Modifying the utility trailer

Last year I bought a utility trailer. Mostly because I was tired of putting Yurt bits on the roof of the Excursion. But also because I knew I was going to need to haul things I didn’t want inside my baby.

Today, I needed to hail a cubic yard of gravel, but the open sided utility trailer was just the wrong tool for the job.

I think I’d get home with almost zero gravel.

Some quick math proves that a sheet of plywood can be cut into 3 pieces each 16” wide and 96” long. There’s some left over plywood in the garage that will be perfect for this.

The posts on my trailer are pieces of angle iron welded to the perimeter of the deck and the square tube top. I can’t just screw the plywood to the posts. And this trailer doesn’t have pockets for a piece of lumber to build a stake body.

Luckily, I’m stupid enough to come up with this. Plastic pipe strap screwed into the plywood around the posts.

Those white pieces of plastic will hold the plywood up until the weight of gravel takes over.

Best of all, these walls can come off in about two minutes. Remove 8 screws and you’re done.

Close up of how the sides are held in place.

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Author: rexplex

With a bachelors degree in history, I turn wrenches for a living. I’m most at peace when I hear the wind in the trees or the gurgle of a brook. I’m a believer in the Renaissance Man, as epitomized by DaVinci engineer, artist, soldier, statesman. As Heinlein said, “A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyse a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.”

One thought on “Modifying the utility trailer”

  1. Pingback: Adding tie downs to the utility trailer. – Modern Anachronist

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