yet another home made enclosed trailer project

stevecobb76 · Sep 13, 2012

I am a long time lurker and this is my first post. I have been inspired by this site so many time on my personal projects that I thought it was time to share one. Me and my soon to be wife started building a enclosed trailer for the buisness that we are starting. This is the second trailer that I bought and it is my first enclosed project. I started all coming together when I found a ad on C L for 6' x 2" x 4" lumber. We went to his house and I bought 40 of them for $0.50 each. I kept noticing a small trailer sitting there in the weeds. and so I made a offer on it for $100 and he took it. It had flat tires and no lights so we loaded it on the back of my pickup and home we went. I was going to use the wood on my first trailer but I thought I would build the small one first just to learn on and try out my ideas. It measures about 6' wide and about 5' long minus the tongue. So we went to work with the 2x4's.

I didn't have anything larger than 2 x 4's so we joined 2 2x4's with 3" screws and a little work with the circular saw and I have curved roof beams.

This is where we started laying the roof out and my idea started coming to life. my soon to be wife leatha is proud of herself here. I let her use the chop saw..

a couple of uprights on the frame and it started coming together nice.
I will continue on the next post so this one doesn't get too long.:dance1:

stevecobb76 · Sep 13, 2012

so we have a good start now. here are a few more pics. also all wood us being screwed together with 3" screws

I will post more pics when I get more work complete. I also need to specify that I am not a pro at all. I am not a carpenter or a trailer builder. I hope you enjoy.

stevecobb76 · Sep 13, 2012

by the way, do not buy screws or bolts from wally world!!!!!

Sledgie · Sep 13, 2012

You might find pulling that trailer will be like a parachute catching the wind. Have you thought of a V nose to make it a little more aerodynamic?

stevecobb76 · Sep 13, 2012

yes.. I can still easily change the front end. I just don't know how i will curve the 1/4" plywood on the roof if I do that.

kneedeep · Sep 13, 2012

cut apie shaped wedge out if it so it rounds off when you bend it, try making a template out of cardboard to get the proper shape. Then cut it out of the plywood

stevecobb76 · Sep 14, 2012

kneedeep said:
cut apie shaped wedge out if it so it rounds off when you bend it, try making a template out of cardboard to get the proper shape. Then cut it out of the plywood

ok... I have considered this, but....
after I make the "pie/wedge" cut in the front point of the plywood, how do I make a metal cap with a compound curve to cover the hole left or the seam. I am good with metal but I have never tried metal shaping i.e. shrinking/stretching...

any suggestions?
video tutorials on how to make this part?
I am asking mostly because I want to keep it as diy as I can for my other half to be involved and be able to help..
it makes her feel important.. I am sure that you guys understand this.

you can see her in the pictures above.

Shenandoah · Sep 16, 2012

Hi Steve,

Congrats on undertaking your project. You'll learn a lot.

Without trying to dampen your spirits, you'll need to watch out for few things if you take this trailer on the highway...

Using a soft wood such as pine leaves a bit to be desired. Perhaps you may entertain adding metal bracing to most joints, the kind you see used on deck, etc., and through-bolt them.

Soft wood is notoriously a poor anchor material for items that are subjected to vibronic stress. In other words, your fastners can work loose faster than you think. If you build up a harmonic vibration, coupled with a significant wind force while at highway speeds, your trailer could castastrophically come apart. This would be worse for the the guy behind you. Initially...

If you through-bolt the joints where you can using metal braces, meaning the joints are captured by the braces and bolts, the forces won't be working the soft wood nor relying on the friction between the metal screws and the wood fibers, but would instead be transferred to the stronger fastenings which have the ability to withstand the loads.

Just food for thought, good luck on your project.

stevecobb76 · Sep 16, 2012

thank you for the concern.. I have also considered this. The main thing is that I don't have enough money to make the metal frame like I want. The $0.50 2x4's was the only way I could get this done. And now I am having to wait til my next pay check to get the 1/4" ply wood. I will use the metal fasteners like you said for safety and I will also v nose the front end. I also have plans to slip in a 3/4 sheet of pressure treated plywood underneath for the water repellant. I only have 4 bolts holding the wood to the frame right now but there will be 2 or 3 bolts with nylock nuts on each wall when I am done..