Unless you are buying the components at very high prices, you should be
saving a lot of money. The price that I usually charge for a trailer is at
least 3x material costs...sometimes more depending on design and building
time.
Unfortunately, most home builders start with a poor design or no design at
all except for what they have in their head. I've been fabricating most of
my life and I rarely build anything without making a plan first! I try to
do my thinking and make my mistakes on paper rather than on metal. (computer
screen actually) Sometimes it takes me longer to make the plan than to
build the project. Look here to see how I figure axle placement so that I
can get the load as low as possible while keeping the components from
running into each other.
http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/qlw...1f.jpg&.view=t

I once had a customer that insisted on a fender placement that would not
even allow the wheel to be mounted. I tried and tried to explain it to him,
but he insisted. So I welded the damn thing on and then charged him
overtime labor to move it after he finally could see that the wheel could
not be fitted. A good drawing eliminates that kind of mistake.

"Gary Warner" wrote in message
...

"dazed and confuzed" wrote in message
...


Why not make your own "new" trailer?


We are in the final stages of doing this. Lots of work. Lots of
time. Not saving much, if any, money. I'm glad we did it because
for our boat it probably the best option we had. Plus it was a
learning experience and fun. But it's not an option I'd reccomend
lightly.

See pics or building it at:
http://tinyurl.com/3apc6

"QLW" wrote:

Unless you are buying the components at very high prices, you should be
saving a lot of money.

The two representative prices we got for custom was $2200 and $4000. The
$2200 guy
was OK and the $4000 uy made a beautiful trailer. Ours will probably be
about $3300
all done and painted. So we will probably save $500 to $700.

The comparison also isn't totally fair. We are using better more expensive
components
than would have been on these trailes, particularly the $2200 one. We are
using torsion
axels, LED lights, very high quality and larger tires, a spare tire, disc
brakes on both axels
and probably a really quality paint job. If we were to compare "apples to
apples" the costs
of the other trailers would probably have been higher, so we might be saving
$700 to $1200.

And while we're trying not to pay too high prices for our parts, we probably
don't get the
discounts that these custom shops get.

As for planning: YES it took me forever to plan this thing. My dad and I
would talk, plan, then
I'd draw stuff up. Then we'ld talk. Plan. Look. Measure. Talk. Draw up
another. Plan. Etc, etc.
The good news is the trailer is coming out exactly how we planned it, no
mistakes, and no
problems. At leat so far. We haven't actually dragged her down the road at
speed yet...so
hopefully our design is all good.

There is only one thing I would do diferently. No time to explain that
now...but I'll come back
in a bit and do it.

Gary

PS: Thanks for the comments.