A Few Trailer Mods

[ETpilot]

I have a planned trip to Florida hauling a Jeep Grand Cherokee and some household goods. I needed to add some mods to trailer to make life easier. I should have done this years ago. Plus I want to use trailer to load logs and adding the winch will help. A log lift will be added if log hauling works good.

I will be parking the trailer for a few days so a hitch lock was needed to make it a bit harder to steal my old trailer. Oh that spare tire. I always throw it in the trailer or the truck. I was always thinking someone will steal it. So I made a tire carrier. Of course stealing the tire would be easy so I added a spare tire lock to make it difficult. Finally the winch. Last time I hauled a Honda CRV and had to load it myself with a come-a-long. That was a real pain. So I bought a HF 2500 lb. winch to give it a try. Loading the Jeep should be easy since it will be a straight pull with a low incline.

If this works good I will add a higher rated winch to the trailer and use the smaller in another application. The cost of this winch was very low so not too much to lose. It is wireless so that makes using it much better than a wired control.

Anyway FWIW here are some pictures. Not sure how many pictures you can attach to one post so 4 on this post and 3 on the next.

 

[ETpilot]

The winch.

 

[flyboy553]

I think you will be sorely disappointed with that winch. A friend put a small one like that on a trailer and it was useless for loading cars, and his trailer tilts to the ground, no ramps. If you have enough cable you could maybe double it with a couple pulleys and it may work. My friend ended up getting a 12,000 lb winch and it does what it is supposed to.

Ted

 

[alleyyooper]

Jeep grand is over 3000 pounds so the which will start over capacity from the git go and then a ramp is thrown in. Use a snatch block to double the line and capacity and you should be fine. Other wise looks good.

Al

 

[Iska3]

Your winch is rated at the first cable rotations on the drum so your first pulls are around the 2500 mark but as you wind in the cable the pulling ability is less and less. Like Al wrote, a snatch block will increase your pulling ability and it also uses most of the excess cable from the drum and gives you the full pulling power.

 

[chucker]

a chain hooked to both sides of the frame on the jeep will give you better advantage as well using less cable(double lined) ! pulling center keeps the tires in line for a straighter pull and less running to steer the wheel! .......

 

[ETpilot]

Hey thanks for the replys. I am aware of the winch limitation. This is just a trial and the winch will be used in another application. As for loading the Jeep, it will be a straight pull with a rise of just a few inches. That is how it works out with my shop work slab. Loading from street level may be a different story. Anyway I will double line if need. I can roll my Jeep and my Dodge Ram diesel pretty easy on level ground. Not much force needed. I am pretty sure the winch will handle the Jeep but will be alert for any problem. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[Nuzzy]

It's not lifting the entire weight of the vehicle, just rolling it. So it's not necessarily over the winch weight limit from the get go. That said, yes, a snatch block will help immensely. One big shortcoming with those winches (I've used them lifting logs with log arch and pulling vehicles on trailer) is the wiring. It's so light gauge, it can definitely get hot on long pulls; especially when the winch is located so far from the battery. You can replace with heavier gauge traditional winch wiring to help, or remember to limit the duration of the pull, i.e. stopping every 30 seconds or so to give a break as opposed to pulling solid for a few minutes straight.

Personally, I'd keep an eye out for harbor freight coupons and try to grab an 8000lb at some point. All aspects involved will be better.

 

[woodchuck357]

Unless the brakes are on or the wheels are locked up some how, that winch will put the jeep on the trailer just fine. Just plan on not being able to open the doors once it is loaded. It will take less than 600 pounds of pull to get that vehicle trailered, with things being as described.

 

[demc570]

NICE JOB---CONGRATS ON ENGINEERING!

 

[GeeVee]

Where are you coming to in Florida? Some peep mistakenly think Florida is small. But 360 miles north south and nearly as many east west, is a long drive.

 

[woodchuck357]

Hate to bring it up, but it looks like the spare will restrict the turn since it is forward of the trailer side.

 

[ETpilot]

GeeVee I am we'll aware of the size of Florida. It is the longest drive of the whole trip. Going, I cannot wait to get there. Returning, I cannot wait to leave FL. About an 8 hour drive one way. I will be stopping in Jacksonville then heading for Kissimmee, FL. I will pick up a Toyota Echo and bring it home. I have made this trip dozens of times. State line to I-75 is worst for me.

Woodchuck357, initially I wanted to mount the spare on the front side. Checking clearance, it would clear but too close for comfort. So I went with the side mount. It only extends forword just a couple of inches, has plenty of clearance. Measuring the side extension, it only extends 1.5" , front side, 1", backside, beyond the running wheels. I had to angle mount to clear the front rail which extends out past the side rail. Probably not clear in picture but there is plenty of room.

Once I load the Jeep, I cannot open door so I crawl thru hatchback close window, set brakes then load up the Jeep with goods. I'll know how this works in a few days when I start loading.

 

[leftyz]

I like the spare wheel lock idea

 

[ETpilot]

Well, thought I would post an update. The winch worked perfectly. I set up the trailer and ramps and the rise was about 10 inches. I did a single line pull. I used a shop battery that I use for test purposes. Hookup was with jumper cables. The pull was slow as I had to check the wheels on the ramp and I was moving wheel chocks every foot or so. The wireless feature is really nice. At end of pull the motor was warm to the touch and I could not detect any wiring heat.

I did find that the Jeep is quite high and the doors clear the side rails of the trailer. The Honda CRV did not clear nor will the Toyota Echo that I am bringing back.

In case anyone is interested in this winch the HF reviews mention that when you press a switch for a second or you release a switch from a steady pull that the winch continues to run for about 4-6 inches before it stops. Some also state that fine adjustment is not possible because of this feature. However this is not the case with my winch. It starts and stops at the press or release of the actuation switch.

Loading for this trip I did find that I could use a crane to help load the truck. I, now, have a crane design floating around in my head. This will be for loading my truck, loading the trailer and for use as a log lift when hauling logs. Now I have to figure how to fabricate it. Leaving for the Sunshine State in the morning.