I'm going to reuse the C-channel in the foreground on the underside of the main frame (as it was in the original), except for the long, bent piece, which is being replaced by one of the longer pieces in the background.
The order of the day was laboriously wire-wheeling the smaller pieces off the trailer, including the 52.5-inch steel bumper tube and the second bumper tube, now sleeved with two 13-inch pieces of larger pipe. Plus I also cleaned up some metal intended to reinforce the mower deck. This work took about 3.5 hours. I bent the aluminum wheel guards more or less straight. Here is everything ready to be primed. Notice I did not take all the paint off--this is not a perfect restoration, just one good enough to restore the unit to working condition and to keep it going for a decade or two.
And here's the same view after priming this side:
So ultimately they all got primed and now I have to decide what color to paint them. If I were doing a straight restoration, I'd paint them the original Fairmont orange. But if I follow that logic, I'd paint the Bolens mower deck red. With the Bolens tractor I will use being two shades of green, that would be major eyesore. So I'm inclined to paint the trailer and the deck the same shade of green and do my best to match the tractor.
Will be taking over the new aluminum frame members to Frank Glatzl Sunday afternoon if all goes well. So the drilling should happen in the near future, then I can put the trailer back together, much improved.
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