thoughts on trailer

How long it is compared to a Saturn (can see the bend on passenger side as well) trying to upload more photos

I'm NOT a trailer guy but the bends in the tongue concern me. With the harbor freight trailer you will know what weight it is rated for. Mike.

The bend in the tongue doesn't bother me except it might track a little off center.

It's in pretty rough shape. The question i usually ask myself is what if something failed and it tracked over the centerline into a minivan full of kids on their way to little league practice ? Is it really worth it ? What about a jogger or a kid on a bicycle ? When steel meets flesh it always ends in tears ....

The things i would go over:

1: The tongue is structurally compromised. That should be replaced.

2: Has it got safety chains ? I usually go with 3/8" chain.

3: Check the condition of the springs and the mounts on the axle & the frame. Sometimes the springs develop stress cracks & snap under a load. The bushings tend to rot out over time and need to be replaced every so often.

4: Check the receiver hitch. Nowadays the standard seems to be either 1 7/8" or 2". Make sure it's working right. They get rusty and bent up. Sometimes they don't engage the ball like they should. They're either too tight or too loose. There's an adjustment nut underneath.

5: You might want to throw on a trailer jack if it doesn't have one that's working right.

6: Double check the tires. Looks like they could be weathered / dry rotted. Is there a slice in the sidewall of the tire facing the camera ? Definitely don't run with that if the sidewall is hurt. Could blow anytime. Check the rating of the tires to see what kind of weight they're intended for. See what kind of condition the rims are in. Any rust through spots ?

7: I would pull the hubs and check the bearings. If there's any scoring on the bearings and races they should be replaced. ( It's common for trailer bearings to fail and the tire to come flying off. )

8: It needs trailer lights ?

9: It needs fenders over the tires so that all the stuff on the road doesn't get thrown up into the windshield of the person behind you.

10: Flip it over and check the welds and the frame for stress cracks. Look for any spots on the frame that have rusted through and reinforce the tender spots. The bottom lip of the channel is usually the first thing to go.

11: Think about side boards and some way of securely lashing the load down.

Lol ... okay .... Maybe i should get an old goat avatar ?

Later edited to add:

What you've got is what you've got right ? Do the best you can ? From the two identification tags on the frame it looks like it was a manufactured trailer. Might have been the frame for a U-Haul or camper trailer.

Just an opinion, but it's really more time than money to fix it up. I remade a boat trailer into a heavy hauler years back just using scrap metal off the dump. It's built like a tank and tows like a school bus load of nuns but it's still hangin' in there.

Originally Posted by t00nces2

If you need a trailer, it is hard to beat $259.00 Harbor Freight...

I all ready have a trailer that I can use anytime about that size but it has sides, what I'm looking at using this trailer as is a flat bed to haul car hulls in (yes I know some are going to say buy a car trailer... but the only cars I'm hauling in right now are saturns that weight 1 ton complete, but after Im done with them they are weighing about 600 lbs

Originally Posted by Mechanic688

The bend in the tongue doesn't bother me except it might track a little off center.

She tracks dead center both loaded with a huge scrap of wood (how I bought it) & unloaded (how it is now)

Originally Posted by greytruck

Im not liking the wheel placements. Their cheating space of the trailer in my opinion.

Agree completely, but it's what I got so gotta roll with it

Originally Posted by Scrappah

It's in pretty rough shape. The question i usually ask myself is what if something failed and it tracked over the centerline into a minivan full of kids on their way to little league practice ? Is it really worth it ? What about a jogger or a kid on a bicycle ? When steel meets flesh it always ends in tears ....

The things i would go over:

1: The tongue is structurally compromised. That should be replaced.

2: Has it got safety chains ? I usually go with 3/8" chain.

3: Check the condition of the springs and the mounts on the axle & the frame. Sometimes the springs develop stress cracks & snap under a load. The bushings tend to rot out over time and need to be replaced every so often.

4: Check the receiver hitch. Nowadays the standard seems to be either 1 7/8" or 2". Make sure it's working right. They get rusty and bent up. Sometimes they don't engage the ball like they should. They're either too tight or too loose. There's an adjustment nut underneath.

5: You might want to throw on a trailer jack if it doesn't have one that's working right.

6: Double check the tires. Looks like they could be weathered / dry rotted. Is there a slice in the sidewall of the tire facing the camera ? Definitely don't run with that if the sidewall is hurt. Could blow anytime. Check the rating of the tires to see what kind of weight they're intended for. See what kind of condition the rims are in. Any rust through spots ?

7: I would pull the hubs and check the bearings. If there's any scoring on the bearings and races they should be replaced. ( It's common for trailer bearings to fail and the tire to come flying off. )

8: It needs trailer lights ?

9: It needs fenders over the tires so that all the stuff on the road doesn't get thrown up into the windshield of the person behind you.

10: Flip it over and check the welds and the frame for stress cracks. Look for any spots on the frame that have rusted through and reinforce the tender spots. The bottom lip of the channel is usually the first thing to go.

11: Think about side boards and some way of securely lashing the load down.

Lol ... okay .... Maybe i should get an old goat avatar ?

Later edited to add:

What you've got is what you've got right ? Do the best you can ? From the two identification tags on the frame it looks like it was a manufactured trailer. Might have been the frame for a U-Haul or camper trailer.

Just an opinion, but it's really more time than money to fix it up. I remade a boat trailer into a heavy hauler years back just using scrap metal off the dump. It's built like a tank and tows like a school bus load of nuns but it's still hangin' in there.

Plan on working on the tounge.. any pricing thoughts on fixing it (bartering with an guy who's a welder by trade)

Needs to have jack replaced... but it's not a standard A frame jack (going to have that fixed with welding to mount a standard A frame jack)

Repacking the hub's is a most definitely thing on my list tires look fine in person

Was planning on leaving it as is minus adding fenders and then strapping to the frame, I'm looking at this trailer as my big and bulky mover (so if it hangs a bit it's fine... thus no sides)

It's an old StarCraft trailer, the title said it's registered in 98 as a homemade trailer...

Thanks everybody for the thoughts just trying to figure this all out and go from there....

I believe it's either that (thinking it is) or boat trailer.... not looking at heavy loads though like I said 600-700 max and it's only for like 6 miles to yard and drop the hulls off

Much better than the HF trailer. My opinion only.
Looks like someone backed up and forgot about the trailer.
Change the bent tongue beam with a new one and re-weld any questionable welds
Congrats...good scrap investment. Will make you money.

Just finishing up this one. 7x13 deck over. Was a Glendale camper. Needs a boat winch. Then onto the next one