The Fake Datsun utility trailer

[Bleach]

About 11 years ago I purchased a utility trailer to help with hauling kayaks and camping gear.

This is what it looked like when I bought it. It was always left outside and had a rotten wood deck under blue aqua turf.

 

In less than a year I had put a new piece of plywood down for the floor and made these really simple side boards. I also installed new LED tail lights and took off the broken side marker lights near the front. I used it like this for several years.

 

This was basically how I used it for many years although it was lacking a lot that would make it a better trailer and more useful. As I got ready to move in October of 2018, I put some flimsy sides on the trailer so that it would keep small boxes in the bed. I don't have any good pictures of that setup but here is the best view I could find.

 

Recently I decided to put some time and effort into the trailer to make it closer to my vision of what I want in a small trailer and to add a proper Datsun tailgate to it.

 

 

[datzenmike]

Barney!

[Lockleaf]

Nice.  I have very similar cheap sides on mine.  I just recently busted a leaf spring, so i ended up doing a conversion to an eye-to-eye type spring instead of a slipper spring.

[Bleach]

I replaced the 2x4's on the side with 1x4's so that the side boards could be pushed outward a little on each side. This makes the deck width a total of four feet and 1/2 inch wide.

On the front of the floor I put a 1x4 down and slide the entire 4x8 foot plywood back. This makes the floor just over 8 feet long and the wood hanging out the back helps to protect the tail lights a little.

I used some free lumber to cut side boards to reinforce the walls and make the entire box more solid. Inside is painted brown and the outside I painted red all with free paint. Previously I put some stain on the bottom of the new 4x8 sheet to protect the wood from below. This is more of the look I had in mind. Now I can add some tiedown hooks or rings.

With the inside of the trailer just over 4x8 feet, you can stack plywood or sheetrock inside and it lays perfectly flat.

 

 

[Bleach]

Because the trailer was designed to fold in half, there are some metal hinges that stick up in the center of the bed. These are just slightly less than 4 feet wide so they will damage 4x8 sheets of anything that is in the trailer. I decided to raise the floor of the bed to get around this and make the entire bed flat.

 

I just laid down some basic 1x4's to make a new wood floor.

 

[Bleach]

I didn't want this fresh wood to look aged or get rotten by being out in the rain all winter. I put on some wood stain and then clear.

 

 

 

Here is the final product! I also put a second coat of red paint on the outside.

 

 

 

The last step to make this a proper Fake Datsun is to install a Datsun tailgate!

Even though 720 trucks are normally plentiful, right now I only see one in our local wrecking yards that is old enough to have the Datsun logo. I paid way too much for a dented 720 tailgate out of a wrecking yard... I'll bondo it up, sand, and then paint it red to match the trailer.

[datzenmike]

Now that's... a trailer.

[Draker]

Now it's too nice to use!

[]2eDeYe]

nicely done

[pidge]

I like it. Great looking job on the floor. 
-Pidge

[Duncan]

Nice job! 

 

You did screw up by making it too nice, though 🙂

 

 

[Bleach]

I've used the trailer for a few things and scratched the floor.

 

I picked up a 720 tailgate but it is not in good condition. At the time, it was the only 'DATSUN' tailgate I could find in Washington. It really is bent pretty bad so I am still on the lookout for a 720 truck tailgate in better condition...

Installed anyway just to use the trailer.