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How to build a 'pull behind your rhino' matching trailer

66K views 119 replies 48 participants last post by  Flyer 
#1 · (Edited)
I decided to build this along time ago... started it, and then life got in the way. now that my wife and I are settled into our new home, i finally have the time and space to finish it.

some of you might remember the thread i started about this...

http://www.rhinoforums.net/general-rhino-discussion/21600-pull-behind-your-rhino-trailers.html

ok, fast forward to the past week.

These pic's are of when i started to as of last night. (Keep in mind that i am not a master fabricator by any means... i bought a welder b/c i've always wanted to know how to weld. I figured this would be a great learning project. and it has been so far... )

first, i built the frame... about a year ago. then got the a-arms mounted... and then it sat.





went on a group ride with Southernoffroadriders.org this past saturday and got to talking about it... and all of the sudden, i got the urge to finish it. so, tuesday thru last night, this is what i accomplished:

got the shock tabs mounted, along with some frame bracing and gusseting....

frame shock tabs...


A-arm shock tabs..


gussets... still have two more to do...


got both sides mounted and welded completely....


sitting on the bed... (oh, I did a bed delete kit myself... that's another reason for doing the trailer)...
*everything looks off, like the camber of the wheels, etc... only b/c i didn't tighten anything and there was only one lug nut on each wheel. also... the rims have 2+5 offset, making them really wide.


another view with the camera upside down... :alcoholic:


my plans for this trailer were to have the same clearance and width as my rhino... so far, it's very close to my goals.

that's it for now... i still have some work to do this weekend(more frame bracing, a couple more gussets, the tongue, etc. i'm hoping to have it finished by sunday. A local park opens next weekend so i would like to test it out then....


thanks for looking...

atv trailer , offroad trailer , mini offroad trailer , pull behind trailer , side by side trailer
 
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#32 ·
thanks again Uplander... :fing02:

another update:

after work, i stopped by a buddy's house... he gave me a complete u-joint to use on the tongue. pretty nice of him, considering it was off of his bronco... he had new ones put on. anyways... that will be next: finishing the tongue.

on to the progress: when i got home from my buddy's house, i got the tie rods on... didn't take that long to get the mounts on. took forever to get the holes in the spindle wide enough to accept the tie rod ends though. i went through 2 drill bits... finally ended up using a dremel.


once i got the tie rods on... i tightened up all the bolts and turned it upright.



made sure an equal amount of air was in each tire.... and then checked for straightness and any kind of leaning. also checked the camber and tow-in of the tires.

over all, i have made two mistakes...
1. the first was the 90 degree angle on the tongue. it looks ok, but still bothers me.
2. when i put the a-arms on originally, i had them on correct... it was the only way i could get the tire centered on the plastics... to look exactly like a rhino rear end(as far as tire placement under the wheelwell). well... when i went to mount the shocks... i switched the a-arms so that the tie rod would be in front of the tire(thinking that's normal at the time). anyways... i goofed and the tire sits alittle further back than it was supposed to. but, i actually like it. it's centered over the highest part of the fender now.



here is another pic from a distance...




as for measurements... i'm extremely pleased with how it turned out.

-height: to the top of the bed, it's a 1/2 in higher than my rhino.
-clearance: 14 inches of clearance. my rhino has 12.
-width: it's about 1 1/2 - 2 inches wider than my rhino, but i have 5+2 on the rear with a 1 inch spacer. and the trailer has 2+5 rims on it.

both of these will be closer to my rhino once i get my new shoes... I am looking at getting the pit bull rockers... so, i know they are true to size, if not larger(from what pit bull says)

this has to be the best part:

i put a leveler on top of the tailgate to see what kind of adjustments i'd have to make to get it to sit even.... and this is what i looked at:



good stuff there.


anyways... i will be working on the rest of the tongue and then i will start adding the details. i will keep posting pics of the progress.

thanks for looking...
 
#36 ·
thanks guys...

well, i worked on the tongue today and unfortunately, i'm going to have to go with a coupler... i'll still have the swivel though. problem is that the u joint would only allow close to 25 degrees turn... that's not enough. i thought i might be able to grind the u joint down to get more.. but i was only able to get 40 degrees. that's not enough either. oh well.

i will post pics in the morning of my progress(swivel, grease fitting, etc)

Samm, here's a break down of the parts:

A-arms, hubs and tie rods: donor off of an old yamaha 4 wheeler from local shop
tires: used
rims: new
bed: did a bed delete... so i had it sitting around.
everything else: metal from lowes and local steel supply... and some scrap i had.
plastics: traded a harness for a set.

i'm sure there is something i'm forgetting...


anyways, thanks for looking...
 
#37 ·
well your doing a great job. are you going to bring in touge at a 45 degree angle to help prevent hanging up on stuff.. I pull one with a raised recevier so It doest get stuck on logs when cross or a ditch.. Mine looks like a 5 grader did it and Im not showing my wife yours I would be back to cutting it apart again
 
#38 ·
thanks Samm... it's been interesting learning some of the things i've learned with this trailer. such a simple idea turns into a ton of work if you don't plan it correctly. I will be using a raised receiver on the rhino, so, the tongue will be going down roughly 3 inches from where it is. i'm thinking it should have plenty of clearance(hoping, actually).

lol... i know what you mean about the wife. My wife is from Plaquemine. :biggrin:
 
#39 ·
update with pics...

another update:

Like i mentioned earlier, i decided to go with the coupler and swivel. not planning on going anywhere extreme with this trailer anyways.

so, here is what i started with...



i tried to get the inner tubing in there and it was still giving me issues. so, i decided to change it up a bit. I bought a stud and two nuts. welded a nut on one end of the tongue... and then put the stud in...



to give you an idea of the size...



the diameter of that stud is 1.25 inch.. and i needed it to fit snug inside the outer tube(inside diameter of 1.5inches). so, i figured the easiest way to do it AND keep enough grease in there was this:



not the greatest... but it will work. once i laid the beads on it... i just had to grind each bead. a lot easier than sanding that tubing. and again, this allows more grease and it's stronger than the 1.5 tubing being shaved down.

next was the grease fitting... or zerk. i kind of just tached it on... once i drilled the hole for it. didn't have any taps... or i would have made it threaded.

and this is how the swivel will look:



that's it for now...

thanks for looking.
 
#42 ·
Thats cool,
Plaqurmine wife, You got to watch those girls most can kick your but and out hunt and fish you.. LOL
My wife is a Oita Japan import.. Got tired of the ******* girls kicking my ass.
LOL
Now the Jap one does..
Great build thanks for keeping use informed..
Sam
Baton Rouge,
 
#44 ·
Looks good.
 
#45 ·
thanks again for the kind words guys...


last night, i stopped by advance to check out the coupler's... and while i was there, i hooked one up to see what kind of movement i would have with it. sure enough... not much. not even half as much as i already have with the U-joint. so.... i went home and started grinding again. no fun.

here is one side... although, they both look like this:



one of them was completely open.. where the drive shaft usually fits. so, i cut a piece of 3/16 flat stock, did alittle grinding to get it into a circular shape and welded it on. cleaned it up and now it's ready for the tongue square tubing:




ok, on to the hitch... once i started figuring out the hitch, i basically sat and stared at it for about 2 hrs. thinking of different ways to attach it, taking adjustments into consideration... b/c getting new tires will change the height of my rhino.

this was one variation... (funny how you have to hold things together when you're working by yourself):



ended up going with the third variation... i will take a pic tonight.

that's it for now...

thanks for looking.
 
#46 ·
another update...

i finished the hitch.. had to drill a new hole in the hitch mount, which took forever. but, anyways... after i got the hitch finished, i put the lights in. i still need to wire them up though. they are two inch LED's... had to do some grinding on the existing holes in the bumper... but they fit good now. speaking of lights... i have been looking for two inch round flush mount LED lights in CLEAR with WHITE lights. i've found some online that are clear, but they light up amber. i am wanting to use them as back up lights in the other two inch holes on the bumper. if anyone can find a link or supplier, i'd appreciate it.

here is the hitch:


the lights:


and this is how it sits right now:




well, i still need to do little things... but, it's ready to test. i've still got a lot to do to it before i consider it really finished.

as i add the accessories, i will post pics of the progress.

thanks for looking.
 
#57 · (Edited)
another update...

i have been looking for two inch round flush mount LED lights in CLEAR with WHITE lights. i've found some online that are clear, but they light up amber. i am wanting to use them as back up lights in the other two inch holes on the bumper. if anyone can find a link or supplier, i'd appreciate it.
Most any semi truck shop should be able to get you some.

2" LED White Backup Light - Led white lights led backup lights led dome lights led interior lights white led lights 2 inch round led lights 4 inch round led lights led work lights 6 inch oval led lights

2" round White LED Back up / Utility Light - Led white lights led backup lights led dome lights led interior lights white led lights 2 inch round led lights 4 inch round led lights led work lights 6 inch oval led lights
 
#49 ·
Wheels,,, that is one SICK job!.. I am jealous!.. I am sure you can pull it over a boulder without worry.. Cant wait to see it totally done. Super Job!
 
#51 ·
What are you going to do across the front ( if anything) that is where I am struggling. I have my spare mounted on a 3" post welded to my hitch tongue. but think I want to dress up the front of bed from fender to fender to so speak and give it a Finished look.. I thought about aluminum diamond plate but that seems to be a bit much..
 
#52 ·
Expo... i'm trying to decide if i want to only put a spare tire carrier there... or if i want to build a complete tire carrier with top rack. kind of like you see on the back of jeeps...

i used that thick square tubing so i could do the full rack/spare tire idea... but, i'm just not sure though. if i do it... i'll have the 1 1/2 gallon gas containers on each side of the wheel along with a mini hi-lift jack.

or, i might do a swing out tire carrier off of the bumper and do a small rack just above the bed(in front, on the tongue). the swing out tire carrier will still allow me to do the idea that i have for a grille.

post a picture of yours... to give me a better idea of what you're doing. if you don't mind.
 
#55 ·
Wheels,
I go to the barn tomorrow and get some pics tomorrow as my trailer is 'wintering' there as my tractor with blower is in the shop in its place.
The whole spare thing is a tough decision. i thought about the rear gig but I have a remote control in my rhino cab and can dump my trailer without getting out of the seat.. thus I went with the tongue mount in my situation. I also used the tire mount post for a control box with remote plug for manual dumping of the box. I am using the Yami box actuators on both trailer and rhino.
 
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