Awesome build man love everything you did. So I bought a used one for $275 1195lb version. I found one that was barely used, and in phenomenal shape, the reason why I bought us is because it was already put together. Of course, then I completely disassembled for the most part, replaced almost almost everything sanded painted. New hardware went absolutely nuts. Basically a gound up restoration & wayyyyyyy over engineered it..... sooooo I'm about $2.3K deep and just about done. LOL / which honestly is fine I mean it's an unbelievably cool trailer. But I figured maybe I'd spend $1200. -stripped down to base frame -Stripped, all lighting and wiring -Completely sanded, primed and repainted -All hardware cleaned rustproof and replaced -Sub frame reinforced with 2x3’s -Wheel bearings replaced greased bearing buddies installed -Three new steel belted radial tires, one new rim and hyper dipped black including new black steel Lugnuts -U-Bolts installed for keeping Trailer together when it’s stored and also for folding and unfolding -4 eye hooks installed two in the front two in the back -Brand new tongue coupler installed -Brand new 3/4 inch pressure-treated lumber stained with waterproof solid stain and fastened with brand new hardware -4 heavy duty, recessed, U-bolt tiedowns -Four 2” Cast iron casters installed -All new LED lighting, including loom and stainless steel cable holders also including side markers and quick-connectors to help Trailer fold -Replaced trailer safety chains with trailer safety cable -Brand new tongue, pins, and clevis pins for frame -New hinged license plate mount, silicone, backing, and frame -all new coupler lock pins all new safety, and security locks -2 new wheel chocks, including a tongue jack chock -Spare tire and spare tire holder mounted -Brand new double receiver hitch mount with winch mounted to new mounting plate -Electrical box created with quick connect zero gauge wiring to connect to battery for power -Try folding reinforced ramp, with wood flooring for loading and unloading -2 Trailer stabilizing Jacks installed -Modified wheel chock with -4 brand, new heavy duty ratchet straps
A agree when I get the money for mine even though it’s just gonna be for hauling my ATV because my truck bed is just a little too short I’m actually going to put DOT grade reflective, tape along with DOT marker lights
I'm buying one of these trailers this week after watching several video reviews. It'll most likely only be used for trips to the dump or Lowes, moving appliances and at the most, my lawn tractor. I haven't seen very many negative reviews about this trailer. Many positive one! Thanks for the tips in your video! I think I'll be using some of your ideas. 🙂
I’ve seen quite a few of these builds. Yours is one of the best. I’m going to rebuild my side panels and redo my wiring on mine. Mines a few years old and needs upgrading
I got rear ended 10 mins after registering the trailer at the DMV… love your design, I will make my sides based off your design with tweaks for my use. I bought the locking pins for $5 each because the extra work of making them wasn’t worth the $20 I’d save plus I use them as anchor points. For anyone who wants to make their own like this, put the bolt on a drill threaded side in, spin it around while using an angle grinder, it’ll be quick. Then cut the end that you don’t need off.
I was also rear ended with the first 10 minutes of my first drive with the trailer! Not sure if you saw the 2nd to last section in my video titled “rear visibility bumper”, but it was to address this problem.
I haven't put mine together yet but i have the wood cut in half already. I plan to build each half of the trailer on top of the wood. That will help with squaring it off but also plan to mark off the holes to drill into. This includes the main bolts to hold the trailer together on the top side.
Great job. I liked and subscribed. You had great ideas and info. I've watched almost every video on this trailer and any mods that can be done with reasonable expense. Thank you
Hey, great videos. Thank you. I hope you continue making these videos. I’m replacing the front end on my 2000 F150 2wd and boy do I wish you had a video for that!!!!!! seriously, though you should take this seriously you’re really good
Awesome build. Im borrowing some of your ideas for my own build. Could you share the size of the eybolts you've used on the sides of the trailer and where you got them? 👍
The simple way to affix the plywood to the frame is: 1) cover the frame rail with duck tape. Mark the holes. Remove the duck tape and put it on the plywood. Drill holes.
Heat shrinkable solder ring butt connectors provide a superior electrical connection. I don't use plastic coated crimp style connectors for anything anymore. Twin lock crimp connectors are fine for dry locations though
My brother recently put me onto the shrinkable solder butt connectors from the boating world. Definitely a superior weatherproof connector. For the crimp style, I’ve always used heat shrink (ideally with hot glue inside) over top of the butt connector afterwards and that has never failed me. But in the future I’ll use the solderable ones… definitely a sweet product.
Nice work. Though I think that by the time you've done all the extra work, over and above the trailer itself, you're still going to spend as much on a more permanent trailer. But then you lose the flexibility of folding it ( it might be important ). You've got a great setup. I'm trying to find ideas to finish my trailer ... Just got done with the frame now got wiring and bed / walls. Having links to products used would have been nice .... Need to look into those wire connectors.
You might be interested in low temp solder butt connectors for braided copper wires. I used to use those crimp style butt connectors until somebody showed me those.
It’s funny, I found out about those after I made this video and I agree that the low temp solder butt connectors are a superior design! When I was 22 years old (20 years ago) I built an entire car engine wiring harness by twisting wires together and wrapping the connections with electric tape. I was so clueless it hurts to even admit it. As you can imagine, it didn’t last long. Sometimes you gotta learn the hard way!
Dang, I should have discussed that in the video. I actually have no idea! It was a few years ago now. You’ll have to measure and figure out what works. I’ll say this: I thought I measured right, but I messed up the first time and had to return them! Either triple check your measurements, or just buy a few test bolts to determine what works best. At the front of the trailer where I used the angle iron, I believe those bolts were 1/4” or 1/2” longer than all the rest. I still think loctite is a good idea too due to expansion and contraction of wood over time. Good luck!
Great job on everything. I just got my HarborFreight trailer put together and wired. I’m trying to figure out the best way to lay the plywood down. How did you get the plywood to lay so flat? Did you countersink and add washers?
Hey! Thank you. If your plywood is slightly warped, you will need some wood clamps or c-clamps to hold it down flat. If you don't already have a set of Irwin Quick-Grip clamps, I highly recommend buying 4! If you are handy, you will use them all the time. So get your plywood cut to size for each side (if you are doing a foldable trailer. Two 4x4 pieces), then clamp the side you are working on down tight to the metal trailer so that it won't move. Then you can mark your holes from underneath. You'll have to lift the wood back up to drill the holes. If you have a long drill bit, you can drill from underneath without lifting the wood (Preferred). To bolt down, I used Carriage Bolts, pushed in from the top. They kind of have a wide flat head, with a square under the head that locks them into the wood. The heads are rounded on top, like a mushroom head, and do not require countersinking. It's important that you drill the hole the right size, so that the square pushes into the wood and locks it. Underneath, I used washers and nuts on the bolts. I used blue loctite on the nuts ( loctite not necessary). Hope that helps!
I don’t have any links unfortunately - I’m not sure where I got my supplies, as keep a large stock handy and just buy here and there. I will say this through: try to find a decent supplier, that’s not just the cheapest stuff you can find. Better quality butt splices, conduit, heat shrink, etc.. Makes a difference. Just Google around and try to find supplier online you can buy from directly. Auto parts stores mark them way way up. Lastly, spend the extra money and buy 3M electrical tape! About $7/roll. So worth it. Cheap stuff unravels with weather and heat.
I found pat 2 but it did not help me for this reason. HF instructions did not help either. The provided wiring has a black connector? Does that come apart so one end goes to the vehicle? You did a good job show how you wire generally but did not show me how wiring on the trailer is done.
Hmm, I’m not sure I fully understand your question. I know that the wiring harness that came with the kit had the trailer 4-pin connector, but your vehicle needs to have a 4 pin trailer connector already installed (not part of the harbor freight kit). Did that answer your question? If you need a wiring kit for your vehicle, check out etrailer.com. They have easy to install kits for all different males and models. It’s where I got mine.
The sidewalls are 16” tall. This was just the most efficient way to use a single piece of plywood for the walls (lengthwise, split into 3x, 16”x96” panels). It provides enough wood for all four sides, at just a hair under 16” tall! I thought I wanted taller, but 16” has proved to be just about perfect. It holds about 1.5 cubic yards of volume. When filling it with compost, this put me right around the weight limit of 1750lbs (assuming compost is about 1200lb/yard) So it’s right on the money.
Good question: yes I can still fold the trailer. But barely. BUT… i found that there are hinges that link the two sections of the trailer together, and I believe these hinges are meant to stay slightly loose, to allow more space when you fold the trailer with wood decking. It allows them to separate at the bottom a little. There was nothing about this in the instructions about these hinges, and I didn’t realize it until after I had tightened those hinges. Luckily my trailer still closed… but barely. It’s a tight squeeze. But I think it would ease up it i loosened those hinges. See my PART1 video. I talk about the hinges a little in the assembly step where I join the front and rear sections.
@@garetgardina9915 if you do loosen the hinges, and want to keep them semi-loose/snug, you should be able to apply RED thread locker to the bolts. They will stay loose enough to move for folding, but hopefully not ever come undone. Let me know if it works for you!
Yeah, I have the aluminum version and want to do aluminum floor but $500 for a sheet of aluminum is a bit much. Want to try plywood but concerned 3/4" plywood won't fold. It is imperative it still folds
I know, right? I spent a lot of time with a wood shaver on each 2x4 to make it fit in those slots. Seems like it should have been a simple problem for the manufacturer to solve! I figured maybe the specs for 2x4s are slightly different in China 🤷♂️
That tip at 12:51 about avoiding rear-end collision is fantastic! Thanks.
Awesome build man love everything you did. So I bought a used one for $275 1195lb version. I found one that was barely used, and in phenomenal shape, the reason why I bought us is because it was already put together. Of course, then I completely disassembled for the most part, replaced almost almost everything sanded painted. New hardware went absolutely nuts. Basically a gound up restoration & wayyyyyyy over engineered it..... sooooo I'm about $2.3K deep and just about done. LOL / which honestly is fine I mean it's an unbelievably cool trailer. But I figured maybe I'd spend $1200.
-stripped down to base frame
-Stripped, all lighting and wiring
-Completely sanded, primed and repainted
-All hardware cleaned rustproof and replaced
-Sub frame reinforced with 2x3’s
-Wheel bearings replaced greased bearing buddies installed
-Three new steel belted radial tires, one new rim and hyper dipped black including new black steel Lugnuts
-U-Bolts installed for keeping Trailer together when it’s stored and also for folding and unfolding
-4 eye hooks installed two in the front two in the back
-Brand new tongue coupler installed
-Brand new 3/4 inch pressure-treated lumber stained with waterproof solid stain and fastened with brand new hardware
-4 heavy duty, recessed, U-bolt tiedowns
-Four 2” Cast iron casters installed
-All new LED lighting, including loom and stainless steel cable holders also including side markers and quick-connectors to help Trailer fold
-Replaced trailer safety chains with trailer safety cable
-Brand new tongue, pins, and clevis pins for frame
-New hinged license plate mount, silicone, backing, and frame
-all new coupler lock pins all new safety, and security locks
-2 new wheel chocks, including a tongue jack chock
-Spare tire and spare tire holder mounted
-Brand new double receiver hitch mount with winch mounted to new mounting plate
-Electrical box created with quick connect zero gauge wiring to connect to battery for power
-Try folding reinforced ramp, with wood flooring for loading and unloading
-2 Trailer stabilizing Jacks installed
-Modified wheel chock with
-4 brand, new heavy duty ratchet straps
That’s hardcore man. You should make a RUclips video about it!
I really like your ideas as to the side rails for quick removal. One thing I would do is add some red and white reflective tape. Good job! 👍 👏👏👏
A agree when I get the money for mine even though it’s just gonna be for hauling my ATV because my truck bed is just a little too short I’m actually going to put DOT grade reflective, tape along with DOT marker lights
Yes, the DOT tape is what I guess is what it is called, but that is what I was saying. That sounds good.
I'm buying one of these trailers this week after watching several video reviews. It'll most likely only be used for trips to the dump or Lowes, moving appliances and at the most, my lawn tractor. I haven't seen very many negative reviews about this trailer. Many positive one! Thanks for the tips in your video! I think I'll be using some of your ideas. 🙂
Nice idea with the bungee cord! I also have my wiring protected in the same wrap. I’m going to implement the bungee cord for the slack. Brilliant!
Really great video. Thank you for taking the time to show every step in such detail. I appreciate that.
Very well thought out. Thank you for sharing. A lot of great ideas for building mine.
I’ve seen quite a few of these builds. Yours is one of the best. I’m going to rebuild my side panels and redo my wiring on mine. Mines a few years old and needs upgrading
Killer build, ingenious all the way around well done
Great idea for the safety panel, I’ll have to do that!
I got rear ended 10 mins after registering the trailer at the DMV… love your design, I will make my sides based off your design with tweaks for my use. I bought the locking pins for $5 each because the extra work of making them wasn’t worth the $20 I’d save plus I use them as anchor points. For anyone who wants to make their own like this, put the bolt on a drill threaded side in, spin it around while using an angle grinder, it’ll be quick. Then cut the end that you don’t need off.
I was also rear ended with the first 10 minutes of my first drive with the trailer! Not sure if you saw the 2nd to last section in my video titled “rear visibility bumper”, but it was to address this problem.
I haven't put mine together yet but i have the wood cut in half already. I plan to build each half of the trailer on top of the wood. That will help with squaring it off but also plan to mark off the holes to drill into. This includes the main bolts to hold the trailer together on the top side.
Great job. I liked and subscribed. You had great ideas and info. I've watched almost every video on this trailer and any mods that can be done with reasonable expense. Thank you
Hey, great videos. Thank you. I hope you continue making these videos. I’m replacing the front end on my 2000 F150 2wd and boy do I wish you had a video for that!!!!!! seriously, though you should take this seriously you’re really good
Thanks! I plan to do more videos in 2023. It’ll be a mixed bag of things
Great job! and helpful videos. much appreciated
Awesome job with the ramps and the entire build out of the second video. Sorry about the call out on the wheel, bearing in the first video…
Awesome build. Im borrowing some of your ideas for my own build. Could you share the size of the eybolts you've used on the sides of the trailer and where you got them? 👍
The simple way to affix the plywood to the frame is: 1) cover the frame rail with duck tape. Mark the holes. Remove the duck tape and put it on the plywood. Drill holes.
I like that. Will have to remember that one. Trying to mark the plywood from underneath was not very efficient
Good stuff!
Thanks for the ideas.
Good job 👍
Heat shrinkable solder ring butt connectors provide a superior electrical connection. I don't use plastic coated crimp style connectors for anything anymore. Twin lock crimp connectors are fine for dry locations though
My brother recently put me onto the shrinkable solder butt connectors from the boating world. Definitely a superior weatherproof connector. For the crimp style, I’ve always used heat shrink (ideally with hot glue inside) over top of the butt connector afterwards and that has never failed me. But in the future I’ll use the solderable ones… definitely a sweet product.
Nice work. Though I think that by the time you've done all the extra work, over and above the trailer itself, you're still going to spend as much on a more permanent trailer. But then you lose the flexibility of folding it ( it might be important ). You've got a great setup.
I'm trying to find ideas to finish my trailer ... Just got done with the frame now got wiring and bed / walls.
Having links to products used would have been nice .... Need to look into those wire connectors.
You might be interested in low temp solder butt connectors for braided copper wires. I used to use those crimp style butt connectors until somebody showed me those.
It’s funny, I found out about those after I made this video and I agree that the low temp solder butt connectors are a superior design!
When I was 22 years old (20 years ago) I built an entire car engine wiring harness by twisting wires together and wrapping the connections with electric tape. I was so clueless it hurts to even admit it. As you can imagine, it didn’t last long. Sometimes you gotta learn the hard way!
Genius 👍
How thick are the plywood sides....3/4"?
What size carriage bolts did you use?
Great video! What size bolts did you use for the plywood floor?
Dang, I should have discussed that in the video. I actually have no idea! It was a few years ago now. You’ll have to measure and figure out what works. I’ll say this: I thought I measured right, but I messed up the first time and had to return them! Either triple check your measurements, or just buy a few test bolts to determine what works best. At the front of the trailer where I used the angle iron, I believe those bolts were 1/4” or 1/2” longer than all the rest. I still think loctite is a good idea too due to expansion and contraction of wood over time. Good luck!
Great job on everything.
I just got my HarborFreight trailer put together and wired.
I’m trying to figure out the best way to lay the plywood down. How did you get the plywood to lay so flat? Did you countersink and add washers?
Hey! Thank you. If your plywood is slightly warped, you will need some wood clamps or c-clamps to hold it down flat. If you don't already have a set of Irwin Quick-Grip clamps, I highly recommend buying 4! If you are handy, you will use them all the time.
So get your plywood cut to size for each side (if you are doing a foldable trailer. Two 4x4 pieces), then clamp the side you are working on down tight to the metal trailer so that it won't move. Then you can mark your holes from underneath. You'll have to lift the wood back up to drill the holes. If you have a long drill bit, you can drill from underneath without lifting the wood (Preferred). To bolt down, I used Carriage Bolts, pushed in from the top. They kind of have a wide flat head, with a square under the head that locks them into the wood. The heads are rounded on top, like a mushroom head, and do not require countersinking. It's important that you drill the hole the right size, so that the square pushes into the wood and locks it. Underneath, I used washers and nuts on the bolts. I used blue loctite on the nuts ( loctite not necessary). Hope that helps!
Also Forstner bit where the plywood sits on the corner bolts to sit even more flush.
How often has one of your shins met that angle iron??? hahahahaha
Haha, i was afraid of the same thing. I actually wrapped the ends of them In neon yellow reflective tape just for that reason! No bloody shins… yet.
Any links for some of the stuff you bought? Particularly interested in the addons you purchased for the wiring, looks neat
I don’t have any links unfortunately - I’m not sure where I got my supplies, as keep a large stock handy and just buy here and there.
I will say this through: try to find a decent supplier, that’s not just the cheapest stuff you can find. Better quality butt splices, conduit, heat shrink, etc.. Makes a difference. Just Google around and try to find supplier online you can buy from directly. Auto parts stores mark them way way up.
Lastly, spend the extra money and buy 3M electrical tape! About $7/roll. So worth it. Cheap stuff unravels with weather and heat.
I found pat 2 but it did not help me for this reason. HF instructions did not help either. The provided wiring has a black connector? Does that come apart so one end goes to the vehicle? You did a good job show how you wire generally but did not show me how wiring on the trailer is done.
Hmm, I’m not sure I fully understand your question. I know that the wiring harness that came with the kit had the trailer 4-pin connector, but your vehicle needs to have a 4 pin trailer connector already installed (not part of the harbor freight kit). Did that answer your question? If you need a wiring kit for your vehicle, check out etrailer.com. They have easy to install kits for all different males and models. It’s where I got mine.
How tall are the sidewalls on your trailer? Seems like a good height for what I'm looking for as well.
The sidewalls are 16” tall. This was just the most efficient way to use a single piece of plywood for the walls (lengthwise, split into 3x, 16”x96” panels). It provides enough wood for all four sides, at just a hair under 16” tall! I thought I wanted taller, but 16” has proved to be just about perfect. It holds about 1.5 cubic yards of volume. When filling it with compost, this put me right around the weight limit of 1750lbs (assuming compost is about 1200lb/yard) So it’s right on the money.
@@gearsandgardens4018 Awesome! Thanks for the information. I really appreciate it. I'm gonna model mine after what you did. Thanks again.
Since the trailer folds with the floor as the interior of the fold, can you still fold that trailer with all the extra thickness on the floor?
Good question: yes I can still fold the trailer. But barely. BUT… i found that there are hinges that link the two sections of the trailer together, and I believe these hinges are meant to stay slightly loose, to allow more space when you fold the trailer with wood decking. It allows them to separate at the bottom a little.
There was nothing about this in the instructions about these hinges, and I didn’t realize it until after I had tightened those hinges. Luckily my trailer still closed… but barely. It’s a tight squeeze. But I think it would ease up it i loosened those hinges.
See my PART1 video. I talk about the hinges a little in the assembly step where I join the front and rear sections.
@@gearsandgardens4018 Bought mine already built, w/ 3/4" decking, & couldn't fold it. I didn't think about loosening the hinges. Thanks!
@@garetgardina9915 if you do loosen the hinges, and want to keep them semi-loose/snug, you should be able to apply RED thread locker to the bolts. They will stay loose enough to move for folding, but hopefully not ever come undone. Let me know if it works for you!
Yeah, I have the aluminum version and want to do aluminum floor but $500 for a sheet of aluminum is a bit much. Want to try plywood but concerned 3/4" plywood won't fold. It is imperative it still folds
It stinks that the mounts are just slightly smaller than a typical 2x4, they say 3.5” but more like 3.35”
I know, right? I spent a lot of time with a wood shaver on each 2x4 to make it fit in those slots. Seems like it should have been a simple problem for the manufacturer to solve! I figured maybe the specs for 2x4s are slightly different in China 🤷♂️