Beverly Hillbillies

Vehicles and items that do not fall into the general M151 categories

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by rickf » July 2nd, 2020, 4:39 pm

If you live in an area where you have large swings in temperature and medium to high humidity the water is most likely from condensation. I have seen engines and transmission sitting on the ground get gallons of water in them just from condensation out of the air.
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by m3a1 » July 2nd, 2020, 10:53 pm

A 'small' change of plans for this upcoming haul. Xloflyr's trailer will remain parked safely in his driveway. I went out and found a trailer on the quick time. Craigslist provides! Can't wait to share with everybody so here we go.

Meet 'Baby.' Baby is a 1989 Dakota gooseneck (obviously) with a 20' deck and a 4' dovetail. Triangular folding ramps support Baby while loading so she doesn't squat too much. Baby is a fat girl and weighs in at right around 5000# empty and she's rated at 14,600# GVWR.
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Baby gets a few new pairs of shoes....plus a spare and a brand new replacement wheel for the spare.
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ST235/80R16 trailer tires, load range G. Now those are trailer tires!... 14 ply, rated at over 4000# per tire at max inflation. My tire guy assures me I'll love 'em.
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Coming soon, a BIG preventative maintenance session. Lubrication, bearing repacks x6 and brake inspection x4 and replacing all the original 1989 side marker light fixtures with brand new LED fixtures.

Cheers,
TJ
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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by rickf » July 3rd, 2020, 9:23 am

Please tell me they aren't the Chinese specials on the tires? I have blown out more new Chinese tires than I have ever blown out worn old car tires on trailers. And we all know you should never use car tires on trailers, but I will use them before using new Chinese tires!
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220 miles, 60lbs pressure. BANG! This was the second one of the day! I had to drive that Jeep with race motor and open headers through the casinos in Md. to a tire store to get two new tires. THAT got a few looks, including from the cop who pulled up next to me at a light. He looked at the shredded tire in the passenger side and wished me good luck on the rest of my trip. He even stopped at the Walmart later on as I was loading back up to check on us. It was HOT that day.
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1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by m3a1 » July 4th, 2020, 2:35 am

Well, I'm not even going to justify that tire remark with a response... You can look up and read the internet reviews with your morning coffee.

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by m3a1 » July 4th, 2020, 3:16 am

Started my day yesterday by cutting down a tree and loading said tree into a pickup truck. I'm paying for that now, while I am writing this post. You never feel so alive as when you are half dead. I'm afraid I am at the point where I'm going to have to start telling my buddies NO.

After that tree business, I spent what seemed like too much time setting up just to do a left side bearing pack on the trailer (including putting up an EZ-Up tent to keep the sun off). That was certainly worth doing.

I wasn't sure what I was going to find once I got in there but I was pleasantly surprised to find the bearings were in excellent shape with the necessity to repack ranging from I-may-as-well-repack-this-one-since-I'm-in-here-anyway....to....I'm-rather-glad-I-decided-to-do-this but, the worst bearing set was just marginal. Appears that no one ever decided to just sit down and repack all the bearings at once. That's a legitimate way to do it so long as you know which one got serviced and when.....which I don't. So, I establish a base line and go from there.

I replaced several grease seals but oddly, sourcing double-lip replacement seals locally just wasn't happening. So I forged ahead with singles which I've decided to do a side-by-side test on. If they don't pan out I'll go back in and replace them which will be easy, since all the real time consuming work is already done. But, Oh Brother everything is heavy...especially those wheels and tires! I'm estimating they are about 50% heavier than the light truck tires that were on the trailer and that translates to a lot of inertia so I'm probably going to invest in some new brakes if only for the peace of mind.

The more time I spend looking this trailer over, the more I like it. It's built 'old school'. Yes, some improvements could be made, ranging from adding steps to the front corners of the deck (which would be very useful) to some serious bling, like maybe a winch up front. I'm not made of money but having a winch would really be the cat's meow.

Cheers,
TJ

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by rickf » July 4th, 2020, 8:57 am

m3a1 wrote:
July 4th, 2020, 2:35 am
Well, I'm not even going to justify that tire remark with a response... You can look up and read the internet reviews with your morning coffee.
Don't be so touchy! I will see if I can find the thread from a guy in Fla, who put those 10 plys on his trailer and they immediately blew out. That was why I was asking. And he HAD read all the reviews. Plus my experiences with Chinese tires. Now, with that said I run Samson tire on the RV, they are Chinese and they are also run on many big rigs. Not all of them are bad but even those have gone bad on me in 6 years and need to be replaced.

Ok, I found the video and it seems that I am going to have to admit that you are right, As much as that pains me. Not admitting someone else is right, just that it is you! :lol: :lol: :lol: Here is the video, you might want to skip over the first part of it unless you are into machining and fabrication stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90hkiVqUMeg
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by Mark » July 4th, 2020, 10:28 am

With this tire talk I'll have look at the cooper tires I put on the A2, to see where they come from, if they have a origin stamped on them? I might have some bias-ply tires too.LOL. But you all are talking about trailer tires which I guess is entirely different subject
Hmm, on the 151 I have NDT tires from the 70's, which some are bald, 1 time had a flat, ended up driving a long ways never broke the bead on the rim/the tire held up pretty good.Hard to find tubes now too.Don't do much high speed driving.
Aw, I am off the subject
mark


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1960 m151
1981 m151A2
1964 m416
1971 m416

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by m3a1 » July 5th, 2020, 10:23 am

The Fourth came and went, nice and easy. Finally put the bunting up and trimmed the yard on the day of... Better late than never.

My tee shirt for the day -
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While I was out and about I found this -
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The owner caught me taking pictures and invited me over for a closer look. Mask UP! He had just acquired the car only a week earlier. God Bless America!

New acquisitions -
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One for the trip and the other in preparation for the trip. Hope I won't need those triangles! Normally I pack bearings by hand but I thought I'd give this packer a try. Seems like a quality unit and I have been packing a LOT of bearings lately. I'll give a product review after today's efforts.

And then there's the matter of my dog -
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Cooper hates fireworks. Pitiful. What a moment!

Cheers,
TJ
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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by rickf » July 5th, 2020, 3:24 pm

Yea, mine is just like that. The old one anyway, The new one doesn't really like them but she just gets in her bed and waits it out. Which was about 3:00am this morning when they ended. That a**hole is going to get a surprise down the road a bit. I still have quite a few quarter sticks left over from the good old days. After this all dies down I am going to do a 3:00 am covert run to his side yard with a couple of those bad boys on a cigarette fuse timer. I will be home in bed by the time they go off. Have to get the cigarettes from my daughter. I haven't even touched one in 35 years.
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by m3a1 » July 5th, 2020, 11:02 pm

Got into the bearing pack and brake inspection on the right side of the trailer today. That bearing packer is the schizzle! Makes things easier in that it is faster and eliminates a large portion of the mess which, from the perspective of saving time, is really just fabulous. As I was about to pull the first drum a fella rolled up who owns and operates the local trailer service shop. This is a service facility of THREE generations in this community!. Brake results were not good, which is to say the brakes were trashed on this side.

Wiring, minus its insulation, grounds out. No braking action taking place here.
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Star adjuster and retaining spring all gone, brake shoe foundation damaged as a result and much of the lining is gone. Somebody got in there and removed the parts as the drum seems to be completely free of damage. I'm going to add a little comment here since the photos don't show it and it's on the matter of safety while working under things that are heavy. Below, you see a jack stand. What you do not see is a roll-away hydraulic jack placed so as to be ready to take the weight and lift everything should the jack stand fail (and my buddy nearby to operate it) and additionally, a very large wood block placed to support the front axle completely if anything gave way so this rig is very well supported while I'm working. IF I hadn't had all the extras, I might have just done one, or two axles at a time, leaving another axle with a wheel and tire on it. Safety First.
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So right then and there I had him give me a ballpark quote for a complete replacement of all the brakes (which can come as a unit or piecemeal). I chose complete replacement. So, in a few days I'm going to have absolutely brand new brakes throughout, turned drums and going back in to do the double lip oil seals. Replacing the brake assembly is a simple matter of five bolts and wham-bam, a whole new brake backing plate with all the new goodies goes right back on. Then it's just a matter of connecting the wiring which means he isn't going to be making a great deal on hourly rate since the bearing packing is over and done with. If this fella had the giddyup to stop and promote his local business to a complete stranger, I'll be his huckleberry.

Cheers,
TJ
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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by m3a1 » July 6th, 2020, 12:11 pm

Just got back from the trailer service shop. I had never actually been there before (I have always handled my own equipment maintenance) but sometimes it pays to talk with the people who do these things for a living.

I came away with some new knowledge and made the decision to spend an extra $15 per brake assembly to get the Dexter "self-adjusting" brakes. IMHO, the words 'self' and 'adjusting' should never be allowed to appear sequentially in any sentence but the guy said they can generally be expected to work as designed and he felt they were always worth the extra expense. In my many years as a commercial motor vehicle inspector I saw very few "automatic slack adjusters" that did anything automatically but most of this stuff is always dependent upon the matter of regular maintenance.
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Owing to the fact that I will be sharing this trailer with a friend in exchange for its storage, I think having brakes that (theoretically) will always be in tune might be a little extra peace of mind for me.

And, speaking of peace of mind and the matter of tire changes, I decided to get some more of that in the form of acquiring not one, but two low profile, 20 ton, bottle jacks and a giant breaker bar. I justified the breaker bar by the fact that I own several large military vehicles (truth be told, they actually own ME) but it will definitely come in handy if some lug nuts don't want to cooperate. Low profile jacks are compact, easy to handle and can be made much taller and have a far more stable base when paired with an arrangement of cut lumber (which has many additional uses and is inexpensive). Why two jacks, you ask? On the trip up and back I will be loaded and I just don't want to have to unload in the event of a tire change. Having two jacks makes for a lot of extra options when it comes to lifting or making repairs in a less than desirable location.

So that is where we are on bringing Baby up to spec at this point. Hopefully, I will be able to get some photos of everything while it's being worked on.

Cheers,
TJ
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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by rickf » July 6th, 2020, 3:33 pm

Whenever I buy a used trailer I do the same thing with the brakes and simply replace the entire backing plate with everything attached and then put on a new drum and I am done. I am never going to have to put brakes on that trailer again. Unless it is the one I use for my really heavy work. Same with the bearings, I buy all new ones ahead of time and have them greased and ready to go. And yes, I have one of those bearing packers and they work great. I also have the double cone shaped one that the top screws down on the bearing but they are extremely sloppy to use. But I put the all new bearings in, The new brake and hub usually has new races already, and if the old bearings are good I pack them and bag them as spares. My Spare tire is Mounted to a complete hub and bearing set ready to go just in case I lose a bearing I have everything I need.
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by m3a1 » July 6th, 2020, 7:57 pm

Yeah it would have been really nice to go with all new bearings but with all the bearings and races inspected and found to be in good condition (and repacked) I'm sure everything will be just fine. If I was using this trailer to make a living and driving it daily then yes, I probably would have opened my wallet for new bearings. But, with adequate PMs there is no reason why these bearings won't continue to go on for a long, long time.

Getting out on the highway isn't the same as crawling along some back country trail. I cannot stress how important it is to ensure safety when the sharing the road with others, making adequate braking very important. The trailer wasn't bad, even with a marginal brake system. I'm expecting a dramatic difference once the new kit is installed.

Cheers,
TJ

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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by m3a1 » July 8th, 2020, 11:47 am

ETRAILER ships quick! My package arrived with six, brand new Optronix LED side marker lights and a side load, push-to-test, breakaway brake box and breakaway switch.

These new fangled lights are well-made, all metal with a two wire system wherein the wires come straight out the rear and center of the light fixture whereas the wiring on the old one comes out off-center. Someone was thoughtful enough to make sure the mounting holes were the same.
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These aren't quite as attractive as the old space-age aluminum framed Grote brand we've all come to know and love.
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These new ones have a sort of an edgy 'tech' look to them and like most new stuff, if and when they go bad, they are not renewable. You just toss em and get a new one. Happily, my life doesn't consist of spending a lot of time contemplating the pros and cons of light fixtures. Disposable vs. renewable really has only one serious question. Would you rather carry a spare bulb around or would you rather carry a spare light fixture? That is the big drawback.

Yesterday was very hot and with no air moving, I did the old 'Do A Bit And Retreat To The A/C For A Cool Down' routine.
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I removed all the old side marker lights which necessitated drilling the heads off of some rather obstinate retaining screws (luckily they were Phillips head so the drill centered on the screw heads nicely, followed by a quick wash of the mounting plates, marking the centers and drilling holes new for the new wires and of which was punctuated by trips inside to restore the natural balance of things and enjoy the modern miracle of
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AIR CONDITIONING!
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Well, actually, I didn't stay in the A/C THAT long..

The trailer's mounting plates are of mild steel and for once, I had a brand new bit on hand so all that drilling that went quick. I followed that up with a vibratory sander to clean up the backs of the mounting plates in preparation for establishing a dedicated ground. Per normal, I got all new fasteners (which also meant more time spent in air conditioning) and abandoned the old school nuts and lock washers in favor of nylock nuts These are located where a lot of crud tends to collect and I'm hoping the nylocks will do more to keep these fasteners in better shape over a longer period.

Cheers,
TJ
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Re: Beverly Hillbillies

Unread post by m3a1 » July 8th, 2020, 11:26 pm

Final push today to get these lights installed and done right.

All mounting points cleaned and grounding points taken down to base metal. Those ground points got coated with dielectric grease along with the wire loop connector to form a nice, tight ground utilizing one of the mounting screws/nuts. My wiring butt connectors also got doped with dielectric grease, crimped and two layers of heat shrink tubing installed. Wires were carefully zip-tied to secure them from sailing.

A few original butt connectors were left in place. Normally I like to have as few connectors as possible but I was just not in the mood to solder in new wires in this heat. How hot was it? Well, a cast off section of heat shrink tubing was out in the sun. It shrank. I'm not going to rewire this whole trailer. Old wiring is, by definition, 'OLD" but it's still carrying current so, if and when it gives up the ghost I'll deal with that when it happens. Wiring on this trailer happens to be run through a conduit whose ends are siliconed closed. I doubled down on the fasteners; four holes get four fasteners. Nice clean installation.

Cheers,
TJ
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