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Jim is a professional carpenter who sold his big house of 25 years and spent two months converting a cargo trailer into a stealthy DIY tiny home on wheels. The headline feature is a Murphy bed raised and lowered by a repurposed ATV winch, but the whole build reads like the work of someone who knows exactly how a small space should be organized.
Inside, he used five different types of wood, including veneer he had been saving for 15 years, and at the back he kept a garage with room for all of his woodworking tools. A year into nomadic life, he says he keeps asking himself why he did not make the move sooner.
Cargo trailer conversions are a popular route into tiny living because the shell is affordable, road-ready, and easy to keep low-profile. What sets this one apart is how a trade professional solved the usual problems of one open room: a bed that disappears, storage that hides in plain sight, and a place to keep the tools of a working life.
An ATV Winch Doing Murphy Bed Duty
The bed folds down using a repurposed ATV winch mechanism. Lowered, it reveals t-shirt cubbies along the back wall, as shown above. Raised, it opens up the full living space. In a cargo trailer, where there is no spare room for a permanent bedroom, a bed that leaves the floor entirely turns one narrow box into a living area by day and a bedroom by night. The winch is also a clever choice: it is a compact, proven device built to pull heavy loads, which makes lifting a mattress frame a gentle, controlled job rather than a wrestling match.
A Stealth Cargo Trailer Built in Two Months
From the outside this is still a cargo trailer, which is exactly the point of a stealth build. It can sit quietly in a lot or on a street without announcing that someone lives inside. Jim finished the conversion in about two months, a pace that shows how much a skilled builder can accomplish when the shell is already a blank, weatherproof box.
Five Woods and a Carpenter’s Eye
Jim used five different types of wood in the interior, including veneer he had been saving for 15 years. In a space this small, finish materials do a lot of the work: warm wood grain keeps a metal-shelled trailer from feeling like a storage box, and mixing species adds visual interest without adding clutter. It is a good reminder that a tiny home does not need more stuff to feel finished; it needs good materials in the right places.
A Rear Garage for the Tools
The rear of the trailer doubles as a workshop garage with space for Jim’s woodworking tools. For a working carpenter, this matters more than any single piece of furniture. Tools are how he earns a living and keeps building, so a dedicated spot for them is what makes full-time life on the road practical rather than a compromise. It also keeps the sawdust and gear away from the sleeping and living area.
Design Details
- Base: Cargo trailer converted into a stealthy tiny home on wheels
- Builder: Jim, a professional carpenter, working on his own home
- Build time: About two months
- Bed: Murphy bed operated by a repurposed ATV winch, with t-shirt cubbies along the back wall
- Interior materials: Five types of wood, including veneer saved for 15 years
- Rear space: Garage with room for his woodworking tools
What Makes This Build Special
- A winch-lifted Murphy bed clears the floor entirely, so one room can serve as both living space and bedroom.
- Hidden storage behind the bed turns a wall into usable cubbies.
- Mixed wood species give a utilitarian shell a warm, custom feel.
- A tool garage lets a tradesperson keep working while living small.
- A stealth exterior keeps the setup low-profile and flexible about where it can park.
Video Tour
Watch the full tour and interview with Tiny Home Tours to see the ATV winch Murphy bed in action and hear Jim’s story of leaving a big house for full-time cargo trailer life:
Highlights
- Professional carpenter’s DIY cargo trailer conversion
- ATV winch-powered Murphy bed with t-shirt cubbies
- Five types of wood, including 15-year-old veneer
- Rear garage for woodworking tools
- Stealthy exterior, built in about two months
Learn More
Explore More
- Stealthy And RV-Certified 28-ft. Cargo Trailer Tiny House
- 24-ft. Cargo Trailer Turned Stealth Tiny House
- Couple’s Cargo Trailer Camper Conversion
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Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase through one of our links, we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
Natalie C. McKee
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My house demolished built by my crippled dad I have two 50×100 lots I’m in the city I want a tiny house with bathtub/shower
What can I say…???
BEAUTIFUL WORK!!!
ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC!!!
If you make it to Southern Oregon/Northern Cali… send me an email… Dinner will be on me…???
Of the many conversions that I have viewed, few if any, state the weight of the completed unit. This would be helpful to persons considering their own self conversion, in estimating if the vehicle they have will not exceed the gvwr (gross vehicle weight registration), thereby not doing drive train damage, and more importantly, not having braking ability to get stopped say…..coming down a mountain. Happy trails.
What you have done is amazing .
Jim is extremely talented. His home is so cute and looks very cozy. What more do you need? I’m very impressed!!
I was wondering, how do you get your folded t-shirts out of the cubbys when the bed is up? What keeps the mattress in place when you put it up? And since you are mobile, do you have to run everything off the generator until you get your solar set up? What do you have in mind to turn the low platform into a couch for the daytime? I think this is so cool, and I love your straight forward description, without playing with your dog and giving your life history. I think this might just be the first person I’ll ever follow. Thanks. Happy Holidays
Very nice and like my Mobil home I converted the back end which was a dog pound (used to transport Great Danes) to a comfortable cabin looking inside. Mine unit is a 1978 Wanderlodge Bluebird and not light by any means 14 ton. Completely self contained and makes the perfect small home. Jon