16'/18' Car Hauler decks

[homeputter]

I have started looking for a 16' or 18' car hauler to carry my future BX25. Most of the trailers I have looked at have aged wood decking. In Phoenix the sun is death on unprotected wood. None of the trailers I looked at were painted or had like a plywood cover that could be removed when it deteriorated. I realize the wood is pressure treated but it still deteriorates from UV.
I painted the wood deck of my 5'x8' slash hauling trailer and then covered it with 1/2" painted plywood. When the sun ruins the plywood, it will be easy to replace. I learned when my previous 5x8 trailer deck deteriorated and I found out the wood was not easily replaced. Metal end piece had to be cut to remove the wood.

My question is why don't more people try to protect their wood decks.

What does the forum think about metal decks? I have not price new ones, but I am sure they cost more than I want to pay. I missed a nice used one because I was just starting to look at used trailers and was too slow and stupid to drive out and look at it.

Another question is the 2' dovetail type flatbed, that I see a lot of, is it that much easier to load? I was concerned with the back of the trailer scraping when pulling into a driveway or gas station with a little bit of a hump.

Is there any disadvantage of a trailer with a full width tail gate type ramp instead of ramps stored underneath the trailer - other than I hate the look. I have my eye on one that was used once to haul a car 500 miles when the owner moved and now he is selling it.
I assume for the little BX25 almost anything will work but I am think of the future and resale also.

After reading a posting in this forum about used trailers, I will buy a new trailer if I can't find a used one in excellent condition. Although one has to be careful even with new ones. I looked at a new trailer and the dealer said it was rated for 7500lb, but when I checked the tires, each of the 4 tires were only rated for 1320lb max. So the tires could only support 5200lb!
Any input or advice would be appreciated.

 

[Rancher Ed]

Protecting the wood and metal decks, I don't know much about either.

As for the dove tail, you are right, avoid it! On a deck between the fenders like it sounds like you are looking at, it doesn't make much difference for loading as the trailer is already relatively low. (Deckover trailers are a different story) And yes, it makes it more likely to drag, which is already a bit of a problem, at least some times. (We have a 18' and a 20' car trailer with no dove tail and have scraped the back a couple times on them)

The full width flip up gates create a lot of wind drag, so mileage is worse than the same trailer with slide in ramps, and if it is built heavy enough to a tractor or car to drive on, it will most likely need some kind of spring assist to lift it up.


Ed

 

[Blast Chamber]

Regarding your question on wood versus metal decks, I've always had wood but I've heard that metal decks can get very slippery when wet. Maybe you don't get much rain in Arizona, but up here I've had to load in the rain before and it would be no fun on a metal deck.

Also, there have been times when I have needed to fasten temporary wood blocks to the decking to prevent shifting and rolling of vehicles and cargo. Easy to do on wood with screws, not so easy with metal. I also like that wood can be replaced as it wears out from age and wear.

As for the dovetail question, I have an 18' trailer (16' plus 2' tail) and I don't have much problem with the tail dragging. Part of the reason for that is I upgraded my suspension to 6k axles with 3k springs, so the back end of the trailer doesn't sag much unless I have a lot of weight onboard. When loading low riding vehicles (I own a Crossfire) the dovetail does help prevent scraping as the car transitions from the ramps to the deck. I like it, and made up a plywood riser to put on the dovetail whenever I need a full 18-feet of flat deck. Works great.

My ramps were originally designed to store under the trailer, but added diamond plate steel top surfaces to them and they no longer fit so I removed the carry cradles from the bottom of the trailer. I prefer to keep them in the back of my pickup truck anyway to prevent them from being stolen when parking at hotels overnight.

Speaking of UV, make sure you cover the tires when you are not using the trailer or they will dry-rot long before the tread wears out.

 

[deepNdirt]

I am a carpenter and know a little about wood and the preservation treatment of decks, many years in the past the only thing available for the consumer to use was oils/ sealers and stains,
there is now a couple product can be used on a trailer deck, one of them is an older roof type coating that might work well on a trailer deck,
the other is relatively new and I'm eager to try it out on someones deck although it's quite expensive, because of it's price I cannot seem to talk anyone into trying it and most folks don't like the idea of a solid coating on the deck they would simply rather change out the old deck boards and keep using stain sealers,
in case you are interested here is a link to the product,
Miracote - MiraThane 500

http://www.50yeardeckpaint.com/?gclid=CPuf1YyzsawCFYFT7AodOWQfpQ
about your question as if having a dove-tail on a trailer has a benefit ? yes it is a big benefit, anytime you lesson the angle of the ramps the easier it is to load thing, One example has already been mentioned about loading cars,

another example would be: In my case I load extra implements onto the front on the trailer by backing my tractor up the ramps and removing them from the tractor and then of course having do the same in when hooking them back up, Now before when My trailer had a flat deck I could hardly get traction in reverse because of the elevation of the trailer as well as pitch of the ramps, I modified the trailer and lowered the rear by 6" giving it a sort of dove-tail, Therefor leveling out the ramps and have no problems at all backing up onto the trailer,
a consideration of how the tail of a trailer might scrape could be the height of the tongue when connected to the tow vehicle..... if the trailer is towed from a more higher position from the front of course the rear is going to be lower, another key thing would be the location of the axles, I have seen some trailers that have the wheels closer to the rear than others,if only by few inches..... being closer to the rear would make it less susceptible to drag / scrape,
I'm no trailer expert although have owned many over the years and do tow one almost every day, so I have a little common knowledge

 

[Rancher Ed]

I guess I should clarify why I feel the dove tail is useless, as that might make more sense to you guys and help the OP understand his options better.

Most dove tails I have seen lower the ground clearance 4-6" verses a straight deck, closer to 8" if the ramps slide in from the back like I prefer. So you lose basically half your ground clearance.
Most trailers, it seems, come with 5' ramps? If so, that with a 2' dove tail gives you 7' of ramp to get from the ground to the trailer deck height. Our trailer came with 8' ramps, so we have a lower loading angel even if you have a dove tail. I believe they were custom made, but I don't believe they are any heavier than the 5' ramps most trailers come with. Yes, they are kinda heavy, but it isn't a big deal for one person to carry them around or get them ready to use.

So if you really need the lower breakover angel, consider having some longer ramps made as part of the purchase price.

Ed

 

[clemsonfor]

I have a 16ft carhauler. I dont have e brakes but it is an upgrade i plan on doing. I paid 1200 for it new a few years ago, cause i needed one then and did not feel like lookin/driving all over for used. But a decent used one can be had for $800 easy! Mine is a wood deck thats total 16ft and has a dovetail of either 18" or 2 feet? Its already pretty steep loading a tractor with it if you dont have the front cranked way up! And even loaded with my 2000lb ish yanmar and 3 attachements and extra ballast in the 350 lb range i dont drag going into gas stations or restaurants. I have only pulled into 1 driveway with it but it was pretty much just a cement offshoot of the road so its not like a city drive anyway. I do think about the drive and at a gasstation if it looks steep i will try and angle in. Off road i have dragged it but who care you just pull the dirt level! :laughing: I dragged the ruts on a logging road all the way out level with the tail when i had one of my loggers load me up with 8ft logs on the trailer i had logs end to end for 16 foot of total length and had a second level on top! It was way to much weight to pull with my truck. I had to be in 4wd to spin through the mud on the way out with that ancor behind me and had to drive like 45mph on the way home as it was so heavy, the tires were buldged out as well from the weight. I figure it was around 7-8000 lbs. As i pull an easy 5k with the tractor and stuff on it counting the trailer and it felt way heavier than that!


OK sorry for the tangent. As far as the deck i like wood. They can be flipped in 15 years or so for a new side that will look brand new or you can just put new boards in. I sprayed mine down once the boards dried out with an oil/deisel mix of like 40/60. It darkened the wood up. Is slippery when wet at first but not as bad now, water will bead up to a degree as well and they look the same today as 18 months ago! There is a spot in the back that the boards are just oil soaked as my BH use to have a leaky seal in the gearbox and all the left over oil would drain out after i loaded it or untill i unloaded it. That spot is really dark and the water always beads up there, I dont ever expect to have to replace those boards!

 

[Verticaltrx]

Wood vs metal, for a flatbed trailer I would take wood every time. Metal gets very slippery in the rain and snow, blazing hot in the sun, is very loud when dragging chains and binders over it, and you can't nail anything to it.

As far as the wood deteriorating, IDK, I guess that just depends on what you consider deteriorated. I have an old 18' low boy equipment trailer that is over 30yrs old. Been stored outside every day since new. The wood floor (pressure treated 2x6) is very weathered and checked, but still very useable. No rot that I can see.

 

[homeputter]

Thanks for the input. Already covered some things I didn't think about or forgotten. The point about being able to nail into the deck is useful. When I hauled my sisters Kubota T-1460 riding mower in my utility trailer, I nailed sleepers by the tires to make sure it could not roll. That capability is probably enough to make me decide on a wood deck. Since it "never" rains in AZ, loading in the rain is unlikely. When it rains, I take the day off in celebration.

Good discussion about the dove tail. I don't think I want to handle 8' ramps, probably a struggle handling 5'. Maybe a few scrapes is not so bad. Also, good point about the level of your hitch.

Good point about the metal deck heating up. In AZ any metal left in the sun (in the summer) you wouldn't be able to touch in just a few minutes.

Is there an easy way of measuring the weight distribution of the trailer? I could get the entire rig weighed at the sand and gravel place, but I don't know how posters came up with the % of distribution with out a moveable scale to measure the tongue weight.

 

[foreman Etexas]

I have a 18ft dovetail carhauler,if you dont have to worry about ground clearance on what you going to be loading(lowriders) then I wouldnt get the dovetail but with dovetail most of the time you can load stuff without the ramps.The metal deck we have has the diamonds(plate) in it,never have had an issue with it being to slippery(smooth deck I could see that). (If you do get the dovetail make sure liscence plate and lights are mounted on back of fender.The ones in dovetail catch ****!!!

 

[jeffsw6]

Is there an easy way of measuring the weight distribution of the trailer?

A sturdy bathroom scale under the tongue jack will tell you what your tongue weight is. I would like to have one of the Sherline scales for my toolbox but it's about $120 Sherline Trailer Tongue Weight Scale - 2,000-lb Capacity Sherline Tools 5780 so it has not made it up to the top of my wish list yet.

I think truck bed liner would be good for protecting a trailer bed from the elements.

IMO if you are already thinking about nailing things to the bed, maybe you should add some D-rings that you can use to attach ratchet straps or chains.

Also if you get a new trailer, you may notice that most of the high end trailers (Wells Cargo etc) have all LED lights standard now. The cheaper ones usually don't but you can upgrade if you order a custom one. LED lights last practically forever so you probably won't ever have to replace them.