Help me pick the right trailer

George2615 · Jul 14, 2006

You said you are looking at H&H trailers. I bought one last Sept. and really like it. I bought the 20' x 83" between the fenders. It has removable fenders for easier side loading, tilt bed (no ramps needed), brakes on both axles, DOT lighting pkg. I added an electric hydraulic unit and cylinder and a winch.
I would go for the electric brake trailer. You can buy cheap electric controllers that work just fine and are easy to install in your truck at Walmart, TSC etc. You won't need that big a trailer for your GC2310. My neighbor just bought the same machine and he's also looking for a trailer to haul his.

RollTideRam · Jul 14, 2006

Also remember that the hauling capacity will not be 3500#'s. Your tractor plus the weight of the trailer will be cutting it close. I haul my JD 2530 on a 6.5 x 12 trailer with just the mmm. My trailer is rated for 2800# and my load is about 2600#'s. If I have the loader on, then I move up to my 18' car hauler. JC

jayhaitch · Jul 14, 2006

Interesting points raised so far.

Let me clarify a bit: I doubt the Mrs. will be towing the tractor with the Pacifica, but more like general utility trailer use. The tandem axle H&H is around 1250 lbs, leaving 2250 lbs of load. Any soil/mulch/sand/tractor duties are mine with the Expedition, 6900 lb towing capacity.

Yes, I agree tandem is better for all the sited reasons. I was strongly leaning that way before starting to look, so this only confirms what I thought. Tandem axle it is.

RayH: Tell me more about Prodigy brake controllers. You mean I don't have to have a hard wired permanently mounted ugly knee whacking box sticking under the dash? How do these get wired? You mean wires from the electrical connector get run under the car, or inside the car? How does the Prodigy controller mount to be removable? It's not so much the cost but more the hassle factor, and the ugly/knee whacking/drilling holes in the new car reasons I was wanting surge brakes.

MrJimi, or should I say rebbe

? I hear you about stuff filling the space available. I'll be able to store the trailer in my garage for a while, but eventually vehicles will need the spot, so the trailer will get stored outside under a tarp. I'm trying to find the smallest I can get away with for storage reasons, but I understand bigger is better.

To all: $1200-1500 for a tandex axle trailer? "They are around $1,500 here in Florida and they should be about the same at you end of the world" MY QUOTE IS FOR Can$4395.00!!!!!!!!!! This is for both a 5x14 or 8x14 tandem axle 7000lb surge braked trailer, plus $200 for a split ramp gate and $75 for teardrop fenders. We have 13% sales tax here (7% provincial and now 6% federal sales taxes), so my total cost for this would be $5277.10!!!! The dealer is also a rural Ford dealer, and says he sells about 7 trailers a week! The Canadian dollar is around 90cents US, so Can$5277.10=US$4749. How the heck do you get them for so cheap?

RayH · Jul 15, 2006

jayhaitch said:
RayH: Tell me more about Prodigy brake controllers. You mean I don't have to have a hard wired permanently mounted ugly knee whacking box sticking under the dash? How do these get wired? You mean wires from the electrical connector get run under the car, or inside the car? How does the Prodigy controller mount to be removable? It's not so much the cost but more the hassle factor, and the ugly/knee whacking/drilling holes in the new car reasons I was wanting surge brakes.

Prodigy by Tekonsha http://www.tekonsha.com/prodig.html
I just used it as an example. It does have to be hard wired. It also needs to be mounted someplace. The advantages the Prodigy has over most controllers is that it has a plug in the back that can be easily unplugged to be removed and it is self leveling, which means that if you take it from one vehicle to another, its as easy as sliding it in the mount and plugging it in to the wiring harness. With most controllers you have to relevel them manually if you change the angle they are mounted at. As far as wiring it, you hard wire it to a 12 volt source, then to the brake light circuit with a "T" splice, run a ground wire and run a wire to the trailer plug at the rear. The Prodigy is more forgiving than most as far as mounting locations. It can be mounted up to something like 70* from horizontal. The Prodigy does electronically self level itself every couple seconds but the mount would still have to be secure, something like just laying the controller on the center console wouldnt really be an option. There are two mounts for the Prodigy. One is a standard steel mount that comes with most CBs and other controllers. The other is plastic and the controller just slides in and out of it. Both stay in the vehicle when the controller is removed though and both screw into the dash, or wherever you mount it, although most vehicles already have various holes on the underside of the dash support that can be used to mount stuff.
Im not a fan of surge brakes but if hard wiring the controller and mounting the controller are deal killers, than surge brakes are your only option and they are better than nothing.

I wish I could find these $1200-$1500 tandem trailers people speak of. The best I can do around here for a 7000lbs, tandem with electric brakes on both axles is about $1900-$2000

roxynoodle · Jul 15, 2006

For $1200 I got only one brake axle. Heavy duty ramps were an additional $80 and boy are they heavy! I didn't want a gate though because I have seen them get bent from tractor weight. I found mine through Auto & RV, which is a free trader magazine. There were several trailer dealers advertised, so I looked at the ads, called some to compare what I was getting for the money, then went and bought one. I was initially trying to find a good used trailer, but they weren't exactly cheaper. I don't know how feasible it would be to buy one and have it shipped, but if it comes out significantly cheaper, maybe you should consider that option? I have bought any number of things because either I could not find it locally or it was still a lot cheaper including shipping. I bought a new hardwood floor for my kitchen from Wisconsin and it was nicer and cheaper than what I could find locally. I also bought a tin ceiling for the kitchen from Florida for the same reason.

kentrodngun · Jul 15, 2006

I have the Prodigy controller too. Great item. My truck came with a tow package and a four wire plug in the glove box. I spliced the Prodigy plug on one end, plugged the other end into the empty harness socket under the dash, mounted the controller "receiver" with two screws and was done. Simple

. To tow, just plug in the controller, snap it into the receiver and go.
One word of advice though (lesson learned) - don't leave the controller plugged in all the time. Prodigy gives you a nice holster / bag to store it and you can put it in the glove box after you're done towing. I left mine plugged in and when I got one of those new fangled vehicle inspections done by computer, I got hit for an extra charge for 30 minutes labor (at $60 per hour). It seems the controller being connected prevented the computer from getting the proper readings. It took the mechanic 30 minutes to figure out what the problem was and I got to foot the bill. Thought this was a good one to share.
Concerning trailer pricing, try E-Bay. The prices are generally good but the shipping kills most of the savings unless you're close enough to pick up. I bought mine used and with a little elbow grease and some reasonable replacement parts, I got a functional trailer at a low cost.

kevinj · Jul 15, 2006

jayhaitch said:
The tandem axle H&H is around 1250 lbs, leaving 2250 lbs of load.

That seems light for a tandem trailer. My last two 7000# trailers weighed about 2000# with one axle brakes.

kentrodngun · Jul 15, 2006

kevinj said:
That seems light for a tandem trailer. My last two 7000# trailers weighed about 2000# with one axle brakes.

Had my 7000 lb tandem axle landscaping trailer officially weighed at the station. It has brakes on all four wheels and tipped the scales at 1,760 lbs.

jayhaitch · Jul 15, 2006

My mistake. The 1250 lbs was for the single axle. Wife and Pacifica are definitely not going to tow the tractor now.

I test drove an F250 4x4 diesel crew cab long box. I was surprised at the power and comfortable ride, but the turning circle......... I wish they make diesel SUV's.

So tanden axle it is. I'll rethink electric vs surge brakes. Longer is better. A 16 ft H&H allows the slide in ramps. How are these to handle? Heavy? Awkward? Are they easier to drive on than a flip down gate?

roxynoodle · Jul 15, 2006

At 2600lbs of tractor a gate would probably handle it but it might bend. Also, the one piece gates are pretty darn heavy too. If you go with a gate you might want the 2 piece. But, okay, I'm a woman so a man might not mind the one piece gate so much. I didn't like anything that heavy swinging down on me. I bought seperate steel ramps with my trailer. They are heavy but I can carry them. The disadvantage is that there is nowhere on the trailer to store them. They don't stand up on the end or slide underneath. But, I bought a $1200 trailer, not a $1900+ trailer so I have to live with that. One thing I didn't realize though until I began driving it home is that when in my truck I couldn't see the trailer. Last time I had used a flat bed it was an equipment trailer with the ramps standing up on the back. So I had to back it carefully when I got it home. I have since solved that issue by adding 2 foot sides and leaving the end support board up 3 feet. Now I can see all of it! I didn't figure trying those reflectors on stands or bike flags would work since those aren't meant to go 60mph down the highway. I needed a little bit of a side anyways to make the trailer more useful for hauling garbage to the dump or getting lumber or anything else that could slide out. When you look at trailers hopefully the dealer will know if gates would stand up to your tractor and you can try the gate yourself to decide if it is too heavy to deal with on a regular basis. To me, the one piece gates were too heavy. One dealer did say they could add steel to reinforce the gate(s) where the tractor would be driving on it. Of course that would make it even heavier.