Build your own trailers
- Thread starter Bday
- Start date
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meburdick
Platinum Member
And "here" would be..... ?
timswi
Elite Member
- Joined
- Nov 18, 2008
- Messages
- 4,997
- Location
- Beaver County Pa
- Tractor
- Kubota BX23 TLB, Kubota RTV1100, Kubota Z724 & Polaris RZR 900 Trail
Around here there is no inspection for non braked utility trailers...We do have to buy tags. As far as homemade trailers a vin would be needed so I guess someone would have to look at it. I've stretched utility trailers in the past, but they already had vin's and were registered...Stick welded mostly, but a few were mig'd. Never built one from scratch, just customized them for owners.
Based on what 've seen once you buy the wheels/tires and axles(s) you're already in too deep to build your own. That doesn't include the steel, lights and decking....That's of course if one doesn't have a cheap supply of those materials.
About once a month I see a trailer on the road or CL, built with a Model A or T front axle, bed frame angle or wood for the frame, and water pipe for the tongue.
Makes me nervous to have to follow one.
Bruce
Makes me nervous to have to follow one.
Bruce
Markcuda
Veteran Member
Now that is funnnnny right there.:laughing:
fabsroman
Silver Member
What I think really amazes me the most, is the number of wanna be attorneys dispensing legal advice on chatboards. So, if somebody builds a trailer themselves and it does come apart and hurts or kills somebody, what is the criminal charge going to be? Sort of like maintaining your car yourself and something going wrong. Better yet, like driving an older car and having something go wrong that causes an accident, like a worn out tie rod. Don't get me wrong, I know there is the civil aspect of the matter, like personal injury/wrongful death, but really want to know what the criminal aspect of a trailer breaking and causing an accident is? Want to know all the risks involved in making and using my own trailer.
You guys have me so scared on here right now. Scared to buy a welder, learn how to weld, and build my own trailers and log splitters. Just kidding. lol
Now, instead of making everybody feel like they are too intept to build a trailer, how about offering some advice on how to make sure welds are good (e.g., how to determine if there is adequate penetration, how to prevent burn through, where to go to take classes, other resources like books and websites that are a good place to get information on welding). Better not work on your tractor or farm equipment unless you really know what you are doing. Something could break, launch off at somebody, kill them, and then you are looking at life in prison or the death penalty. lol Just joking, but hopefully you get my point.
Now, the real reason I am reading this thread. I am interested in building my own trailers. Question is, how cost effective is it? I have read that it really isn't, but what about from a quality standpoint? Don't think I have seen any of the Georgia manufacturers using Dexter axles, and that is what I would prefer. Dump trailers are rather expensive too. Anybody know why? Are the hydraulics really that expensive? What if I have family in the auto business, might they be able to get me a discount on steel, etc. What size Mig welder would I need to build a trailer?
You guys have me so scared on here right now. Scared to buy a welder, learn how to weld, and build my own trailers and log splitters. Just kidding. lol
Now, instead of making everybody feel like they are too intept to build a trailer, how about offering some advice on how to make sure welds are good (e.g., how to determine if there is adequate penetration, how to prevent burn through, where to go to take classes, other resources like books and websites that are a good place to get information on welding). Better not work on your tractor or farm equipment unless you really know what you are doing. Something could break, launch off at somebody, kill them, and then you are looking at life in prison or the death penalty. lol Just joking, but hopefully you get my point.
Now, the real reason I am reading this thread. I am interested in building my own trailers. Question is, how cost effective is it? I have read that it really isn't, but what about from a quality standpoint? Don't think I have seen any of the Georgia manufacturers using Dexter axles, and that is what I would prefer. Dump trailers are rather expensive too. Anybody know why? Are the hydraulics really that expensive? What if I have family in the auto business, might they be able to get me a discount on steel, etc. What size Mig welder would I need to build a trailer?
bamboozled
Silver Member
Unless you can get the materials cheaper than dirt (literally), it's not cost effective. Not to mention all of the tools needed, the jigs that you would need to fab up, etc. I would rather build than buy any day of the week, but there is no way I could build my own trailer (open or enclosed) for what I could buy one for.
joshuabardwell
Elite Member
No offense intended, Fabsroman, but questions like this are exactly why people on the Internet respond poorly most times when somebody starts asking about building their own trailer. It's not like you came on here and said, "I have been welding pipe for 20 years, and I have decided I want to build a trailer." You don't even know the first thing, like what thickness metal you will need to use to build a trailer of a given capacity, and what size welder to use to weld that thickness of metal. It's not that people can't home-build trailers because OMG TEH LAWYERZ. It's that 99% of people who ask about building a trailer on the Internet are rank beginners who have not yet even built a welding table or a little shop cart or a BBQ or any of a zillion other projects that do not put life and limb at risk on the public roads--or, in your case, do not even yet own the welder that they would use to build the trailer.
Now, if I have misjudged you, then I apologize. If you are an experienced weldor who just doesn't know much about trailers, then you are the exception to the rule. But now you understand why people react so badly on the Internet when somebody comes along and starts asking basic questions about trailer building. It's because, if you have to ask basic questions about trailer building on the Internet, then you're not qualified to build a trailer. It's not about fear of prosecution or civil action, although that's not out of the question. It's about fear of killing somebody, or maiming them, or wrecking their car. I think we can all agree that those are bad things, to be avoided, even if no legal action results from them.
I'll now answer your question, just to show I'm a nice guy. The size of welder that you will need will depend on the thickness of metal that you want to join. The thickness of metal that you will be joining will depend entirely on the type and size of trailer that you're building. Before you can really answer the question about the thickness of the metal, you'll need to get a set of plans, and the plans will specify the material to use to build the trailer. I think that you would probably be safe getting a MIG welder in the 160A range, which should handle up to about 3/8" material. However, it's usually the case that manufacturer's specifications are a little bit "optimistic" on the single-pass material thickness, so you might be happier stepping up to the 200A range, which gets you to 1/2" material thickness, and which should do anything you will need to do on a trailer. Another advantage of a higher-output welder will be higher duty cycle at lower outputs--in other words, you will get better duty cycle running a 200A welder at 160A than you will running a 160A welder at 160A.
meburdick
Platinum Member
Yes, you're going to run into the wanna-be's. And you're also going to get folks that have various industry experience that will tell you that manufacturing something has risks. When you take that item that you've built and use it in a way that there is the potential to harm another person or their property, then you need to be considerate of that. If you build a trailer, and use it, and it fails, and that failure leads to another person's death, and the attorney on "their side" discovers (directly or via police investigation) the root cause, then you will be charged with some form of homicide. Yes, it's a lot of "ifs". Make your own decision, but be prepared to deal with the consequences if all of those "ifs" end up becoming realities. No one is playing lawyer when they try and inform you of the risks that are out there.
Define "maintenance". And then be clear about who is actually doing the work. Changing the oil is DIY, putting on new tires and balancing them is typically not. Anything and everything that has to do with the stability of the vehicle on the road that one does themself exposes them to liability if there is an accident that is directly the result of doing that work.
Actually, if you are involved in an accident that the root cause can be determined to be work that you performed and did incorrectly, you are liable.
ALL of the risks involved with making and using your own trailer INCLUDES the POTENTIAL liability of civil and criminal litigation if you are involved in an accident of any kind. Some of that liability is as basic as your insurance company refusing to pay to repair the rear end of your tow vehicle if a bad weld on the tongue causes the trailer to break free and it slams into the tow vehicle while you are trying to brake.
Here's your advice... Take a welding class. Go find some fabrication shops that would be willing to teach you about fabrication in exchange for helping around the shop. Research the kinds of trailers that you might buy if you didn't build it so you understand the designs, the materials, the weight ratings, etc. Research the DMV requirements for your state and the Federal requirements as well so you can incorporate them into the design. Talk to your insurance agent (not the carrier - the agent, and if you don't have one, get one) about what is involved in getting a home-made trailer insured.
For welding, practice, practice, practice. Overbuild (no one has ever had a problem because their trailer was "too strong"). Start small - a utility trailer, not a 7x22 enclosed toy hauler. Buy quality materials to work with.
Dump trailers are more expensive partly because of the hydraulics, and partly because they have to be designed and built more rigid at the frame because the body is not an integral part of the structure (for rigidity).
Building your own trailer does not save you money if you're simply trying to copy a design from a manufacturer. If, however, you would heavily modify a manufacturer's design with add-ons or upgrades, then building your own MAY save you a few dollars. The biggest advantages to a DIY build are satisfaction of an accomplishment and building EXACTLY what you want in a trailer.