flagmanruss

Thanks for the thoughts. I'm not going to heavy load this trailer. The tires I bought were of necessity a size bigger... and still are skinny tires on 5 bolt wheels. I decided to stay with the original 2 little leaf springs. There's no way to know what the axle rating really is. I am going to add Bearing Buddy type grease hubs just to keep the lubrication going. My mobility scooter is only 345#. A riding mower not much more. This is an old trailer... there are indications that mine will be the third deck on it (from the screw holes). My plan is one of a small light convenient trailer, when that is all that is needed. If I have heavy loads, I have the 16 x 8 landscaper's trailer... a beach in heavy city traffic. After that, the rear half of the toyhauler... enough room to load a small car in the gutted rear space.

Love it!

I bought a used Datsun pickup from the buyer's widow... it still had expired temp plates (cardboard) on it. The truck had 310 miles on the clock. (The purchaser drove it home, took the grandchildren out sledding against doctor's orders... threw a blood clot & died on the spot.) The Sales Tax had not been paid! We stood in line at the DMV, she paid the tax with my deposit, turned around handed me the paperwork & I paid it again. When the DMV handed me the registration & plates, I turned around and handed her the final Bank Check. Yeah, she was right behind me! Sweet old lady. The year was 1976, before titles were mandatory. I learned to drive stick driving over the Newport Bridge & didn't muff the toll booth on the Jamestown side. I drove it 50,000 miles & sold it for more than I paid for it. I was a lot skinnier then too!

Yeah, I'm sure. You should not have to drive the plug in. I've used RV plugs since the early 1980s... never had this problem before or with any other plug. And the used plug works fine, as do the ones on my horse trailer, camper, 16' landscaper trailer & the extension harness that plugs into the OEM plug to power the RV plug I installed in the bed to power the 5th wheel without running over the tail gate (I ran the harness down inside the fender to the OEM under bumper receptacle). My wife climbed into the bed & the WM plug would not go into the receptacle in the bed at all.

I have the Quadzilla XZT+... bought a year or more before Quadzilla closed their doors. There are various tunes available but basically the OFF option puts the truck to stock +35 (economy) I believe is just timing. This is widely regarded as the equivalent to an Edge EZ mileage box.+65-70 is more aggressive fueling map within the stock fuel limits.The VP 44 is not tapped. These VP44 / 24 valve trucks are less powerful than they could be because of EPA requirements... largely retarding timing for less pollution output, at the expense TO US of less power & less mpg. I normally run on the +35 setting & it is really drivable. The better mileage is a plus too. I use the +70 only for towing in hilly country. The extra power bump makes it easier to pull a hill without downshifting... most of the time. Again a big increase in the drivability while towing. There are no big changes to any of the truck systems... A plug replaces the sensor leads & fools the stock computer is all. Because it adds no more than stock fueling (although sooner) it considered safer for stock automatic transmissions. The XZT+ requires a small toggle switch be mounted somewhere, I chose the driver's knee panel... It can be switched on the fly & you definitely notice the results when doing so. I've never gotten around to trying other tunes... I'm satisfied with the tunes that came in it.

The new plug that was + on the tolerances appears to be from WalMart. At least the one on the display in automotive had that kind of over wide contacts. I'm just Amazed that what measures to be .001 big is that critical a fit. MY take away... is to test that part immediately, no matter what the source... darn near everything is made in China. If it does not fit, back in the box & return it, PRONTO.

No, I didn't. I might have to service them someday. The 2 wires in the 3/8" water tubing slid in easy a few inches... I had to use a snake & soap suds to get them through the longer runs. I soldered & used shrink tubing on all the connections. You'll notice I reversed the bracket & mounted the trailer plate above the light. No the Lic Plate light is on the bottom & doesn't hit the plate... but this plate is dang sure not being ripped off on an obstruction. The bigger landscaper's trailer had the plate under, tore it nearly off on the first use. Bolted it to the tailgate (no Lic Plate light on this one either) & it's not going anywhere. It's common practice around here. I've never been stopped or questioned on it. My SIL welded new tie downs on the bigger trailer for me & we discussed the Lic Plate light (he borrows the trailer occasionally) & my opinion is that a light mounted to the ramp would not survive the first time someone drops it hard... as I always do. (It's hard to manage with only one good hand.) This tilt trailer is not going to have a tailgate.

I bought a new 7 pole RV plug for the trailer project. I wired it all up. The &^%$#! plug would not go into the trailer receptacle on my 01 truck. I don't have the packaging but think it came from WalMart or Harbor Freight. The noticeable thing about it is the silver (plated) contacts which extend beyond the cutouts in the plug body. I tried beveling edges, went over it with a digital caliper... every dimension is +.001 strong. I removed the round center pin just to try but still no go. After taking the wires out, I was able to force it into the socket... but I'm not going to use it. Before I went to the store, I looked in a box with my spare brake controller (took back off my half ton when I had to give it to my ex-w in the settlement... it was not bought with a trailer set up, she didn't get it with a trailer set up.) It shouldn't have been in that box but I found an almost new trailer plug... This used plug fit & I used it. It had all brass contacts & brass screws, everything. I have no clue what trailer I had it on... maybe my old stock trailer that I sold. I thought the plug went with it but maybe not. If I had to guess, I'd say the non-fitting plug is foreign made on metric machines. I wasted a lot of time on that plug so an very unhappy.

I finally got back on this project. Here's the progress to date. I had treated the inside of the rusted angle iron frame with POR15. I used up the POR15 sample package & decided to go with regular paint on the exposed surfaces. I drilled & tapped for the retaining bolts for the cushion clamps holding the plastic tubing I used to protect the wiring. My bigger landscaper's type trailer has the wiring in conduit above the deck... this tilt trailer is best wired underneath as originally done. I've replaced all the lights are new LEDs, new wiring, new 7 way RV plug to match my truck. I replaced the hitch & tilt pins & attached the pins with SS lanyards. It's hooked up to the truck testing lights before the new deck goes on. Current PT lumber is not treated all the way through (except 4x4s & 4x6s) so after trimming to length, I'll retreat all the cut ends. The new paint does not look this bad... it's dirt splash from the recent rain.

I bought a used car... the guy went to church with my parents... so I trusted him. After I paid him & took it home I noticed the radiator cap was loose so I tightened it... blew all the coolant out. Blown head gasket. Then I found the fan thermostat was jumped so the fan ran continuously. He had told me a reputable local garage had serviced it. When I showed up there & asked for information, they refused without a release from the former owner. So I trusted & got screwed.

Years ago I bought a truck (pretitle required) with some missing paperwork. DMV would not register it. But I had to pay sales tax or get wacked late fees. I took the truck back to the out of state dealer... I should have returned it. I let him talk me into driving it with his CT Used Dealer plates until the correct customs documents were gotten. I drove it several months... he kept calling me to get his plates back & I told him "With the truck they are on!" Eventually they sent someone to the Customs in Buffalo to get a certified copy that it was properly declared as goods & not driven back from Canada & resold. I have title problems with my camper/toyhauler. Basically once he has your money, you have no hold over him.

Well, there pretty much has to be a short somewhere, unless you've wired something else to this fuse that should not be. I don't know how to isolate the systems which are wired to this fuse. It helps to be logical / systematic. Check the trailer plug for damage... check each rear light for damage & the harness to them. It would probably be chafe damage to chaise ground. It could also be damage to the front marker / parking lts. Consider the possibility of prior accident damage that might have stressed the wiring. I'm also seeing reports of light sockets & trailer plugs corroding so as to cause grounding issues, so look inside.

What lights did you use? Back before the dawn of time... I had a badly rusted Jeep Wagon... Buick 350 V8... with a plow... As I did the body work I somehow bondo'd a pair of spot bulbs in place of the backup lights. I sure could see backing up! I only have a picture from the front. What good is this? (picture in ex-GF's driveway! Yikes!)

You'll need fittings too. Bought mine through Vulcan. I went through the OEM filter as well (2 more fittings). You want to get rid of the restrictive banjo bolts. I also installed a tap (drilled & tapped elbow) for a fuel pressure gauge so I'd not have to break into the system later.

Many moons ago... I replaced the lights in my '68 RoadRunner with off road (non-sealed beam) H1s (all there was back then). Hella Low beams, Carrello High beams. Hella fogs originally behind the grill but it broke up the pattern so much, I cut the grill & removed the headlight surround tin. Very high quality glass optics. The fogs had a horizontal beam that lit up both shoulders. The lows had a butterfly pattern, lower in the center but more reach on the sides. The high beams were spots that could light over a mile of straight flat road... I had a little trouble with the fogs vibrating on the bracket I installed between the radiator support & the front skin... bracket not stiff enough. It was a complex bend but I added a piece of stiff stock under the nut which helped immensely. Because of the quality of the optics, they could be safely set higher than normal lights. The highs were set straight horizontal.

My truck came with the worthless OEM "fog lights". I wish there was a decent light that would up-lamp the OEM (probably melt the stupid plastic crap) or replace the assembly. I think a relay would be needed using the OEM as a trigger.

The BRAKE warning light is connected to MANY systems. Scanning for codes is a good idea. But any sort of brake failure... of any of the systems... will give you a light.

This is neat. I'm thinking I have a junk mini-mag body in the scrap bin... (leaked batteries when forgotten over winter in camper). I bet it would make a good tube for this. Cutting a groove is no big deal on Southbend. Turning a plunger to fit is no issue either.

nice score!I have a very similar dent in the left rear bed rail... where the fixed tie down hook contacted the gooseneck & bent it right over. LOL!! There are patch pieces for the deck if you really don't need the hole. Or get a junk yard deck piece.

If my bumper was not a rusted out piece of crap, it would be an idea. I'm contemplating having a bumper fabricated... that would be the thing to do.

I'd love to drop in some better LEDs but it's like buying a pig in a poke.

Porcelain over steel cookware was very popular in years gone by... and is still being made in both economy camp ware and premium cast Dutch ovens. Tooth veneers are made of porcelain... I had replacement porcelain grates in my old gas grill & they outlasted the grill housing (with every other year SS burner replacements). The replacement grill is just ending it's first season & came with porcelain grates.

What are your white backup lights? Are they just different bulbs in the OEM housing? If so, what are they? Sorry for 1,000 questions!

A marina customer of mine gave me a fine set of almost new wire cutters. He was an electrician. Yup, they were welded closed where he cut some live wire!

My JD410 belonged to a General Contractor at one time. Both the fuel & radiator caps have hasps riveted to them so padlocks could be installed it left on a job site. Rude & crude but functional.