Need advice on trailer purchase

[Rock Crawler]

Bottom line.... poor people buy short trailers that are just enough. Poor people probably shouldn't be buying trailers.

 

[fried1765]

From the back and forth of this discussion, it does seem as though the 18' 7K trailer may actually be the correct one for you.

Bottom line.... poor people buy short trailers that are just enough. Poor people probably shouldn't be buying trailers.

I was nearly killed as the result of a broken loose equipment trailer on I-95 in Florida, at 75+ mph.

 

[3gunr]

I have basically the same tractor fel and bb and have an 18 ft carhauler, I would not want anything shorter. With a rotary cutter on back it hangs over a couple feet. a couple hundred bucks now is nothing , you will regret going to short.

 

[blacktruck]

For a lot of people, the trailer is a one time investment. You will likely change vehicles before you change trailers. To me, it sounds like the 18’ 7k is the way to go. Get brakes on both axles, if at all possible.

Excellent advice. Buy more than you think you will need and plan on keeping it for long time. Don't cheap out on the axle ratings or brakes. Both are money well spent.

 

[goldenwings]

One other thing to consider if you live in Maine. Will you use in in winter. Salt will destroy the powder coat in 2 years. Look up Diamond-C trailers and see how they prep trailers for coatings. Buy one that is prepped like diamond-C. I bought an Alabama built trailer in 06 and most of the powder coat was blown off within 2 years.

Yes,

This all day long. I am currently completely tearing apart a 2012 10K PJ dump trailer because it was powder coated and made from tubular stock. In fact I would avoid both of those things like the plague. That powder coat looks great until you realize that tiny little crack or chip is holding salt water directly against the metal for years with no way to get it out no matter how much power washing you do.

The tube stock also has no provisions to get the inside completely coated or cleaned out, so once that salt water goes in, it rusts the tube out from the inside and good luck trying to power wash inside the tube through the holes for the wiring... which let the salt spray in just fine.

When replacing these tube sections, I will and am gladly paying the weight and slight strength (in twisting force) penalty and going with C channel. This trailer was used for personal use, not that often during the winter, and was washed after winter outings (as you can see what a whole lot of good that did).... Powder coating... never again... not for the northeast.

Edit: To be clear my powder coat did not "blow off" in fact its still on there requiring a needle scaler to finish blowing it off with a nice thick layer of rusted steel still attached to the powder coat.

Eric

 

[ljjhouser]

I'm building a house for my daughter about 30 minutes away and want to buy a trailer to haul my tractor/loader plus one attachment. Tractor and loader weigh about 3250 lbs. Since I cannot find anything used, I've decided to take the plunge and am considering a Big Tex car hauler (6000 lbs GVWR, model 60EC, 14' or 16'). This will handle a payload of about 4300 lbs, depending on length. This is more than ample weight for my tractor/loader/implement. The tractor/loader with an implement attached measures 14'.

On the surface, a 14' trailer seems a good fit for my needs. The ramps are slide in and not fold-down. My question is, what are some of the considerations I needs to take into account to be sure I don't make a mistake.

Big Tex Trailers | Car Hauler Trailers

Big Tex Trailers | Car Hauler Trailers

www.bigtextrailers.com

interesting topic. In a perfect world, I would also say look at 7K. The world of trailer possibilities seem to open up at 7K (2 3500 axles) and 16-20 length. BUT, in the real world, we all have to live within our limitations. I may have missed it, but what is the towing capacity of your Frontier? It is also true - if you buy a 14, you will wish you had a 16' and if you buy an 18'', there will be times you want a 20'. But, STAY within the capabilities of your tow vehicle. Filling the fuel tank may put you over the Gross Vehicle Weight. I have had many people tell me that it is not necessary to worry too much about weight limits - you will never be stopped by the Highway Patrol and you don't need to scale (not commercial). But, my trailer is a 14K Doolittle EZTilt and weights 3700. My tractor with loader and box blade weighs 6200. I sometimes stop at a CAT scale to see that the weight is correct. And my concern is NOT about being stopped for overweight. It is if there is an accident, no matter who is at fault, everyone including the HP and you insurance will be concerned about how heavy you were when it happened. That is why my first consideration is the tow vehicle. You also may want to concentrate on EZlube axles and other features such as tie down locations (stake pocket and rub rail) and off set front jack. Best wishes, Larry

 

[nikerret]

interesting topic. In a perfect world, I would also say look at 7K. The world of trailer possibilities seem to open up at 7K (2 3500 axles) and 16-20 length. BUT, in the real world, we all have to live within our limitations. I may have missed it, but what is the towing capacity of your Frontier? It is also true - if you buy a 14, you will wish you had a 16' and if you buy an 18'', there will be times you want a 20'. But, STAY within the capabilities of your tow vehicle. Filling the fuel tank may put you over the Gross Vehicle Weight. I have had many people tell me that it is not necessary to worry too much about weight limits - you will never be stopped by the Highway Patrol and you don't need to scale (not commercial). But, my trailer is a 14K Doolittle EZTilt and weights 3700. My tractor with loader and box blade weighs 6200. I sometimes stop at a CAT scale to see that the weight is correct. And my concern is NOT about being stopped for overweight. It is if there is an accident, no matter who is at fault, everyone including the HP and you insurance will be concerned about how heavy you were when it happened. That is why my first consideration is the tow vehicle. You also may want to concentrate on EZlube axles and other features such as tie down locations (stake pocket and rub rail) and off set front jack. Best wishes, Larry

I did the math, in a post. It’s earlier, in this thread. Moving to a 7k trailer is well within his limits and means he isn’t near maxing anything out. Feel free to check my math (I’ve been wrong, before).

 

[deezler]

The math is pretty easy.

Truck rated for 6800 lbs towing
Tractor weighs 3500. Lets call it 4k to be safe.
Means a 2000lb, 18', 7k rated car hauler will be easy to tow around and stay well within the limits for both trailer and truck.

Don't get a 6k trailer. Don't get a 14 or 16' trailer. Get an 18 or 20' 7k, and have less regrets later on!

 

[fried1765]

Yes,

This all day long. I am currently completely tearing apart a 2012 10K PJ dump trailer because it was powder coated and made from tubular stock. In fact I would avoid both of those things like the plague. That powder coat looks great until you realize that tiny little crack or chip is holding salt water directly against the metal for years with no way to get it out no matter how much power washing you do.

The tube stock also has no provisions to get the inside completely coated or cleaned out, so once that salt water goes in, it rusts the tube out from the inside and good luck trying to power wash inside the tube through the holes for the wiring... which let the salt spray in just fine.

When replacing these tube sections, I will and am gladly paying the weight and slight strength (in twisting force) penalty and going with C channel. This trailer was used for personal use, not that often during the winter, and was washed after winter outings (as you can see what a whole lot of good that did).... Powder coating... never again... not for the northeast.

Edit: To be clear my powder coat did not "blow off" in fact its still on there requiring a needle scaler to finish blowing it off with a nice thick layer of rusted steel still attached to the powder coat.

Eric

Powder coating is absolutely the worst finish for a trailer.
Manufactures use it because it is quick, and looks great...initially.

 

[Emainiac]

Don't get a 6k trailer. Don't get a 14 or 16' trailer. Get an 18 or 20' 7k, and have less regrets later on!

This pretty well sums up when seems to be the concensus so far. Looks like I'll be giving the dealer a call today!

Great feedback from everyone, much appreciated.