Trailer option

[JPaul]

I found this trailer near me that I am interested in, but I'm trying to decide if it's even going to be worth looking at (it's only about 40 minutes away but if it's not worth it at all that'd be over an hour an a half of my time wasted)

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=218&ad=40957335&cat=&lpid=&search=army trailer&ad_cid=1

It's only $150 but it's basically just the frame, axle, tires and wheels. And apparently the tires will need to be replaced at a minimum. It used to hold a water pump on it apparently. From the pictures it looks to me like it has a torsion axle. The frame looks pretty sturdy, though I'm quite certain the draw bar got bent at some point, so I'd either need to straighten it out or replace it. Not a big deal to me.

I'm thinking it'd be a good base to start with for building my own offroading trailer. My only concerns are the axle really, I have no knowledge about how good those torsion axles will be, and if I'd have to replace them right off the bat or not. The tires will add some cost as well, and I might want to replace the wheels while I am at it, and possibly the hubs too (or at least get some adapters so that I can use H3 wheels).

I'm also considering building my own frame, but I know that would definitely cost more than $150 for all that. So it really depends on whether or not this trailer will give me a good enough start or not. Thoughts?

 

[Grimmjow]

Go to govplanet.com. You can find all kinds of military trailers in great shape for around $250.

 

[Panzer07]

^I sec9nd his comment, the only problem with got planet is that you got to bid and sometimes the ones you bid on that are nice aren't I your state...as well depending on your state it might be really hard to have them register, like I keep hearing they are a pain on the butt to register them here in cali...that's just what I've read not sure if true

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

 

[JPaul]

The problem is I don't live in California or any other place a lot of these things tend to come up in. And unless I got a killer deal, driving anywhere outside the state to pick it up would kill the deal. Plus I'm not sure how many smaller trailers are even still in use by the military, seems most of them are sized for HMMWV's or bigger. Not a lot of little Jeep's left in the military anymore I think. So unless I want to buy something small enough but still has whatever it was meant to haul still on it and pay a ton more than I am looking for, I don't think it's a viable option.

I appreciate your input though.

 

[twinmill28]

Nope

The axle MAY be the only usable part on that......contraption. Looks like somebody cobbled some C-channel together and threw some old military tires on it. Probably worked great with what it was originally cobbled together for but not worth an hour and a half of driving plus the time to get out, look at it, scratch your head and say "Ewwwww"........

 

[2010H3TAlpha]

I can't see the pic anymore on the KSL ad but most of those old military trailers are solid steel and extremely heavy for what you get. So you're taking a huge hit to mpgs and transmission life to save a few bucks over a normal trailer. To me it is not worth it, especially with th so many good DIY plans freely available.

Or just buy a deuce and pull behind that. My buddy just bought one and holy wow it is crazy!

 

[JPaul]

I decided to not go with that particular one, enough people more knowledgeable than I all made the same point that it was unlikely to be an actual military trailer. I'll probably just do it right the first time and custom build it using new parts, unless I happen across something too good to pass up. Thanks for the input everyone.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk