Bought a 1977 Sears trailer from neighbor $100

[howie2092]

Bought this little guy from my elderly neighbor today. Solid little trailer. 1977 Sears. Adding lights, new tires, new bearings, and some general cleanup next weekend. Let me know what you think!

 

[spk2000]

What do you plan to use it for? Looks light duty with the smaller tires. Don't overload it or tires will smoke and blow.

 

[dlundblad]

Looks like a nice little trailer for yard use and light duty work. A trip across town to the hardware store perhaps.. but I wouldnt take it on the highway. I worry it'd be too squirrelly.

 

[Klutch9]

Looks nice! It should serve well for light duty hailing. And adding lights sounds like a fun little project

Good on you for doing that. Half of the trailers that have lights on them don't work properly!

 

[howie2092]

I think it's 1000lbs max. Big box store and landscape material store are each within 5mi, so I thought a light duty rig like this would be fine behind my Durango or Volvo. 35mph tops around town.

Planning to haul some sheetrock, insulation, garbage, dirt, trees, rocks, and the occasional motorycle. 1000lbs at a time, of course.

 

[eljefino]

I pull the HF version of that with an HHR and barely feel it. You'll have fun.

Consider making the front a "quick drop" style with a MC front tire holder so you can tow the background bikes if necessary.

 

[OneEyeJack]

People drive pickups and put less in the bed than the capacity of that trailer. So you can buy a real car and keep the trailer ready in case you need to hall something. In the mean time you can invest the savings on gas into a no load mutual fund and improve your retirement.

 

[howie2092]

Exactly, OneEyeJack: I sold my SuperCrew pickup with 12mpg and got a Durango with 17mpg. Not impressive, but way better. Anyway, my new trailer will take over the occasional pickup duties and save me 5mpg in the process.

 

[Stephen_G]

i'd get a canvas top of sorts for it, that way you can put something in it that you'd perfer to be covered, and it will also prevent debris from flying in there when it is empty in transit.

 

[mrsilv04]

If you're ever planning on towing it at highway speeds, you'll need to check/repack/replace the wheel bearings and invest in some new tires.

 

[Nick1994]

Are there bigger tires you can throw on it that'll fit? Hopefully they wouldn't be too wide and rub.

 

[howie2092]

Agreed on the bearings and tires. No plan for hwy miles at this point but I will probably replace bearings/bearing grease/tires anyway just to be safe.

I like the idea of a canvas or tarp to cover the top. HF has an elastic net that is just about the right size, and blue tarps for $2.99 on sale. A few tie-down points and I'm all set.

Once I get the little trailer sorted out, painted, etc... I will post new pics.

 

[howie2092]

Cost of the trailer new in 1977 was $190. I paid $100. Found trailer lights for $15 at HF and $22 at WM. Tires are 4.8x8.0 Goodyear and there is an un-used spare.

 

[dlundblad]

Fenders would be nice too.

 

[howie2092]

Update on my comically tiny trailer:

New lights.
Mounted spare tire to front wall.
License plate & registration.

Drove it around the block today just for fun. Works as intended. Thank goodness I have a backup camera otherwise I would never see it in the mirrors.

 

[dlundblad]

Can you screw (2) 3' 2x4's standing in the rear corners just for visibility?

Seems like a nice little investment.

 

[JHZR2]

Id at least get new tires. They are likely the tube type so the issues with rot and fall-apart may not be as bad as with regular car tires. Still I wouldnt want to find out...

Looks more like the one we have to pull behind the riding mower, than one Id want to pull behind a vehicle...