UTILITY TRAILER ADVICE

[yaktamer]

I'm finally getting around to buying a utility trailer. Mostly just for light duty. Hauling a couple of sheets of plywood, taking yard trimmings and junk to the dump, hauling the family gear for camping. I had planned on getting a "cheap" ($600) 5x8 from Lowe's or Home Depot, but a lot of the reviews I've read have suggested avoiding the models with 12 or 13 inch wheels if I plan to tow at highway speeds as the bearings tend not to hold up.

Also, at some point I'd like to get a quad or two, or maybe a utv (something like an Arctic Cat Prowler), so I'm looking at something a litlle more durable -- 3500lb. single axle, 15" wheels in 5X10 or bigger (wider for a utv), wood floor, etc. I've been looking at Big Tex and Carryon brands. Any advice? In particular, I'm having trouble deciding between one with low sides (just rails a few inches off the bed--I'd have to make some type of plywwod side to haul branches etc.) or the models with 2 foot high mesh or solid metal sides.

 

[beemerphile]

I have got a Carry-on and it is a very good trailer. However, I bought the 5' and soon regretted it (when I bought a Polaris Ranger). I sold the 5' trailer and bought a 6' wide trailer. I'd suggest starting off with a 6x12 but Carry-on is a good choice either way..

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Well, you beat me to it-I was going to say don't get anything smaller than 15" wheels and a 5x10 bed. We use those as the base for some incredible engineering. When the kids were into dingy sailing we had one tricked out with a lock box to secure te gear plus racks to carry 3 boats/dollys , 6" diameter sewer pipe for the spars and a special rack for a 94 quart Igloo. I had it so I could remove the stuff to turn it back to a ATV transport or trash hauler in about an hour.
One thing-get one with a V tongue and not one with a single beam to the tongue. The cheap ones from the big box stores are crap. Spend the extra few Hundred and it will be the last trailer you will ever buy. Expect to spend about $1,200.00 on a good well built 5x10 with the 15" wheels.,

 

[vic3620]

utility trailer

I have a 5x10 tilt bed that I haul my mower on it's great for my 50" deck but would have to go wider if I bought a bigger mower.
You might consider the width as an important factor as well as the tilt bed option. Dragging ramps around all the time gets to be a hassle.

vic 3620

 

[doublesharp]

I've got a 5x8 tilt bed with 15" tires. Just right for my 50" cut mower and sides are easy to rig. My jack stand is a cheap one. Doesn't fold away or have a wheel but I live with the inconvenience however I'd upgrade if I used mine often. I bought mine used from an atv guy that was going bigger. Seems like it was $400 but they are pretty reasonable new. Craigslist is a good place to look.

 

[Munsterf18]

5x10, low sides, single axle, mess ramp if you want for the quad. The mesh ramp is removable on most of them.

Best match of utility, weight, cost, size, etc. You can lift it by yourself, the 15" tires (205x75 x15) are trailer std, it'll do everything you want.

I have a bigger trailer, but I'd never get rid of the smaller one.

Munster

 

[Snowbandit]

I bought the 6X12 Carryon in February when they were on sale for $980.00 at the dealer in Kansas City. They have the same one right now at Tractor Supply and some of the big box stores for $1400-1500 but it sounds like just what you're looking for. No problems with mine and it has the 3500 pound axles.

 

[Andy Griffith]

I have a handy 5x12 single axle that I had built here at the old ProDesign trailer shop here when they used to make them here in Blairsville- they still might. It's a lot like the Big Tex I think...

It's a V-tongue, 15" tires (3500lb axle) with fenders, zerk fittings on both bearings, removable mesh ramp and 14" high guard which isn't mesh all around it and finally a floor of pressure treated 2x6's.

The biggest thing is be certain to get zerk fitting on the bearings- it will make your life so much simpler.

Although I have a much larger 7x16 trailer for the tractor, that little 5x12 is handy because it is no wider than the vehicle pulling it.

 

[m657]

Can't over emphasize the wisdom for getting actual load-capable axle-tire-bearing TOOL not TOY. Besides the hassle of failure on the road somewhere when time is tight, there is the liability issue of inadequate equipment on the public highway to consider.

I happened into a trade for a home-built 800# trailer that has been exactly what I needed over the past 20 +years: 16" tires, real tongue with metal braces, 6x10. Leaf AND coil springs on solid axle.

Mesh ramp is good to have; I've upgraded a bit over the years.

 

[yaktamer]

Thanks for the replies. Even though $ is tight right now, I definitely understand that this is one area where you pretty much get what you pay for. I think the width issue (5' vs. 6') is going to come down to weighing precious garage space vs. odds I'll ever end up getting a UTV.

 

[cass]

I haul a Polaris on a 77"x12' single axle. (I would prefer a dual axle in the 14 foot range.) Big Tex makes a dandy utility trailer much better than the junk at Lowes or TSC. You might consider looking a Craig's List for a good used one.

 

[Firehouse]

I have a Cub Cadet UTV I haul on a 6x14 dual axle trailer. The UTV weighs over 1600 lbs so the dual axles really help with the highway hauling. It lowers the possibility of the trailer swaying at highway speeds.

 

[G-Mac]

As a welder/fitter, I build an occasional trailer. I'm building one right now. It's a 6x10 with a 3500lb. capacity single axle w/leaf springs. I'm using 15" trailer tires. I bought all the parts, except the steel for the frame, at Tractor Supply. I'll post pics when it's done.

Carry-On trailers are "just OK", but I wouldn't consider them to be high quality or heavy-duty. I used to have one. Bought it at Lowe's. The angle iron that I use on my frames is TWICE as thick as a Carry-On. Having said that, they'll work fine for occasional use.

Other than that my main advice is get one with the biggest tires and wheels you can. This generally means it will have bigger wheel bearings and a heavier-duty axle....MUCH, MUCH BETTER for towing at highway speeds!!!! A smaller tire simply has to spin more times to cover the same amount of ground! The last trailer I built used wheels and tires that came off my old F-150. Here's a couple pics of that one...

The floorboards aren't bolted down yet in this one...

Note how I flush-mount the tail-lights inside a piece of 2"x4" rectangular steel...they last much longer that way! The above trailer has a 3500lb. torsion axle...no leaf springs.

Gordy

 

[mwtdvm]

Last August, I got a Rhino and on the advice of the previous owner shopped around for a tilt bed trailer. I got a used trailer for 650 and the tires were that famous brand "MayPop". Unfortunately my trailer had the pivot point at the middle and the Rhino was tail heavy. It was also a "snug" fit. After "leaning on the front of the trailer, it came down but I estimated about 40-50# tongue light. I used it once to get the Rhino to the hunting camp(backing it on), sold it to one of the members to haul his ATV on, at a slight loss, and then bought one two feet longer and a foot wider, new for $900. I am more educated now and would recommend you get a trailer a foot wider and at least two feet longer than anything you are planning on buying in the future.
Just my $0.02

 

[zercool]

Another vote for avoiding Lowe's/HD/TSC box-store trailers. Ask around a bit, there's probably a couple of trailer shops within easy driving distance. (There's at least six in my county, from full-size stores that do trailers and truck accessories on down to kitchen-table catalog ordering.)

Make sure you get something with brakes, and then get the proper brake controller for your ride. If that UTV is pushing 3/4 ton, it's over a ton with the trailer, and will push around your tow vehicle without too much trouble. I trailered one ton of coal behind my Nissan Frontier last fall - without the brake controller - and had to drive a good ways out of my way to avoid any major downhills. It was still an unpleasant feeling to have that thing pushing at stop signs.

 

[truckemup97]

Heavy axles, grease fittings, bigger than you think you need - All that has been mentioned, and is good advice. The only thing I might add is to be sure to secure it or it may walk off on it's own.

 

[gregintenn]

I bought a 16' tandem axle bumper trailer several years ago. I thought it was larger than I needed. I was wrong! I figured out I can haul a tractor, car, several atvs, etc. on it. It is also long enough you can actually back it. It wasn't really much more expensive than the smaller trailers mentioned in this thread. It will also haul the smaller stuff just fine. It takes 15" car tires, which are cheap and plentiful. Just something to think about.

 

[Jst1mr]

I understand $ might be tight, but I would suggest at least consider an enclosed utility trailer....does anything you want, and can act as an additional garage/enclosed storage space as necessary.

 

[writerinmo]

I bought one of the cheaper ones from Harbor Freight years ago, took it home, took the wheel bearings out of it and went to NAPA and replaced them with heavy duty ones with metal cages holding the bearings in instead of the plastic ones that it came with... that trailer went through ten years of hell and is still carting way too heavy of loads around with the guy I sold it to a couple years ago... I have had it stacked two feet high with hardwood firewood, it hauled one of the OLD lawn TRACTORS (not the lighweight stamped metal lawnmowers, this was a dang little tractor, two good guys to lift the back end!), moved I don't know how many times using it for fridges and freezers... it all comes down to what you need and want it for.

 

[rpbcab]

I have a 6ft 4in. X 16 tandem axel and I use it for small yard duties behind my tractor and for towing my tractor around and I can put 4000 pounds of brick pavers or a car or whatever I need to tow on it. I also have a small garden wagon I bought from Tractor Supply that I can tow with my mower for the really small jobs. I found a long time ago when I had a small trailer that I always needed and wanted a bigger one....