Nov 9 2018
Well this one made it into the shop…
And wont be cut up..
Over all.. it’s not bad. The main frame is good, only some of the thin metal is rusted through. And other than a different bumper , there has been no repairs or modifications. I still don’t like how flimsy the frame is… definitely relying on the floor for strength. So that is what has to change.
This is an interesting thing.. It could be ( and most likely was) a space for a porta potty. But it could be a front table for two. Instead of the bunk. Something to think about. Now’s time to have a careful look at the frame. And make some plans… This is my plans:
The Plan:
First.. This floor space.. without any support needs more added. And the longer I looked at the bumper… the more I think it’s fine. It’s strong.. and that’s important.
This is the rear of the lower floor.. no good like this.. I’ll cut it out and use two angle pieces.
The support for the entrance is.. well gone. So I’ll build it back with more angle.
Surprisingly the axle is still good.. looks bad but it works as it should. But I’m still going to use the new 2000 lb axles. They have the hubs I need for the new wheels. I will copy what I did for the Boler frame. This will add 2.5 inches in height to the trailer . These trailers are much too low in my opinion.
Lastly.. A new 2 inch coupler.. and a jack that fits the hole. The holders for the propane tank need to be reworked to fit a battery in that space to.
Let’s Get Started:
Cutting and cleaning is the order of the day.. Getting rid of the bad pieces. The place to buy metal is closed for a few days… so I’m taking my time to remove the axle.. not easy when they put a weld in a tight place.
But I got it ! The axle and all the bad metal is gone.. Now I’ll do some grinding and cleaning to prepare for the new metal. and I stoped to make a video…
Well the order in which I do all those mods doesn’t really matter. So long as they get done..
So I started at the front of the trailer.. Here I’m seeing how things fit. Yup this works.. Because the jack is tall the battery box can be in front of the propane tank.. Sooo
I made a battery holder ! I also made the seven ears for the body hold down bolts.
And now I have welded in the added rear frame floor supports. Then we flip the frame over to work on the axles. Pretty much following the same design as the Boler.. The axles are the same.
One difference … This time I gave the axles a little camber. And since the upward angle is 22.5 deg. instead of the factory 10 deg. even with the added 3 ” blocking.. we end up lifting the trailer 2 ”
There’s a 2 ” receiver under the bumper.. this will be used for the spare tire. OR a bike carrier.
The body hold down ears are done. Seven of them just like the Boler.
The propane tank and battery holders are done too.
Once I’ve finished the door floor support.. I’ll flip it back over and time for painting.
There… underside is done.. and….
The whole frame is done.. just the wheels , hubs and stabilizer jacks to clean and paint. When the frame was dry I kicked it outside so I had more room to clean the wheels & stabilizer jacks.
All done.. took the wheels down to bare metal.. nice !
Here’s the finished frame.. with it’s new tires. This brings the height to it’s full and proper place. A perfect 15 inches of hitch height. 8 inches of overall clearance under the trailer.. and a 10 ” entrance height. That in my mind is as near perfect as it gets.
The final touch arrived …. baby moon hub caps. Can’t wait to see them on..
One last photo… This is what the hub caps look like on the wheels..
