Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Everyone has waited for my build thread and so have I. So here goes:


Assemble the toold you need to get the trailer together.



The parts are on the floor and all accounted for!!!


Assembly begins in earnest


I must admit I have a few pinched fingers.
It is coming together

The “FUN” part !!! Remember to clean and re-grease/pack the bearings , although they “look" ready ... they aren’t ...

Step one: build trailer. Step 2: Stand back and admire your handiwork. Step 3: (another one just because). Repeat steps 2 and 3 as required throughout the rest of the build. Great start.

Yay, Mary! Go for it!!!

And she's off.............

Thanks everyone. now to the rest of the story.

The HF trailer comes with a goo in the hubs and bearings and need to be cleaned off and the bearings repacked. It sounded a lot harder than it was but after reviewing the info on repacking it was easy. The hardest part was removing the back bearing. With a little help (a stronger person than me) it was accomplished. now take a look at the following picture of the black specs in the cup of paint thinner that is the little pieces that were washed out of the bearings before packing with grease.

before:


The cup with the pieces of metal residue:


Re-greased:



I did put more grease in just before putting on the cap, I filled it full






just some more pictures putting the frame together:



with tow vehicle

a little wiring



I put the nuts on top so a big bump wont shred my tire.

This shows why I need a raised ball on my tow hitch


I have a few more to bring up to date but it will have to wait till tomorrow.

Good job packing your bearings. It isn't necessary to fill the cup with grease before putting it on. It could possibly cause the bearings to overheat but it's unlikely. If it's easy for you to do, I'd take the caps off and scoop out a bunch of the extra grease. All you really need is the roller cage filled with grease some on the exterior of the rollers.

Cheers,

Gus

Mary , it has been mentioned before that it is prudent to keep a spare set of those pre- greased bearings on hand ... just in case ... and a spare tire would be wise too ... Just saying what you probably already know !!!

ps. if you plan on keeping the trailer outside , be aware the HF paint (red) WILL turn Pink ....which in your case is probably not objectionable ...

ououououou Pink trailer is ok but I don't know about pink grits, that usually means something nasty is growing in them and not penicillin. Gus, I filled the roller cage not the cap although the cap was difficult to get on because it kept sliding around and when I hit it with the mallet it popped off and fell in the dirt and I had to clean it up. I promiss I worked on the bearings for several hours making sure they were just perfect. The trailer has been back and forth on the highway several times( while I was helping my daughter pack her house) and I always checked for heat. Not a bit.

Mary C.

What , you never put ketchup on your grits ???

yea, pink grits, you are right, but only with katchup. Catsup,.......... well, now for some more picts.

just wiring picts , now before anything said this was temporary so I could go back and forth to my son and daughter in laws. have to be legal!!!! speaking of wiring, I first want to tell you about an expierence I had. After buying a wiring kit from an auto parts store after being told it would work then calling the company and they told me no I needed a more expensive kit, so I returned it and got the one suggested. Before I decided to install, at a friends suggestion I called U haul They said for 20 dollars less they could install the wiring so I went in. I showed the installer what "the Company " recommended and he said he could save me money...... so after studying the situation he put in a wiring harness and for a three and one eighth inch draw bar and the harness I saved $40.00. I returned the one I got and got my $82. dollars back. So........ I recommend U haul, they had my hitch and got the wiring done with less expense and had the draw bar I needed.

temp wiring




I need a new iorn

one more:

My wood working experience: I know it is not really great but here are two pictures One was made in 1908 and the other in 1985 by me. I know mine is not perfect but as long as you aren't looking for perfection then as a famous one said "It'll do", it works for me!

1908 ... whoa , you have a few years on me ..

No silly, it was made in 1908 sold in the Sears and Roebuck catalog and brought down from grandfathers attic (in 1919) for my mother to do her homework on while she had a contagious child hood disease. I copied it in 1985 to make a coffee table.