Aug 16 2017:
It was free… and you know how that goes.. It was also broken.. So.. time to make something different from the old girl. I’ve done it before.. made a nice useful trailer out of a old funky one.. I wish I took a photo of the Coleman before I took it apart.. But I forgot… So the photos start with a stripped down trailer (frame) ready for some decisions on what to make.
But let’s talk about why I took it apart !
Why not just fix it up.. nope. where do I start.. How about with the broken lift mechanism. We had to hook up our portable winch to pull on the four cables that lift the roof. The treaded block that is pulled along the crank rod was stripped. And it was easy to see why.. The roof was so heavy from water leaking in and soaking the foam and wood that even our 2000 lb winch needed help. so we went from corner to corner lifting and blocking … then taking up the slack with the winch .. till the roof was up. The roof was a mess.. and the canvas was ripped and things were just bad.. So I stripped the canvas off.. and removed the roof.. that darn thing must of weighed 1000 lbs ! It’s taken me two days to get the Coleman down to just a frame. A pile of aluminum, a pile of wood and a pile of steel. And I’ve gained a few parts.. stove, sink, furnace, power panel with 30 amp cord, roof vent, ice box and two sheets of plywood..
She was big as tent trailers go.. 11 ft long. with the fat 10″ wheels. and brakes ! All aluminum & steel.
What a great blank canvas for a trailer ! I will need to spend some money though. new tires / wheels so that I can use the one good one as a spare. Also a new 2″ hitch, and treated deck boards should finish it of nice. I plan to move the rear bumper in so that the deck is 11 ft long. That balances the trailer better. And I’ll trim the sides in flush with the wheels.. that makes the width exactly 6 ft. The plan is to build it similar to the tandem trailer I build and have been using for a few years now.
Love this trailer.. this has worked very good. But for the little guy I will do solid sides with stake pockets so you can add height. Oh and same height all the way around not raised in the front
For now I have to put this project aside to do other stuff.
Sept 9 2017:
Well I can’t work on the LeSharo till I get the motor hoist back.. So I got the new driveway done.. and now I’m thinking I’ll tackle the new trailer. I’m off to PA to get two new wheels for it.. I have new lights and a new 2 ” coupler.. so I can get to work.
I removed some of the crap .. like the propane tank holders, chains and the wiring . And today I stripped the frame of all the stuff that I don’t need …and some stuff I’ll change
Now I can pick it up.. so I put it up high on the saw horses. Oh and it’s upside down for a bit till I get a few things done. First thing is moving some of the cross pieces. One by one I’m spacing them out more evenly.
The brakes got put on this project .. when I bought a Boler project.. I will need the frame for that.. so.. nothing more to see here..