Trailer for a B2410

[scruffy]

I haul my L175 with loader and scraper box on a 16 foot tandem axle trailer w/o brakes. It does have two 3500 lb axles and came with used tires on it when I bought it new. Does a great job, and the tires have held up fine. Wish I would quit scraping off the tail-light and license plate bracket though! Getting tired of replacing and or straightening the bracket with a new tail light!

 

[W5FL]

scruffy,

I noticed on my dads trailer that the tail lights are now recessed in a piece of 6 inch pipe about 4 inches long. The license plate is mounted on the rear fender. Guess he got tired of knocking them off, too. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[RBrown]

Thanks for all the great advice!! Okay, you sold me on a tandem axle trailer, however what about brakes??? I really don't want to have to purchase and install a third brake controller if I really don't need it. I would think that if others are pulling a 2710 on a tandem axle trailer without brakes, then I should be okay because the 2410 is not as heavy. What do you guys think now? Also, is Load Trail a good trailer name? I think the dealer said they were made in the great state of Texas.

 

[Bird]

RBrown, I don't know anything about "Load Trail" as a trailer brand name, so I can't help you there. But you make me very curious. I don't understand your comment about not wanting to purchase and install a "third brake controller." What are you talking about? I've had 3 trucks, 1 sedan, and 1 station wagon to which each had a single brake controller added for pulling travel trailers with electric brakes, but a "third brake controller?" What kind of vehicle are you driving?

Bird

 

[geneP]

What size truck will you be using to pull the trailer? I'd definitely say "yes" to the brake question if you are using a compact pick up, maybe "no" if you have a HD 3/4 ton and you are careful. I don't know about laws in your state, but I'd feel comfortable with that load without trailer brakes with a heavy truck.

 

[W5FL]

As Bird said, if the trailer weight plus load is 40% or greater of the towing vehicle weight, you need brakes. One axle works just fine for me. There are two types of controllers. Most late model trucks are already wired for a brake controller, and you just plug it in. If it is not, you hand the guy a $100 and he installs it and wires it up to your trailer hitch electrical plug. These controller in a digital type allow you to dial in the amount of brakes you need for your load and the time delay to wait until they are applied. Pretty nice.

Just one time do you feel the trailer pushing you into the car in front of you that stopped about 30 feet sooner than you can and the $100 seems awfully cheap.

There are also inertial switches they can mount on the trailer to actuate the brakes. I don't like them as well as the up front and easily reachable and adjustable brake controller because they are hard to adjust to your load and scare the heck out of you until they come on.

Most one ton trucks have sufficient brakes for a reasonable loaded trailer as do some heavy duty 3/4 ton trucks. Most 1/2 ton and less are not safe with a heavy trailer and the stopping distance lengthens considerably.

 

[Kelvin]

Go ahead and buy the trailer with trailer brakes and see about wiring them up later. I haven't connected my brakes up yet because I usually only travel about 5 miles one-way about 3 or 4 times a month. I do feel safe for normal opearation with a 1/2 ton pickup but feel that safety could (would?) be marginal in the event of an "emergency stop".

You might also ask about "surge brakes". These are popular on boat trailers and some rental trailers. I believe that they are more expensive than electric brakes, though. Operation: There is a cylinder installed in the tongue of the trailer such that on de-celeration the trailer attempts to push the tow vehicle the cylinder pushes hydraulic (brake) fluid to activate the brakes (the way an automotive master cylinder forces brake fluid to the automobile brakes).

 

[scruffy]

Wen, that sounds like an excellant idea to me! I must admit, it IS tiring! I've found a stump buried in a low bush, scrubbed license, tail light and bracket off, bent it enumerable times backing off the road up a slight incline, found a dead tire in the road and wiped it out, what next? At least the pipe would ****** my purchasing tail-lights!
Oh yeah, that &^%$#@ stump put a nice custom curve in my tandem axle fender....stump/bush is no longer there!

 

[W5FL]

Thanks,

My dad also suggested that I get heavy duty fenders. Now I see why. Mine are diamond plate and they are pretty hard to bend. The tires are pretty common truck tires 760x16 8 lug, but I don't yet have a spare, so hope not to have a flat. Guess I should look to see if they are Firestone tires. Nope, they are NANCO Super Highway - Whatever that is.

Also noticed that it has a break a way switch and battery to automatically apply the brakes if the trailer breaks away from the towing rig.

The ball is also 2 5/16, which is required if the GVW is over 5000#. Texas builds a lot of illegal 7000 pound trailers with 2 inch balls. They will tell you they are 7000# (two 3500# axles), but the title will NOT list it at 7000#.

 

[glennmac]

I have no experience trailering tractors, so I will indulge in a smarty-pants rhetorical question: If I only had 5 miles to trailer a few times a year, why not just drive the tractor there?

A B24xx can go about 10 mph. Thus, a 10 mile round trip would be a 1 hour tractor jaunt. In order to avoid this, is it really more efficient to: schlep a zillion pound trailer up to a vehicle; kibbitz with hitches and chains; unstash clanky ramps; drive tractor up a rickety, scary ramp; get frustrated and mash fingers with chocks and blocks and more chains; stash back ramps; drive 5 miles; repeat all the above; do your tractoring; repeat all the above twice on the way back. Plus you have to spend probably 50 hours shopping for the beast, spend (secretly) a bunch of hard-earned money, and then store the monstrosity at your home, idle and useless, for 99.999999999999999999% of the year. (A hard secret to keep.)

Wouldn't it be more efficient and fun just to drive my beloved tractor along the bucolic country road a few hours a year?

Which raises another question. Is it legal to drive a tractor on a bucolic country road? I dont have a clue. Actually, I do have clues. All my life I have seen farmers driving on roads, as, unable to pass, I grew increasingly hostile behind them. Furthermore, all tractors sold these days have turn signals, flashers, and those orange triangle things. This would lead me to believe that I can tractor the highways and byways.

Of course, if I had to travel to my tractoring destination on the New Jersey Turnpike ... well, maybe I wouldnt do that even with a trailer.