jethro,
I wouldn't argue that Artillery Trailer LOOKS home-made BUT it is LIKELY a late 1950s GATOR (or a CLONE of a GATOR) or a DALTEX, as Gator/DALTEX & other "clone-makers" made a FLOOD of that type (in LA & TX) between 1955-70 AND one of those "pipe-trailers" are LIGHT, CHEAP to keep "roadworthy", EASY TO TOW & thus, "hard to get the owner to turn-loose of".
(That's WHY I'm looking for a "building plan" to make my "homebrew" version.)
Fwiw, around south TX, the VAST majority of "boat trailers for sale" are for BIG/HEAVY bassboats & even BIGGER/HEAVIER trailers to haul saltwater fishing boats, that weigh as much as 1500 pounds, as a "bare hull".
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Rather than start another discussion, information on my newest BIG PROJECT is below:
My "new to me" (that was given to me, by a GREAT friend from here in south TX =
) DEEP/WIDE 1957-58 (a "hand laid-up molded plywood" & "custom-made" hull) HOLMES of Houston "GULF FISHERMAN 18" actually weighs about 450 pounds, plus a PAIR of 35HP Johnson "long-foot" OBs that together weigh less than 250 pounds. When I add in 4-6 (6-gallon) gas tanks with gas, anchors, lines, ice, food/drink, live bait & tackle "for out to the artificial reefs & oil platforms", I'd guess that "the whole deal" weighs about 1500-1600 pounds. - It is "sitting on" a TANDEM trailer that is designed for well over 2.5 TONS of boat/"stuff".
(My "new 1958" HOLMES is THE fishing boat that I wanted when I was a "wet behind the ears kid" BUT couldn't afford then. - A Holmes "offshore" OB hull was designed for "game-fishing the Gulf of Mexico". = When I was a lad, "all of 'THE COOL GUYS' seemed to have a HOLMES that they had had custom-built & custom-fitted by Robert Cecil Holmes, Sr. - In 2014, a GULF FISHERMAN 18 "woodie" is RARE and "hard to find" in restorable condition, as there were never many BUILT & there are a LOT less than that extant, now.)
Fwiw, MY "new to me" HOLMES needs, to be "as new":
1. lots of hand-sanding, inside & out,
2. re-varnishing in/out & re-painting the "below the waterline area", boot-top, "TX numbers", and "HOLMES of Houston" logos,
3. the replacement of the forward mahogany plywood deck and repairing the wooden windshield frame/glasses,
(LUCKILY the deck is "flat" & made of one sheet of mahogany 3/4" ply, with "fore-aft hand-cut grooves", every 6" across the beam.)
4. re-upholstery of the seats & interior trim,
5. "patching" of a "thumb-sized hole" in the forward portside,
(with a plywood patch inside & epoxy "peanut butter" outside. - Then a local HS art teacher will paint "an appropriate design" on both sides to camouflage the repair.)
6. remove, re-polish & replace the exterior bronze trim items,
7. installation of marine-band radio & whip antenna,
and
8. install the OBs and the other "allied fishing stuff".
(My GUESS, based on my other restorations, is that the HOLMES will cost 1500.oo to restore, with LOTS of my hand-labor, PLUS the cost of a suitable 1950s trailer and the trailer restoration. = NOT too much for a "seaworthy game-fishing rig" for "out on the Gulf", imVho.)
NOTE: Once the GULF FISHERMAN 18 is restored to "as new" condition AND I find/buy/restore a 1950s 2-wheel trailer that's long/wide/proper for the HOLMES, I will have a HEAVY-DUTY, 20ft tandem-wheel, trailer FOR SALE "at an excellent price".
yours, satx
