Car hauler vs landscape utility

[PA452]

I'm thinking on a lot of them I'd have to add D-rings too. I was looking at the Big Tex 60SP online, looks like it probably doesn't have stake pockets either.

Now I have my eye on a PJ U7 or U8 landscape utility. Seems to have some well thought out features, and I really like that the sides are removable. I think ordinarily I'll prefer the sides on, but it's nice to know I can remove them if I'm in a situation where they will be in the way.

One decision I have to make on this one, 77" or 83" wide. I'll never haul a car on it, so that's not an issue. The only things I can see loading that could be an issue are some mower decks. The one I expect to load and haul for sure though is a 5' mower deck under my BX23. It's 72.6" wide, so it doesn't leave me with much play on each side, although that's not figuring in lifting up the chute which will get me some space. Bottom line, it's doable. My parents and a friend each have 6' mower decks; I'd like to be able to move theirs too but really can't imagine why I would ever need to. If for some reason the day comes when we want to, we can always just haul the mower deck off the tractor. I figure 77" is more maneuverable than 83", but honestly the bigger reason I'm looking at the 77" is I can get it for about $500-600 cheaper right now. I think for that, it's probably worth a slightly narrower bed.

 

[MossRoad]

You think you won't haul a car on it.... :laughing:

I didn't think I would, either.... until our kid's car broke, or my truck broke, or a friend wanted to bring home a car he bought at an auction, or someone wants a bigger tractor.....

 

[PA452]

Haha, I feel confident about that. I have never in my life thought to myself I wish I had the means to haul a car. Coincidentally, my parents just the other day had to have their car hauled to a dealer for service about 30 miles away. Charge was $80. For the rare occasion that may happen, I could live with that charge. Or, if I'm not in a hurry, I have a friend who can get access to a tilt-bed truck if he has advanced notice.

This thing may end up hauling about anything else you can think of, but I highly doubt I'll ever need to haul a car.

 

[MossRoad]

When that forest green '69 Yenko 427 Nova barn find comes up.... you'll regret it. :laughing:

 

[MossRoad]

But in all seriousness... I see your point. Most people have towing. And if they're out on the road in a dead car, they have a cell phone, and that's a lot easier, faster and safer to call a tow truck.

 

[4570Man]

I've had to haul 2 broke down trucks this week. I didn't plan on hauling either of them, but with only a Tacoma I'd probably get the lighter 6,000 pound trailer. You could easily overload your tow vehicle and keep the trailer axel weight under 6,000 pounds.

 

[Goose69]

When I had this decision, I chose the car hauler. It's 16' + 2' dovetail.
. Decision was easy based on 3 things
1. hauler was readily available with axle brakes, since I tow with a beater 2001 Chevy Tahoe, I wanted brakes on my trailer.
2. No fixed sides, allows pallets, or other items to be loaded and unloaded with a fork truck or pallet forks on the tractor from the side of the trailer.
.3. Cost vs. trailer capacity, I only paid $150 more for my hauler than I would have for a 16' landscape trailer with a tailgate.

..I added removable side boards And front board to haul mulch and dirt, and can take them off whenever I want.. no regrets at all with my choice. I would buy the same trailer over again

 

[civilian]

I'm thinking on a lot of them I'd have to add D-rings too. I was looking at the Big Tex 60SP online, looks like it probably doesn't have stake pockets either.

Now I have my eye on a PJ U7 or U8 landscape utility. Seems to have some well thought out features, and I really like that the sides are removable. I think ordinarily I'll prefer the sides on, but it's nice to know I can remove them if I'm in a situation where they will be in the way.

One decision I have to make on this one, 77" or 83" wide. I'll never haul a car on it, so that's not an issue. The only things I can see loading that could be an issue are some mower decks. The one I expect to load and haul for sure though is a 5' mower deck under my BX23. It's 72.6" wide, so it doesn't leave me with much play on each side, although that's not figuring in lifting up the chute which will get me some space. Bottom line, it's doable. My parents and a friend each have 6' mower decks; I'd like to be able to move theirs too but really can't imagine why I would ever need to. If for some reason the day comes when we want to, we can always just haul the mower deck off the tractor. I figure 77" is more maneuverable than 83", but honestly the bigger reason I'm looking at the 77" is I can get it for about $500-600 cheaper right now. I think for that, it's probably worth a slightly narrower bed.

My 3 board utility trailer is about 80" inside. With the 60" mower deck and the bagger blower which sits further out, it is tight loading it into the trailer. Jon

 

[PA452]

Good info, thanks. So your bagger blower sits out wider than the mower deck? How much would you guess it adds to the overall width? I don't have a bagger. I have the dimensions of my mower from the manual, but I need to go measure it sometime soon.

 

[boggen]

found a used custom made car hauler for a stock car. metal bottom, and extra metal welded on the sides, with ramps that go right up and over the wheel wells and then back down. and the axles set on top of the leaf springs. end result top of the deck is mid 3/4 up my shin for stepping height.

it is not a "deck over" but darn near a deck over. with the extra metal width on the sides and the ramps on both sides of the wheel wells.

examples
hauling tree limbs, i can load it up, then unloading, and down to the last few branches scattered across the trailer. i end up stepping up and down a few times picking stuff up. and for the larger chunks say 6" diameter i can still step up and walk across pickup, and then walk back across and down. with a easy step all the way around the trailer.

i end up cutting some of the 3" to 8" logs a bit to long for weight. and have tossed logs end over end to get one side of log just up on trailer, and swung other end up on trailer. if deck height was any taller. i would be back out there cutting the logs up more.

i have built some sides out of 2x4's i want to say 6 feet high. that was special cause use for some hard board styrofoam, and needing to grab some limbs that i needed to actually get on the road and take else were. little more effort to build the sides but good enough with some extra bracing.

if i need dirt,rock,etc... normally i need so much, i end needing a tandem dump truck to delivered, vs trying to deal with car hauler trailer. end result never built up short sides for it. and never really needed any short sides for it.

the ramps for it are i want to say at least 8 feet might be 10 foot ramps. there to long and heavy to constantly carry around, and been in shed for nearly entire time i have had trailer.

the issues i have with deck setting so low... is license plate, and rear lights on it. more so rear lights. i have busted a couple red covers on it. and licence plate has been re-bent to half way correct shape a few times.

my primary issue has been due to custom made, not enough tie down spots, for either chains and/or straps. this is for both sides, but also the front and back portion of the deck.

i also had to put all wiring in pipe, due to bottom sets so low to ground, and a weed or like snagging some wires. before i did that.

my other issue, i ended up tossing a larger tool box up on the front on the tongue. "ughs" bad mistake. before tool box, trailer was most part perfectly balanced, with very min weight on the tongue so you could easily grab hold and lift up tongue just a little bit to make connection easier to rear of truck. with tool box, just plain forget it. 100lbs plus a few feet and you are just fighting against the lever/fulcrum action and you require a jack and be darn near perfectly aligned.

my other issue. willing to admit, i left jack down 3 maybe 4 times. and tried to drive off, and/or going through like a ditch area and bottom of jack catching some dirt and digging in. it would be nice if i could pull a "pin" and physically twist the jack 90 degrees for better clearance.

===========
a deck over might be nice, but to high of a step up, well more like seat down and roll over onto your side to get up them.

a deck over, i would want a dove tail. simple matter of trying to drive a vehicle or tractor up on a deck over being so high with shorter ramps. the dove tail makes not worrying about bottoming out the bottom of the car less of a worry. if you have a belly mower on tractor same thing clearance can be tight.

for a NON deck over, i would still want the sides extended to outer edge of the wheel wells. so i have that extra few inches on the side. (lots of extra space) it may not seem like much, but has been very important to me.

having guard rails on a trailer like a landscape trailer. i would most likely end up chopping them off. for simple fact i am lazy and not want to constantly get on trailer from the rear. or trying to slip and fall and bust myself up trying to climb over a guard rail. also i tend to lift stuff i most likely should not be trying to lift personally and be using some sort of machinery. and the guard rails would be right there in the way of that.

i do not constantly haul cars/trucks/tractors. it is limbs, trips to local hardware stores, furniture for home or family,

you circumstances and uses may be completely different than my own.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

We've had both a landscape utility trailer and both enclosed and flat bed car trailers. The benefit of the lighter utility trailer is it's easier to tow with a lighter tow vehicle. The downsides are, that rear tailgate ramp is a huge wind deflector that will kill power and mpg of your tow vehicle at highway speeds. I was shocked at the difference it made when I towed ours behind my wife's 6 cyl Toyota 4Runner. Really only noticed it at 60+ mph on the interstate. Hardly any difference when pulled behind my old big block Dodge powerwagon, but it was a huge drain on power to that Toy 6 cyl.

The rear ramp tailgate is handy for loading and unloading atv's, quads, and riding mowers. The rest of the time, it seemed to be in the way (at least to me), and you had to put a ratchet strap from the ramp to the frame on both sides when going down the road or the rattling of the tailgate was irritating. Those trailer types are lightly constructed, light frames and axles, and usually not equipped with trailer brakes on the lightest ones. The ones I've seen that have been in service a long time seem to have plenty of frame repairs/rewelds. The upper railing is part of the frame's support, and a cracked upright will cause a bunch more flex in the trailer frame (causing other issues). I classify these types of trailers as strictly "lightest duty", for the guy that maybe halls one or two sheets of plywood a year, and has a small riding tractor with maybe a bagger and a push mower to haul around.

Our 18' car trailer is built like a brick outhouse. It's framed like a backhoe trailer, 83" wide full wood flat deck, weighs 1900 lbs with a 8K gw, has ramps that slide in the ramp boxes at the rear of trailer, no side rails, but a heavy front rail. This trailer gets the most use, as it is the most versatile. It actually pulls better behind wife's 4Runner than the smaller utility trailer does. My Ford superduty doesn't even know it's hitched to the back unless I've got something heavy on it. I think the only trailer that would be more versatile is a true "deck over" trailer, so there are no fenders sticking above the deck on the sides. This has been inconvenient when hauling pallets or equipment. I would go flat bed instead of dovetail unless you absolutely NEED the dovetail for a low clearance vehicle. Wastes deck space for hauling things other than cars/wheeled equipment. If I ever replace my 18' car trailer, it will be for a 20-24' deck over.

 

[civilian]

Good info, thanks. So your bagger blower sits out wider than the mower deck? How much would you guess it adds to the overall width? I don't have a bagger. I have the dimensions of my mower from the manual, but I need to go measure it sometime soon.

Based on the manual cover for a GCK60-26BX, used on dad's BX2230 bagger: Looks like chute is widest item on his and looks about width of deflector plate on mower deck. However, my blower, (custom designed) has the blower sitting straight back from discharge chute so the blower edge is 4 - 5" wider. (not available to measure this extra width.) Hope this helps. Jon

 

[Ford850]

I've been casually thinking of a trailer purchase and considered a dump, landscape, utility, and car hauler. I've noticed in this thread and others, the most useful trailer is a car hauler. Even Diamondpilot's favorite trailer, which he called a landscape trailer, is what I would call a car hauler (flat deck, no sides, slide in ramps, 7k).

 

[PA452]

This is why I like the sound of the PJ trailers. Their utilities apparently have removable sides, best of both worlds. At least I hope so. Yet to see one in person, one dealer told me they bolt in, another told me the rails just sit in their own stake pockets and someday will be a rattling nuisance.

 

[AxleHub]

I'm surely not a stranger to open trailers of smaller sizes. . But the time has come I believe to go to a smaller tandem wheel trailer to haul my Massey SCUT. I'm wondering about a couple terms used regarding trailers.

1. I know what a dovetail looks like but I don't understand how they work. If you use slide out and fasten ramps. . How does a dovetail benefit anything? Why is a dovetail any different tan a flat bed with slide out and attach ramps?


2. What is the difference between a flat bed and a follower?

3. Something of interest to me is a tilt trailer that has a pot or two fixed in the front. Is there a name for it and what are it's disadvantages compared to a flatbed with ramps?

4. What are the disadvantages of a galvanized trailer?


I'd love to be able to stay with a single axle in a 3500# size so no licensing in WI., but even in aluminum with 14 foot length and 77 inch wide it seems my payload weight might begetting close to Max and while in all my years of pulling trailers I've never had a blowout . . . The tandem does offer some comfort for an occasional highway haul of 150 miles each direction.

 

[civilian]

I'm surely not a stranger to open trailers of smaller sizes. . But the time has come I believe to go to a smaller tandem wheel trailer to haul my Massey SCUT. I'm wondering about a couple terms used regarding trailers.


I'd love to be able to stay with a single axle in a 3500# size so no licensing in WI., but even in aluminum with 14 foot length and 77 inch wide it seems my payload weight might begetting close to Max and while in all my years of pulling trailers I've never had a blowout . . . The tandem does offer some comfort for an occasional highway haul of 150 miles each direction.

Sure Trac I think makes a single axle 5000 lb trailer. Not sure of the length, though.

Here's one steel sided. http://kelleyscustomtrailers.com/unit/sure-trac-7x12-steel-side/ (Kelley's Custom Trailers is a dealer in northern Michigan)

But, beware of the powder coat paint if you are using the trailer in the winter in Wisconsin. Jon

 

[aczlan]

I'm wondering about a couple terms used regarding trailers.

1. I know what a dovetail looks like but I don't understand how they work. If you use slide out and fasten ramps. . How does a dovetail benefit anything? Why is a dovetail any different tan a flat bed with slide out and attach ramps?

A dovetail makes it like your ramps were longer, so a trailer with 3 foot ramps and a 3 foot dovetail is about the same to drive onto as a trailer with six foot ramps would be.

2. What is the difference between a flat bed and a follower?

I assume you mean between a flatbed and a deck over. A flatbed trailer will usually have open sides but the fenders will stick up taller than the deck ( making it so you cannot load pallets or other things from the side where the wheelwells are). A deck over has the deck level with the top of the fenders.

3. Something of interest to me is a tilt trailer that has a pot or two fixed in the front. Is there a name for it and what are it's disadvantages compared to a flatbed with ramps?

I assume you mean the trailers that have 3 to 6 feet of non-moving deck in front of their tilt deck. The advantage there is you could set implements there and not have to tie them down before you pull the tractor on and get it tied down. If you had a full tilt trailer, any implements that you want put up on the front would have to be completely strapped down before you could tilt the deck down to load or unload the trailer.

4. What are the disadvantages of a galvanized trailer? .

Nasty fumes when you have to weld on it. Otherwise they are very good and are usually more expensive to purchase. If you look, most U-Haul, Budget, etc car haulers are galvanized.

Aaron Z

 

[PA452]

Sure Trac I think makes a single axle 5000 lb trailer. Not sure of the length, though.

Here's one steel sided. http://kelleyscustomtrailers.com/unit/sure-trac-7x12-steel-side/ (Kelley's Custom Trailers is a dealer in northern Michigan)

But, beware of the powder coat paint if you are using the trailer in the winter in Wisconsin. Jon

This worries me. I've heard good and bad things about powder coat, but I pretty much got the point based on what I've read that I'd prefer conventional paint. Really liking the features of the PJ trailer though. I may buy a 77"x16' tandem utility this week.

 

[sdef]

I have a 16', 7k# utility trailer and a 10.4k# equipment trailer, as my tractor hauling needs are greater than yours. The utility trailer has a good quality, moderate duty tailgate that easily supports my 1500 pound UTV's tires without any bending of the steel gate mesh. But I would not want to drive anything much heavier on it. If I were to do this I would lay down a couple 2 x 12 planks over the top of the tailgate when used as a ramp or purchase purpose built ramps to lay over the tail gate for loading heavy wheeled objects.

 

[kenr74]

I have the Big Tex 60CH-14. Wish it was the Big Tex 60CH-16 though. Good trailer for hauling my little Yanmar.

It is a good midweight trailer that hauls enough weight without being too much for a mid size truck to drag around.