Brought out my socket wrench set today and started to take the motorcar trailer apart, after first photographing it from a variety of angles to document what was where.
Quickly began to bring more tools out, including the hammer, two-pound hammer, sledge hammer, bigger socket wrench, breaker bar, chisel, and lots of penetrating oil. These old bolts are on really tight. Every single one of the bolts connecting the hubs to the frame broke off rather than unscrew. But I made steady progress in the morning until I had to close up shop to go to the office and actually work on a tax return (not much of that work in the off season now). The frame is now loose from the hubs and I will take it apart tomorrow. Then will get in touch with Frank Glatzl to figure out when to deliver the key frame members to him to be drilled using a drill press.
Am going to use all new bolts, but will need some new U-bolts as well. Will recycle the original bumpers (they are 1 1/4" diameter tubes). They are heavily rusted so I will wire-wheel them and then prime. One is broken in two. I was scratching my head about that because it has a collar on one end that bolts to the frame member and I do not want to have to get someone to fabricate that for me. Fortunately, I checked on my metal pipes and I found one that can fit over the original bumper tube. So I will cut the two tube segments into three pieces, splice them into the bigger metal pipe and end up with a serviceable bumper on that end. I can't just splice the two pieces because they are broken right in the middle, and that's where a special mount for the bumper tongue has to be placed with a U-bolt.
Need to decide on what kind of paint to use. The original trailer is Fairmont orange. But the tractor I'm going to mount is two shades of green. Orange and green would not really go together well. Will probably go with green just to keep the clashing down.
Well, that's it for today.
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