building/buying a utility trailer for hauling shop supplies/steel?

[redrangie]

Yo,
I am looking to get a trailer for hauling my plate and tube. I never need to carry more than 10' lengths of stock, and I would use it to carry finished product as well.

I spied these two at NorthernTool
small trailer

larger trailer

Anybody have one of these? They seem like a steal, which always makes me concerned.

j

[plunkinberry]

If you are hauling plate and tube, one would assume that you have the ability to fabridcate.... Look at the Northern catalogue and build yer own trailer to whatever need you feel. I'd think you can do it for less than that.

Watch out though, if it were me, I'd buy a small cheap trailer then end up using it for other things that may be beyond its limits. I'd end up modifying/reinforcing it, etc... it would never end.

[DRM]

plunkin has a VERY valid point. I bought a 16' double axle trailer for the purpose of hauling my trail rig around, and that trailer has been used to haul lumber, hundreds of feet of steel tube, move more friends and family than I can count (some more than once), and who knows what else.

If it were *me* - I would just get a trailer than can do a wide variety of tasks... seems a specialty trailer can leave you wishing for more...

[ironpig70]

first that little trailer doesn't come with wheels or tires and whats the shipping cost(near $192 for me in cali) for me the little trailer would surfice since i have a mazada b2200 so i can only pull 500-600. the major cost in trailer building is in axles and steel so price it all out before you build.

[JumpinNRollin]

I have the Harbour Freight trailer and am very happy with it. I haul a lot of stuff with it (tube, engines, jeep tubs, frames, diffs, etc.) and what is nice is it only takes up 2' X 6' of garage space after it is folded up (only takes about two minutes to unfold it an hoohk it up)! The thing is that it pulls great and even better when it is loaded. No it is not a rig trailer but if you want a shop trailer for parts and stuff it works well. Take a look at it if you want a good trailer. BTW, I only have a YJ to pull this thing .

Harbor Freight Folding Trailer

Damn, now that I read this is sounds like a damn infomercial...

[1jdg]

i bought a single axle boat trailer,needs the tongue length cut down and a floor built,i can end up with 52" width ,10' length with a truck bed tool box in front of that...(when i get off my a$$ a do it)!should have around $200.00 to $250.00 in it.

[TLCObsession]

I have a cool tilting 4x8 trailer. I get tons of use from it. Because I don't have a pickup, and I drive a company SUV, I have been thinking of building a PU style lumber rack for it so that I can haul sheet goods above a full load as well as get the stuff higher up so that it is easier to offload. Also to carry a full 4x8 sheet, I have to ditch the tailgae (a 2 x12") and take the brackets off.

So I will build 2 'H' frames, with a roller at the rear for 1 person loading and some cross braces. They will fit down into the existing 1.5" (IIRC) square pockets. The rear roller/cross piece will be hinged so that I can stil;l roll/drive something into the trailer if I have the racks on it.

Jim

[K2Orion]

just build the redneck standard trailer from an old pickup bed.
it wont fold up for storage but I built mine for less than it cost to register it.

[rob]

Try this place.I bought the 800 model and use it tons.I haul two ATV's with it no problem.http://www.snowbear.com/html/8000.html I bought mine at Cosco and out the door taxes,registration,insurance was just a hair over a grand Canadian.At the time that was about $700 US.

[gt_man002]

You can see a step by step account of me building a utility trailer from scratch at the following link:

http://www.gt1.homeip.net/project-trailer.htm

Also, if you want to drive to Canada, I have another one for sale - details at:

http://www.gt1.homeip.net/trailer.htm

[u2slow]

Build a beefy headache rack for your pickup. Lean your 8'+ lengths of material up against it.

[ZJim]

It wouldn't be hard to fabricate your own redneck trailer from an old axle, some leaf springs, and some box. Seems like you'd have a higher payload capacity and I can't see that it would take but so much time or effort.

[frankenfab]

I have the heavy duty model from Harbor Freight.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...temnumber=6464

This trailer has a 1,800 lb capacity. I have hauled many yards of pea gravel, 1/2 a yard per trip, (a huge amount of weight) with no troubles. It comes un-assembled. I welded the frame rails together instead of bolting them. A good buy at the sale price of $359. My dad has the folding model which isn't nearly as heavy duty.

With the high price of steel, and the extras like axles, springs, tires, etc., you cannot build one from scratch for what you can buy one for.



.

[JeepAddict]

Yup, the HF heavy duty trailer has been great. I've punished it for three years now with no problems. I decided to repack the bearings and I couldn't find any new seals because they are a metric size, but the old ones worked fine. Probably didn't need to do it, but I do abuse it pretty badly. I finally did strip the wood parts back off and weld it up, but I probably didn't need to do that either. Can't beat the price for what you get.

[Aces'n'8s]

I also have an old Dixie craft single angle boat trailer. After acquiring it for $50, I installed a V on the tongue beam, a small, wooden cargo area and trailer lights.

While I would greatly appreciate a 7' x 16' tandem axle trailer, this light unit (2000 lb axle) handles 20' stock and long wood boards just fine. As the axle is so far rearward, it can get a little tongue heavy though....

[Travis Waldher]

Another vote for the 16' utility/flatbed/car hauler.

Not only do you have a trailer for your rig... but mines been used to move, move others, haul over 8,000lbs in landscaping brick in one load, trash runs, trail cleanups, bringing other people's broken junk home, hauling lumber, firewodd, hauling steel, etc, etc, etc. If I needed pea gravel, I could probably get it 2-3 yards at a time.

Sure... you gotta have somewhere to store it.. but it's MUCH more versatile.

[Grim Reaper]

Originally Posted by frankenfab

I have the heavy duty model from Harbor Freight.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...temnumber=6464

This trailer has a 1,800 lb capacity. I have hauled many yards of pea gravel, 1/2 a yard per trip, (a huge amount of weight) with no troubles. It comes un-assembled. I welded the frame rails together instead of bolting them. A good buy at the sale price of $359. My dad has the folding model which isn't nearly as heavy duty.

With the high price of steel, and the extras like axles, springs, tires, etc., you cannot build one from scratch for what you can buy one for.



.

I bought a 5x8 with 15 inch wheels for $450 NEW. It has a 3500lb axle so roughly a 3k load is no problem. If you look you can find deals.

Try www.craigslist.org Small utility trailers for the cheap pop up on there all the time.

I'm looking for the 16-18ft car trailer now. I have ben bitten to many times buying a 20ft stick of steel having it cut in half then getting screwed because the cut is in the wrong place and wasted a good lenght. Lay a stick up on the a frame of a 16ft and you can get a 20ft stick home.

[scotte]

I agree that a 16' flatbed vehicle hauler is the way to go. I've used mine to carry 20' lumber and a big pile of building materials. If I had to do it more, I'd build some sides for it. Only disadvantage is if you have to manuever in small/tight areas.

[PTSchram]

I got a "Haulin'" brand trailer at Lowe's for $500. It's about 5 X 8. Can't beat it for the price.

[D60]

Originally Posted by redrangie

Anybody have one of these? They seem like a steal, which always makes me concerned.

As stated, HF carries similar trailers and you've gotta have several near you in Denver. Even if you order, order thru HF 'cause they won't charge you shipping.

It's a tough call.........the cheap HF utility trailers like you're eyeing are probably the way to go IF you know it'll always be limited in what it can haul.

Buying a $2500+ car hauler to haul steel seems a bit overkill, but you'll probably wind up using for all sorts of things you never imagined.

Pickup bed trailers are kinda cool, but they really don't tow well and are relatively heavy compared to what they can carry. Also generally unsightly if you live in the 'burbs.

[ChiScouter]

A buddy of mine had the 4x8 Harbor freight folding trailer with the 8 inch wheels that I borrowed many times and it worked great for what it was designed for. After he moved away I bought the smaller HF 40"x48" utility trailer with the 12 inch wheel option. The same trailer can be had with 8 inch wheels, but when you get the 12 inch version they give you rearched springs so that the same fenders and fender mounting can be used with the larger tires. The springs are so stiff that they don't really flex no matter what you put on the trailer. The thing bounced down the road no matter empty or laden and the wheel bearings constantly loosened. This was not a problem with my buddys trailer. Both trailers used the same bearings and hubs. I attribute the bearing problems to all the bouncing due to the too stiff springs. You can find replacment bearings at bearing shops, but not at the regular department stores, auto parts stores, or trailer supply places. I finally sold my trailer, and bought a axle and springs from a popup trailer at the boneyard. I will end up spending the same $160 that I spent on my HF trailer but will have a much stronger trailer with bearings and hubs that can be found anywhere. Those HF trailers have tiny spindles, and a U shaped axle. My .02 is build your own if you can and are looking to cheap things out, but no matter what don't buy the HF trailers with the 12 inch wheels