Thread: Tassie Tiger Trailer Reno

It's up to you. It would give the trailer more torsionl rigidity, but with the tradesmans top on, it'll be pretty rigid anyway. And if you were ever to remove the top and use it as a box trailer again, then making at least the rear gate open again will be very time consuming.

As a side note, most tradesman's tops are built with a lip at the front that stops the front tailgate from opening anyway, so you may as well at least seal the front one with a sealer such as 'No more gaps' to keep water and dust out. Then it's just a matter of running a knife around the gap to open the front gate again. However, depending on manufacturer, some tops have the same lip at the rear, while others have the lip turned upwards to allow the tailgate to be opened while still keeping most water out.

Thanks Yonnee.

Both tailgates cannot be opened once the canopy is on and I was going to seal them with silicone to keep water and dust out. Will consider the welding option further as I can't see me using it as a box trailer particularly once I go to all the trouble of fitting it out which may well involve welding additional bits inside. All food for thought.

Cheers

Ok end of another week time for the weekly update

Electric Brakes - the wiring is now complete. Decided to thin the 6mm wire down to fit the ports on the 7 pin straight plug. Wiring in the car complete. Tested and all works ok. They will need adjusting again once she is loaded up.

Fitout - Made a full size mock up of the water tank which will be inside the trailer. It will run across the full width of the trailer directly above the axle and hold 100 litres.

Attachment 196554

The photo above also shows the dividing wall but not to full height. It will be 1200mm high from the floor of the trailer to the roof of the canopy.

The following photos show what looks like a jumble of tools but there is method and organisation in there believe me Have basically worked out how I can fit what I need in with space left over for the "oh s**t I forgot abouts". The piece of timber sticking above the top of the chainsaw box is the full height of the dividing wall.

Attachment 196552

Attachment 196553


The kitchen side will be simple by comparison

Attachment 196555

Painting - both tail gates are painted and all the paint stripping is finished.

Next jobs - paint the outside of the tray, design a wall frame for the dividing wall that will carry all the weight it will have hanging on it. Decide on 12v and 240v internal wiring needs and fixture locations. Find a suitable sink and work out some plumbing and then start to put it all together

Was a rainy Sunday here so I decided to do an update on where things are with the camper build but the suns come out now so I will make it short.

Ok, during the last week I have put the first coat of the new colour on the trailer tray and primed the canopy. I will leave doing the finally coats till the bulk of the fit out is complete as I am certain the paint will get chipped more than once At this stage the paint will protect it from rust.

Attachment 197390

Attachment 197391

I have finally worked out how the water tank and its filler will be installed. The tank will be coustom made to fit across the width of the trailer. The filler cap will be installed on a console board that slopes at the same angle as the canopy doors to allow for clearance. This will also provide an attachment point for a fold down sink at one end and stove at the other with a work table in the middle.

Attachment 197392

Attachment 197393

The next stage will involve figuring out the 240v and 12v wiring requirements and the plumbing for the sink and shower which I am hoping will be hot and cold if the budget can stretch to buying a water heater.

Ok the sun beckons so catch you next time.

Will the water tank be baffled?

If you have 75 litres of water rushing from one side of the trailer to the other it will make the trailer jump around.

If it's of any help Tassie Tiger, I had a similar situation many years ago with a home-made water tank. So long as the tank was full there was no issue. Since we only travelled with any water in the tank on the way TO the campground, so long as we dumped the rest of the water before making our way home all was good.

G'day guys. Thanks for the question the answer to which is a big yes The tank will have baffles. It is has been custom made to fit by Chris Cane at rv water tanks,Custom Made Holding Tanks for storage Marine, Boat, Holding, Yacht, Campervan, ,Caravan, RV, Motorhome - Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane, Queensland. Australia.

Chris has been really helpful. The same tank to have made here in Hobart was $200 dearer than Chris's price which included freight and insurance. It is currenlty winging its way from Qld to Hobart. Should be here next week so will post some pics when it arrives.

Cheers

Ok an update.

Not a lot of physical change this week just lots of "fiddlin' and finkin'"

Have made a change to the kitchen layout in that I have decided to put the stove along side the sink. The pictures below show a how I anticipate it will work.

Attachment 198437

Attachment 198438

Attachment 198439

I installed some exterior carpet on the sides and floor of the trailer(got from Freecycle)
Attachment 198441



Started working out how the front storage box(es) might work.
Attachment 198440



And, the water tank arrived from Queensland Thanks to Chris Cane at abbertanks.com.au


Attachment 198442

Cheers

The fiddlin' and finkin' continued over the last 2 weeks much to my frustration but I figure I am only going to do this once so I want to get it right.

Have spent the time investigating various stuff and talking to people with the following results:
Have purchased, water pump, water heater, sink, all 240v components, water level monitor, internal linings.
Spoken to the gas man re the proposed installation and other than the stove I was going to use everything should be ok. Cost for installation somewhere around $400.
Currently investigating the cost of having a box made for the front the latest version of which is shown in the photo below. I have labelled this "The Final Solution"
Attachment 199927
This is the box I want to try and get made in Ali. Yeap it wont be cheap but I'll only be doing it once. Mind you if the price is astronomical I have plans for a plywood back up
Hoping to get some painting down in the next few days and the 240v and some of the 12v roughed in so I can start building the dividing wall.

Till next time.

Hi..
Just a quick note on an observation that I made regarding your safety chain.
Since you have gone through the expense and trouble of fitting electric brakes I am guessing your are anticipating towing heavy loads with this trailer.
I seem to recall reading somewhere hear that the safety chain should be welded on both sides of chain. & the chain / shackles should be rated accordingly !!!

P.S trailer looks good great work..

Originally Posted by Tassie Tiger

Here are those pics I promised on Saturday.


New led lights, Alko support legs, the spare wheel bracket moved from the front tailgate to the rear.

Attachment 195744

New coupling, hand brake and safety chains and thanks to Yonnee for the idea of putting some hooks on to hold the chains when not in use.

Attachment 195745

Attachment 195746

And, here is how she looks with the new longer draw bar. The canopy is in the background stripped and ready for a repaint.

Attachment 195747

Next job strip the paint off the trailer and repaint then the fitting out starts

Hello Strom,

if you mean that the link that is welded to the draw bar needs to be welded not only on the top(as in the photo) but on the bottom then it is. The chain and schakles are all rated. Once I finish the reno and she is loaded up ready to hit the road she will have a total weight of 1.2 tonnes. All the structural changes I have made have taken this into account plus a 250kg margin for error/extras. I have thought long and hard about all this and that's why it is taking me till now to be ready to start the fit out.

Thanks for your observation and concern.

Cheers
Wayne

Hi Wayne..
Not quite My observation is in regards to the chain laying flat on the drawbar
(You would need to fix it at the front of the draw bar to achieve this)
And being welded on both sides of the link..
I know there has been lots of discussion on this topic in the forums..
Hear is a link to one of these discussions below for your reference..

Subject trailer chain attachment [Archive] - Woodwork Forums

Again Nice rig ..

G'day folks has been a while since I did an update so here we go. Nothing really exciting just some steady progress after a bit of a hiatus.

The paint job on the outside is finished but will need touching up as it has been chipped due to my activity. I did the painting and while it looks ok it is not as good as a professional job but the funds were not available for a bodyworks spray job.

Attachment 202974

I spent this morning building the framework for the main dividing wall. This will be clad in 6mm ply both sides and provides a means of hiding all the cabling etc for 240v and 12v and hopefully some plumbing.

Attachment 202975

Attachment 202976


So that's about it up till today. Will be working with a mate on Saturday to do the 12v and 240v wiring and once that is out of the way hopefully the rest of it will progress a bit quicker but I suppose I am not in any real rush.

Cheers
Wayne

Looks awesome Wayne.