Giving new life to an old firewood wagon

[NYCheese]

Got an old roached out firewood wagon from a neighbor a few days ago. It's 4'x8', so pretty decent size. It was in rough shape though. All of the lumber was rotten, and most of the steel needed a lot of cleaning up (and a couple small patches). 3 days of work later, I'm pretty happy with the result. Cost me about 250 bucks in lumber and other materials. Grabbed some wheels and tires from the junkyard for next to nothing, bought a cheap jack from tractor supply for the tongue. Primed and painted the whole thing top to bottom, with an "almost" Kioti Orange. No intention of making it street legal, it's just for hauling firewood on my property, and any other tasks I come up with.

 

[Aquamoose]

Good ‘nuf! That will be handy for lots of other things too!

 

[snymat68]

Looks good!

 

[CobyRupert]

Got an old roached out firewood wagon from a neighbor a few days ago. It's 4'x8', so pretty decent size. .....
....No intention of making it street legal, it's just for hauling firewood on my property, and any other tasks I come up with.

Nice!
...aww shucks, that's street legal! ....or close enough........but just during daylight hours!

I have a 4'x8' utility trailer, that dumps (manually) - There's a few times I wish it was 5' wide just so I could put riding mowers on it without taking off the mower's deck; or to transport the woodsplitter, etc....
I can just barely put my ATV on it IF I take off side racks that normally sit on interior of rails. But really handy. My side racks are 2' high, so handy to reach over, and carry a 1/2 cord of firewood: Just the right amount to split, load, unload in an evening (why go overboard?), while also not overloading and bending the axles, or sinking tires in the clay up to the axles (sometimes).

Think I'm going to replace my plywood side racks and put stake pockets on the outside of the rails so side racks can be easily removed in 3 pieces instead of 1 (plus tailgates).
If I go with stake pockets, I'll have to figure out how to close up gap below rails, and side racks, if I want to haul dirt.

What wood makes best side racks?

 

[NYCheese]

Nice!


What wood makes best side racks?

I built mine with 2x6, but it's primarily for firewood, and I know I'm gonna beat the **** out of it. Plus, mine aren't removable, so weight wasn't an issue. If you want your to be lighter, I'd go smaller, maybe 5/4 lumber, or see if you can find an old stakebed truck at a scrapyard, and grab the metal rails off it, and cut them to fit yours.

 

[BoylermanCT]

I used 5/4 deck boards for my trailer sides. They have lasted for years and I abuse my trailer with firewood, gravel, mulch, manure etc.

 

[NYCheese]

First load in the "new" wagon. Loaded it up pretty good, but didn't wanna pile it up too much for the first trip down the hill with it. Wasn't sure how the tractor would handle the weight, especially since it rained all night, and my trail does have a couple slick spots. Came down the hill in low range, 4wd, and my hand on the loader stick just in case. Had no problems, didn't even feel like I had a load pushing me.




And before anyone asks...(2 neighbors have asked about it already)... that cutout in the tailgate is a step when the gate is folded down. It does look kinda silly, but it sure makes it a lot easier getting in and out.