I have a smaller expedition type trailer (M416 sized). However, in order to use it for cargo I have to remove the RTT. This spring & summer we will be doing some home improvements & a bit of camping. That would add up to quite a bit on and off scenarios. I started looking at M1101/2s as a cost effective option.
I really did not want to keep up with a soft cover. I have been down that road before & did not use it much, so I opted to get one without. I had the high bid on a 2007 Raytheon M1102 at a GL auction. After that I waited out the paperwork process.
I was able to get I registered and obtained plates with the invoice prior to picking up the trailer.
The overall condition on what I received is fairly good. I can tell that it had dragged it a bit with the ring down and scraped a few things. A few dents, but the tires look almost new and all of the parts were there. The GL Ft. Worth trucking center location turned out to be convenient and very easy to deal with.
The brakes seemed to work & the hubs stayed cool as well. With the stock tires is bounces a bit when it is empty (I guess I had too much air in them). This seemed to discourage folks from tailgating though. Other than that it tows well behind the FJ.
The military wiring on this looked excellent. I did not see the need to spend more cash on running anything newer. I had an electrical adapter around from when I ran an M101A2. However I did not want to stick that on the truck. I put my adapter harness inside of a PVC tube and lengthened the wire so it could go trailer side. I sealed it with silicone, so it is waterproof and durable. I just place the assembly into the fuel can holder of the M1101 and strap it down to a foam block. It is removed from the trailer when not in use. (If someone steals this I would rather they not have working lights). After switching out the taillight bulbs to 12V, everything seemed to work. The side markers seem to be LEDs. They work with 12V, but seem a bit dim.
I was just going to screw the license plate into the body. However, after measuring the leg support brackets in back I realized that it was a standard size for a towing receiver. I went over to the ‘tool store’ and scored a weld on type receiver on clearance (less than three bucks!). I cut it down & welded a scrap piece of plate to it, tapped a couple of holes, then gave it a quick coat of paint. It fits nicely and clears everything. I also remove this when not in use (Again if someone steals it I would rather it not have plates either).
http://i1237.photobucket.com/albums...9-30a5-4d73-a2b8-75c1579dbd60_zpsea74f105.jpg
These two items will make it easy if I every buy another one of these. I can show up with a handful of light bulbs, the wiring adapter, and the plate bracket.
The trailer fits the FJ (3 inch lift) decently enough with a big (12 inch) riser hitch, but it looks like the safety chains may bind up with this configuration. We also can’t open up the back door. I don’t really like gigantic riser hitches either, so lowering the setup seemed to be a good idea. However, this turned into a bit of a saga.
The stock is a bolt pattern of 8x6.5 with wicked (7 inch) backspacing. Because of the backspace I initially looked for replacement hubs to get me down to 6x5.5 (Toyota lug pattern). After asking e-trailer.com, Schutt industries, and searching a bit myself, I don’t believe that there is an option for this. The axle is so beefy that anything that fits it seems to only be 8 lug.
I attempted to use some 8 lug to 6 lug wheel adaptors. I ran into several issues trying to use these. The studs on the trailer were too long to work. There were also some quality issues with the adapters themselves. The end result is that the adapters I tried did not work. I could have ground down all of the studs, but I was having trouble getting the 6 bolt pattern on the wheel to match the adapter. These would have pushed the tires outside the wheel wells anyway, but it was worth a shot. After sending the folks I bought these from a few pictures of the issues, they agreed to refund my money.
What I ended up doing is just buying a set of 8 lug Dodge truck wheels off of CL. A set of 4 ran me $200. They are steel OEM wheels off a 2004 dodge ¾ ton and fit perfectly. Swapping out the wheels/tires lowered the trailer 3 inches.
I will paint the wheels in the near future to better match the trailer.
I still have to use a bit of a riser hitch to tow this, but at least my back door can open on the FJ now and the chains are not in danger of binding up.
If I had to do this again I would probably just go with an axle swap. This would free up quite a bit of weight. I bet the current axle is a few hundred pounds at least. Ditching the surge brakes (for electric) as well would turn the trailer into more of a lightweight & I would have had more freedom to reposition the tow ring. If this turns into another long term project, it could be a future modification.
The total cost for everything (price, plates, + modifications) I have into it is around $1000. Still much cheaper than a civilian trailer of the same capacity.
I really did not want to keep up with a soft cover. I have been down that road before & did not use it much, so I opted to get one without. I had the high bid on a 2007 Raytheon M1102 at a GL auction. After that I waited out the paperwork process.
I was able to get I registered and obtained plates with the invoice prior to picking up the trailer.
The overall condition on what I received is fairly good. I can tell that it had dragged it a bit with the ring down and scraped a few things. A few dents, but the tires look almost new and all of the parts were there. The GL Ft. Worth trucking center location turned out to be convenient and very easy to deal with.
The brakes seemed to work & the hubs stayed cool as well. With the stock tires is bounces a bit when it is empty (I guess I had too much air in them). This seemed to discourage folks from tailgating though. Other than that it tows well behind the FJ.
The military wiring on this looked excellent. I did not see the need to spend more cash on running anything newer. I had an electrical adapter around from when I ran an M101A2. However I did not want to stick that on the truck. I put my adapter harness inside of a PVC tube and lengthened the wire so it could go trailer side. I sealed it with silicone, so it is waterproof and durable. I just place the assembly into the fuel can holder of the M1101 and strap it down to a foam block. It is removed from the trailer when not in use. (If someone steals this I would rather they not have working lights). After switching out the taillight bulbs to 12V, everything seemed to work. The side markers seem to be LEDs. They work with 12V, but seem a bit dim.
I was just going to screw the license plate into the body. However, after measuring the leg support brackets in back I realized that it was a standard size for a towing receiver. I went over to the ‘tool store’ and scored a weld on type receiver on clearance (less than three bucks!). I cut it down & welded a scrap piece of plate to it, tapped a couple of holes, then gave it a quick coat of paint. It fits nicely and clears everything. I also remove this when not in use (Again if someone steals it I would rather it not have plates either).
http://i1237.photobucket.com/albums...9-30a5-4d73-a2b8-75c1579dbd60_zpsea74f105.jpg
These two items will make it easy if I every buy another one of these. I can show up with a handful of light bulbs, the wiring adapter, and the plate bracket.
The trailer fits the FJ (3 inch lift) decently enough with a big (12 inch) riser hitch, but it looks like the safety chains may bind up with this configuration. We also can’t open up the back door. I don’t really like gigantic riser hitches either, so lowering the setup seemed to be a good idea. However, this turned into a bit of a saga.
The stock is a bolt pattern of 8x6.5 with wicked (7 inch) backspacing. Because of the backspace I initially looked for replacement hubs to get me down to 6x5.5 (Toyota lug pattern). After asking e-trailer.com, Schutt industries, and searching a bit myself, I don’t believe that there is an option for this. The axle is so beefy that anything that fits it seems to only be 8 lug.
I attempted to use some 8 lug to 6 lug wheel adaptors. I ran into several issues trying to use these. The studs on the trailer were too long to work. There were also some quality issues with the adapters themselves. The end result is that the adapters I tried did not work. I could have ground down all of the studs, but I was having trouble getting the 6 bolt pattern on the wheel to match the adapter. These would have pushed the tires outside the wheel wells anyway, but it was worth a shot. After sending the folks I bought these from a few pictures of the issues, they agreed to refund my money.
What I ended up doing is just buying a set of 8 lug Dodge truck wheels off of CL. A set of 4 ran me $200. They are steel OEM wheels off a 2004 dodge ¾ ton and fit perfectly. Swapping out the wheels/tires lowered the trailer 3 inches.
I will paint the wheels in the near future to better match the trailer.
I still have to use a bit of a riser hitch to tow this, but at least my back door can open on the FJ now and the chains are not in danger of binding up.
If I had to do this again I would probably just go with an axle swap. This would free up quite a bit of weight. I bet the current axle is a few hundred pounds at least. Ditching the surge brakes (for electric) as well would turn the trailer into more of a lightweight & I would have had more freedom to reposition the tow ring. If this turns into another long term project, it could be a future modification.
The total cost for everything (price, plates, + modifications) I have into it is around $1000. Still much cheaper than a civilian trailer of the same capacity.
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