16'/18' Car Hauler decks

[earljr59]

My 1996 has diamond plate steel,has been fine and isnt any slicker than my wood floored trailers.My newer 2007 model has the pine floor and already needs new boards.I have to decide between treated or sawmill oak that I know will last. Price is about the same either way.And yes I drag my dovetail every now and then,but it does not hurt anything.Easier dragging tail than me dragging longer,heavier ramps. If I were to buy a floor above the wheels it would have a dovetail for sure,to keep the ramps as short as possible.

 

[clemsonfor]

My 1996 has diamond plate steel,has been fine and isnt any slicker than my wood floored trailers.My newer 2007 model has the pine floor and already needs new boards.I have to decide between treated or sawmill oak that I know will last. Price is about the same either way.And yes I drag my dovetail every now and then,but it does not hurt anything.Easier dragging tail than me dragging longer,heavier ramps. If I were to buy a floor above the wheels it would have a dovetail for sure,to keep the ramps as short as possible.

You must not have had a treated floor on it the first time? Or either you store it with a pile of dirt on it or let the leaves pile up 2 feet deep on it. There is no way treated wood will or should rot i that time! I got mine in 2009 and its no where near rotting in the next 2 years. And id say all but 4-6 months mine has been out in the weather.

 

[whistlepig]

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.

Weather has always worn my flat bed trailers out before use did. Trailers don't seem to do well outdoors. My horse trailers being the exception. I finally have a barn big enough to store my flat bed trailer inside. I wouldn't consider a metal floor as it would be too slick. I have had two flat bed trailers and presently own 16' beaver tail trailer. I like the beaver tail better because it's safer to load. I don't have a tail dragging problem. The only disadvantage to a beaver tail is when hauling hay. As far as weight distribution that is determined where you position the tractor when you load it. Too far forward and too much weight on the truck. Too far back and it can cause the truck and trailer to whip. A 16 footer should give you enough length to position a tractor your size for best weight distribution.

 

[Soundguy]

paint the treated wood deck with asphalt fence paint.

 

[earljr59]

Clemsonfor,I guess when this trailer was built they must have used cheaper untreated boards and painted them when they painted the trailer.The trailer sat in the guys pasture year round since he hauled his new tractor home. it may have 200 miles on it he said.Looked good untill I started using it and seemed to have places of rot.I had to nail plywood on to hold my tractor untill I get the new floor on.I know how oak roughcut will last,but will need bolted down.I have never had a treated board floor,surely it would last quite a while.The floor on it is not bolted, just flat steel across each end.

 

[wh22366]

Every couple of years I wash down the PT lumber on my front porch and retreat it with a waterproof stain. It's 16 years old and still solid. Since I buy a 5 gallon pail to do the deed and have half the pail left over, I do the same for the floor and rack sides of my 15-year-old utility trailer and the 18' hemlock deck of my equipment trailer. I don't plan to ever replace that deck as long as I can keep it protected.

 

[whistlepig]

Every couple of years I wash down the PT lumber on my front porch and retreat it with a waterproof stain. It's 16 years old and still solid. Since I buy a 5 gallon pail to do the deed and have half the pail left over, I do the same for the floor and rack sides of my 15-year-old utility trailer and the 18' hemlock deck of my equipment trailer. I don't plan to ever replace that deck as long as I can keep it protected.

I do this also. Makes a huge difference on the life of the wood on the trailer floor.

 

[deepNdirt]

let me add this one more bit of info concerning using a flatbed trailer, actually its Kinda more of a story than info when I sold my CUT Kubota the man showed up with a Barrowed very heavy duty built 20 ft flatbed trailer, the kind you see painted yellow and might see with a Heavy skid loader or sort, the deck must have set 2 1/2 feet off ground level,
it had looked to be 6ft ramps,

The buyer climbed aboard the Kubota and started up the ramps all was well so far , Now I must note: I sold the tractor with a Brush cutter and he test it out on flat ground with no front lifting problems.... as he topped the ramps the front wheels came up and there he was with the front of the tractor balanced in mid air, He had the clutch in and the brakes applied litterly scared to move...........
Because of the angle of the ramps he had set the brush cutter to lift as far as it could go , it was luck that I had climbed up on the trailer moments before to help guide him up, after a few seconds I could see the front wasn't coming back down on its own and I was afraid it might head over backwords at first I was reluctant but i went ahead and jumped up on the front bumper and brought the tractor back down,

OK! I'm sure Loading the tractor might not have been a problem if had ballast on the front, But then again who could say how much ballast would have been needed? My 230lb barely brought it back down while being in the angle it was in,
Now when the tractor was out flat level on the ground there was no indication of the front ever coming up, although once the tractor reached a certain angle on the ramps its weight shift to the rear causing the front to lift once the wheels went over the top of the ramp,
Whether or not this would have happen with a Dovetail trailer I couldn't be 100% certain, But I would think that perhaps the chances would be lesser on a shallower angle of a dovetail and of a more leveled out ramp just saying

Incidentally in fear of the buyer once getting home unloading the tractor and possibly injuring/Killing himself, I went ahead and threw in a Chunk of R/R track I used for ballast, although never did hear if he got it unloaded safely or not
End of story

 

[kenmac]

my 20' trailer is metal with 2' dove tail.Sometimes I scrape sometimes I don't. My 6' long ramps are in the rear of the trailer. I like the metal floor. I have a wood floor on my 14' single axle trailer. Sure can't slide things as easy on the wood as you can the metal. Which could be a good thing or a bad thing

 

[whistlepig]

I have on of these. It's a 16 footer car hauler with a beaver tail. It has removable side rails. It is powder coat painted with a PT wood floor. After 4 years of wear and tear I am a true believer in the powder coat paint. Runs about $500.00 to $600.00 more than the generic trailers. It's a very solid trailer.PJ Trailers - Manufacturer of top quality Dump Trailers, Utility Trailers, Gooseneck Trailers, Deckovers, ATV Trailers, Tilts, Flatbeds, & Carhaulers