August 16, 200520 yr We have been trying to figure out what to do with the parts Brat I have after it's done being stripped. the body is not in good shape (especially from doors forward), but it's not rusted. the other day I was telling my husband that I wanted a little trailer that I could use for my Brat. He decided to use the parts Brat to make one. He is going to cut off the bed then weld sheet metal on the front to enclose it. He has to see what needs to be done with the axle. Does anyone have any recommendations or tips? Thanks.
August 16, 200520 yr a friend of mine used suby suspension to make a trailor to haul other subies... what he did was take the 2 cv's and put them both in a pipe making a solid axle... i can take some pics of it if you like... but it won't be anytime soon... what i would do though is take out the axles and bust the stubs off then just put the stubs back into the hubs... i think that will work...
August 16, 200520 yr Author I want to help build it. Gonna call you right now. Hey Eli, I'm at work, but will be off at 9. I rode my moped to work so I won't be home til about 9:40. Do you think it'll be easy to do? Larry seemed to think it would be, but I'm sure he would like some help.
August 16, 200520 yr Hey.. that's no problem.. why don't you give me a call when you get home from work and we'll talk a little bit about it. I'm dying to know what is going with the RX... I'm sure it would be VERY easy to turn that brat rear-end into a trailer... and HOW COOL would that look a GEN 1 Brat towing a GEN 1 Brat trailer?!!! Does Larry have a welder or at least an oxycetaline torch??? I also have a tongue that will work good for it.. but it's kind of heavy because it's steel. (and I may want to keep it because it's for hauling my brat behind a truck..) I think it would be cool to use part of the front end of the brat for the front of the trailer. Instead of just some piece of sheet metal... Does anyone have any tips or measurements or anything to get a proper tongue weight and balance? I'm sure I can do the math/geometry/etc required to make it a good reliable trailer... but I always like short cuts... so let's hear what you've got.
August 16, 200520 yr Author I think it would be cool to use part of the front end of the brat for the front of the trailer. Instead of just some piece of sheet metal... QUOTE] That is an awesome idea. I like it!!! The RX is still ours. I talked to Larry about the trading work, and I think he will go for it. I'll talk to him some ore this weekend.
August 16, 200520 yr might want to check this thread out... http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=41216&highlight=trailer
August 16, 200520 yr Does anyone have any tips or measurements or anything to get a proper tongue weight and balance? I'm sure I can do the math/geometry/etc required to make it a good reliable trailer... but I always like short cuts... so let's hear what you've got. I have an excel spreadsheet that'll do just that. You'll need component weights, CGs, and some measurements. Now, how the heck do I get it to you???
August 16, 200520 yr Hey, someone else is building a BraTrailer! My "design" seems to be very different from your idea however, as I plan to use only the rear sub-frame/spring/wheels assembly, bolting a frame to the four body mounting points. I don't claim to be an expert at this, so my question to Zefy would be, why do you need a solid axle at all? Here's what I've got together so far... http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v148/DPDISXR4Ti/BraTrailer-1.jpg
August 16, 200520 yr I don't claim to be an expert at this, so my question to Zefy would be, why do you need a solid axle at all? i don't know its not my design... but from what i understand from when i was talking to him he added leaf springs... so he has 2 rear suby suspensions and leaf spings added to the "solid" axles... he topped it off by using wagon wheels! he uses it to haul around subies... this thing is as beafy as a cow... i'll look into it some more... if i were making a trailer i would just pop out the axles and bust off the stubs and use those... beafing up the suspension might be a good idea... the weight limit for gen 1's is 800lbs... if the low limit is due to the suspension (i think its brakes and engine that make it so low) then making it stiffer might be a good plan... although the tow rating is also 800lbs... so that makes me think its all engine and brakes... you might want to look into a way to get the drums on the rear of your trailer to be functional... there must be a trailer brake kit or something... i feel that stopping is more important then moving...
August 16, 200520 yr If he's using it to haul cars, I'd have to assume it's got a wider than stock width to it. Is he using it as a dolly or "full on" trailer? I'm also just realizing (I think) that you're talking about using a 1st gen Brat. I have no idea how similar the 1st and 2nd gen Brat suspensions may (or may not) be. The 2nd gen is a simple torsion bar setup, which makes it relatively easy to "trailer-ize". I just don't know what kind of load it will take without setting the camber too far negative. At rest, the camber goes positive - take a look at the pic in the other thread.
August 16, 200520 yr If he's using it to haul cars, I'd have to assume it's got a wider than stock width to it. Is he using it as a dolly or "full on" trailer? this is a full on trailor... drive your car onto kinda thing... its pretty much a huge flat platform... perfectly sized to fit subies... so the platform hangs over the wheels... gen 1 has torsion suspension as well... its different from the gen 2 but i don't quite know how its different... i know it makes the gen 1's harder to lift though...
August 16, 200520 yr Author This will be a small trailer to pull behind my Brat. I won't be hauling anything too heavy. It's a Gen 1 Brat
August 16, 200520 yr Solid axles (in general) are stronger overall than an independent suspension. That is why you see solid rear axles on a vast majority of trucks. That's also why the HMMWV (Humvee) can only tow 4200# versus 10,000# or so with my truck. As for the brakes, surge brakes are the easiest way to get 'er done. One example: http://www.masterhitch.com/hitchAcc.asp?prodID=10 First hit on google... there probably is much more info elsewhere. Better on-road than off - but not too many people go off roading with their trailers. An electric brake system is possible, but way too much work for this.
August 20, 200520 yr I have an excel spreadsheet that'll do just that. You'll need component weights, CGs, and some measurements. Now, how the heck do I get it to you??? Can you e-mail them to me? Or are they too big?? I mIRC and Yahoo if we can figure out how to do file transfers on there... (elijafir@yahoo.com)
August 20, 200520 yr Rather than weld sheet metal over the front of the bed, Just cut it off at the cab, and roll the top over to avoid a sharp edge, much easier than trying to get a piece of sheet metal that size to stay stable (Unless you have access to a bead roller) and IMHO the stock bed wall would look better Killer idea though! I was going to do the same thing with my old 84 wagon but mom made me get rid of it :-(
August 23, 200520 yr Can you e-mail them to me? Or are they too big?? I mIRC and Yahoo if we can figure out how to do file transfers on there... (elijafir@yahoo.com) E-mail sent. Let me know if you don't get it for some reason.
August 24, 200520 yr I got it.. but I don't really understand it... Ask some questions! To use, measure from the hitch point back to where the center of gravity (CG) of the component is. Put that in the location column. Now take a weight and put that in the weight column. After you have all the components filled in play around with the axle location until you get the tongue weight you want. Comprendo?
August 27, 200520 yr I think it would be cool to use part of the front end of the brat for... ...the trailer. 3rd Eye Brake Light!
August 28, 200520 yr It's been done. Back in 2000 Jason and I did one. I could post pics later. Kurt I remember that.... back when you lived in Milwaukie.... we joked about it being the rickshaw brat
August 28, 200520 yr Yah! I later welded a tongue and ball on it. I ended up cutting it up and tossing it though. If I do it again, I will do it a bit differently. Kurt
August 29, 200520 yr 3rd Eye Brake Light! How about using the headlights as trailer reverse lights? You know.. reverse lights ON rear of the trailer?? just a thought..
September 5, 200520 yr I know some of you don't follow the other forum, so i thought I'd post a link over to the other thread with my updated pics of the BraTrailer! http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=41216
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