Split-dovetail car hauler trailer

[buggyman1]

I've also been working on a removable stabilizer jack for the rear. I modified a 5000lb tongue jack, i'm not sure if it will work or not, but thought i'd give it a try. I wanted to extend it out from the back of the trailer to make it as stable as possible sense i'm using just one. Here's the extension and a pin I turned for the jack.

 

[buggyman1]

Here's the jack. I had to cut-off about 8 inches from the bottom and weld on a receiver plate to mount it. It still needs a little TLC, but I think it might just work. I think I can mount the roller (for the winch cable) to the new receiver without too much work if needed.

 

[Scooter78]

I can't wait to see how you will store this. You came up with great ways to store the other stuff.

 

[srs]

Buggyman1, just a thought but how do you feel about putting a small LED light above the step shining down on it so you can see it in the dark? Just thinking out loud, keep up the good work. Stanley

 

[buggyman1]

I can't wait to see how you will store this. You came up with great ways to store the other stuff.

Working on it.

 

[buggyman1]

Buggyman1, just a thought but how do you feel about putting a small LED light above the step shining down on it so you can see it in the dark? Just thinking out loud, keep up the good work. Stanley

I just don't want to over-do it with the lights, it may already have too many for some people.

 

[Scooter78]

Here is a thought and not 100% sure how I would do it but wonder if there is a way to wire the lights so that when you put the truck in park the lights that would light up the steps would turn on and when truck is put in drive they would turn off. Now that would be sweet.

 

[Depmandog]

Here is a thought and not 100% sure how I would do it but wonder if there is a way to wire the lights so that when you put the truck in park the lights that would light up the steps would turn on and when truck is put in drive they would turn off. Now that would be sweet.

Great idea, but difficult to achieve. I even considered using the parking brake (cable) in lieu of putting into park to activate the lights. But either having the shift linkage or brake cable activating a mechanical switch on the underside of a road vehicle sounds like a bad design.

Instead, why not recess a toggle switch on the trailer. This would be the easiest way for sure. But, would you ever take to time / effort to turn the switch on then back off?

Or, you could fab an "eyelid" or shroud over the LED, letting the light shine down on the step, but somewhat concealing the light from other drivers.

 

[buggyman1]

Great idea, but difficult to achieve. I even considered using the parking brake (cable) in lieu of putting into park to activate the lights. But either having the shift linkage or brake cable activating a mechanical switch on the underside of a road vehicle sounds like a bad design.

Instead, why not recess a toggle switch on the trailer. This would be the easiest way for sure. But, would you ever take to time / effort to turn the switch on then back off?

Or, you could fab an "eyelid" or shroud over the LED, letting the light shine down on the step, but somewhat concealing the light from other drivers.

I already have three toggle switches, 1 for the winch lights, 1 for the bed lights and one for the lights inside the ramp holders.

 

[srs]

Or, you could fab an "eyelid" or shroud over the LED, letting the light shine down on the step, but somewhat concealing the light from other drivers.

Buggyman1, just a thought but how do you feel about putting a small LED light above the step shining down on it so you can see it in the dark? Just thinking out loud, keep up the good work. Stanley

Depmandog, that's exactly what I was thinking but you said it much better, thanks. Stanley

 

[buggyman1]

Holes for the toggle switches for the winch and bed lights.

 

[buggyman1]

Toggle switch on the back of driver's side tail light for the ramp lights. All three of these "switched" lights will be wired to the onboard battery.

 

[buggyman1]

Mount to store the jack underneath trailer when not in use. The rubber band is to keep the handle from flopping around. It uses the same pin as when its in use.

 

[buggyman1]

Mount and pin I made for the short jack extension.

 

[buggyman1]

I hate welding upside down and it shows. I got one of those little fireball marbles down the back of my coveralls so I like it a lot less now.

 

[buggyman1]

The winch cover I ordered came in.

 

[Scooter78]

There are more gadgets under this trailer than on top of it. Very nice work.

 

[franklin2]

When I built my trailer I looked up the federal lighting laws and what was required. Here's a link;

Trailer Poster Table for Website

If you are over 80 inches wide you need a special taillamp with side markers built in, or a separate side marker on each back corner. And you also need the 3 small lights that are close together in the middle rear.

What brought this to mind was the debate over the LED at the step. You are required to have a yellow marker light up there if you are over 30ft long. My trailer only ended up being about 20ft long, but I added them anyway. And I also went to Walmart and bought some of those reflective white/red stickers and stuck them to the side of the trailer about midway. The problem I noticed was hauling at night and pulling across a busy highway. Lets face it, when you are in a busy area and are hauling heavy, you are going to be somewhat of a nuisance to people, it's not like you and zip out in traffic like a little car can. Well when you pull out, you end up having a long dark area on the side of the trailer and people may not notice your length from a side view. That's why I added the stickers to the side, it really lights up the side of the trailer when people's headlights hit them. If you look at commercial trailers, most all of them have them stuck to the sides.

 

[Norm W]

That is called conspicuity tape and it is required now on all commercial trailers. It is a great safety feature, but the little letters DOT on it makes the manufacturer think it is "Gold Plated" from their price. I suppose that for a non-commercial trailer those little letters wouldn't matter, but proving it to a DOT cop is not a job I would want.

 

[ZAR2USA]

Can you post specs (dimensions) for your trailer build;

including your current weight,

material cost (including welding)

and your man hours for the trailer built until this point please.