Sheepman101
New member
This is my first build thread so bear with me on this. If I ramble on, please forgive me.
It all started last September. I finally found a decent deal on an M101 CDN2 1/4 ton military trailer. I had wanted one for quite a while to pull behind my Jeep TJ so I could go camping and still be able to take enough gear with me. The trailer is in decent shape, all original with the original cammo tarp.
I really liked the military lights that came with it so I decided to convert them from 24 volt to 12 volt lights. This was pretty simple, just had to change out the light bulbs and you are off and running. The part number for the bulbs was 1156 for the large bulb and number 67 for the small one. As for the connector to the jeep, I wired in a 7 pin wiring harness which allows me to install some electric brakes in the future as well as have 12 volt power to charge my rv battery I am planning on installing. The military trailer wiring was pretty straight forward to trace so wiring that was pretty easy. I also mounted some 20L jerry can holders to the back of the trailer so I could carry some extra fuel when needed.
I decided to keep the pintle hitch set up as it was already there and it is one of the best for articulation. I know the downside is the banging, but I got used to that pretty quick.
I was planning on having a lid built for the top of the trailer. Something that was lockable and able to mount a roof top tent on it. I needed something that would be on a hinge so that I could still access everything in the storage area of the trailer.
Well just like any other project, life gets in the way. Winter came and the trailer didn't get anything done to it. Didn't I know it, camping season was upon us and I figured I was going to be sleeping in a tent on the ground again this year.
Over the winter, some friends and I had planned a 2 week overland adventure from Alberta into the East Kootenays in British Columbia and I was starting to get the trailer ready and camping gear sorted out.
By sheer fluke, I stumbled upon this Heilite single wheel tent trailer for sale a couple of hour drive away from my home. I got the dimensions from the seller and measured my trailer. It was going to be a pretty close fit to sit it on top of the M101, but I figured I could make it work. I hooked onto the M101 and away I went to pick this thing up.
(This is not an actual pic of my tent trailer. I forgot to take one while it was set up).
With only 3 weeks to go before we head out on our trip, I loaded the Heilite trailer onto the top of the M101 and brought it home to my shop so I could start to build myself a roof top tent and trailer lid all in one.
This thing was great, it fit on like it was meant to be there. It is made of aluminum so it is nice and light. Specs on the Heilite says it weights in around 240 lbs. Full pass through storage. The storage area is 4' x 6' and 12" deep.
I figured I would need some larger tires for the trailer in order to give me better stability now that I have put this extra weight on top. I found some used 33x12.5x15 Truxxus tires on ******** Cepec rims. Pretty snazzy for a trailer for sure.
Since the M101 came with the best bolt pattern in the world 5x4.4 and we all know that Jeep TJ's run 5x4.5 this meant I had to change the wheel hubs at the same time. Perfect time to install the electric brakes. I know there is no need for electric brakes on a small trailer that probably won't weigh more than 1600lbs. But I figured the extra braking power would be a nice touch. I had to remove the parking brake that was on the M101 in order to do this. I had hoped to keep the parking brake but I could not figure out how to keep it and have electric brakes as well.
The next step was to figure out how to hinge the camper to the trailer.
I took the aluminum A frame that the tire was attached to and reused it for outside frame rails to sit on top of the M101 tub rail. I had 3 new pieces of aluminum bent for me so I could strengthen the frame just a bit more. .
I went to the local princess auto and picked up a 6ft stainless steel piano hinge. Now I need something to help lift the Heilite up when needing to access the M101 storage. I went down to Gregg distributers and bought two 200lb gas struts to help with this.
Next I have to attach the piano hinge to the M101 and the Heilite. This was no easy chore by myself. I decided on fastening it with rivets to hold the hinge onto both sides. I figured with the low profile of the rivets it would not interfere as much with the weather stripping as having bolt heads in the way and I really did not trust myself welding the hinge onto the M101. I placed the rivets every 3 inches and spent a few hours riveting it all together. I did have to modify the front corners of the Heilite in order to fit around the M101 tub rail for opening and closing purposes. I only had to cut about a 1" x 1.5" piece of aluminum off of the bottoms of the 2 front corners of the Heilite.
I have run out of room to attach pics, so I will have to start part 2 of the build now.
It all started last September. I finally found a decent deal on an M101 CDN2 1/4 ton military trailer. I had wanted one for quite a while to pull behind my Jeep TJ so I could go camping and still be able to take enough gear with me. The trailer is in decent shape, all original with the original cammo tarp.
I really liked the military lights that came with it so I decided to convert them from 24 volt to 12 volt lights. This was pretty simple, just had to change out the light bulbs and you are off and running. The part number for the bulbs was 1156 for the large bulb and number 67 for the small one. As for the connector to the jeep, I wired in a 7 pin wiring harness which allows me to install some electric brakes in the future as well as have 12 volt power to charge my rv battery I am planning on installing. The military trailer wiring was pretty straight forward to trace so wiring that was pretty easy. I also mounted some 20L jerry can holders to the back of the trailer so I could carry some extra fuel when needed.
I decided to keep the pintle hitch set up as it was already there and it is one of the best for articulation. I know the downside is the banging, but I got used to that pretty quick.
I was planning on having a lid built for the top of the trailer. Something that was lockable and able to mount a roof top tent on it. I needed something that would be on a hinge so that I could still access everything in the storage area of the trailer.
Well just like any other project, life gets in the way. Winter came and the trailer didn't get anything done to it. Didn't I know it, camping season was upon us and I figured I was going to be sleeping in a tent on the ground again this year.
Over the winter, some friends and I had planned a 2 week overland adventure from Alberta into the East Kootenays in British Columbia and I was starting to get the trailer ready and camping gear sorted out.
By sheer fluke, I stumbled upon this Heilite single wheel tent trailer for sale a couple of hour drive away from my home. I got the dimensions from the seller and measured my trailer. It was going to be a pretty close fit to sit it on top of the M101, but I figured I could make it work. I hooked onto the M101 and away I went to pick this thing up.
(This is not an actual pic of my tent trailer. I forgot to take one while it was set up).
With only 3 weeks to go before we head out on our trip, I loaded the Heilite trailer onto the top of the M101 and brought it home to my shop so I could start to build myself a roof top tent and trailer lid all in one.
This thing was great, it fit on like it was meant to be there. It is made of aluminum so it is nice and light. Specs on the Heilite says it weights in around 240 lbs. Full pass through storage. The storage area is 4' x 6' and 12" deep.
I figured I would need some larger tires for the trailer in order to give me better stability now that I have put this extra weight on top. I found some used 33x12.5x15 Truxxus tires on ******** Cepec rims. Pretty snazzy for a trailer for sure.
Since the M101 came with the best bolt pattern in the world 5x4.4 and we all know that Jeep TJ's run 5x4.5 this meant I had to change the wheel hubs at the same time. Perfect time to install the electric brakes. I know there is no need for electric brakes on a small trailer that probably won't weigh more than 1600lbs. But I figured the extra braking power would be a nice touch. I had to remove the parking brake that was on the M101 in order to do this. I had hoped to keep the parking brake but I could not figure out how to keep it and have electric brakes as well.
The next step was to figure out how to hinge the camper to the trailer.
I took the aluminum A frame that the tire was attached to and reused it for outside frame rails to sit on top of the M101 tub rail. I had 3 new pieces of aluminum bent for me so I could strengthen the frame just a bit more. .
I went to the local princess auto and picked up a 6ft stainless steel piano hinge. Now I need something to help lift the Heilite up when needing to access the M101 storage. I went down to Gregg distributers and bought two 200lb gas struts to help with this.
Next I have to attach the piano hinge to the M101 and the Heilite. This was no easy chore by myself. I decided on fastening it with rivets to hold the hinge onto both sides. I figured with the low profile of the rivets it would not interfere as much with the weather stripping as having bolt heads in the way and I really did not trust myself welding the hinge onto the M101. I placed the rivets every 3 inches and spent a few hours riveting it all together. I did have to modify the front corners of the Heilite in order to fit around the M101 tub rail for opening and closing purposes. I only had to cut about a 1" x 1.5" piece of aluminum off of the bottoms of the 2 front corners of the Heilite.
I have run out of room to attach pics, so I will have to start part 2 of the build now.
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