Military Blazer w/M105 1 1/2 ton trailer

any thoughts on this set up for a BOV?

our intentions would be to get that 6x6 here in the spring to pull the M105 with, but if that never came to pass, what would y'all think about towing the M105 behind the old CUCV 6.2L 3/4 ton Blazer for a G.O.O.D scenario?

If this would be a good G.O.O.D. set up, then I will be trading in our 1/2 ton Bronco for the Blazer tomorrow. The CUCV Blazer would be a perfect work and EMP proof vehicle, but if the trailer wouldn't match up good with it, it would be limited on carrying capacity (it would still have a much better load capacity than the Bronco, and it would be EMP proof, but we would still have a short wheel-base vehicle, albiet with much heavier suspension though).

Any thoughts would be well recieved.

Thanks again in advance for all y'alls help...I only wish I would've got more edumacated a coupla years ago so I wasn't trying to up-grade my buying mistakes now that things are looking uglier than ever out there in the world!

 

First off, I happen to own a M1009 CUCV Blazer, and I have a lot of experiance with said vehicle. My first word of advice is too get rid of the military pintle hitch off of the CUCV and mount a conventional frame attached hitch and use the standard ball hitches available.

As Ghrit has stated above, the M105 Trailer is to high up and you will be limited on the amount of weight that you can carry, just look at how the military pintle is attached to the rear of the M1009 CUCV. It has just a single point of attachment to the vehicle and it is just attached to the bumper itself, then you will see why you will not be able to load that much weight on the trailer.

The only trailer that could be safely towed by the CUCV Blazer is the M101 3/4 Ton Trailer, which has it's own set of problems that I and several other sevicemembers experienced back in the 1980's.

You would be better served if you used a good Civi trailer with a good trailer brake. Also, I do belive that the total GVWR is around 4,000 Lbs, I will have to check the door plate to get the correct amount

 

Thanks guys, I didn't know about the M101...what are the problems you were mentioning with them?

I would think that it might be crucial in a bug out situation for the trailer to be more geared to off road capabilities than I would think a commercial trailer would be?

And my understanding is the GVWR is about 8900 pounds? Is this inaccurate?

Thanks.

 

actually, now that I have looked up both trailers, I realize that the trailer I had seen in person awhile back and that I had in my mind was the M101, and when the M105 popped up on-line, I thought it was one in the same judging from the photo, but there was nothing next to it to comapare it too...sorry for the dumb mix up on my part

 

Thanks guys, I didn't know about the M101...what are the problems you were mentioning with them? They sit up too high and has a very narrow wheelbase, which you do not want in a off-road trailer(It Will Tip Over).



And my understanding is the GVWR is about 8900 pounds? Is this inaccurate? Yes, the GVWR of the M1009 is 6800 pounds, the towed weight is limited to 3,000 pounds and that is under optimal conditions.


There were a few things that limited the M1009 as a tactical vehicle to begin with, first is the final drive ratio of only 3.08 which does not go with towing all the weight that you want to pull off road. Second is the differientials themselves, pull them and replace with GM 14bolt or Dana 60's with at least a 4.10 final drive ratio.

What you will need in a military trailer is the M100 1/4 ton, or the older M416 1/4 ton trailer that the ever vernable willys jeep pulled for the Army for over 40 years.

As I have stated above, I do own a M1009 myself, and belive me when I say that it has it's limitations. Excede those limitations and you will be faced with some very expensive repair bills.

 

oh, definitly takin' your advice seriously RC, thanks again bud!

 

RC would be absolutely correct that even the military Blazer has it's limitations. Why because no matter what engine, transmission, axles or suspension upgrades you do to it, it's a short wheel based vehicle. The military Blazer might be rated 3/4 ton, it's still a 1/2 ton short wheel based vehicle with some beefy upgrades and stripped down to help out the GVW capacity of the vehicle.

I do believe the M1009 uses the same weak 1/2 ton 10 bolt GM Corp. front and rear axles as the K5 Blazer. The only difference being is the M1009 has an Eaton locker (Gov-Lok) in the rear differential, with suck a** 3.08 gears. Having a locker in the rear helps a lot off-road but that is a pretty high gear ratio. High gear ratios help fuel economy but it makes a vehicle a DOG on hills or off-road.

Another reason the M1009 is going to have it's limitations is it's brakes. I'm betting the M1009 at best has upgraded 1/2 ton brakes. This will seriously effect SAFE towing capacities and will be noticed on hills if you are over the vehicles GCVW (Gross Combined Vehicle Weight). 1/2 ton brakes are not going to last very long and will glaze over pretty darn quick with heavy braking on long hills. They are not intended for heavy hauling and can't withstand the high temperatures for very long. While having good trailer brakes is going to help

I do not know if any of the M1009 had manual transmissions or not. If so, I'm guessing they were equipped with GM's SM465 like a lot of their trucks used. It doesn't get much better than that, pretty much bullet proof. All the automatics would have used Turbo 400's behind the 6.2 liter diesel. This transmission is also just about bullet proof and highly sought after by those that keep breaking their Turbo 350's and pushing lots of horsepower.

I know absolutely nothing about GM's 6.2 liter diesel engine other than the horror stories from others and seen a lot of them converted over to a gasser engine. Some of the horror stories might be over exagerrated, I do not know, I've never had a vehicle with that engine.

Even though I have never owned a M1009, I have owned four K5 Blazers over the years and still proudly own a heavily modified '73 K5 Blazer. I'm a huge Chevy/GM fan.

Do not take it like I don't think the M1009 would be a good choice. Only pointing out how a lot of the vehicles components are not able to withstand what you are wanting in a vehicle. It sounds to me like you are in need of at least a 3/4 ton truck, not a short wheel based vehicle. I'd just get a 1 ton truck and be done with it.

 

I've met this guy (Tom)through our bike shop and swap meet,he was the alfa romeo race team manager and head mechanic; he also produced a famous complete road race car but I don't remember what it was called: He's located pretty close to me here ( and really good people)Check them out :
http://www.alfaheaven.com/ they rebuild all kinds of surplus vehicles,
http://www.alfaheaven.com/MilitarySection/Accessories/Trailers.html

http://www.alfaheaven.com/MilitarySection/WhyBuy.html


http://www.alfaheaven.com/MilitarySection/6x6 Trucks/6x6Gifs/141FrtRtLo.gif

 

Guys I don't know crap about various military truck/trailer combos I can only pip up what few armchair thoughts come to the surface...When it comes time to g.o.o.d. like katrina andthe highways are blocked because half the morons ran out of fuel and fema is dictating evac routes do you really want to be stuck dragging your shtf supplies down the barely moving highway? stopped close to home with a bigazz trailerful of stuff you may or may not haveto drag through a muddy median to get around folks ?Seems Hypothetically having your supplies prepositioned at your bugout location makes sense to me. Seems to me playing damnation alley is the basis for a movie script but is just asking for trouble? , A few bicycles or light dualpurpose motorcycle or two and basic bob supplies in the pickup, gets your family to safety around traffic issues.


Just imho mmm'kay?

 

As CC has stated above, you would be better served finding a 3/4 or 1 Ton pickup to suit your needs. I am currently in the process of purchasing a late '80s Ford 3/4 ton with the 7.3 IDI Turbo with mech. injection(EMP Proof) that will eat the GM 6.2 for lunch.

The Diff. in the M1109 have the 10 bolt GM with Gov Lockers in the rear with a Dana 30 in the front, which never lasted in any jeep to begin with and all were equiped with a Turbo 400 Automatics.

Now on to the 6.2, You can do alot better with a Ford(Navistar), Dodge(Cummins), or later GM(Duramax). The other alternative is to replace the M1009 6.2 with the current Uparmored Hummer 6.5 turbo engine(They run at around Ten Grand for a crate engine).

As a daily driver my M1009 has served me well, but the 3/4 Ford that I am buying will be my G.O.O.D. truck and heavy duty workhorse.

 

+++1

 

yeah, I think I'm agreeing with y'all 100%.....any thoughts on the M1010 (with no trailer, everything loaded inside), would it behave kindly if ya needed to go offroad for a bit while being loaded down? I have a old 6.2 in a 3/4 truck that's my daily driver, and she runs great (only 2wd though), and she hauls a load just fine, but the same engine in the M1010 kinda makes me picture a looter being able to run in front of the BOV to stop the truck....dunno though, never drove one, know where a great deal is on one, but quite a drive (24 hours round trip) to just find out it's slow as mollassess!

 

ultimate B.O.V.!:

 

Here is a few links that I thought could be helpful. 1 1/2 ton http://store.colemans.com/cart/34-ton-dump-trailer-p-26.html# Add a room to it http://store.colemans.com/cart/shelter-communications-p-1694.html
¼ ton http://store.colemans.com/cart/¼-ton-trailer-p-14.html

My family was in the salvage business and for the most part we use military equipment. It was hard to find anything better built for the money. I use to pull a 2 ½ ton trailer behind my dad’s ¾ ton 4 X4 65 Chevy wrecker a lot and never had any problem pulling it but it did have some what of a nose down attitude even with a 4” lift and 9.50 X 20 tires. The worst part was dealing with that big castor wheel until I was like duh I have a winch. I ran over the trunk of a car once with the trailer it was like the car was not even there.

 

The m1009 would be a better BOV than your bronco, but there are better alternitives. I would say get it if it was me then set it up how you will travel then drive it around and see how it handles.
Take it to your nearest truck stop and run it over their scale to see what it weighs. If it's a pig when it's fully loaded you can add a turbo off of a 6.5 gm diesel to boost its power but like others had said the truck isn't rated to tow like a 1ton. You can look into a duece (2 1/2 ton) truck to use as a BOV, again they aren't the fastest or the most comfortable in stock configuration but they can hold alot of stuff. Plus you could pull that 105 trailer with it for extra room, but they are limited on seats up front.

I own both and would take my duece over the m1009 any day, I'm setting my truck up with taller tires which will increase my overall mph on the highway and a set of better seats for comfort.

Check out http://www.steelsoldiers.com/ fo a ton of great information on military vehicals.

 

oh, thanks for the info.........but I sold my Bronco a coupla months ago and got a lifted 1st Generation Dodge Cummins club cab 3/4 ton with a solid front axle 4x4 and a 92 gallon transfer tank/tool box combo in the bed.

 

Sounds like a good combo, set it up the way you want and if you don't have enough room you can then look into a trailer for it.

 

we've been quite impressed so far...drove back through the x-mas eve blizzard when the freeways were shut down by state troopers and we locked her into 4x4 and snuck back on the freeway and crawled our way home slow and steady....although, like an idiot I allowed myself to run outta windshield de-icer fluid, and boy did my left hand ever get cold popping the ice off of the wiper while driving....hahaha, lesson learned!!!