Ideal wood hauling trailer

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whitemountain

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So the time is getting closer when a trailer for firewood hauling will become more and more necessary for me. What is the ideal wood hauling trailer? Some of you guys have some great set-ups shown in another forum!! If you were starting fresh, with a half ton 4-wheel drive truck as your back-bone what would you get?
 
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I've looked at the PJ dump trailers, seem to be well built. This one: Dump Trailer might be a bit more than needed behind a half tonner, but it would be fine with a little common sense, and might give you an excuse to upgrade trucks!!!

Any dump trailer is a step above a carhauler type with sides.

I cut mostly on my own land, so I use farm trailers and old pickup box trailers that I don't worry about beating up in the woods.

Ideal trailer would have a large box mounted on the tongue for saws, tools, etc., but most trailers I've looked at don't have enough frame in front of the bed for it.

Steve
 
I have an F150 with overloads and the small 4.6L V8. My trailer is a single braked axle 5x8 with 25" sides and it's all my truck wants with truck and trailer full of green oak.

If you are cutting standing dead pine, then a bigger trailer is in order.

Ian
 
Firstly, I'd find out what the factory specs for your 1/2 ton say about how much you can pull and go from there. It's surprising how much a load of wood can weigh. I'd recommend getting a trailer that is equipped with trailer brakes (of course you'll have to have a brake controller for your truck) and with a suitable trailer GVWR...which will be determined by the species of wood you'll be hauling (for weight purposes). This calculator will help determine some wood weights: http://www.csgnetwork.com/logweight.html

Others will have more info to pass on.

Kevin
 
I have an electric / hyrdaulic tilt car trailer with winch that I use to collect wood. I use the trailer 90%+ for a car related business, but fabbed together a 10' crib that I winch on to haul rounds. Works nice. If I want to haul logs, I leave the crib and winch logs to the deck. It will get me by for now but I would like to have an 8x10 or so dump trailer for wood. Hard to convince the Mrs. how much wood burning saves us with something like that parked in the drive.
 
Thanks for the replies!! It's cool to tap knowledge/experience so easily. It's really what's drawn me to this site.

Wood is almost entirely soft, spruce, fir, etc. all dead/down. Will be hauling some Oak this year for the first time. I don't have to go particularly far to get to the trees, but it's not all that close either. Far enough that I've said several times this year that "a trailer would be great today." It would also allow me to spend say a Saturday cutting wood, bring it home in rounds and then split all week. Also could deliver more than a pick-up load at a time.

As for the truck, I will upgrade at some point to a diesel, but have to have more toys for that to make sense. Have to sell more wood to have more toys. Anyway I like the work (don't have to make a living at it), but pride myself on efficiency. A trailer seems logical as the next step. Current pickup will tow almost 9000 lbs according to the manual. big V-8, strong, tow package, etc..

Looked at car-haulers today. Seems like alot of trailer for the money by adding some wood sides. I'd like to hear some pros and cons about the car-hauler. Steve suggests a dump trailer. Seems like the real advantage would be in delivery. Dump...there you are. Are there other advantages?

Seems like a purchase I would like to get right the first time, if possible. :)
 
If your pocket book allows get a dump. I have 3 and use them all. When you haul blocks home you can back right up to the splitter. Dump the trailer up as you split. All the wood slides right back to you. You never have to get on the trailer and carry/throw wood back. The are great for dirt,mulch,gravel,gong to the dump,ect. You will have a lot of new friends if you get a dump trailer.

Scott
 
A dump trailer does come in handy.:clap:
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If you'll have a 3/4t diesel in the near future, I'd be looking in the arena of a 6x12 tandem axle with brakes and 2' sides. I welded up the sides on mine permanently, but 20/20 hindsight has told me that removable sides and post pockets might have been better. A dumper would be nice too.

Ian
 
Will be hauling with a 22' PJ 14K lb deckover. That has two foot sides. Wish I had a dump trailer though! A nice goose neck 20K lb dump would be perfect.
 
I have a 6x10 tandem axle dump trailer rated for 10,000lb. I love it, and use it mostly for my business as a mobile dumpster. But for wood, if I bring the splitter there, I put the outfeed grate right on the back of the trailer and it just keeps pushing the splits onto the trailer. I put 14" removable sides on it, and full it is all my truck can haul. Plus the dump feature sure is nice.

Look around, and get a trailer with the wheels on the outside of the box(like rx7145s), that keeps the load lower, and allows you to load machinery too... I have hauled everything from a garden tractor to a mini excavator.

Also STLfirewood is right, you will have a lot of friends when you own a dump trailer.
 
If you are looking at cost, a car trailer is less expensive than a dump trailer. Most of the people here probably started out with a car trailer and than up graded to a dump. When I built my car trailer I looked hard at building a dump instead, but I was on a budget and a dump would have cost twice as much to build. I like the car hauler because they generally sit lower to the ground than dumps. If you put wood sides on a car trailer you can haul just as much wood as a dump. Depending on size of trailer. Car trailers also allow you to haul tractors with implements still attached. What ever YOU decide make sure it does what YOU intended to do. You will be the one pulling it not any of us here on the web.


Beefie

P.S. Get a trailer with brakes, if it has two axles it should have two sets of brakes. Remember there are a lot of idiots on the road's now days that like to SUE and being able to avoid an accident is always better than not being able to stop for one.
 
Love that trailer. How often do you use the dump feature??

Still looking for input on this one guys, chime in!!

I don't think I have ever used it and not used the dump. Even when I'm loading a car (yes it fits) or a garden tractor I lift the bed a little to help with the loading angle. :clap:
 
I agree, get one with brakes on both axles. Also make sure you adjust the brakes every time you load it. My last experience was hauling 3/4 stone, around 3 ton, and I had stopped at a light. It didn't feel like enough so I adjusted them up, glad I did because a mile down the road I had someone cut me off to turn right in front of me. To this day I have no idea how I didn't hit him, then he even gave me the salute.
 
If you are looking at cost, a car trailer is less expensive than a dump trailer. Most of the people here probably started out with a car trailer and than up graded to a dump. When I built my car trailer I looked hard at building a dump instead, but I was on a budget and a dump would have cost twice as much to build. I like the car hauler because they generally sit lower to the ground than dumps. If you put wood sides on a car trailer you can haul just as much wood as a dump. Depending on size of trailer. Car trailers also allow you to haul tractors with implements still attached. What ever YOU decide make sure it does what YOU intended to do. You will be the one pulling it not any of us here on the web.


Beefie

P.S. Get a trailer with brakes, if it has two axles it should have two sets of brakes. Remember there are a lot of idiots on the road's now days that like to SUE and being able to avoid an accident is always better than not being able to stop for one.

Yes good advice. Dump trailers look very nice I must admit but used car trailer are cheaper, easily modded, and have usually have brakes on both axles due to being rated for carrying a vehicle. My 16' trailer was $2500 brand new, weighs 1500 lbs empty but is rated for 5500 lbs gross which means the ability to carry 4000 lbs of wood, thats pretty decent. And yes low to the ground easy to load big stumps-heavy wood into. And it doubles as a car carrier, ATV/Rhino carrier and all around decent trash/moving trailer I have moved my brother 3 times in 6 years with it, furnature and other large items, bed mattresses, head boards, fridges fit easily on it. A real do it all type of trailer IMO.
 

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