What to look for when buying? Willys M-100 Trailer

[0ver7and]

Hey guys, so I came across a Willys M-100 trailer for sale in my area for 500$ CAD (negotiable),

I'm going to pick it up this afternoon, however, trailer is rusty as hell - definitely will have some body work to be done on it, aside from that, what should I look at before purchasing?

This will be my first trailer and long term plan is to build a camper out of it with a home made pop up tent.
Here's the photo of the trailer.

 

[4lowdean]

Unlike the US M416's which has the tub bolted to the frame, it's my understanding the Canadian M100's were welded together. So you need to check the length of that weld both on the outer lip as well as the inner lip of the frame rails for rust/rot. Key areas will be rear corners where the tires will kick up mud/water/snow/etc and it an collected in the c-channel of the frame or in a weld seam. Also check bolt holes to see if rust has gotten in there.

In all honesty the trailers are pretty robust and you may have a lot of surface rust, but there is usually enough meat on these things to get them sandblasted (with a light medium like baking soda) and then just spot-weld any thin spots.

 

[Robert Bills]

Are you sure that is a Canadian M100? Is the date plate still intact?

There are some features missing from the photo of your trailer which make it difficult to distinguish between an American M100 and Canadian M100. The tailgate is not original. The grab handles found on the M100's are missing, etc. It's hard to see, but it appears that the original landing leg is gone.

Still, unless it is a total rust bucket, $500 is not a bad price in 2020.


Some links with photos that may be of assistance:

https://campingcdn.blogspot.com/2011/11/my-canadian-m100-trailer.html

G503 Military Vehicle Message Forums - Login

M100 cdn - MLU FORUM

M100 cdn The Softskin Forum

mapleleafup.net

Willys M Jeeps Forums-viewtopic-Canadian M100 Trailer

www.willysmjeeps.com

 

[0ver7and]

Thank you guys for the responses, I went to. check it out. It's body bolted on frame, however, the trailer floor is rusted through near the front end and the front end itself is rusted through in a straight line (see pictures). The suspension was changed recently.

Since I don't know how to weld nor do I have the necessary equipment, do you think it's worth purchasing for 300 CAD? I was thinking of just redoing the floor with wood and perhaps doing some bundo / plexiglass work everywhere where the red tape is (rusted through). However, my concern is the structure won't be solid enough to hold a foldable pop up tent with two people sleeping in it. What's your take guys?

 

[Robert Bills]

Since you are not equipped to do all of the necessary metal work yourself, perhaps you should skip this trailer and look for a better candidate. The money you save buying a cheap trailer in poor condition will be spent ten times over trying to make it right.

 

[0ver7and]

Since you are not equipped to do all of the necessary metal work yourself, perhaps you should skip this trailer and look for a better candidate. The money you save buying a cheap trailer in poor condition will be spent ten times over trying to make it right.

Probably a good call, I needed this voice of reasoning thank you