The Utility Trailer

Nice collection. One looks like old cowboy star - Jean Autry or Hopalong Cassidy (spelling). Wonder how four wheeler with widely spaced wheels/axles towed?

 

Man there’s some cool ones there! I can see some of those in the host parking lot of the hamb drags with feet hanging out sleeping it off haha

 

Bobby Green has a cool old trailer --

 

And as far as the U-Haul trailers go, you can't legitimately purchase a used trailer from them.
That is currently, of course. I have no idea if they sold them in the past. From what I've read and been told, they get destroyed after being 'used up' as rentals.

 

Right, too much legal liability.

 

Got one of these sitting at my place. Old Ma Bell utility box

 

Which is funny because they always have old trucks and vans for sale. I would think the liability would be greater?

 

Here's mine, early 60's Sears clam shell luggage trailer, came with 12" wheels, changed to 15" with widened dropped axle from 40 Ford. Pix pre body work and lip stick and after.

 

Not sure if he's on the HAMB or not, but there's a Swedish dude I discovered on Instagram named Janne Lundell that built this crazy little camper to tow behind his custom Lincoln-Zephyr. He's got construction photos and interior shots on his page (https://www.instagram.com/kustomsledsofumea/) Pretty neat.

 

This one carries the slicks, tools, cooler etc. Maiden voyage was 2018 HAMB Drags.

Sent from my moto z4 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

This isn't a hot rod trailer but one from the pre 40's, my grandfather, two brothers, my grandmother and my mom and her sister were in Minnesota hunting deer, the deer is on the trailer and I assume coming back to Iowa. They tent camped!!

 

Here is a later model picture, Jim Archer's A fuel car out of Las Cruces NM, he worked at the same place as I did. It was a self funded racer making do with what he had. His trailer was bare bones just like the generations of racers before him. I haven't seen him for 50 years but will always remember him. I bugged him about seeing the car so he brought it by my house one day

 

I was thinking the same.. Looks like it would be quite similar to those that build their own little tear drop camper / trailer.

 

Trailers are cool, the older (and old lookin') the better. Some Vintage Race Car trailers are AMAZING

 

Built this 40 years ago. Plastic T pickup bed with a lid . Amazing how much can be stuffed in.
Recently had to tidy up the interior. And yes those wheels are 14" .
Garpo

 

Reminds me of a trailer i bought about 15 years ago. Actually swapped it for two n.o.s. classic VW beetle exhaust systems that i had swapped for something else a few weeks earlier . It,s actually a 1950s German funeral/coroner trailer . Nice etched glass too. In the 50s and 60s you could do a funeral on the cheap by towing the coffin behind your own car . So i sold it for a good price to a collector. When he came to collect i had something like 40 new classic 13 inch Michelin XZX tires standing in the corner of the garage. He bought those as well and stacked the whole lot in the trailer . No, it,s not a mini camper Full length coffin fits .

 

This guy had it going on in a big way.

 

Here's a few more. Haven't come up with any u-haul ones yet though.

 

The first trailer I owned was a one wheel{Dolly Wheel} type that had two bumper bolt clamps to hook to car. We used it for going camping in the early 1960s. That one can be seen in these camping photos of 63 ,a trip were we broke a axle going from Miami to Naplas on Tamemimi Trail>had to fix it along side the road. So unhooked it, for A-axle repair. The Florida State Highway Patrol had a fit about us working on it 10 hours on side of road. We used Steve Reep's Hotrod "A" as tow car on camping trips=we all fit in it. Our little diggy up/side down on trailer,covering all our camp crap,was kind of aero LOL

After flat towing 2 race cars,I finiely did build a race car trailer in early 1960s using a 1937 Chrysler Crown front axles,found in a vacent lots weeds. I nick named it "The Borad" as it's bed was two sheets of old concreat crusted forming in a trash pile ,pretty ruff plywood. It lasted tell a few years later,about 1966 I had come up with enough steel scrap in my stack and 3 long ramps of WW2 runway strips,to build a new better trailer. This time using the front spindels an drums off a junked 57 Ford, that way the spair for my tow car 57 Ford wagon,also fit the trailer. Welded those spindels to 6x2 in "C" beam for the axles. Hauled a lot of race cars an hot rods on the trailer. I still have the trailer,but did have to do a rebuild a few years ago.
The first Trailer hitch I ever had,was bumper clamp type*. I used that the first 1.1/2 years of towing. Did put a frame hitch on later. About 30 years + ago ,, I got a old 30ft. boat to play with. Only way to get into the backyard to park n work the big boat .turned out to be dig out that old bumper clamp hitch* an put that on the front bumper of my G20 van at the time> To see were I was pushing it> fence/boat/house was only 2in. extra each side to back it in.
Keep everything,clean up is a trap !!!

 

Here you go Ryan^^^. Love the idea of a HAMB livery teardrop. Would look sharp in HAMB red/white.

Also, an old HAMB thread of someone restoring one.

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/restoring-vintage-uhaul-trailer-need-pics-please.51635/

 

My oldest brother was involved with U-Haul trailers back in the early '60's. He said their trailers were unique and never sold. When they were used up they were destroyed. Don't know if that is still true but it seems to be from others are saying. Some are very good looking.

 

One of their first trailers in 1945... The teardrop came out in '53....

 

YW. So I researched that partial phone # behind the trailer and it's a U Haul location in Mass.
600 Mystic Valley Pkwy
Somerville, MA 02144

Google mapped it and sure enough when you zoom in, you can see the trailer in all it's Mighty Mite glory displayed outside;

https://www.google.com/maps/place/6...0b9822688d346d!8m2!3d42.4168481!4d-71.1280346

Street view let me 'drive' through the parking lot. Parked cars blocked the trailer, however I was able to freeze frame a spot that shows a rear view of the trailer including the (fold down?) tailgate.

Possibly the folks at the location can provide details. If the trailer still resides there it would be too cool if a MA area HAMBer could stop by, take a slew of measurements and detail photos along with a poster board template tracing of the side panels and roll it in a shipping tube and mail it to Boss man Ryan.

Construction would be pretty straight forward-round tube rolled out for the side shapes, wrap the front and sides in sheet metal, then knock out a tailgate skin in a box/pan brake. Lettering and graphics look to be stencil sprayed?

 

The top is also a boat.

mid 50’s trailer !!!

 

Would be fun to have/build one of these.
This shot shows how the inside of the sides were built too.

 

My dad's former boss (body shop) used to own this trailer and the '54 Ford Sedan Delivery that went with it.
I was a teenager and helped dad install power steering on it and some other misc. work.