Is a car trailer good enough?

Looking at buying a new trailer to haul my pulling tractor. Tractor with all weights at its max will be 5250lbs. Curious if anyone is using a “car trailer” to haul this kind of load or if I should just step up and buy the trailer with the bigger axles. Price difference is around $1000
 
It's always better to get one a little heavier than one one that's just enough. Most tandem car hauler trailers have 2 3500lb axles so the max is 7000lbs total for it. Personally I would get the heavier axles because you never know if you'll get a heavier tractor.
 
Really don't know what you are calling a car trailer, but I am assuming it has 3500# axles. I personally would never buy any trailer with 3500# axles. The bearings are too small. I see lots of bearing failures on these axles.I fabricated a new axle last week fo one that lost a bearing and tore up the spindle. The brakes are too small and the wheels are 5 lug and the capacity of the tires are too small. A 6000# axle is miles ahead of a 3500#. Bigger spindles and bearings, bigger brakes, 6 lug wheels and heavier tires. I have a light 18 ft trailer that has 6000# axles that I have hauled 2 tractors for hundreds of miles and never had a problem. Spend the extra money, you will be glad you did. The resale value will be much better if you want to sell it later, too.
 
There’s a dealer in town here and they had a 18’ trailer with 3500 lbs axles for $3500. Real nice trailer and built well But not real sure it would hold up for what I want it for that’s why I’m asking to see what y’all think before I pull the trigger on one. $1000 is probably worth the investment to have something that I know won’t let me down if I’m 250 miles from home!
 
(quoted from post at 23:25:00 08/11/20) There s a dealer in town here and they had a 18 trailer with 3500 lbs axles for $3500. Real nice trailer and built well But not real sure it would hold up for what I want it for that s why I m asking to see what y all think before I pull the trigger on one. $1000 is probably worth the investment to have something that I know won t let me down if I m 250 miles from home!

Not only would I buy bigger axles I would also opt for a flat bed trailer with the tires and wheels under the bed so as to allow for wider loads. I know you think you will never need anything that wide but believe me you will sooner or later. Don't ask how I know this LOL.
 
You will be right at the maximum for the trailer's capacity.

Note that the GVWR of the trailer and the axle and tire ratings must include the weight of the trailer itself. These trailers weigh upwards of 2000lbs empty, leaving you roughly 5000lbs of payload capacity plus some tongue weight.

The problem with relying on tongue weight for capacity above and beyond the 7000lb GVWR is you need to balance the load on the trailer exactly right so as to not overload the axles.
 

A pair of 3500 pound rated axles gives a capacity of 7,000 pounds, but the trailer itself will weigh about 2,000 pounds or more, so now the capacity of that trailer is down to just 5,000 pounds. You really need to step on up to a trailer with 14,000 pounds of load capacity.
 
I don't know what the rules are across the pond but here in the uk the law is very strict , if a trailer looks the slightest bit suspicious police will pull it over and impound the complete rig . Also in the event of an accident and there's a problem with trailer even if fault is nothing to do with accident insurance will be invalid
Also if trailer is overloaded insurance is invalid
 
(quoted from post at 07:08:45 08/12/20) I don't know what the rules are across the pond but here in the uk the law is very strict , if a trailer looks the slightest bit suspicious police will pull it over and impound the complete rig . Also in the event of an accident and there's a problem with trailer even if fault is nothing to do with accident insurance will be invalid
Also if trailer is overloaded insurance is invalid

Here, insurance HAS to pay damages even if you're negligent. They can cancel you after paying out, but not a moment sooner. It's all along the lines of innocent until proven guilty.

The law enforcement that handles commercial hauling does not patrol the highways looking for violations. They sit in inspection stations along major highways, but only commercial trucks are required to pull in for inspection. The OP in this thread would not be required to pull in, and in fact would not receive any sort of penalty for being "close" or even a bit over. Private individuals hauling their own equipment, <26,001lbs gross weight, are exempt from most hauling requirements.

The reality is that there is a whole lot more ground to cover in the United States than in the UK, with fewer officers, so a lot of people get away with a lot of things, mostly through sheer ignorance, and/or lack of common sense. Very rarely is it intentional negligence. For most, it's how their PawPaw did it, and they ain't never had no problems, so that's how they do it.
 
Obviously different rules across the pond but that doesn't
leave out the fact the trailer and axles need to be adequate for the load
 
Not true in Virginia, Troopers that do DOT inspections ride around and look for vehicles to pull over and inspect.Any trooper will pull over a vehicle that looks overloaded and call for scales.Any of them and local cops can ticket for safety violations,some local cops are also DOT inspection trained.County police set up DOT style inspections sometimes.
 
No one has asked how wide is your tractor? I have a 7000# 20 ft car hauler and it is too lite,brakes too small came with 4 ply tires,and it is 82 inches wide at the fenders. I really think my next one will be 26 ft deck over,14,000# single wheel. A deck over will get you a 102 inch wide trailer,the bad thing is giving up the low deck height.
 

Measure the overall width of your tractor to see if it will fit on a low deck trailer, you may have to go to a 102 wide model for the rear tires to clear the fenders.
I had a low deck with 3500 lb axles, never again, hauled a 4000 Ford on it once and nearly bent the axles. Pay the extra and get min 5000 lb axles.
 
(quoted from post at 13:51:08 08/12/20) Obviously different rules across the pond but that doesn't
leave out the fact the trailer and axles need to be adequate for the load

Define adequate. When an axle is rated for 3500lbs, it should be able to handle 3500lbs EASILY without failure, and in reality much more than that. If loading a 3500lb axle to 3500lbs gross is dangerous then the axle should not be rated for 3500lbs.

I never understood the attitude that 3500lb axles can't hold 2000lbs, but 7000lb axles can handle 8500lbs.
 
I agree with above. I pulled a 4500 lb.
Tractor on.a 7000 lb
Trailer. It was ok. All I could afford.
But have a 27ft deck over now with a hyd
cylinder to tilt it and another for a
jack. 14 ply tires torsion axles. Corn
Pro. Goose neck. A dream to pull. Will
haul two pullers and golf cart. Life is
good!
 
Be ok as a one time thing to use but I really need one with 2-7000 lb axles. Bigger tires bigger brgs. It’s just a better trailer. Those 3500 lb axles are only good as used as a car hauler. Just too light. This way u have a good unit if u need to haul something heavier
 
Equally important is what are you pulling it with, do not overload the vehicle. I have hauled tractors of that weight range many a hundreds of miles on my 16' Anderson 7000# equipment trailer. Tow with a Tahoe 5.4 with tow package. I'm pretty sure it has been overloaded at times too.
 
Texas Bragg 18 foot car hauler, 5200 pound axles. I Wheel cover you up to 10,000 pounds minus the weight of the trailer which is about 2300 pounds . It leaves you with 8700 pounds of tractor to load. I bumped up to E load range tires. In your case the weight of your tractor easily leave you a good buffer. CMAm I assuming that the pick up truck you’re using will be a half ton and the maximum tow on that will be 9000 pounds
 
Texas Bragg 18 foot car hauler, 5200 pound axles. I Wheel cover you up to 10,000 pounds minus the weight of the trailer which is about 2300 pounds . It leaves you with 8700 pounds of tractor to load. I bumped up to E load range tires. In your case the weight of your tractor easily leave you a good buffer. CMAm I assuming that the pick up truck you’re using will be a half ton and the maximum tow on that will be 9000 pounds
 
Have a GMC 2500 HD right now but am considering trading for a new truck in a few months. Not gonna lie i have considered a NEW half ton because the amount I would actually pull trailer is maybe a dozen times a year and it would be my daily commuter to work as well so have definitely been considering it.
 
J hamiton is right. Do not assume that a trailer only comes with 3500lb axles. You can option up and yes it costs more. I did and it paid off on the resale. Prospective buyers know that upgraded tires and axles will do the job. They just cry a little when the know you have the right trailer , and they have to pay up. Buy new ,and get what you need. The want ads are full of every ones wore out trailers . Buy quality, and enjoy quality. Just saying. CM
 
Oh yes absolutely. This isn’t my first rodeo buying a trailer just was curious if anyone was using a car trailer with the load I will have. I’ve used a “bobcat” type trailer before with the 7000lb axles, 18 foot long but it had the fold down ramps. That trailer in particular seemed to pull hard for some reason and I don’t know if i didn’t have the tractor positioned right or what the deal was.
 
Same thing happens here in PA. I see DOT vans pulling trucks over all the time. There seems to have been a push to look at 1 ton trucks and trailers lately.
 
I use to know a guy who had a 3/4 ton chevy truck and hauled a 5000 pound tractor all over the place with no problem.
When you step up to an equipment trailer it cuts down on your hauling capacity of your tow vehicle.
I had a equipment trailer and it weighed 3300pounds empty it was a heavy trailer it was 18 with a 2 foot dovetail it was a pain to pull around if not loaded i sold it and brought a steel floor car hauler that is 18 with 2 foot dove i think it weighs 2200 and pulls like a dream i pulled both with a 2004 gmc 2500
 
My 16' car trailer weighs 1500 lbs and has a low deck height. It has enough room between the axles for my WD 45 withe 3 point mower. The lower ride is great for towing my tractor dosent stick up above the suburban so I get very little effect from any wind. With the tractor I'm only about 200 lbs under gross but it's been doing it for 30 years. I've put one set of bearings in it replaced the deck once. And a few sets of lights. It's been to Oregon. Pennsylvania and Texas Hauling cars. If I had a heavier tractor it wouldn't work.the larger trailer you have the bigger truck you need to pull it. I'm very comfortable pulling mine with a 1/2 ton suburban. If I need a bigger trailer I can borrow one from the farm but I also get the truck to pull it with.
 
I have a 16' car trailer with 3500# axles. Hauled an IH M 10 miles. Never again. You need more axle capacity then minimum of 3500#.
 

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