Truck & Trailer ideas to tow 14,000 and be under 26,000 pounds

[stumblinhorse]

My understanding is that no matter if you're commercial or not >26k combined gross weight requires a CDL per the Feds. Certain states have farm exemptions with limitations on range/load/etc.

I've heard that some law enforcement will cite for this if the summed gvw of the truck + trailer>26k even if you're empty. (Which imo is a gross misapplication of the law)

I don’t think think so. I think that is internet lore.

 

[amhicks21]

I am confused by a few statements about CDL. I don’t haul anything for money. I haul to save my money. 26k means nothing if you don’t do it commercially. If you don’t have DOT numbers the only thing you will get stopped for is failure to secure something properly. But that is even a stretch. My trailer is rated for 18k and I run a Dodge 3500 SB SRW with 3.42s and a 68rfe.

The enforcement on weights varies drastically on where you are and generally you'll get left alone if what you're hauling looks reasonable. For instance in my area no one gets messed with hauling a 14k trailer without a cdl. The problem comes if you ever get in an accident. Regardless of your role, if its found that you were supposed to have a CDL it'll get turned over to DOT and they'll expect the same level of responsibility that they would of any truck driver. There are states with RV exemptions but those are meant pretty specifically for RVs and not equipment. Normal police don't carry scales with them or care about weights and DOT isn't going to waste time checking weights out in the boondocks but that doesnt mean you aren't technically supposed to have a cdla to haul an 18k trailer. A quick search shows Colorado having the same 26k/10k laws as anywhere else. Im not trying to convince you to do anything different but I'd hate to see you have an unpleasant surprise if you ever did get checked by DOT.

 

[stumblinhorse]

The enforcement on weights varies drastically on where you are and generally you'll get left alone if what you're hauling looks reasonable. For instance in my area no one gets messed with hauling a 14k trailer without a cdl. The problem comes if you ever get in an accident. Regardless of your role, if it’s found that you were supposed to have a CDL it'll get turned over to DOT and they'll expect the same level of responsibility that they would have any truck driver. There are states with RV exemptions but those are meant pretty specifically for RVs and not equipment. Normal police don't carry scales with them or care about weights and DOT isn't going to waste time checking weights out in the boondocks but that doesnt mean you aren't technically supposed to have a cdla to haul an 18k trailer. A quick search shows Colorado having the same 26k/10k laws as anywhere else. Im not trying to convince you to do anything different but I'd hate to see you have an unpleasant surprise if you ever did get checked by DOT.

can you point me to any state, starting with Colorado that says anything about personal vehicles, like a pickup truck, and a weight limit, beyond what is on your door tag.

 

[oliver1555]

But, again, farmers fall under different rules unless hauling for hire. Here is an example from Colorado. The same for Texas and most states.

 

[stumblinhorse]

But, again, farmers fall under different rules unless hauling for hire.

Not really just farmers. Don’t haul for money and stay under your door tag and there is nothing illegal in any state. There is so much internet talk about this I see why there is so much confusion. There is the liability in an accident talk that comes up a lot. I agree that you are in trouble if you exceed your door tag…. But about 70% of drivers do that without a trailer. My Jeep payload after Jeep and gas is about 400 pounds. I exceed that as soon as I have 3 other adults in the jeep.
But back on topic, I am not commercial and those limits don’t apply.

 

[WM75Guy]

I'm not saying you're wrong, but the guidelines I've always gone by are these. Can you show me a source that shows an allowable 26k GCWR with a trailer weight over 10k without a cdla? It seems counter intuitive that you'd legally be able to haul a heavier trailer if hauling it with a smaller truck.

Types of CDLs​

There are three types of CDLs, as defined below by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA):

• Class A: Any combination of vehicles with a GVWR or gross combination weight of 26,001 lbs. or more, including a towed unit(s) with a GVWR or gross vehicle weight of more than 10,000 lbs.
• Class B: Any single vehicle that has a GVWR or gross vehicle rate of 26,001 lbs. or more, or a vehicle towing a vehicle with a GVWR (or gross vehicle weight) that isn’t more than 10,000 lbs.
• Class C: Any single vehicle (or combination of vehicles) that doesn’t meet the definition of Class A or Class B but is designed to transported 16 or more passengers (driver included) or is transporting material that has been designated as hazardous or material that’s been listed as a select agent or toxin

Texas Transportation Code Section 521.083

TRANSPORTATION CODE CHAPTER 521. DRIVER'S LICENSES AND CERTIFICATES

Page 4 of the Texas Driver Handbook from the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Details - DPSnet Internet Forms

DPSwww Intranet Forms

www.dps.texas.gov

 

[stumblinhorse]

The farmer exclusion allows for hauling commercially, meaning for money, without a CDL if you fall into what @oliver1555 posted. But for anyone else if you have a 39K GCWR on your door tag like a 3500 ram aisin with 4.10s. You don’t need a CDL to be that heavy…

 

[MTGreen]

The farmer exclusion allows for hauling commercially, meaning for money, without a CDL if you fall into what @oliver1555 posted. But for anyone else if you have a 39K GCWR on your door tag like a 3500 ram aisin with 4.10s. You don’t need a CDL to be that heavy…

So by this logic anybody with a class C license can drive a class 8 semi truck with an 80,000 lb gross combined weight anywhere so long as you are hauling your own personal stuff and keep under the 80k door tag.
I'm reasonably certain that 99.99% of law enforcement officers would disagree with you here.

 

[redman135]

Eddie, is it less trouble to get a CDL, to get a vehicle that will do your gross weights comfortably(there seems to be quite a bit of variation between states)?
Or ,since the backhoe seems to be the limiting factor, hire someone to shift it and just use your vehicle for everything else.

 

[stumblinhorse]

So by this logic anybody with a class C license can drive a class 8 semi truck with an 80,000 lb gross combined weight anywhere so long as you are hauling your own personal stuff and keep under the 80k door tag.
I'm reasonably certain that 99.99% of law enforcement officers would disagree with you here.

Not at all. specifically in this response it means that a farmer can exceed 26000 pounds hauling for money Without a CDL.

Conversely do you believe that anyone that purchases a 2016 3500 aisin ram with 4.10s needs to have a CDL since it has a 39,100 pound GCWR ?