Trailer cage?

2sheddies, Jul 16, 6:04am
Hey guys. Quick question for any engineers/trailer builders. I've got a 6x4 trailer and pondering having a basic and removable mesh cage welded up for it, to make it more useful for stuff like firewood etc. Probably only need it 600mm high or so. preferably with a hinged rear door.

Thought I'd see if I can get some idea before I decide to enquire if it's worth getting it done or not. Cheers all :-)
johotech, Jul 16, 6:09am
Make it higher. At least 1M, or 1.2M. Then the trailer will be more useful for thing like large amounts of light garden waste.
2sheddies, Jul 16, 6:15am
Yeah true. although I figure by the time the cage sits on top of the existing timber sides, which from memory are 300 or so. it'll be quite a nice height. I could have it 1m I guess. It had crappy timber sides previously that I pulled off, which were about 600, and I found it good for most things I needed.
thejazzpianoma, Jul 16, 7:44am
I made one up about 600mm high above the sides on a trailer I had here, very much the same sort of thing, hinged door and all. It was great, super handy and easy to get on and off. I just made it from some wood I got at auction which was basically short fence pailings. Cost me next to nothing to build and someone actually paid good money for it when I no longer had use of the trailer.

If you decide it's not worth getting one made, perhaps consider building another wooden one like I did.

EDIT. one other thought. With my one, I had the uprights put the weight of the cage on the trailer deck, then the slats were pretty much inline with the sides. It slid on and off the trailer very nicely and wasn't at all heavy to deal with. Remember you can still stack garden waste etc higher than the cage itself to some degree. I had some huge loads on mine.
trackim, Jul 16, 8:45am
Make sides of crate from ply sheets. Works out cheap to build. Makes sides 1.2 high (fitting internal). Very easy to store when not in use (four flat panels). Also chuck a tarp on top and you have weather proof trailer!
2sheddies, Jul 16, 9:01am
Cheers jazz and trackim. Making new timber sides is still a consideration, as would be much cheaper, although my building skills are somewhat limited lol. mechanically inclined yes, but frustratingly lacking when it comes to constructing things. It doesn't help that I'm a bit of a fussy type. everything has to look right, fit properly, and have a professional look about it.

This trailer originally had a high sided body fitted when purchased, made out of old fencing timber, but it was such a twisted, warped, mickey mouse affair and weighed a ton, not to mention full of expanding foam, (what a mess that made) so I pulled it to bits, and now want to start again properly.

One good thing though, it has a proper custom made tonneau cover which will fit the new body, so weatherproofing is easy.
andy61, Jul 16, 9:53pm
1m or 1.2 m is too high, makes it difficult to get heavier items over the sides, and if loaded to top of cage ,can overload the trailer, 850/900 mm is an ideal height.if you go for a steel framed cage, get it made so it can be flat packed ,it will take up less space when stored.(The sides are bolted together at the front on my cage)
trackim, Jul 17, 7:19am
1.2 a great height. Easy for furniture etc. I made 25mm x 25mm steel box section frames to bolt the ply sides to (galvanized all the steel work). Also made the rear section hinge from the bottom (and fully detachable) so could be used as a ramp for easy loading and also strong enough for ride on mower and quad.
2sheddies, Jan 30, 2:30am
I really think a height of between 6-900mm would do me nicely. Not much chance of overloading this trailer. it's over built for what it is but yes you do have to be careful of course, being unbraked and all. The previous body was so big and weighed so much on it's own that by the time you put a decent load in it, you were getting far too heavy, which is why I want to make the new one as light as possible. Some great ideas here, cheers guys :-)