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JeepAndrew's Jetski Trailer-to-Offroad RTT Hauler Build

Discussion in 'Other Builds' started by JeepAndrew, Apr 7, 2014.

Page 3 of 8
  1. Apr 17, 2014 at 12:14 PM
    #41
    JeepAndrew

    #41
    JeepAndrew [OP] Nah bitch Jeep guy

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    Tucson, AZ
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    Hmm that is pretty cool! Where did you get yours?
     
    JeepAndrew, Apr 17, 2014
    #41
  2. Apr 17, 2014 at 12:43 PM
    #42
    jberry813

    #42
    jberry813 Professional Fluffer Moderator

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    ...too much shit to list.
    Amazon, last year for 40 bucks
     
    jberry813, Apr 17, 2014
    #42
  3. Apr 17, 2014 at 5:53 PM
    #43
    JeepAndrew

    #43
    JeepAndrew [OP] Nah bitch Jeep guy

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    I might have to go that route. Thanks man!
     
    JeepAndrew, Apr 17, 2014
    #43
  4. Apr 17, 2014 at 6:06 PM
    #44
    Toyanvil

    #44
    Toyanvil Well-Known Member

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    I went old school, with 4 Atwood jacks extended 8", light weight, sets up in minutes on any surface, with or without being hooked to my truck.
    [​IMG]
     
    Toyanvil, Apr 17, 2014
    #44
  5. Apr 17, 2014 at 7:26 PM
    #45
    JeepAndrew

    #45
    JeepAndrew [OP] Nah bitch Jeep guy

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    Lots-o-mods
    Nice setup! That would work as well. The Atwood jacks are really inexpensive.
     
    JeepAndrew, Apr 17, 2014
    #45
  6. Apr 17, 2014 at 10:00 PM
    #46
    JeepAndrew

    #46
    JeepAndrew [OP] Nah bitch Jeep guy

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    Andrew
    Tucson, AZ
    Vehicle:
    Offroad beast YJ/2015 Taco
    Lots-o-mods
    Back to work!! :cool:

    This evening I focused on the tongue bar. The trailer-side attachment on the Max Coupler is a 2" receiver bar, so the trailer tongue needed the corresponding 2.5" hitch sleeve, which I just so happened to have an 18" piece of. It was a bit loose fitting inside the 3" tongue bar, so I shimmed it up on all 4 sides with 18" strips of 2"X1/8" steel flat strap, welded solidly to the outside of the sleeve. This made for a very tight fit inside the tongue bar (had to be driven into the bar with a sledge hammer) with no movement whatsoever. Finally, I did 6 rosette welds to permanently bond the coupler sleeve to the tongue bar. Still need to fill the corners but it turned out great! Tongue bar metal thickness is nearly 1/2"!

    [​IMG]

    Here's a pic to give an idea of the articulation of the Max Coupler. This thing can flex!

    [​IMG]

    The #1 thing I really like about the trailer-side attachment on the Max Coupler is that it's entirely removable; I can remove the coupler, leave the trailer set up at camp while I go explore etc, and don't have to worry about someone coming along and hooking up and stealing it :)

    Here's how it's sitting right now, not bad for a total of 3 days work! The tailgate, deck and sides will be tackled tomorrow!

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Apr 17, 2014
    JeepAndrew, Apr 17, 2014
    #46
  7. Apr 17, 2014 at 10:41 PM
    #47
    NewRider

    #47
    NewRider Well-Known Member

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    :eek:
     
    NewRider, Apr 17, 2014
    #47
  8. Apr 18, 2014 at 8:21 AM
    #48
    JeepAndrew

    #48
    JeepAndrew [OP] Nah bitch Jeep guy

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    :cool: :D
     
    JeepAndrew, Apr 18, 2014
    #48
  9. Apr 18, 2014 at 10:11 AM
    #49
    Brian007Taco

    #49
    Brian007Taco 007Taco

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    If you ask. You don't know me very well!
    Mesa, AZ to NM to OK to UT back to Mesa
    Vehicle:
    2012 Red TRD OR 4x4 DCSB (aka Clifford the Big Red Truck)
    12 OR DCSB 4x4 265/75/16 Goodyear Ultra Terrain wrapped on MB352's. OME 886's w/5100's front and back, and Dakars. Derped Emblems. KM Fab sliders, Mobtown Front and back bumpers w/tire gate, KM Fab Bed Rack, Bestop Supertop, Matt Gecko bed lights. Tree Smashed Taco 06 OR AC Prerunner! OME 885 with 5100's in front, TSB and AAL with 5125's in back. 30" light bar in the valance.
    Looks great Andrew.
     
    Brian007Taco, Apr 18, 2014
    #49
  10. Apr 18, 2014 at 8:55 PM
    #50
    JeepAndrew

    #50
    JeepAndrew [OP] Nah bitch Jeep guy

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    Today I went by one of the local trailer places and picked up a 2,000# rated Curt brand trailer jack with a round tube sleeve attachment. Also stopped in at our local Industrial Metal Supply and picked up two 12"x48" pieces of 10 gauge sheet for the fenders. Once I got home I went to work finishing the end of the tongue bar and welding the jack sleeve onto the trailer.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Next came the deck and sides. I used 14 gauge steel sheet, cut to required sizes. Each piece was C-clamped into position and tacked in place with the Lincoln :D Here it is hooked up to the jeep, with just the 3 sides in place:

    [​IMG]

    The tongue weight is now around 80# I think. I took it around the neighborhood again and it tracks and tows great!

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Apr 18, 2014
    JeepAndrew, Apr 18, 2014
    #50
  11. Apr 18, 2014 at 9:02 PM
    #51
    snowtank

    #51
    snowtank Where the fuck did my beer go!

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    Some stuff here and there....
    Much tires. Very awesome. So cool. :cool: way to keep the andrew name epic!
     
    snowtank, Apr 18, 2014
    #51
  12. Apr 18, 2014 at 9:12 PM
    #52
    nfs257

    #52
    nfs257 Well-Known Member

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    She gone
    :drool:
     
    nfs257, Apr 18, 2014
    #52
  13. Apr 19, 2014 at 7:22 AM
    #53
    AzCrawlin

    #53
    AzCrawlin Fuck that rock.

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    this is coming along smoothly. Good job man!
     
    AzCrawlin, Apr 19, 2014
    #53
  14. Apr 19, 2014 at 8:22 AM
    #54
    XPOTRPR

    #54
    XPOTRPR CNC Programmer/Machinist

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    Lookin damn good brotha. :thumbsup:
     
    XPOTRPR, Apr 19, 2014
    #54
  15. Apr 20, 2014 at 8:56 AM
    #55
    JeepAndrew

    #55
    JeepAndrew [OP] Nah bitch Jeep guy

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    You want one don't you? :D

    ^This guy. Best fab assistant EVAR!

    Thank you sir! :)
     
    JeepAndrew, Apr 20, 2014
    #55
  16. Apr 20, 2014 at 9:31 PM
    #56
    JeepAndrew

    #56
    JeepAndrew [OP] Nah bitch Jeep guy

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    Made a lot of progress this weekend!

    Fabricated the flat steel fenders out of 10 gauge sheet, cut and welded angles over the tires accordingly :)

    [​IMG]


    [​IMG]

    Tailgate frame was built out of the same 1.5"x1.5"x1/8" square tube as the siderail uprights. I used $20 heavy duty commercial door hinges from Lowes.

    I also had ordered a couple 1,000lb tire gate latches off of ebay to use as tailgate latches.

    [​IMG]

    I needed to strengthen the fender bottoms, so we cut pieces of 2"x3"x1/8" and welded them into the frame along the ends of the fenders. These will act as stiffeners and rock protection.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Finished the tailgate by paneling it with 1/4" maple hardwood. I decided to go with the maple to keep the rear weight down. It's very strong and had no issues supporting me while I sat on it. I did some of the sheetwork in the bed, I'll be finishing that up tomorrow after work. Also ran the trailer light wiring and mounted up some cheap trailer lights I picked up from Autozone that should work nicely on the trail :D

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    By this evening I had sprayed it with gray Rustoleum self-etching primer, as you can see. Stuff works great!

    This coming weekend I'll be taking it on a 500 mile road trip to northern AZ as a test run, so I'm planning on having it mostly done before Thursday :yes:
     
    Last edited: Apr 20, 2014
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    JeepAndrew, Apr 20, 2014
    #56
  17. Apr 20, 2014 at 9:38 PM
    #57
    MJonaGS32

    #57
    MJonaGS32 MJ on a GS

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    MJonaGS32, Apr 20, 2014
    #57
  18. Apr 20, 2014 at 9:44 PM
    #58
    01tacoprerunner

    #58
    01tacoprerunner 01 4WD Prerunner

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    01tacoprerunner, Apr 20, 2014
    #58
  19. Apr 21, 2014 at 8:04 PM
    #59
    JeepAndrew

    #59
    JeepAndrew [OP] Nah bitch Jeep guy

    Joined:
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    Andrew
    Tucson, AZ
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    Offroad beast YJ/2015 Taco
    Lots-o-mods
    This evening I finished the trailer light wiring by adding a license plate light to the tailgate, and welding hookups for the safety chains. All that's left to do is the deck, watercan holders (waiting on the cans to arrive) and the onboard 120v power. And of course there's the rack setup for the RTT that still needs to be done.

    I took it for a test run behind my Cherokee to test the lights and just to drive it around.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    It's unbelievable how light this thing is. Between my two jeeps, the Cherokee, with all the engine mods, has way more power by far than the wrangler, and I honestly couldn't feel it behind me at all. It tracks perfectly straight and is very easy to back up. I'd estimate that it only weighs around 500-600lbs.

    Here's a quick cost breakdown so far:

    Jetski trailer = free
    3- 15x12 steel rims = free
    3 tires- 33x12.5x15 mud claws = $620
    Max Coupler = $287
    Tailgate latches = $83
    Misc steel (square & round tubing, sheet etc) $575
    Trailer lights and onboard power wiring = $350

    Total cost so far = $1915, along with approx 5 days labor.
     
    Last edited: Apr 21, 2014
    JeepAndrew, Apr 21, 2014
    #59
  20. Apr 21, 2014 at 8:48 PM
    #60
    Brian007Taco

    #60
    Brian007Taco 007Taco

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    If you ask. You don't know me very well!
    Mesa, AZ to NM to OK to UT back to Mesa
    Vehicle:
    2012 Red TRD OR 4x4 DCSB (aka Clifford the Big Red Truck)
    12 OR DCSB 4x4 265/75/16 Goodyear Ultra Terrain wrapped on MB352's. OME 886's w/5100's front and back, and Dakars. Derped Emblems. KM Fab sliders, Mobtown Front and back bumpers w/tire gate, KM Fab Bed Rack, Bestop Supertop, Matt Gecko bed lights. Tree Smashed Taco 06 OR AC Prerunner! OME 885 with 5100's in front, TSB and AAL with 5125's in back. 30" light bar in the valance.
    Looks awesome so far.
     
    Brian007Taco, Apr 21, 2014
    #60
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