Fenders and Lights – Urban Logging Trailer Build Pt 6

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Time to cover up those wheels!  The fenders are going to be made from another 4×10 sheet of 10 gauge.  I sized the fenders with the help of cad to make sure the wheels would have enough clearance through the travel of the suspension.  I’ll use my metal cutting circular saw to break down the sheets; first cutting the backing plates.

Now to cut the stock for the sides of the fenders.  These are just strips which will be chopped to length.  In order to get consistant width cuts, I cut a piece of wood to set my fence the correct distance from the edge to give me the same cut width every time.

Along the outside of the fenders, I’m adding some tube which will help strengthen that area and provide some beam strength to the sheets.  I use the backing plates as a template to cut all the parts for this arch shape.

Next I can chop up the strips to be the correct length for each section of the backing plates.

I’ll start the welding by welding together the tubes using the backer as a clamping form.  This ensure the shape of the arch is the same as the backing plate.

Next I can start tacking on the walls.  I use the Fireball Squares to hold each piece while I lay the tacks.  I have these aligned so they extend a bit past the outside edge of the backing plate.  This will provide a good area on the outside for the welds.

Once the walls are tacked on, I can clamp on and tack the tube arch onto the walls.

The last thing I’m adding is a piece of tube which will serve as a brace and support the long upper span of the fender.

With them all tacked up, I’ll start welding them out.  I weld them in sections, moving around as I go to keep the amount of heat down to keep them from distorting.  Once the welding is complete, I’ll grind and clean up the welds to give them a more seamless appearance.

I welded a pair of holders from some offcuts that are welded to the side of the trailer frame.  This makes it easy to hold the fenders in place while they’re being installed.  I’m doing a bolt on installation so they can be removed for whatever reason in the future.  I’ll drill 4 holes through the fenders and frames.  The fenders can then be pulled off, the holes in the frame tapped and the holes in the fenders enlarged.

4 bolts secure each fender to the frame.

Next I’ll start working on prepping for lights.  The side markers and turn signals will live inside of this piece of tube.  I’ll chop 4 of them to length and include an angle on each outside end.

The ends will be capped.  On the outside will be where the marker lights are.  This cap needs a hole so those lights can mount.

On the inside, the cap will need a hole for wires to pass through and two holes to bolt to the trailer frame.

The turn signals need a large slot cut.  I drilled two holes to establish the ends the correct distance apart and connected then tangentially with an endmill.

I used the inside plates to transfer the hole locations to the trailer frame.  I set these up to leave 1/4″ between the light boxes and the fenders.

The inside plate gets welded flush with the inside of the tube and the welds are ground flush afterwards.

The outside plate for the marker gets recessed inside the tube to help protect the light.

Lastly I’ll weld a strip along the top edge to help protect the turn signal lights.

Now for a few small details.  First I’ll drill the marker light holes in the front of the frame.  These will also serve as access point for pulling the wiring through the frame.

And lastly, I’ll remove the rotisserie mount from the rear.  I drilled holes through the mount and into the frame in case I ever want to put the trailer onto the rotisserie again.

And that does it for this one.  The trailer now has some beefy fenders and places for the lights to go.  Next time we’ll build the loading arch, similar to the one on the trailer in the background.

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