The Sears David Bradley Trailer

I used 2x4's and 2x6's...here are a few pictures...

 

cool setup.

 

I like that canvas top. No, actually I love that canvas top!

 

So...I have a few extra parts left over from my jeep trailer build that I will eventually toss if nobody wants them. I replaced the: axle to a 3500lb one so I could accommodate 15 inch jeep hubs/rims, 32" X 11" fenders (for 31X10.5's) and a longer and stronger 3X3" steel tube for the tongue with a 2" hitch. I can't guarantee that anything is authentic and frankly I don't care but if anyone is interested in it...let me know. It's junk to me and taking up space.

 

PS...the trailer is/was a 1946 ben-hur (round axle)

 

Before pic

 

PM sent re. buying wheels, fenders, u-bolts, & hubs above.

I am totally impressed with what you've done with this Ben Hur 22-46 trailer. Though it isn't exactly a restoration per se, every aspect of the work you've done on it is absolutely superb. I particularly like the wood frame, and the way you routed the edges of the 2x's. It's much better and stronger than the original stake racks that were available for these and the David Bradley trailers (and easier on the canvas as well).

May I ask what it cost to have the canvas cover fabricated for it, and where you had it made? I suspect that other folks may want to emulate what you've done here with such excellent results.

Maury

 

Hi Maury...

I got your message and should be around most anytime if you want to call regarding those parts.

The canvas top was a little expensive...$500, which was more than I paid for the trailer but I wanted something I could easily take off if I needed to haul something bigger than would fit inside. If I take off the top and remove 6 nuts I have this:


I had a really good day at the (poker) table so I figured what the hell...and got what I wanted. I went to a local boat upholstery place looking to "price" the project and ask about finding green military style canvas...he told me that he couldn't get the canvas anymore but had a little left over from a prior project. As it turns out the stuff had been sitting on his bottom shelf for about 10 years and the amount of material was just enough to get this done. I took it as fate and told him to sign me up. I told him what I wanted and he winged it on the rest. I think he did a great job.

 

I thought about how to do the frame quite a bit and while I was walking through Home Depot I saw how cheap 2x4's were and thought why fight the design of the trailer and went with wood. I think the hardest part was finding 10 straight 2x4's at home depot that didn't have a bunch of cracks or knots. Anyway, I used a table saw and hand held belt sander, filled, sanded, primed (zinsser all-purpose primer) and painted (rustoluem hunt club green). And lots of beer! The thing is very solid. Pictures:

 

jo99403 GREAT JOB on that trailer man, I love it!

I just picked up a David Bradley Trailer off of craigslist for $100, Its pretty darn rusty and ugly right now but Before I even found this site I had a image in my head of how i wanted to build it up and its very close to how yours turned out.

Ill see if i can get some pics of mine uploaded.

jo99403 what size wheels 15 x 10? i see the tires are 31 x 10.50's (sorry i admit i have not read all of your build yet)

 

Here is a pic of it, I started pulling the fenders, lights, reflectors and all the wires off of it.

Soon ill start grinding or sandblasting on it.

from my SN i guess it was made in 1948 maybe 1947

 

If the trailer above is a David Bradley and not a Ben-Hur, given the round fenders, it is likely actually a 1946 version.

To see a catalog listing for one of these 1946 David Bradley trailers, check out the catalog listings I just added to Post #4 on the first page of this thread:

http://www.earlycj5.com/forums/show...ars-David-Bradley-Trailer&p=810469#post810469

(Rather than add them into a new post here at the end of this thread, I edited my earlier Post #4 from March 2010, two years after I originally wrote it, to include these additional Sears Catalog listings from 1946-47. Since my first post had already reached maximum allowable size, I decided to put them there, as these early catalog listings are logical additions to that first post.)

 

I have a Ben-Hur 22-47 trailer with the nameplate still on it. It appears that almost everything is still original, other than the hitch, which was upgraded to a 2" ball, and a few modifications I did. It is currently painted red, but I have seen the original green under it where it has been scraped.

I bent the axle on it and found a lot of useful information about the trailer, on this site. Does anyone know a source of parts, other than another trailer?

The axle I need is like the one in the picture by jo99403 on page 15. I really want to stay with the tires I have, which are 15", without having to replace the hubs as well.

I will post pictures of the trailer later later.

 

John Freeborough recently purchased what appears to be a very early model Ben Hur Model 22-47 trailer. Interestingly, it has some characteristics of the Model 22-46 - mainly, 15" wheels and a round axle - and others associated with the Model 22-47, including short-backstrap, single-knuckle tailgate hinges and a two-bolt front tongue connector. This combination probably indicates that it is a "crossover" built near the point at which the model number changed, probably during mid 1947. On the tailgate, it has (or rather, had) the name "Ben-Hur" painted above "Milwaukee" in smaller lettering. Unfortunately, it is lacking its data plate, so there is no actual model or serial number information available for it.

Below are some photos of John's trailer, which he's now in the process of restoring. (Toward that end, one piece his trailer is missing is an original 1-7/8" coupler. If anyone has changed theirs out to a 2" coupler and still has the original, or happens to have an extra one they would be willing to part with, please e-mail John at <John.Freeborough@lpga.com> )









Another interesting aspect of John's trailer is that it has what may be an original (though rusty and somewhat damaged) tail light & license plate bracket. A very similar, if not identical fixture to this one was sold as an accessory to the David Bradley trailers, and may have been available for the Ben Hur trailers as well. Below is a photo of the one listed in the 1947 the Sears catalog, followed by some photos of this trailer's tail light assembly:

 

Bringing this thread back to life maybe it will inspire me to finish my trailer.
i took it all apart & sand blasted it and primed it and parked it outside next to my house I have not touched it in about a year and some rust is starting to come back, so I really need to do something with it ASAP.
I also need it now more than ever as we just sold our Durango & got my wife a 12 Jetta so now we have 2 jettas & I put a hitch on mine for a cargo basket but I want to start using my lil trailer it would be perfect since I do a lot of hunting & camping.
I really love & lust for jo99403's trailer I have the same vision for mine pretty much.
does anyone know the lug bolt pattern of these trailers?

 

The lug pattern is 5 on 5.5" bolt circle (same as the old jeeps, and some older Ford trucks as well). Please post some pictures of your trailer when you start working on it again!

 

Here are photos of John Freeborough's finished Ben-Hur trailer, in tow behind his jeep. (Very nice job, John!) Especially cool are the arched cover and the tool storage rack he devised for the front bed panel.

(Incidentally, John is looking for an original 1-7/8" handwheel-type coupler for this trailer, as well as a Ben-Hur data plate, in case anyone happens to have an extra of either.)

 

Not sure if if these pictures will show, not too versed on how to post here. Not sure if the site that is hosting these pics will allow them to stay too long as it got rid of all my pics on the Bronco forum, but here they are. Thanks for help with posting Maury and Mike C, ( my names Mauricio, been called Mauri many a time). But picture one is a DB I traded a vintage Schwinn restored cruiser for. It did not have the sides or useable tail lights or pigtail. It had no front deck or triangulated tongue, or the Bronco hub caps. I had blasted it, but it got wet before we could get it in to paint. We will redo it again and finish it. The last pic is of one of my customers who has one as well. The DB has been all over mountain , dunes, Mexico. I have a spare tire mount under the tongue although spare is not on. Tailgate has Early Bronco Flip down plate bracket so it is legal when I towed the quads with the tailgate down so the plate shows, has light too. Need to really get it finished. I also installed a mild lift to clear the taller tires. I am thinking of getting new leafs springs and ditch the lift block. I have a set of Bronco disc brakes want to installed just for kicks, they make a stainless steel disc set up for trailers, but I want to use a real 4x4 spindle( already have most of the parts) locking hubs( I can weld a piece of an old axle end with splines, so that I can use locking hubs too, that way I can use them as a parking brake. I want it to match my 74 Bronco is why. I have a set of three matching old school kidney holed mags I want it to look like the Bronco. Ideally it will have 33"x10.5"x 15" BFG KM2's. I also want to replace the 2" tongue with a period pintle swivel doughnut so it articulates better off road. Anyone know if those have a limiter so them don't do a 360 roll? Will probably paint it to match the truck( not much different than the rust color it already sports) Truck is a Metallic ginger/burnt orange color. I added side pods where the 5gl. Gas/water tank carriers will be welded on. I am going to add a hitch out back to carrier bicycles. Not sure if I want to relocate the spare tire from underneath to give more clearance and make a rear swing away tire carrier from an extra bronco tire rack I have, probably go that route. Also changing the tail lights and going with the Blackout style, would like the LEDS that they sell but are quite $$$, hard to justify. I know it is not stock, but I have already altered it too much to go back. It really is a cool little trailer. It was OG green / rust when I got it. No pics of it then, although I do have the original body tag I have to find, if and when I do I will post a pic to check the actual age. OK I tried the pictures show on the screen when I posted now they are not, not sure why, do they have to be approved by admin. or ? Well they showed after all!

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You are posting correct way, but they pictures need to be hosted somewhere, you can't link to your C: drive. I use Shutterfly for pics, lots of others use PhotoBucket. Find a photo host and then try again.

 

Thanks guys got them posted....Mo