Trailering Questions

[Sockwell]

I feel like a newbie. I've pulled trailers most of my life, from 6 x 10 Utility Trailers to 20' equipment trailers to a 33' Travel Trailer. However, they've all been bumper pull. Last year, I bought a Kubota L5740, w/ FEL, and a 7' RC. The overall length of the tractor/RC is about 26' long. Obviously, it won't fit on my 20' trailer. So, here's the quandry. If I want to haul the new tractor, I'm going to need a trailer about 30' long. I'm assuming the better way to go is either with a 5th wheel or GN, not a bumper pull. I know absolutely nothing about these types of trailers. Where do I need to go to learn? Almost all of the larger equipment trailers I see around are GN's. What advantage does a GN have over a 5th wheel?

A little more info about the situation: The tow vehicle is a 2011 F250 4WD, SRW, diesel, with a Leer shell on the bed. I've always used the Leer's to provide a degree of security for treestands and such. It will have to go if a bed hitch is required. The reason for hauling the tractor is to work food plots at hunting land. The land is about 150 miles from home. I currently take a smaller tractor (EX3200) to work the property, but would like to have the flexibility to take the larger tractor. I've even wondered about selling the EX3200 and getting a slightly larger tractor, that would fit on the 20' trailer, just to work at camp.

Any recommendations/thoughts on hauling the 5740 are appreciated.

 

[Diamondpilot]

For what you need to do take care of it with your smaller tractor. All the time, money, and loss of the bed its not worth it. Hire out the big jobs.

I had a 30' gn. Hated it. Weighed 6,200# empty snd whenever I was using it I seemed to need the bed also. Sold it for a 18' bp and never looked back.

Chris

 

[dodge man]

There are plenty of people that like GN's just fine. I've never owned one but I know people that have. It seems like all the 5th wheel stuff in my area is the travel trailer stuff, so most of the farm and equipment trailers are GN's. They make bolt in hitches, they almost look like a Reese style hitch but bolt underneath the bed, and you only need a small hole for the ball. The best kind have a ball that can be flipped over so its not sticking up when you use it. B&W is a common one. The advantage of the GN is it pulls more from the middle of the truck so the tend to sway less, you can have more pin weight than with a bumper pull, most trucks are rated to pull more weight with a GN, and for really long trailers, they are easier to back up and turn. Some people may argue with my statements, but thats the way I see it.

 

[Ed of all trades]

If you ever go to GN you will never want to pull a bumper hitch again, can you tell I love GN trailers. The advantage of GN over 5w is you get to keep your bed free of a hitch. There is even a hitch that all you do is pull a handle under your bed beside the tire and the ball drops down flush with the bed. I got an over size toolbox for my truck That worked with the GN and would hold 4 western saddles, might work with a couple tree stands.

 

[Treesanddust]

Maybe another option would be to find a used cutter to leave at the property and haul only the tractor back and forth.

 

[dodge man]

Maybe another option would be to find a used cutter to leave at the property and haul only the tractor back and forth.

I was thinking along the same lines, since its the cutter that makes his rig so long.

 

[Soundguy]

i'd either get a cheap dedicated tractor and mower for the property.. or leave the large mower over there and just haul the tractor onthe trailer you have... unless you want to loose the topper.

I prefer GN.. you can get a pop up or flip over ball.. easier to mess with than the 5th wheel adapter.. with the gn.. the ball goes down and you have a bed back in 1 minute. the 5th wheel adapter weighs a ton and takes up the bed..

 

[saltbranch]

Is that 26' with your bucket rolled all the way down? I have a Case 485 with FEL and it has a little longer wheeel base than the Kabota. I can haul mine with the bucket rolled all the way down, bumped against the front of my 20' trailer with my 7' shredder and disc legally. you are allowed 4' overhang by DOT. It is also possible to buy 22' and 24' bumper trailers around here, might be worth lookin into? Here are couple of pics, one showing it with the disc on.View attachment 280515
Weight distribution might be an issue, but mine pulls good.Not the best pic to illustrate since I have my forks on the bucket and the bucket is sitting up high, but I can do it with bucket on the trailer floor and be legal...just under the 4' mark overhang.

 

[saltbranch]

Sockwell, this is a cut from the Alabama DOT website for their overhang Regs, looks like in the state of Alabama you are allowed 5' of overhang.

No other vehicle operated on a highway shall carry
any load extending more than a total of five feet beyond both the front and rear, inclusive, of the
vehicle

Link to the webiste, see page 4-14 about 1/2 way down
http://www.dot.state.al.us/maweb/doc/Title32Chapter9.pdf

Good luck on your decision. I am in the crowd of gooseneck lovers, just bought a new 20'er. They pull so much easier and are more forgiving on load distribution over a bumper pull. I like the G/N over 5th wheel due to taking up less bed space, easier to remove ball etc. For the small stuff I like my bumper pull

 

[Diamondpilot]

The main advantage of a 5th wheel is ease of hitching up. The main advantage of a GN is the articulation is greater than a 5th wheel. (works much better without binding on uneven ground).

As for a GN or 5th wheel its true you can turn the truck sharper to the trailer but as far as making a turn the BP is better. It more closely follows the path of the truck towing it while a GN/5th will turn inside it. Just watch any semi.

Chris

 

[Soundguy]

i like backing a 5thwhl or gn way better than bp if it is close quarters..

 

[powerstroke444e]

I have both gooseneck and bumper pull trailers and like pulling the gooseneck. It is 30' and is almost effortless to pull other than its a little long. But down open road its great. In tight spots it takes a little more time but it ussualy fits. I pull a 23' bumper trailer behind my f450 and it pulls fine but just feels like more work to pull than my 30' gooseneck which is 3k heavier.

 

[Sockwell]

Thanks for all the replies, guys. In most cases, you've confirmed what I was thinking. I pretty much coming to the conclusion that the two best answers, if I want to take the larger tractor, are to either:
A. Buy a used brush cutter and leave it at the property, hauling the tractor when needed, or
B. Make two trips at the start and end of the planting season; one trip to take/bring back the cutter and one trip to take/bring back the tractor.

Either of these options is cheaper than buying another trailer and hitch and will allow the shell to be left on the truck.

I will have to look at the 20' trailer again, but I had already thought about letting the cutter hang off the back. However, the trailer has ramps and I don't think they are removable. I think I would have to make longer bars to keep the ramps up when traveling and probably remove the cutter tail wheels. Even then, it's questionable whether the cutter would fit without hitting the ramps.

Again, thanks for the help.

 

[Soundguy]

I have both gooseneck and bumper pull trailers and like pulling the gooseneck. It is 30' and is almost effortless to pull other than its a little long. But down open road its great. In tight spots it takes a little more time but it ussualy fits. I pull a 23' bumper trailer behind my f450 and it pulls fine but just feels like more work to pull than my 30' gooseneck which is 3k heavier.

i know if i pull bumperpull.. i have to be way more carefull with load ballancing.

on my gn.. i can get sloppy and part just about anywhere and have a good ride

 

[powerstroke444e]

i know if i pull bumperpull.. i have to be way more carefull with load ballancing.

on my gn.. i can get sloppy and part just about anywhere and have a good ride

That is the big difference, as I usually haul my trencher and backhoe at same time, but many times if I unload one I leave the other on and it don't affect the handling at all.

 

[Rara Avis]

i know if i pull bumperpull.. i have to be way more carefull with load ballancing.

on my gn.. i can get sloppy and part just about anywhere and have a good ride

And a 5th wheel allows for an even more stable ride with an unbalanced load than a GN...

 

[Soundguy]

how so? given an equal geometry trailer.

say I'm heading down the interstate with a load on my bumper, gn, and 5th wheel.

load is too forward onthe bumper pull making front light and squirely.

ont he gn, likely fine / unnoticeable.

how would the 5th wheel improve upon 'fine' ?

just curious... as the mount location is identical.. and thus you have the trailer deck load suspended between rear tires and the samel length hitch point on the tow vehicle ??

 

[B Hoofed]

I just bought a 25' gooseneck trailer to haul my Kubota M6040. The trailer has a 20' deck plus a 5' dovetail section. My trailer has flipover ramps that lie flat on the dovetail. If I have the loader and a 7' rotary cutter on the tractor I have to raise the loader and pull forward so that the loader is over the gooseneck, in order to have enough room to lay the ramps on the dovetail. I then back up and put the cutter down on top of the ramps. It all fits, but just barely. The trailer is maxed out at it's 14k capacity with that load. I would be happier if I had some weight capacity left, because I don't like how the tires bulge with the weight. I think the L5740 is a bit lighter than the M6040, but make sure the trailer will have enough capacity for the weight of the tractor plus loader and cutter. You may need airbags on the F-250 to handle the pin weight of the trailer (will probably be at least 20% of the loaded trailer weight, which may be over what the 250 can handle without excessive sagging).

One thing I don't like about my trailer is that the dovetail really drags when you go in or out of a driveway with a steep hill. It's worse because I have an F-350 SRW, which is a couple of inches higher than your F-250. Because of our hilly driveway I have to have the gooseneck sleeve adjusted pretty high so the trailer doesn't pinch on the tailgate or bed rails, which makes the dovetail drag even more. You'll be fine if it's flat where you live, but you may be unhappy if you have steep driveways to negotiate. I think different trailers have different clearances both at the back of the dovetail and also under the gooseneck section, so it pays to investigate more carefully than I did. Some trailers have the axles further apart, which puts the second axle closer to the dovetail, which may help with dragging.

Stability towing the tractor is great with the gooseneck. I towed it 150 miles a couple of weeks ago and couldn't complain at all how it handled.

 

[saltbranch]

I am with Soundguy on the 5th wheel vs. G/N. there is no difference . The only difference is in side loads or off camber situations like going through a ditch at angle etc. A strong side wind with a top heavy load that has a lot of weight to the front will lean with a gooseneck. Example I was hauling a 35' class A RV on a my 40' G/N from Florida to Mississippi, hit a storm in Ms with 60 plus MPH winds. Now that's an experience that will stripe your boxers for sure. I hit the first exit, parked dropped my landing gear and waited that one out. Thats why most of your RV pullers run the 5th wheel setup for the most part. Now to the off camber part, most of us are hauling tractors and ag related stuff on this forum so side wind loads are not really an issue. Ever seen a 18 wheeler that made a bad turn and dropped his trailer off in a ditch and the caused the truck to lay over? Thats the 5th wheel, no give side to side like a G/N on the flip side a G/N could be easier to just lay the trailer /load over in an off/camber situation..common sense and experience is the key . Good or bad its up to you. Both hitches have learning curves on how and what you can/cant do. The 5th wheels are easier to hook up, dont have jack it above the ball and be pretty much dead on when hooking up. The 5th wheel has a lot more moving parts to check/replace when worn out vs. the G/N. The G/N is a cost effective coupler VS the 5th Wheel, meaning you get more capacity for your $$ in the initial install and maintenance. Another option is the inverted 5th whee setupl, but no real advantage, unless you have a flatbed on the truck.

 

[AGRIMAN]

I agree but will also add this. I have a 36' 5th wheel RV with 4 slides. I have no idea what it tops out at fully loaded (probably don't want to know). It will squat my 250 a little over 2'' when loaded.

Since I also have two other GN trailers there's no way I was going to mess with a 5th wheel hitch. I had a adapter built that converse the 5th wheel back to a GN. Even with the 7'' offset it pulls and handles very good.

Its wider than the truck so you do have to watch it close if you are crossing uneven ground as it will hit the bed.