With all the house, garage, bike and mower projects, I needed something more to work on, so I bought a trailer. Needed something to haul riding lawnmowers from time to time, as many as four dirt bikes at a time and who knows what else? This was a Jayco tent trailer once upon a time, but now it's a 7' by 11' frame needing a deck. I am leaning towards wood, and a friend who works in a mill can get me free lumber with a catch: it's not long enough to run lengthwise. It's more or less 2x6 boards, but it's 3-ply laminate with a finished thickness of 2 1/8". So here's my question: is there any reason besides basic weirdness not to deck a trailer with boards running side-to-side? I'll have to buy lumber if I'm to run the boards lengthwise, and I'm notoriously thrifty, so the free boards are appealing to me. What does the hivemind think?
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As cheap as steel is now I would wast my time with wood.
weight. me? i'd use marine grade plywood.
If you should consider Harbor Freight LED lights, they are pretty good, but DON'T USE THEIR WIRE! It will rot out in a year.
Quote from: soonerbillz on March 01, 2023, 07:20:02 AM
As cheap as steel is now I would wast my time with wood.
I have considered expanded metal, but it would need additional supports welded in (I just don't want to) and I like the idea of wood for aesthetics.
Quote from: m in sc on March 01, 2023, 11:13:33 AM
weight. me? i'd use marine grade plywood.
Hmmm...plywood, you say. Worth a thought.
Quote from: pidjones on March 01, 2023, 03:24:35 PM
If you should consider Harbor Freight LED lights, they are pretty good, but DON'T USE THEIR WIRE! It will rot out in a year.
I looked at the offerings at HF and Tractor Supply and ended up buying a kit from Amazon. Was recommended, all LEDs and seems to be pretty decent quality.
Your trailer is framed for the boards to run length wise. If you're keen on using the free wood, couldn't you just add one more wide metal brace in the middle and butt the ends of the boards together? You'd have a seam in the middle, but if it's bolted down good towards the ends it should work. You could even get fancy and put a length of T metal in the seam to cover it.
Sometimes it takes just the right comment to get me to think about a thing a little differently. I just checked Home Depot's site and 12' 2x8s are $10 and change...about $120 to just shut up and buy new lumber. The problem is getting 12' boards home in my short bed Tacoma :Clown:
I was just reading Tim's account of the 3-rail trailer he fixed up a year or two ago, and the discussion of bike placement caught my attention. I plan to use my trailer for up to 4 dirt bikes at a time, sometimes just two or three, and sometimes a street bike or two. Is there a rule of thumb for loading to achieve an ideal or acceptable tongue weight?
You need to have at least 60/40 weight distribution front to rear to prevent severe oscillation at speed. 60% in front of the trailer axle.
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It's been a long time, but it finally has new tires under it, repacked bearings and enough lights to go to HD for lumber. I'm taking it to work tomorrow to straighten that bumper.
Wade, bring it up here, I'll deck it in two hours! Then we'll fill it up.
I sense an ulterior motive
The wiring is done!
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I think I used the connectors from the lighting kit correctly
I bought these as well as a couple of extra mounting plate kits
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Three dirt bike width and one street bike
Quote from: 85RZwade on April 27, 2024, 04:18:58 PMI think I used the connectors from the lighting kit correctly
If you refer to the Mark Haase edition of the instructions you did that step correctly. :affirmation:
Yeah, I despise scotch locks except for an emergency repair. :rant-1:
They are a step up from wire nuts :dawg: :dawg:
Mocking up boards, trying to get the spacing right. Looks like adding a couple of 2x8s will get me there, with 8mm spaces between boards.
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I spent the day working on the trailer in between showers. I had some fun with the tongue.
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How much weight will this add to the trailer? as much as i would like a wood floor, the weight for me is prohibitive ( i have a much smaller trailer as well, i do need a bigger one eventually). I just added better wheel chocks than i had on mine before. also moved the fenders out a few inches as mines not a deck-over-wheel, but it tows really nice. i can actually squeeze 2 on here, small one in middle to back.
The answer is "plenty"...I think you and Scott both advocated for expanded metal, but I remember a trailer my brother had that was decked with expanded metal. After a couple of years, it sagged between the supports and I felt I'd have to add supports to go that route and be happy.
Of course, I read after committing to wood about composite decking (trex), which is supposed to be lighter and last forever. Oh, well. I suspect this trailer is larger than I need, so maybe I'll try this rehab thing again next year with lessons learned.
yes, the expanded metal will stretch, hence why i did what i did to mine. I considered marine plywood (theres another one int eh building i did that to) and its held up well for 5 years.
you should stain it some really nice rich mahogany color, maybe do some inlay work. :dawg:
You overestimate my woodworking abilities! I am planning to deploy the router and sink the wheel chock plates a little, however.
My latest trailer addition:
(https://i.postimg.cc/262L0zJR/20240428-123531.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/XGBvJ04Q)
$18 for Amazon's finest sequential turn signals and running lights LED strip light. Works like a champ. I figure the more light the better. The Bridal Unit bought it for me for an early Father's day gift. I still have to install my new tag on the LH fender and the trailer will be ready.
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There were late nights preparing for my family's annual trip to the Moses Lake dunes.
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The trailer reached a state of "finished enough"
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Bikes in place and rock solid
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This guy? Doing OK for a fella of a certain age. I can still hang with the younger crowd (mostly) but I am always aware that I have to be able to go to work Monday. Didn't drink enough water yesterday, when it was 87 and learned about heat exhaustion. Such pretty colors...the loons, can you hear the loons?
You are a loon!
:shocked: Et tu, Dennis?