Enthusiast II
I thought I would share my overland trailer build. I know it's working backwards posting pics of it now vs. build pics, but I didn't think much of making a build post until I started getting questions about it. So here is our Tag-A-Long (home built) trailer as it is now.
And this is what it started out as...
It's been several months in the making but the goal was to build a trailer that can carry all our camping gear and that we could just plan a trip on the spur of the moment. I started with this 4x6 utility trailer knowing I really only needed the frame since the rest of it was pretty rotten. I stripped down and disposed of the "box" part of the trailer and then restored the frame since it had some minor rust. The frame was stripped and treated with POR15 before getting painted with the POR15 rust paint. The pic of the wood shows how it just came apart easily after removing the aluminum outer panels
After the frame was treated and painted I welded new spring plates to the axle so I could do the "over under" axle flip which gave it a lift. I also picked up a set of 15" Jeep wheels that towered over the small 10" wheels that were on it. Around this time I also rewired all the lights and added a 12v power system in a tongue box.
My original plan was to build the unit out of extruded aluminum since I thought it would be a great way to have a solid structure that I could change around in the future. I was getting ready to place my order when I came across an ad on Marketplace for an old Vet box.
These units are built for the back of a pick up truck for Veterinarians that make house calls. Mainly for farm animals. Seeing this totally changed my plan and I quickly hooked up the trailer and headed out to pick it up. The seller was very helpful with providing me all the dimensions beforehand since it was a 3hr drive and weighed 700lbs. Luckily the specs worked out perfectly and it fit!
I wouldn't have been able to lift this, LOL...
The photo of the back before cleaning does not even begin to show how bad it really was. It was filled with old vet supplies and took 2 solid days of scrubbing and disinfecting... I ended up gutting the entire unit which has 4 drawers in the rear and a large cargo area in the front.
After cleaning and getting it secured to the frame I started to install side panels and fenders.
The side panels are plywood that I painted and then formica was glued tot that. Aluminum channels were then screwed in to keep it all in place. It was all sealed up as well.
I added the adjustable rack and a hot water unit in the hard case. Also added a 5lb propane tank for the heater. The cargo area was covered with outdoor carpet and the rear drawers hold the freezer/fridge and the grill. The grill is mounted on a lazy suzan so it can be stored. The interior of the trailer is also wired with LED lights as well as the exterior has some LED spot lights. There are a few 12v outlets and USB ports for charging devices.
It's definitely a work in progress and I have a few more plans down the road. We've already taken it on a couple trips and it works out great.
This is really the Cliff notes version, LOL. I wanted to keep the initial post short and not too boring :) I could get into tons of the little details but the gist of it is I got a trailer and put a vet box on it. A bunch of details happened in between but ended up with a pretty cool little tag-a-long trailer that completely fits our needs (and then some). Oh, why call it tag-a-long??? That was actually the name of the little blue trailer I started out with. ;)
Thanks for checking it out!
And this is what it started out as...
It's been several months in the making but the goal was to build a trailer that can carry all our camping gear and that we could just plan a trip on the spur of the moment. I started with this 4x6 utility trailer knowing I really only needed the frame since the rest of it was pretty rotten. I stripped down and disposed of the "box" part of the trailer and then restored the frame since it had some minor rust. The frame was stripped and treated with POR15 before getting painted with the POR15 rust paint. The pic of the wood shows how it just came apart easily after removing the aluminum outer panels
After the frame was treated and painted I welded new spring plates to the axle so I could do the "over under" axle flip which gave it a lift. I also picked up a set of 15" Jeep wheels that towered over the small 10" wheels that were on it. Around this time I also rewired all the lights and added a 12v power system in a tongue box.
My original plan was to build the unit out of extruded aluminum since I thought it would be a great way to have a solid structure that I could change around in the future. I was getting ready to place my order when I came across an ad on Marketplace for an old Vet box.
These units are built for the back of a pick up truck for Veterinarians that make house calls. Mainly for farm animals. Seeing this totally changed my plan and I quickly hooked up the trailer and headed out to pick it up. The seller was very helpful with providing me all the dimensions beforehand since it was a 3hr drive and weighed 700lbs. Luckily the specs worked out perfectly and it fit!
I wouldn't have been able to lift this, LOL...
The photo of the back before cleaning does not even begin to show how bad it really was. It was filled with old vet supplies and took 2 solid days of scrubbing and disinfecting... I ended up gutting the entire unit which has 4 drawers in the rear and a large cargo area in the front.
After cleaning and getting it secured to the frame I started to install side panels and fenders.
The side panels are plywood that I painted and then formica was glued tot that. Aluminum channels were then screwed in to keep it all in place. It was all sealed up as well.
I added the adjustable rack and a hot water unit in the hard case. Also added a 5lb propane tank for the heater. The cargo area was covered with outdoor carpet and the rear drawers hold the freezer/fridge and the grill. The grill is mounted on a lazy suzan so it can be stored. The interior of the trailer is also wired with LED lights as well as the exterior has some LED spot lights. There are a few 12v outlets and USB ports for charging devices.
It's definitely a work in progress and I have a few more plans down the road. We've already taken it on a couple trips and it works out great.
This is really the Cliff notes version, LOL. I wanted to keep the initial post short and not too boring :) I could get into tons of the little details but the gist of it is I got a trailer and put a vet box on it. A bunch of details happened in between but ended up with a pretty cool little tag-a-long trailer that completely fits our needs (and then some). Oh, why call it tag-a-long??? That was actually the name of the little blue trailer I started out with. ;)
Thanks for checking it out!
