Valence's 1997 Pribbs M101A3

[M813rc]

M813rc, I'm sorry for taking literal months to get you this comparison. I did take this comparison photo two months ago... Here is a rear kick-down leg from an M105. It appears to be 686 CARC painted over 383 CARC. I'm sure it's faded. Comparing it against the "M00920" stenciled letters on my M101A3, it appears the letters are, or were, much yellower than 686 CARC. I have some a new 686 tan painted item I'll have to compare that too and update this post.

No worries! Thank you for taking the effort.
All duly logged in my USMC markings file for us to reference in the future.

Here is the Marine 1028 in the junkyard with the non-standard markings I talked about in PM. The yellow markings should be on uncamouflaged non-tactical vehicles only, not camouflaged tactical vehicles like this one. Just goes to show that if you make a rule, someone will break it!

Cheers

 

[Valence]

Well heck. On Friday, September 6th, 2019 I went to move the trailer and when I released the right side park brake, the internal portion that attaches to the top of the handle broke. And I know these handles are not reproduced anywhere. =/



Well, I suppose I'll still try placing a want ad.

 

[USAFSS-ColdWarrior]

Well heck. On Friday, September 6th, 2019 I went to move the trailer and when I released the right side park brake, the internal portion that attaches to the top of the handle broke. And I know these handles are not reproduced anywhere. =/

View attachment 776575

Well, I suppose I'll still try placing a want ad.

OUCH!

The salvage market should yield a functional, if not wonderful, replacement for you. Good luck in your search... There ARE lots of these trailers being parted out for other purposes.

 

[Tinstar]

For whatever reason, the correct replacement brake levers are impossible to find.
I can find everything else but the brake levers.

Lots for sale online claiming to fit, but they are the wrong ones.
Last time I looked anyway.

If you score some off a trailer being salvaged then congratulations is in order.

 

[Valence]

ON March 17th, 2020 I unwrapped the trailer from its winter storage (the tarp I had been covering it with had wore out anyway and was junk). I filled up the tires to 30 PSI each (they were at 5 and 10 PSI though you couldn't tell it by looking at them).

And then used it to get a new-to-me microfiber couch! (It was only a few miles away in the same town) The couch probably would have fit in the back of my little truck with a ratchet strap, but I wasn't sure and I wanted an excuse to use my stuff, yanno?



The brakes appear to be leaking at the copper crush washer on the 'T' bolted to the axle and I can't get the bleeders to open on the wheel cylinders. I am thinking of taking it to a commercial trailer place and have the lines replaced from the flexible brake hose to the wheel cylinders...


Also I noticed that the 4 bow storage brackets are slightly lower than the top of the fiberglass side, so the metal bow - that's a pretty loose fit anyway - is quickly rubbing/damaging the top of the fiberglass side. I may have to try and glue down a piece of rubber to the top of that rail or something.

 

[Valence]

Then on Friday March 20th, 2020, I found a big new-to-me rocking/reclining chair to buy, but it was going to rain. So for the first time, the brand-new cargo cover I had bought a while ago from Ziggy-O, got put on the trailer.



It's a good fit except for one thing:
The velcro on the cover that's suppose to wrap around a side post is placed far, far too low. So I am going to sew new velcro higher up on the cargo cover, and perhaps even install a wide footman loop just above the fenders for the original velcro strap.






And you better believe I used an upholstery cleaner to clean that whole couch and chair (the chair is the big oversized one on the right), they're in not bad shape, but were dirty. Yes, the little dog likes 'her' new couch.

 

[Valence]

Well heck. On Friday, September 6th, 2019 I went to move the trailer and when I released the right side park brake, the internal portion that attaches to the top of the handle broke. And I know these handles are not reproduced anywhere. =/

View attachment 776575

Well, I suppose I'll still try placing a want ad.

I found an NOS park brake handle on eBay that came with the mounting hardware too.

NSN 5340-00-936-5284
P/N 10926073

Stamped on the side of the lever base is "MFR 081X2".

It appears to be the same thing, with just a slightly different handle top. I'll report back on how well it fits in reality.

 

[Guyfang]

There is a thread here that I helped someone find the manufacturer, and the levers are available. I can not remember what the thread was called. Will try.

 

[Tinstar]

M101 Trailer Series: Brand New Brake Levers

FINALLY!! found a brake lever supplier with the help of Guyfang. Their pricey but available. $140 each including spacers. Bolts are not included. Kratzke Machining & Fabricating Company Wittenberg, WI 715/253-3800 They make two different levers. One is a single pull and one is a double...

www.steelsoldiers.com

 

[Guyfang]

Getting old is not all its cracked up to be!

 

[Valence]

Yeah! Thanks guys and very much thanks to you @Tinstar for that thread too. It was that very thread that I pulled the NSN from and searched eBay.

 

[Tinstar]

Getting old is not all its cracked up to be!

That’s definitely a understatement!!

 

[Guyfang]

These handles are a weak point in the brake system. Keep them lubed up with a bit of grease. Back in the day, they had a grease fitting.

 

[Valence]

These handles are a weak point in the brake system. Keep them lubed up with a bit of grease. Back in the day, they had a grease fitting.

I hadn't considered greasing/lubricating them in any way, but that's good and obvious advice. Thank you.

 

[Guyfang]

I screw the handle all the way out, do my best to get most of the GAA on the threads and screw it completely in and repeat 1-2 times, BEFORE mounting the handle. Then maybe 1 time a year re-lube, if its been used a bunch. If not then let it ride. You will begin to notice when its time to re-lube. The problem comes when it sets for years, with nothing being done.

 

[Valence]

I ended up replacing both handles because I didn't trust how rusty the left handle was too.

I also had a case of this old G-366 (MIL-G-25537A) G0B Aircraft grease. I'm not sure how well it'll stand up to the elements, but it's lasted for nearly 56 years in the can, I think it'll do fine until the next round of greasing.



I did like @Guyfang suggested, I unscrewed the handle all the way and I used a screw driver to put grease on the internal threads and screw the handle in all the way (repeated twice).


I made sure to grease all of the cable; hopefully that'll protect it from further rust and abrasion. Of course, as is expected, I kind of got the grease everywhere. I'm sure dirt will stick to it, but I'll just clean it and regrease.

 

[Valence]

June 2022:
My brother decided his firewood stack was too big (part of the wood pile was in the way of a new shed he wanted to build) so I helped him for the day dig, and prepare the ground, and made off with a load of split firewood! The cargo cover was essential to not drop any on the highway.



Turned out as a boon for me because I ended up depending on my existing and this firewood for heat twice during the early part of 2023 when my furnace failed twice, and then again as my fireplace acted as a dehumidifier when the basement flooded in March 2023.

Sept 2022:
Two whole years prior, there was a windstorm at my place and it broke 8 posts of the crappy wooden fence the previous owners had built. I had said crappy fence propped up until I finally decided what I was going to do with it (fix or replace). Replace won out and I tore it down and the M101A3 ferried the remains to the dump.



July & August 2023:
This late summer I felt an urgency to collect firewood (I hadn't done so since 2014, and what I got in 2022 from my brother) as my woodpile was very low. In the past month or so I've watched the local classifieds for free firewood and hauled home ~4.5 trailer loads that consisted of cedar, maple, green oak, and other old wood, as well as a trip to the Cache National Forest for a load of quaking aspen (or as I grew up calling it, "quakey aspen").



Then, being the old-man I guess I am now, I rented a wood splitter and spent nearly 14 hours straight splitting and stacking the pile.

 

[Valence]

All this recent use of my M101A3 has definitely put more scratches in the bed paint and the formerly new side racks and cargo cover. I wish the wear and tear wasn't the case, but I'm also happy to have such an essential, useful trailer.

I also have been considering some modifications for the trailer. such as placing a Pioneer Tool Rack on the tail gate, a tool box on the tongue, a fire extinguisher on the front, and jerry can mounts on the fenders.

I don't have picture examples of the others, but I feel like the fenders are strong enough to hold the roughly 100 lbs of fuel/water. What do you think?


If a jerry can was in the rear-most mount, it would block the rear gates from latching into the open position, but it wouldn't be a permanent block (the mount itself is not in the way). If you needed the gates latched open for an extended period, it would not be hard to remove the can from the mount.

 

[Guyfang]

I have seen the two can mount in the army. Never heard anyone say it failed. TACOM wasn't wild about it, but then they were not going down range.

Sure looks pretty there. Sure miss Utah.

 

[Valence]

Thank you, Guyfang.

This has been the nicest summer in my memory here, especially this August.

I talked to one of my brothers, and that jerry can placement on top of the fenders is not a great idea, even with reinforcement, due to raising the center of gravity. So I am going to use some angle iron and drawn over mandrel (DOM) tubing as spacers to bolt the mounts flush with the bottom of the exterior of the cargo box. I just want the cans outside to the cargo box so they’re still accessible, regardless of the load in the trailer.

Also, here is a mock-up of where I’d like to put the pioneer tool rack. Yes, it’d be partially under the cargo cover and make it a bit more challenging to tie the rear-most cargo cover flap center tie-down, and make the tailgate heavier, but I think those are okay trade offs.


It appears that the tailgate would still be able to hang straight down and the Pioneer tool rack would just hit the frame shackles a bit.