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MJ Home Built Trailer Thread

RockyCodeHead

NAXJA Forum User
At Yella's suggestion :wave1: I am posting how I managed to get my MJ bed / converted home made trailer licensed.

This January a new law went into effect that requires a "Road Worthiness Inspection" for all home-built trailers.

I bought Troy's MJ Long bed from a scrapped MJ to convert into an off road trailer. Unfortunately, I didn't license it prior to Jan. 1st.

So I got my tax return in Feb and built the tongue for the trailer and had it ready to license around the beginning of April. I did a search online and discovered I needed to fill out the Colorado DR2409 form.

I filled out the DR2409 with the following values (IANAL so make sound decisions yourself should you need to license a home-built trailer...):
Weight: 800lbs (probably high)
Width: 70 inches
Length: 140 inches (I built a longer tongue so I can add a platform and box on the front)
Year: 2011
Make was "HMD" (copied from the CSP form)

This is what I put in the description field in the DR2409:
"A single axle box type trailer with steel sides approx 30 inches tall,
70 inches wide and 88 inches long built using materials on hand."

I did have all of the receipts for all materials purchased for the project, just in case. When I stopped into the DMV office the first time, they asked for them and the DR2409 calls for them: "[Bills of sale for materials (axles, wheels, etc.,) used to assemble this trailer must be presented to the County Clerk]" ... but this second visit, I was not asked for them.

I had the DR2409 filled out, along with the form that the DMV person provided. I made the appointment with the State Patrol. The Trooper verified the forms, took my drivers license, did a walk around of the trailer. He looked at the tongue, I am sure he checked out the chains but he didn't say anything. He walked to the back, verified that the trailer had lights installed, walked back, collected $20 and took the forms inside.

He never asked for me to run the lights, which I thought odd, they work fine so I wasn't worried.

After about 5 minutes, he came out with the original DR2409, the form from the DMV and a third form the Trooper provided. He didn't say a word about the bed coming from a truck or about it's original title at all and neither did the folks in the DMV office.

I noted on the third form he provided that he also performed an NCIS/CCIS check on me.... glad that thing in Vegas hasn't caught up with me... just kidding :)

All told, $20 for inspection, $57 and change for the registration and VIN plate.

Here's the tongue I built for the trailer:
trailer_tongue.jpg


The tongue is long, but I can jack-knife the trailer at 90 degrees if I should ever need to.

This was the finalist of the three design options I designed using the steel I purchased:

three_trailer_options.jpg

(drawn to scale...)

Action Shots:
90_degrees.jpg


90_degrees_2.jpg

(yep, before wiring...)
 
Last edited:
Nice write-up! :thumbup: Thanks for doing that!

"IANAL"......... I am not a lawyer? :dunno:
 
Hmmm..... That bed looks familiar.

Nice work, I used a pintle on the one I'd built also.
 
Have you put any weight in it yet? I noticed on mine that it likes the weight being up towards the tongue. Mine also had a fairly long tongue on it, hence my question.
 
Have you put any weight in it yet? I noticed on mine that it likes the weight being up towards the tongue. Mine also had a fairly long tongue on it, hence my question.

Yeah, I picked up a half ton of road base on my way home from licensing it... The trailer sits really high until you add 1/2 ton, then it rides low. :D

It pulled just fine both empty and loaded...
 
right on, man. Sorry your registration experience wasn't as trouble free as mine, but glad you got it done! My trailer continues to work like a charm, hauled 4 loads of stuff this week to the storage unit... although my lights decided to simply stay on "brake" with no turn signals (I guess I have a short somewhere).

Oh and IAAL!
 
So what are your guys thoughts for springs... I too have a MJ trailer and got the SOA done this weekend and it's HIGH... I'm only on 32's and will never go over 33s... so what do you guys think some type of bastard pack ?

From this weekend... had it for a few years & I'm slowly getting back to working on it...

10ru6gg.jpg


Curt
 
Why don't you plan on going 33's? Honestly sua with maybe a small lift leafpack or shackles you woulda sat fine.... looks like I'd be perfect height for my rig though? How much delivered to co? :D
 
Why don't you plan on going 33's? Honestly sua with maybe a small lift leafpack or shackles you woulda sat fine.... looks like I'd be perfect height for my rig though? How much delivered to co? :D

I won't go OVER 33's, for me it's $$$$ I can't justify yet to clear 33's like I want to. Doubt I'll ever need 35s
I don't want to drag U-bolts, spring plates & shock mounts. I want it as clean as possible under the axle...

TOOO much...

Curt
 
Yeah, I say put it back to spring under axle and adjust with longer shackles.
 
I've got 33's on mine (285/75/16 -- 33x11), using a 3" add-a-leaf, stock shackles, still spring under. Those MJ wheelwells will take a bunch of tire, and the axle on a trailer won't articulate like it would on a rig, as it tends to roll instead, so 33"s are really pretty easy. Mine is nowhere near as tall as your pic:
P7190126.jpg
 
I think I'm going to TRY to stay spring over... mess with various leaf combos...

Curt
 
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