QuadMX Posted February 28, 2005 Report Share Posted February 28, 2005 Alright, I got this fabrication class comin up in about a week for my Industrial Maintenance course. I decided to make a 12x7 enclosed. I picked up a 2000 lb torsion axle for a starting point. I'm gonna use 3" channel iron for the base frame and some 1x1 square tubing for the outer frame. I'm workin on some aluminum sheets to cover it, but I gotta wait for my guy to get back to me. As for lights I'm gonna pick up one of these trailer light kits for around 30 bux. Now, does anybody have any other suggestions for things to do or watch for when building this thing? I got all the tools I could possibly need so I'm not worried about that, and I'm a good welder so that's no problem. But if there's anything else that maybe I should need to know holla at me. Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
locogato11283 Posted February 28, 2005 Report Share Posted February 28, 2005 i would use 2x4 tubing for the frame. that will be plenty strong enough for that small of a trailer. on the pieces for the sides you wont need to go real think on that 1" tube. def no more than 1/8 inch. how tall are you gonna make it? are you gonna round or v-nose the front?? also you might wanna think about using a 2 5/16" ball mount. just a little extra insurance when pulling the expensive toys. just make sure you start square. if your main box isnt square youll have all kinds of fun putting the sides and top on. take your time and make things level and square. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuadMX Posted February 28, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2005 i would use 2x4 tubing for the frame. that will be plenty strong enough for that small of a trailer. on the pieces for the sides you wont need to go real think on that 1" tube. def no more than 1/8 inch. how tall are you gonna make it? are you gonna round or v-nose the front?? also you might wanna think about using a 2 5/16" ball mount. just a little extra insurance when pulling the expensive toys. just make sure you start square. if your main box isnt square youll have all kinds of fun putting the sides and top on. take your time and make things level and square. 330696[/snapback] I was gonna go with 2x3 for the base frame. It's 5 bux a foot. That 3" channel is only 2 bux a foot. I could only imagine the 2x4 would be about 7 bux a foot and that I definitely can't afford. Maybe I'll still go with 2x3. It all depends on this thing that's going on with this guy I know...If he can get me the money or not. Anyway...The 1x1 for the enclose frame would be 1/8" thick. It's planned for 6'6" high just so I can stand in it...Also depending on what I can get for sides, may only be 6' high. The front is gonna be v-shaped. It's really only gonna be 10 feet long, but 2 extra feet for a v. I was just gonna go 2" ball mount. I figured that'd be decent enough. Other than that I got about 4 days a week for 4 weeks from 8 am til 4:30 pm to work on this and I'm definitely gonna take my time and make sure everything is square...only thing I'm concerned about squareness right now is mounting the axle. Do enclosed trailers like that have to be licensed or DOT approved before it can be legal or am I able to just throw it on the road when I get done? Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wallrat Posted February 28, 2005 Report Share Posted February 28, 2005 Yes you'll need to have it inspected at the DMV to get a VIN #. Then you can register it. I'd suggest going a tad longer, maybe a 12 footer not including the v-nose. Reason being is that if you ever have a need to carry 2 large quads (banshee, yfz, 250r) they're about 6 foot tire to tire. Turning quads sideways is a PITA...much easier if you can just roll em in. I've got a 7x14 enclosed myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuadMX Posted February 28, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2005 (edited) Yes you'll need to have it inspected at the DMV to get a VIN #. Edited February 28, 2005 by QuadMX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuadMX Posted February 28, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2005 Anybody else got any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PUSH THE THROTTLE Posted February 28, 2005 Report Share Posted February 28, 2005 You Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blk02banshee Posted February 28, 2005 Report Share Posted February 28, 2005 Keep it as light as possible. The heavier the trailer is, the less you can haul on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuadMX Posted March 1, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2005 You Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bansheefreak Posted March 1, 2005 Report Share Posted March 1, 2005 make sure the axle is placed in a good spot where it won't wanna sway when loaded or empty. and also make sure the box is high enough on the axle when you go up a drive or something it don't wanna drag the tail end or the front hitch of trailer... freind of mine had to raise his trailer cus it would drag in spots.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PUSH THE THROTTLE Posted March 1, 2005 Report Share Posted March 1, 2005 Ya I pulled the thing fine with struggle to get going. And an F250 has a little more torque and better gearing for that kinda stuff compared to my 3 speed manual with 3.42 gearing. All my buds have their own stuff to haul their wheelers...and if all else fails theres always the back of my truck...I got a week to decide what I want to go with yet before the building starts...but I think I'm leaning more toward just a 10 foot...I'm mostly worried about what to use for siding right now and how much thats gonna cost for determining length yet. Who knows...maybe I'll say hell with it and go 14. 331340[/snapback] That Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cotton eyed Joe Posted March 1, 2005 Report Share Posted March 1, 2005 About 5 years ago when I built my first trailer, I started with a 3200# axle (over kill, I know) and made the outer, lower frame out of 2" heavy wall (about .125). Then I ran a section of heavy wall (.250) 3" square down the middle to stiffen it up, and to mount the hitch to. I made the sides and stringers on the lower frame out of thin wall (.063???) 2" square tubing. Then I laid down some 1/2" plywood. I could still lift the back end of it up off the ground with some effort, and it lasted up until the day someone offered me $400 for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lincster Posted March 1, 2005 Report Share Posted March 1, 2005 When you say channel iron, do you mean actual iron? Isn't that heavy? With a single axle, you aren't going to get it rated to tow a whole lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bansheeryder21 Posted March 1, 2005 Report Share Posted March 1, 2005 Think about putting some lights on the inside and maybe a side door. Also think about putting some fold down beds on the walls for camping! If you really wanted to, you could make this a pretty nice trailer. That's all I got! Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuadMX Posted March 1, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2005 When you say channel iron, do you mean actual iron? Isn't that heavy? With a single axle, you aren't going to get it rated to tow a whole lot. 331759[/snapback] By channel iron...I meant steel. Just what we say around here. It's not THAT heavy. The axle is rated for 2000 lbs and I don't plan on hauling anymore than that. Right now I'm looking at mostly the outer covering. The cost of the steel isn't too much of a problem for that couple extra feet. I was gonna put aluminum over the outside and that costs 60 bux for a 4x10 sheet. And I'd need 7 of them for a 7x10 which is about 420 bux. Add another couple feet and it'd be probably 2 or 3 more sheets. Unless anybody has suggestions for what I could cover it with? Other main thing is the weight again. The axle can only hold up to 2k and I don't wanna haul more than that with my truck anyway. So the weight of the trailer, and if theres two quads in the trailer, sets of tires...doesn't leave too much room for anything else. I dunno yet...14ft would be nice, but again it's the weight factor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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