Fenders Finally - - - Sorta

Anything to do with mechanical, construction etc

Fenders Finally - - - Sorta

Postby Nobody » Wed Apr 18, 2007 9:17 pm

Since I built my 5X10' (approx) TD on a 4X8 HF trailer, the wheels/tires were under the cabin & I didn't actually need fenders, at least for functional purposes :roll: . I've never been satisfied with the 'raw' look of the arc cutout in the diamond plate trim on bottom of the tear & have been continually on the lookout for something that would 'dress up' that area. Have some of the diamond plate left & thought of having some of that 'rolled' in a sort of fender flare, but haven't been able to find a shop locally that was willing to give it a try, even for money :o . Anyway, after we returned from Beavers Bend this month, I was looking thru the Northern Tool online catalog & noticed they had a round, 9" wide, diamond tread aluminum fender for 13" tires. I have 12" tires but figured I could shorten it enough to make the arc work for my purpose. I 'bit the bullet' ($49.95 + shipping) & ordered the thing $> & it came in last week. Been eyeballing it & studying about an idea since then :thinking: . Yesterday I said to heck with it just started work :twisted: . First I cut off about a foot to make the arc short enough, then I split the entire fender lengthwise with my trusty jigsaw. I then marked a line 1 1/2" inside the cut side & cut "V" notches every couple of inches from the edge to the line. Then clamped it in a vise & started annealing with my propane torch (this ain't nearly as easy as annealing the 1/16" aluminum angle :duh ). Using a couple of pieces of 3/4" very dense particle board, I fabricated a jig that I could clamp in the fender & use as a rest/base for bending down the portion that I had already notched, (this would make the 'flange' for attaching the fender to the tear). The jig worked pretty much as I expected & a soft faced, dead blow hammer made short work of forming the attaching flanges. After drilling attachment holes in the flanges (6 each side), I clamped the fenders in place on the tear, & marked & drilled for the bolts/screws. Used some self stick foam tape between the fender & the tear, as a seal, & bolted/screwed 'em up tight (used 4, 1/4" bolts & 2, 1 1/4" lag screws per side). Didn't look half bad but I figured while I was at it I'd add a little 'bling' so I fabricated a couple of mud flaps from some heavy vinyl, trimmed 'em with the diamond plate & bolted them up too. I'm still undecided about whether to use the pieces of diamond plate left from cutting out the arc in the body for the tires originally. May be able to contour them a little & fasten 'em in the outer fender flange as a sorta 'skirt'. Anyway, here's a few pix -

This is the fender I ordered -Image

Here's the result -

Image
Image

The other side is in my album. Still ain't sure it was worth all the trouble but it does make the TD look some better, I think 8)
Last edited by Nobody on Thu Apr 19, 2007 6:50 am, edited 1 time in total.
Harvey -

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Doing the right thing ain't always easy but, . . . it's always right!
User avatar
Nobody
1000 Club
1000 Club
 
Posts: 1196
Images: 342
Joined: Wed Jan 25, 2006 1:09 pm
Location: Benton, Arkansas

Postby toolferone » Wed Apr 18, 2007 9:27 pm

I think they came out great! A nice custom look. I agree I like having the fenders there. The mud flaps look really cool!
Tom F.
Freud Tools
S.E.Woodworking Specialist
User avatar
toolferone
Donating Member
 
Posts: 37
Joined: Tue Mar 13, 2007 8:46 pm
Location: Raleigh

Postby Miriam C. » Wed Apr 18, 2007 9:31 pm

:o Dang Harvey, Thats beautiful. :ok: :beautiful: :woohoo:
“Forgiveness means giving up all hope for a better past.â€
User avatar
Miriam C.
our Aunti M
 
Posts: 19675
Images: 148
Joined: Wed Feb 15, 2006 3:14 pm
Location: Southwest MO
Top

Postby BillyLandry » Wed Apr 18, 2007 9:34 pm

Hey Nobody
Man your trailer looks sharp. By the way I noticed your door latch. Where did you get those?
"It's not the qualifications--It's the willingnest."
User avatar
BillyLandry
Donating Member
 
Posts: 373
Images: 25
Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Louisiana---Franklin
Top

Postby martha24 » Wed Apr 18, 2007 9:35 pm

They look great! :thumbsup: Worth every penny! They go perfect with your TD and look so much better with them. :applause: :applause: :applause: You also did a superb job of installing them. :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Martha :)
Martha ;)

Image
User avatar
martha24
1000 Club
1000 Club
 
Posts: 1353
Images: 237
Joined: Thu Aug 03, 2006 4:32 am
Location: Calif., Goleta
Top

Postby Nobody » Wed Apr 18, 2007 10:12 pm

BillyLandry wrote:Hey Nobody
Man your trailer looks sharp. By the way I noticed your door latch. Where did you get those?


Got 'em off eBay 'bout this time last year. Think it was under $30 for both, plus shipping (around $10 or so). I wanted black but they only had white for that price, I figured I could always paint or powder coat 'em but I've kinda grown to like the white ;) .
Harvey -

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Doing the right thing ain't always easy but, . . . it's always right!
User avatar
Nobody
1000 Club
1000 Club
 
Posts: 1196
Images: 342
Joined: Wed Jan 25, 2006 1:09 pm
Location: Benton, Arkansas
Top

Postby madjack » Wed Apr 18, 2007 10:16 pm

...sharp Harvey...very sharp indeed...this helps to prove the we here on this board are some the most dadburned innovative folks around... :thumbsup:
madjack 8)
...I have come to believe that, conflict resolution, through violence, is never acceptable.....................mj
User avatar
madjack
Site Admin
 
Posts: 15128
Images: 177
Joined: Thu Dec 02, 2004 5:27 pm
Location: Central Louisiana
Top

Postby Podunkfla » Wed Apr 18, 2007 10:57 pm

Harvey... I think they look like very a professional and clean install. Tied in with the rest of your diamond plate it really looks good.
Super nice tear you have there. :applause: :thumbsup:
Last edited by Podunkfla on Wed Apr 18, 2007 11:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
<B>~ Brick
<I>... I've done so much with so little for so long... Now I can do almost anything with nothing! </I></B>
Image...Lots more pix here!
User avatar
Podunkfla
ol' noodle haid
 
Posts: 2261
Images: 5
Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2006 9:25 pm
Location: North Florida near the Suwannee River
Top

Postby SmokeyBob » Wed Apr 18, 2007 11:48 pm

Harvey
Very nice. Necessity is the mother of invention. :thumbsup:
Pics for Building the Alegria I
To view video click Here

Bob & Judith
User avatar
SmokeyBob
2000 Club
2000 Club
 
Posts: 2950
Images: 161
Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2005 12:06 am
Top

Postby Duane King » Thu Apr 19, 2007 12:18 am

Harvey,

That is a beautiful thing. Very nicely done and I enjoyed the well written explanation of how you achieved this nice effect. Real purdy. And practical too. . . :thumbsup:
Duane King

<img src="http://www.mikenchell.com/images/roadhouse.jpg" >
User avatar
Duane King
500 Club
 
Posts: 773
Images: 98
Joined: Sun Aug 06, 2006 2:54 pm
Location: California, Salinas
Top

Postby bledsoe3 » Thu Apr 19, 2007 3:56 am

Very clean install. Looks like you've been doing it your whole life. I also like the shape of the plate you cut for your mudflaps.
If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got.
User avatar
bledsoe3
3000 Club
3000 Club
 
Posts: 3694
Images: 112
Joined: Tue Jun 07, 2005 5:55 am
Location: Oregon, Portland
Top

Postby davel » Thu Apr 19, 2007 6:26 am

Harvey,

They look great!!! :thumbsup:
User avatar
davel
Donating Member
 
Posts: 1369
Images: 32
Joined: Mon Apr 26, 2004 9:42 pm
Location: Ennis, Texas
Top

Postby toypusher » Thu Apr 19, 2007 6:33 am

Very nice job! Looks good!
User avatar
toypusher
Site Admin
 
Posts: 43040
Images: 324
Joined: Fri Jan 28, 2005 12:21 pm
Location: York, PA Area
Top

Postby Loader » Thu Apr 19, 2007 6:33 am

Looks great Harvey! Really dresses the tear up, gives it that finished look! Nice job. :applause: :thumbsup:
Earl & Kerry

"Loader"

Blue Yonder Build Thread - viewtopic.php?f=50&t=42611

ImageImage
User avatar
Loader
Platinum Donating Member
 
Posts: 1584
Images: 245
Joined: Tue Apr 26, 2005 2:33 pm
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Top

Postby Nobody » Thu Apr 19, 2007 7:13 am

Thanks folks!! for the nice comments. Now I just gotta find someone locally with a heavy duty metal break/brake (don't understand the different spellings of the word??) to form some more of the diamond plate. I want to add a small rear bumper made from 1"X2 1/2" steel tubing, approx width of the tear. It'll be bolted to the frame & just barely clear the rear bottom curve. Shouldn't interfere with galley use I think/hope :worship: . I wanta 'wrap' it with the diamond plate; that's where the heavy duty metal break comes in. I can sorta 'work' my way around short pieces using heavy angle as a guide/break, but forming the long stuff has me stymied, at least for the moment ;) . I'll figure something out eventually but access to a good break would be a big help 8) .
Harvey -

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Doing the right thing ain't always easy but, . . . it's always right!
User avatar
Nobody
1000 Club
1000 Club
 
Posts: 1196
Images: 342
Joined: Wed Jan 25, 2006 1:09 pm
Location: Benton, Arkansas
Top

Next

Return to Teardrop Construction Tips & Techniques

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 4 guests