Projects You should NOT Get Involved In..

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Opie had posted a question earlier about angle vs. c-channel for trailer frame assy..I had stated we had a trailer here with square tubing for a frame and the water got in it and "did a number on it".. The thing that gets me is that the trailer is'nt all that old..Its a Wells Cargo trailer..we stood it on end for a better look...The owner wanted us to see what we could do..Sorry...I'm not touching this one.. Check it out..For the price of the steel and the labor involved?He took our advice and went looking for another instead..we pass up some fun jobs too on occasion.....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:That looks like more than tube rot...!!! Looks like it did not get painted well to begin with.The prognosis sounds correct though, no sense in rebuilding that.It also looks like the salt has gotten to it. I see the same thing on metal here in MI.
Reply:If you were to use square tubing for a frame, do you think it would be better to cap the ends to keep the water out or leave them open so if water gets in it has a way to get back out? I have some square tubing that I was going to use for a small trailer but now you have me thinking again.Sure, I can fix it... I got a welder!!!
Reply:someone once told me that if you fill the tubing w/spray foam insulation it will last alot longer. Not sure if that is true. anyone seen it before? "Every choice you make will effect at least one other person"
Reply:Yep, looks like some nasty northeastern winter salt rot I've seen on quite a few cars. Is he at least going to keep it for storage or just trash it?John -  fabricator extraordinaire, car nut!-  bleeding Miller blue! http://www.weldfabzone.com
Reply:Originally Posted by MicroZoneYep, looks like some nasty northeastern winter salt rot I've seen on quite a few cars. Is he at least going to keep it for storage or just trash it?
Reply:Ya, that thing is cheesy! Exactly what I was thinking - at least use it for a small dry storage area. I want dibs on the next one! John -  fabricator extraordinaire, car nut!-  bleeding Miller blue! http://www.weldfabzone.com
Reply:Any homemade car trailer i've ever built was with c-channel..IMHO..Tubing is nice..but it has its drawbacks..Sealing it up..good/bad at the same time..Condensation can and will occoure..Therefore you need ventholes..Now YES I KNOW many car trailers are made from tubing..and i'm sure it's dipped or something to prevent rot that us amatures cant do..But if your building something for yourself..C-Channel is cheaper..and heavier walled..nice radiouses on the corners..Just better to work with...You see the results above..Do you really think 11/2 X 3" C channel would look like this?? Say what you want.. but to me C is the way to go.....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:I have looked at boat trailers with 20 years of use in and out of the salt water that are in better shape.
Reply:Nothing to weld.  Even Zap can't weld air together.  I would hope the don't try to sell it to some unsuspecting fool who takes it to Home Depot to pick up a load of bricks?  I don't want to be behind that guy!  Someone should pull the wheels off it, kind of like taking the door off a fridge when you put it out for trash day.  Hobart 140 Handler w/ gasHyperTherm Powermax 380 Plasmaoxy/acetylene
Reply:I have used square tube on several trailers I have built and have found that the tube must be kept open at both ends to allow moisture to drain.       Also a positive moisture barrier must be placed  between the metal and all wood decking,such as Water and Ice Shield that is used on roofing.
Reply:Aw hell zap, a little bondo and spray paint would fix that right up..np.  Think I gotta good bungee cord here that would work too.  phfft, who needs a welder?   On a serious note, sure looks like a waste, the top looks like its perfect.  think he can just get the frame and put the top on it?Various GrindersVictor Journeyman torch200cf Acet. 250cf oxygenLincoln 175 plus/alpha2 gunLincoln v205t tigLincoln 350mpEsab 650 plasmaWhen you can get up in the morning, Its a good day.Live each day like its your last.
Reply:On a serious note, sure looks like a waste, the top looks like its perfect. think he can just get the frame and put the top on it?
Reply:Well good for him.  As your sig says, its only metal...Various GrindersVictor Journeyman torch200cf Acet. 250cf oxygenLincoln 175 plus/alpha2 gunLincoln v205t tigLincoln 350mpEsab 650 plasmaWhen you can get up in the morning, Its a good day.Live each day like its your last.
Reply:Originally Posted by DoolittleWell good for him.  As your sig says, its only metal...
Reply:Geez, I thought those trailers were supposed to be built better than that.DewayneDixieland WeldingMM350PLincoln 100Some torchesOther misc. tools
Reply:Originally Posted by woodironmansomeone once told me that if you fill the tubing w/spray foam insulation it will last alot longer. Not sure if that is true. anyone seen it before?
Reply:The best thing we have found on tube frames is cap them. Put in drain holes and flood the inside with lps rust inhibitor. Drain out the inhibitor. PREP the outside and paint with a really good rust inhibiting paint - not by the way rustoleum -
Reply:In 4130 aircraft tubing we coat the inside with boiled linseed oil thru a small hole then weld the hole shut. This is usually only done to the bottom longeron tubes of the fuselage and the wing struts on high wing A/C.Not a beginner, not a pro !
Reply:I need to show this picture to a friend of my mothers that swears by Wells cargo trailers. He said I should buy nothing else. I think I will pass on that brand in the future.I would say they most likely had a problem with paint adhesion and it lost a majority of the paint in its early years.Patriot Performance AutoLincoln Power Mig 255CLincoln AC-225 StickVictor Journeyman O/AQuincy QT-5 Compressor
Reply:Man I'm tellin' ya...A little JB Weld will do the trick.Looks like it would make a good storage shed......thats about it..Grant
Reply:If that were a car, the only way you would fix it would be to take the radiator cap off and pull a new car underneath the old cap...However, you don't even have a radiator cap to work with.  The amount of work it would require to get back to road-worthy status is probably as much as a new one would cost (likely much more).  I like the storage shed idea.  A new wooden floor would be pretty easy in comparison with re-doing the trailer.  They you have a few parts you might be able to use on a new one.Smithboy...if it ain't broke, you ain't tryin'.
Reply:I think I'll have my friends with Wells trailers look them over very carefully. Especially since they haul sleds over salt-covered roads all winter long. And none of the Wells has been properly pressure washed or repainted over the years.Ya, I really thought Wells stuff would stand up better than that. Did the owner happen to mention the age of the trailer?
Reply:Did the owner happen to mention the age of the trailer?
Reply:Zap, agreed. If it was well built and maintained it could be 100 years and still safe.Originally Posted by GWallaceMan I'm tellin' ya...A little JB Weld will do the trick.Looks like it would make a good storage shed......thats about it..
Reply:It looks like it was underwater for a year. Katrina? Thanks for the tip....no more Wells Cargo brochures for me!Miller Millermatic 252Miller Syncrowave 200Liincoln AC-DC 225Victor O-A Set
Reply:I can understand corrosion from inside the tube on water not draining from the square tubing but it does not explain the corrosion on the flat plate that will not hold water.I say this corrosion is from road salt that was never cleaned off on a regular basis.
Reply:Yeh , my friend lives in NH.  This thing sees alot of road salt. And I know for a fact that he never washed this thing. Oh well We are gonna use it for a storage unit where it will live out the rest of its life on Blocks
Reply:I've built a good number of trailers and have always used square tubing but have always left the bottom seam unwelded as well as drilled at least one large hole in the bottom of each rail to allow water to get out. After years of use the frame on the first trailer I built is still in excellent shape. Also keep in mind that these commecial trailer frames are nothing more than sheet metal - relying on the shape to provide the strength. I'd also say that this particular trailer was probably exposed to more extreme conditions than the average trailer would see.