i want to add a dove tail to my 14 ft trailer

[JimC]

Has anyone added a dove tail to their trailer, I want to make it easier to load my BX2200 and backhoe with out having the ramps so long.
What angle would be best?

 

[Defective]

What kind of terrain will you be pulling the trailer across?

 

[JimC]

mostly smooth ground or paved roads, Do not plan on driving it into plowed fields or even rough ground, I want to keep the back high enough to avoid dragging it in the dirt and I can raise the hitch on the truck several inches if I need to.
Jimc

 

[weldingisfun]

mostly smooth ground or paved roads, Do not plan on driving it into plowed fields or even rough ground, I want to keep the back high enough to avoid dragging it in the dirt and I can raise the hitch on the truck several inches if I need to.
Jimc

Won't raising the hitch drop the tail of the trailer even lower?

 

[JimC]

Yeph, I meant that I could raise or lower the receiver several inches

 

[Northstar9126]

Haven't done it myself but thinking about it. My idea is to hook up the loaded trailer, park it on flat ground and line up a piece of wood at the angle I want. Then c-clamp on the wood. mark the angle, then cut the trailer rail. My trailer has I-beam rails so I will cut a wedge shape out that gets wider as it goes toward the ground. Not cut through the top of the I-beam just let it "hinge" down. Weld on a fish plate and hit the road.

 

[2manyrocks]

I think this may be more complex than just cutting the correct angle. When you cut out what's there and substitute something else, it's going to have a different weight that might affect how the trailer handles. It's not so easy to precisely cut the same angles on something that is already built compared to repeatedly cutting the same angle on raw stock in a bandsaw. Unless you get the trailer in a position where it is entirely level in the same plane, you could also end up welding the trailer out of square, etc. And it will be a lot of work cutting and welding.

Intuitively, the other posters seemed to have sensed the difficulty of converting the trailer to a dove tail. So that's why there are these suggestions about alternatives.

Sometimes its cheaper to sell a trailer and go buy what you want.

 

[sandman2234]

Are you wanting to add a dovetail to the trailer, or dovetail the existing bed of the trailer. Makes a LOT of difference, although it wouldn't seem like that little bit would matter. I have, under the direction of 3 different owners, done the "add to" to 3 different sized trailers. A 5x8, a 6x16, and a 8x33 were the basic sizes, and not a single one of them handled like the owner thought it ought to, or even close to the way they did before the add, even empty. In all three cases, I ended up moving the axle position rearward to handle the additional tailweight. I told all three owners it would affect handling, none believed me, all three came back to have it fixed later, although I made the owner of the 33' trailer agree to go for a ride with me before I would release the trailer if he had it done without moving the axle. The ride didn't take long, and he agreed the trailer wouldn't work with the additional weight on the rear. Luckily all I had to do was move the front axle to a point behind the second axle, instead of having to move both axles.
Just dovetailing the existing rear instead of adding to it, doesn't make nearly the difference, so if that is what you have in mind, I say go to it.
David from jax

 

[George2615]

I made a dovetail on a trailer I built about 15 years ago but I built the trailer frame first then did what Northstar said by cutting out a vee on each side, allow the back to drop to the angle required, then welded plates inside and out over the vee cuts for strength. If you are going to add a dovetail say 3 - 4 feet long to the back of the trailer, you can end up with handling problems as 2manyrocks said. The reasoning is that the axles are located in a position about 60-65% back from the front tongue of the trailer. This is done to allow the trailer to have some tongue weight. If you add the additional weight of a 3-4 foot tail you have essentially placed the axles in the middle of the trailer moving the center of gravity. This additional dovetail weight may counteract the original tongue weight of the trailer which will greatly affect handling while towing. In other words, if you make the trailer longer you may have to relocate the axles back as well.
You may get away with doing this since the weight of your tractor will still be ahead of the axles when loaded giving the tongue weight you need but hauling the trailer empty you may not have enough tongue weight since adding a 3-4' dovetail will add several hundred pounds behind the axles.

 

[Renze]

I made a dovetail on a trailer I built about 15 years ago but I built the trailer frame first then did what Northstar said by cutting out a vee on each side, allow the back to drop to the angle required, then welded plates inside and out over the vee cuts for strength.

That's exactly how we create chassis bends in 5th wheel trailers for years, at the company i work. We V- out the cut, so that the upper flange of the I beam doesnt have to be welded.
Make sure that the rear overhang has enough support when driving up the ramps, such as foldable support legs.