Trailer Decision - Pros / Cons

[LMychajluk]

Looking to pick up a trailer for use w/ a Compact Tractor with the intention of maybe doing some tractor work on the side. I'm also considering picking up a ~75hp skid steer (~9500#) w/ a mulching head (~2000#?) if timing works out sometime in the future. Willing to buy used in good condition or new if the price is right. Towing w/ F350.

I've got my eye on 3 20' at the moment, all 15k#, all new:

- A Legend 20' Aluminum w/ wood deck w/ stand-up ramps
-- the light weight a pro for me

- A Big Tex 14EH w/ Mega Ramps
-- Megaramps and front toolbox area seem to provide more usable space
-- Looks very well-built
-- Std D-rings

- An Appalachian tilt-deck (16+4)
-- Cheaper than above options, but price seems a bit low for a tilt-deck (I think it's the 'Contractor Grade' gravity-tilt)
-- Slightly less usable weight capacity (~300#)

The Legend and Big Tex are within ~$500 of each other. The Appalachian is ~$2k less. Big Tex seems to be a respected brand, and Legend sounds like it's OK from what I've found. Don't have too much info on Appalachian at the moment.

Any thoughts on the pros/cons between the 3?

 

[Fallon]

A deckover power tilt is what I ended up with. A bit steep to load the tractor, but not to bad. No fenders or rails to load stuff from the side is really nice.

I had a 16' gravity tilt for a bit. Really low to the ground, but easy to load a tractor on. Fenders and a 6" lip around the deck made loading pallets or anything over the sides annoying. Wide impliments like my flails had issues fitting between the fenders.

 

[Hay Dude]

I have owned an Appalachian and a Big Tex gooseneck flatbed trailers. Both were fine. I’d say Appalachian is a trailer built with economy/utility in mind. It’ll need to be painted before the other 2. Big Tex is a good trailer. No issues with mine. It served me well.

 

[WM75Guy]

I currently have 4 Big Tex trailers, plus have had several others that were traded in on the current ones. No issues with any of them. My 14GN 20+5 has the Mega ramps, they are nice. I put 5,400# d-rings in every stake pocket for hauling hay, works out well having a tiedown every 2 feet if needed.

Since you are considering a skid steer and have the 350 towing vehicle, why not get a gooseneck trailer? I have the bumper pull 14TD dump trailer that I routinely fill with 12,000# of topsoil. I previously had a GN dump with scissor lift but traded it in on the bumper pull as it had a ram lift. It definitely rides rougher than the GN dump and my 14GN haiuling a heavy load.

 

[LMychajluk]

Sorry for the late reply, but thanks for all the comments!

To answer / address a couple of comments:

- I'll probably stick w/ a low-boy for now. My current tractor is only 60" wide, and I don't think I'll be running any implements that would be >70".

- If I end up w/ a SS and mulching head, I think I may have to go to a bigger trailer anyway. It seems like a 75hp-class machine and a mulching head would be real close to maxing out the ~11.5k cargo limit on these trailers. I do see a Diamond C w/ the 18k# package (14k# usable) for under $14k, but I'm not sure I want to spend the extra $5k for a trailer that will be overkill for the next year or two.

- My truck is prepped for a gooseneck, so I could easily go that route. The extra cost and needing the bed for some misc tools are making me lean towards the bumper pull, but I'll mull it over. I was thinking my brother could also use the trailer on occasion as a utility trailer, but his truck won't pull a gooseneck, but then again, he can't pull more than 7k# anyway. Probably better to just let him borrow my truck if/when he needs the trailer.

 

[Hay Dude]

Considerations for GN v. BP trailer:

1. How much stuff do you carry in the truck bed? The GN will take up about 1/3rd of it.
2. GN’s do not track directly behind the truck, like a BP does. So you need to consider the way your driveway or shop parking area and your customer’s entrances are laid-out. I cannot access one of my shop driveways with a GN without putting the GN’s tires into a ditch.
3. GN’s allow you to access your trucks full towing potential. BP is more limited in load capacity. This is because a GN distributes weight on both of your trucks axles, while a BP relies almost exclusively on your trucks rear axle.

 

[LMychajluk]

I just realized that I may have screwed myself...

The Big Tex trailer is a 15,400# GVWR trailer, and the Appalachian is 15k#. My F350 is rated at 11,300#. That puts me over the 26,000# limit w/ either of these options. I'm not really interested in getting a CDL, and I don't think I can swing a trade-in for a 10k# F250 right now.

The Legend Aluminum is rated at 14,000#, so I can stay under the 26k# limit and it'll be fine w/ my tractor, the 11,800# cargo limit probably won't be enough for a SS/CTL w/ a mulching head down the line.

I also just realized that I will probably need to re-register my truck as commercial. Since it's my only 4-wheeled vehicle and daily driver, and where I currently live my HOA doesn't allow commercial vehicle parking, I'm now looking at having to buy another vehicle just for the biz or something for personal use, or maybe I just need to move...

 

[Lineman North Florida]

I used a 20' equipment trailer with two 7k axles for a long time but my SS with forestry mower had it maxxed out so I went with a Kaufman 22' tilt deck trailers and upgraded to the 8k axles and 17.5 super single tires for about 8k and will probably never go back to a trailer with ramps for the skidsteer. I have a 25+5 Gatormade Gooseneck with mega ramps that I use for hauling hay and my big tractor but for my SS business the tilt deck is the ticket.

 

[BackRoad]

Government overreach. They want more of your hard earned money to waste on hand-outs.

PA allows derating the trailer when you register it so your GCWR is under 26,000# total weight at registration.

It looks like NY does also, but requires the manufacturer to adjust the weight on the title, which may actually be easier to obtain than maintaining 2 vehicles or getting a commercial tag on your truck.

 

[Complete Turf Care]

I just realized that I may have screwed myself...

The Big Tex trailer is a 15,400# GVWR trailer, and the Appalachian is 15k#. My F350 is rated at 11,300#. That puts me over the 26,000# limit w/ either of these options. I'm not really interested in getting a CDL, and I don't think I can swing a trade-in for a 10k# F250 right now.

The Legend Aluminum is rated at 14,000#, so I can stay under the 26k# limit and it'll be fine w/ my tractor, the 11,800# cargo limit probably won't be enough for a SS/CTL w/ a mulching head down the line.

I also just realized that I will probably need to re-register my truck as commercial. Since it's my only 4-wheeled vehicle and daily driver, and where I currently live my HOA doesn't allow commercial vehicle parking, I'm now looking at having to buy another vehicle just for the biz or something for personal use, or maybe I just need to move...

it's happened to me many times over the years. Buy a bigger tractor so you can do more work, then you need bigger attachments, then you need a bigger trailer to haul them, then you need a bigger truck to pull the trailer, then you need more space to park everything.....

So a $50,000 investment eventually becomes a $200,000 investment...