My new equipment trailer...

[Renze]

Redbug, my brother co operates with a tractor and forklift dealer. He sometimes transports forklifts for them with a tractor drawn lowboy slew trailer. I asked him and he said what i assumed, this forklift trailer had crossmembers every 30 cm and was made of 4/6 diamond plate. (4/6 means, 4mm thickness of the base plate, 6mm total thickness)
I will do the same as how it proved to work in practice.

 

[BBB]

One **** of a nice trailer. You are going to be real happy with that. If the deck is slippery, spray it with a bed liner material or some undercoating.

 

[rutwad]

Well, I've been mainly a lurker for the past couple years, hardly posting but learning a ton from all you folks. I have a 7000 lb 16' dovetail trailer which will be too small for the tractor I plan to buy, (another post, later). So after much searching, I had my ultimate trailer made...and for a good price! I just got back from picking her up in Indiana to home in SC. So...a few pics...

And a few details...14K GVW. I figure the trailer weighs around 4500 lbs or so. It has 6 D-Rings welded on top, 6 Ft Ramps With Stabilizers, Adjustable 2 5/16 Hitch, Stake Pockets & Rub Rails, All Sealed Beam Lighting With One Piece Wiring Harness, 12K Drop Leg Jack, 14 Ply Tires & Sliver Modular 8 on 6.5 Bolt Pattern, Self Contained Electric Over Hydraulic Power Unit With 20Ft Control Cord Powered By A Group 27 Interstate Deep Cycle Battery, Two 31/2 X 36" Stroke With 3/4 Rod Direct Push Hydraulic Cylinders, All Required DOT Lighting, Safety Tape & Break Away Kit, 7 Way RV Type Elec. I plan on welding up some 18" sides and tailgate, and also chain tray to keep stuff in, (like my 7000lb trailer).

After having one type of trailer that is limited, you learn what you need for the next trailer. What do you think? A dumper and hauler in one, this time...

Looks like a really nice trailer!

I was a little concerned with the first pics, it seemed like an awefully steep tilt-bed to drive a tractor on , then I saw the last 2 pics. Great Job!

 

[rutwad]

I've gone back and read through more on this thread. That milwaukee skill saw looks nice, but I wonder how fast it will cut. What do they cost?

I've seen alot of metalworking and bandsaws are popular. And chopsaws are great for sharpening your marking stone.


Renze, no mathmatical conclusion here but I think that floor with 12" members would work. Just my guesstimation though.

 

[Redbug]

Hi Rutwad,

I plan on getting the Milwaukee Metal Skill Saw as soon as I wear out my cheapy standard skil saw with abrasive 7" blades. The metal skill saw cuts thru metal about like a regular skill saw thru wood. It's about $230. On the Milwaukee website, they have a quicktime movie showing one cutting thru stuff. It's pretty impressive. Northern has a metal skil saw for about half the price. The blades are smaller (7"), and they cost about the same as the larger Milwaukee. (8"), about $50. The Northern blades are not the same as the Milwaukee blades in composition. In the long run, the Milwaukee is best since you can also cut wider stuff and get other blades.

I did take Pat's advise...and got the good Dewalt metal chop saw. I'm making a couple hog traps right now, and using it and it really cuts good. Big difference. I also got the C channel, and angle iron for the red trailer sides and that's on the list, also.

 

[Redbug]

Hi Folks,
I thought I would post a few pics of my equipment trailer removable side project. They may help anyone else wishing to build trailer sides and give a few ideas. My last steps are to paint the metal and then bolt 1"x6" treated deck boards to the framework. I used mostly 3/16" metal stock and made each side of the trailer in two separate sections with removable pins to hold the hinges I made. A 20' side was to unwieldy to take off by myself, so I sectioned them. The tailgate was also done using removable pins to hold the hinges together. The tailgate will have handles bolted thru the wood to make it easier to handle. I used implement pins to hold the metal uprights into stake holders...so they would not pop out on a bumpy road, etc.

 

[BTDT]

Nice job. Nothing like having what you want, the way you want it.

 

[George2615]

Nice job Dave.

 

[tommu56]

Dave
Your trailer looks like same thing i was looking for.
I tried looking for the bmf site and it didn't come up.
what are the dimention's of the bed.
any other contact info for bmf?

tom

 

[patrick_g]

Redbud , I'm glad you were pleased with the abrasive cutoff saw. All my Ryobi ones have died and the DeWalt was the only one I had left. Since it is mounted on a wheeled table it is a tad inconvenient for out of the shop and off hard floor portability so I bought a HF cheapie to toss in the PU and such.

I welded myself into a corner and couldn't get the assy under the chopsaw to make a couple dozen strategic cuts so I borrowed a Milwaukee electric hand held hacksaw/bandsaw to make the cuts. Sweet tool although a tad heavy (hey it is Milwaukee tough) and maybe a bit pricey for all the use I would get so I am going to buy the HF $69 version with an exchange warranty. Supposed to cut up to 4 inch pipe.

What is the thickness/configuration of your metal stakes on the sideboards and does the tailgate remove and if it does how is it latched for transport?

I'm still thinking of using my HD car hauler with diamond plate deck as a "TRANSFORMER TOY" trailer. I want to build a sturdy modular assy to fit on using the stake pockets to make it a stock hauling trailer. Each piece has to be easy for someone less capable than me (me later!) to fit on. I'll probably pin the stakes into the pockets with the usual HD metal pins and keepers like used on receiver hitches.

Pat