Although it’s just my wife and I but you never know if we’ll bring kids along. But I’m guessing a 2 man RTT would go for $1500 - $2000, I’m guessing.

Quick question…are your tires 16” and NDCC’s or civilian tires?. Just curious ?

thanks,

Jr

 

[FN4PAPA]

If you want to sell it I would place ads where they are selling Hot Rods and Antique vehicles... someone with an old red pickup or jeep might just give you a pretty good price for it... If you are just trying to sell it to the guy down the street who wants something to haul gravel or potting soil, you aren't going to get much for it... Sorry.

Cheers

 

[Oscar Mike Gulf Yankee]

Do you have any more pictures of that trailer?

If I were going to take that out for anything close to off roading I'd mount that license higher up.

If I were to use it, I wouldn't change a thing. Put some plywood on the bottom and use a tent made for the back of a pickup. Use a canvas cover.

Otherwise, I'd sell it or just get another trailer. After all, you can't have too many trailers, I have five now and I'm expecting a dealer application from the state licensing folks.

 

[canorisa]

Do you have any more pictures of that trailer?

If I were going to take that out for anything close to off roading I'd mount that license higher up.

If I were to use it, I wouldn't change a thing. Put some plywood on the bottom and use a tent made for the back of a pickup. Use a canvas cover.

Otherwise, I'd sell it or just get another trailer. After all, you can't have too many trailers, I have five now and I'm expecting a dealer application from the state licensing folks.

Here you go….

 

[GrantYJ]

Your trailer is beautiful. I've got a Bantam as well and I'm having the same concerns as you (including wanting to convert it to an Overland Trailer while not destroying the originality).
I'm happy to hear that you're home and on the mend!

Concerning a few of your questions:

Tongue extension and backing concerns:
The longer a trailer is (between the hitch and axle) the easier it is to back ...it's that simple. Also, the shorter wheel base of the tow vehicle, the easier any given length trailer is to back. I have a Jeep YJ with a CJ front clip, a Scout 800V, a Scout II, my DD is a Single Cab Tacoma with a 6ft bed, and a '74 F250. I listed them in that order because that also gives you 'easiest to hardest' on any trailer for backing. Bantams are SHORT. They're pretty difficult to back (regardless of the tow vehicle). Start out trying to back your trailer in a straight line (take it to a large empty parking lot). If you can't see the trailer in your side mirrors, remedy that problem FIRST. Once you learn to back it straight (and it takes some practice) your life will get much easier. All that said, I'm extending the tongue on mine. I'm definitely keeping the A in place, but I'm still trying to decide whether to add an outer "A" and tie it in to the existing frame, or just putting a longer tongue on with strapping down the sides where the center cast section bolts on. Regardless of which way I go, there will be a receiver mounted so that I can switch between a ball hitch and a more 'offroad friendly' hitch (lunette or one of the universal setups) as well as having the option to lengthen as needed and remove everything past the receiver hitch (on the trailer side) for storage purposes.

Tire choice:
As long as your ground clearance isn't a problem, I wouldn't swap tires (or wheels) unless you just wanted to match your tow rig. What you've got right now is very capable.

Axle upgrade:
If you're not planning to upgrade the frame and suspension (which would be insane given where you're already at), I wouldn't touch this. Your bearings and spindles are wildly overkill and if you went to a heavier 'rated' axle, you'd probably actually be downgrading from the bearings you have and you'd be in a situation where your frame couldn't handle what your axles could (...and frankly you're already there). As someone else already said before, if you want to match the wheels on your Bronco, buy wheel adapters and move on. There's absolutely no reason to mess with what you've got.

Powdercoat:
I have a 'budget' powdercoating setup in my shop (meaning a Summit powder gun and an electric oven!). I've powdercoated a lot of the individual pieces for my trailer, but I'm limited by oven size. Assuming that your powdercoater is even somewhat competent, you're not going to chip it. I have powdercoated tons of things, some (mostly vises and tools) were done specifically to beat on them to see how it would perform. The stuff is amazing. Don't worry about drilling and bolting....

I'm adding a solid top to mine (designed to clamp into the stake pockets) as well as a frame (that lifts) to mount a RTT (I want canopy areas for cooking in the rain while retaining less wind resistance while towing). All of this is being designed to be 'bolt on'. I'll have a handful of extra holes in the trailer, but if I ever decided to put it back to 'stock Bantam', I can throw all the original bits back on and weld up some holes. I doubt that I would, but I want the option.

In the end, you have to decide what you want. You have a beautifully restored original trailer right now. If you're willing to start over, you could design and build a fantastic completely custom Overlanding Trailer, or you could take what you've got and build on it. I'm doing the latter, but I understand where you're coming from. It would have been cheaper and easier for me to have started with a pile of clean steel, but I couldn't pass up the chance to build a Bantam into what I want (and mine was in much worse shape than yours!). Mine had one badly bent top rail and the bed was rusted out (I'm calling it 'project tetanus'). It was destined for the scrap yard. The first attached pic is the 'before' picture. The second was after a couple of hours of straightening to the aforementioned top rail.

I'm about halfway through sandblasting and filler primer at the moment, but the axle is fully rebuilt, model A taillights are sandblasted, spacers (for flush alignment to the trailer) have been fabricated and the components will be powdercoated black as soon as I find time, and I'm still working on a final design for the cap and lift structure for the RTT.

Regardless of how you decide to move forward, you've done a lovely job thus far and you should be proud!

(and no more pics of mine will be forthcoming until it's at least fully primed)

 

[canorisa]

GrantYJ:

Sir! Received your message and read it very carefully TWICE!, lol ?. Wow!, thank you so much. Wanted to relay this to you…you gave me the push that I needed back because I was actually dragging my feet on this thing, sort of speak. I did put it up for sale but I have only had a few inquiries on it. I really think that I’m being very reasonable on the price and it’s OBO!. I recently saw a M416…basically a rust bucket with an older RTT on it. Nothing really special on the trailer as far as mods was concerned and this guy was selling it for $4800. Guess what? Not even 2 weeks later the ad was marked as sold. Whether he got the asking price or not, I don’t know but for crying out loud, I told myself, I just don’t understand folks. Here’s this guy with a rust bucket and sells his. I have a really nice completed restored Bantam for far less and willing to negotiate on the price and I’m getting messages that I’m being unreasonable, not in touch, out of my mind, and basically low balling me the entire time. You know, sometimes people suck! They just want a completed project for way less money and pay far more money for a raw project. Where’s the logic in all of that?!

Anyways, moving on. Sorry, just wanted to vent for a bit. Sir, you have lifted my spirits. My trailer is inside my garage and hasn’t seen the pavement in quite sometime now, lol ?. I recently sold my Jeep and purchased the Bronco and the Bronco didn’t come with a hitch setup, so I have to work on getting one installed soon. I do have to empty my trailer cause for some reason I have been just placing stuff in it and you know how crazy that can get at times. It’s also collecting a lot of dust and it’s just bugging me. So, I have to get that done soon.

THANK YOU! for all the tips you mentioned in your message. You did brake down everything and addressed everything very carefully and I thought it was very well written. Easy to understand. I was doing all that thinking about upgrades but now, thanks to your message, I’m backing down from most likely ruining a very nicely restored Bantam, so I’m great full for your message.

I would love to have either a metal or aluminum top made for my trailer but being that I’m in So. Florida now and I’ve only been here 3 years I’m still raw and don’t know places to have this done. Life has gotten in the way and not to mention lots of health issues that have been addressed but some are still ongoing but I just thank God, He has been good to me and shown me mercy.

I don’t know if I posted pictures of my Bantam before restoration but here are a couple just so you can see what I started with. These little trailers do clean up very nicely if you take your time and do it right the first time around. Let me know what you think!

b/r,

joel

 

[OldGreen]

Backing up.... The distance from the hitch to the tires should be close to the same as the wheelbase of the tow vehicle. That little guy was built for Jeeps with <90" wheelbase. Get your tape measure and report back.

 

[jmmaxus]

If it was my trailer, I'd probably spray paint it myself using Steel-It spray paint:
POLYURETHANE AEROSOL – STEEL-IT Coatings

Upgrade the suspension to Timbren axleless Either 2000HD, 2200HD, or 3500HD. I'd get the ones with brake flange whether adding brakes or not in case change mind or remove them and put them on something else later. Other than than would come down to Regular Tire (≤235) or Offroad tires and either standard or 4" lift.

I add Dinoot rack towers and bolt them to the side of the bed:
Dinoot No Weld Trailer Rack Towers Trailer Rack System (compactcampingstore.com)

Build a lid. The towers are curved and I think a lid can slide in between them.

For numerous ideas that people have implemented with trailers exactly like yours head over to this forum which is sponsored by Compactcamping:
Tventuring Adventure Trailer Forum - Trailer Supported Adventuring