Quick trailer/hauling question

[mistaare]

I know the general consensus is that dump trailers are worth it. But I am wondering how many of you have small 5x8 dump trailers and are they worth the extra $$$? I was leaning towards a 5x8 utility trailer with brakes. But after talking to the guy at the dealer he suggested a small dump trailer. I will be using it primarily for firewood (only about 3-5 cords/year). I am also the type that once I buy something I keep it until its dead, so point being, I would rather hold off 3-4 months to save up for a dump trailer if I was going to happy wih it in the long run rather buy a small utility trailer now and always wished I would have bought a dump trailer

Just curious what the seasoned wood gatherer's think.


Thanks!

 

[Jakers]

I personally would hold off for the dump trailer. maybe even get a little bigger one that has 5 or 7000 pound rated axles. i dont know your situation tho or whether you have the truck to pull it with. once you have a dump trailer you will wonder how you lived without one. friends you never knew you had will be asking to borrow it all the time. you will find the pot holes in your yard and driveway are easy to fix since you have the ability to haul "fill" from the pit or landscape company easily. wood and brush becomes alot easier to haul because you dont have to handle the wood that one extra time... the list of positive things goes on and on.

that being said i dont even have one of my own (yet...). i live in the woods i cut so for me a 4X8 single axle utility trailer works great behind the 4 wheeler. for my longer hauls i have a few 3/4 ton pickups i use.

maybe shop around on Craigslist a while and find a cheapo utility trailer or a pickup box trailer to get you by till you can save up the $4-7K for a dump trailer. i wouldnt spend much if you go that route tho. keep it under or around $500. not sure how far you have to haul the wood to get it home but heavier axles become more and more important with speed and distance hauled. my 4X8 is only rated at 900 lbs. but i dont tow it down the highway loaded either

 

[bigplow]

i dont have one but i have borrowed one a couple times they were the bigger ones 6 x 10 and if I had the money for one I would have one in a heart beat but I want a big one at least 7x12 low pro around here they run 4200 to 5000 what are going to pull it with I would go up to a 6x10 low pro if you could they are really handy and a time saver

 

[mistaare]

The tow vehicle is just a toyota tacoma, rated to tow 6500 lbs. Thats why I wanted a utility trailer with brakes, because I know it doesn't take much fire wood to the trailer to become loaded.

Unfortunately the trailer is going to see the highway on a regular basis loaded and unloaded.

Here is a link.Maxum 2013 5-508LPDT

I dont think my truck can handle anything bigger, thats why I was wondering if any of you use just a small 5x8 dump.

Thanks for your input :msp_smile:

 

[BrokenToys]

My two dumpers I can use [I don't own a dump since my uncle and friends let me use one of theirs-i still just have 6x12 flat] are a 5x10 and 6x12 and both weigh quite a bunch even empty. Granted; I am pulling either trailer with a 3500 Pickup so there may be a little more "dead weight" in front of the trailer to slow things down even with the trailer brakes.

3-5 Cord a year is a good amount; and prob manageable with a flat trailer. I know many people [myself included] got our moneys worth and than some with a flat trailer collecting rounds. I only wish I had a lift gate instead of ramps; I use a hand truck and load and unload my rounds with it that way and try to remember 2x6's or 2x8's to make a ramp.

 

[Tazfreak]

The tow vehicle is just a toyota tacoma, rated to tow 6500 lbs. Thats why I wanted a utility trailer with brakes, because I know it doesn't take much fire wood to the trailer to become loaded.

Unfortunately the trailer is going to see the highway on a regular basis loaded and unloaded.

Here is a link.Maxum 2013 5-508LPDT

I dont think my truck can handle anything bigger, thats why I was wondering if any of you use just a small 5x8 dump.

Thanks for your input :msp_smile:

I use our 8x5 tipping trailer all the time for firewood,landscape supplies,rubbish,its sides are 1 meter high.Why handle product more than u have to? Once u try one u,ll never use a normal trailer by choice again unless time isn,t important to u.We have a tip truck for our big loads.Tipping trailers are the go.:chainsawguy:

 

[sgt7546]

The dump trailer sounds real nice, but you definitely are somewhat limitted with your tow vehicle. The dump trailers are very heavy empty and do rob alot of your available legal capacity. A non-dump is much cheaper and typcially can be moved around by hand.

 

[Jakers]

The tow vehicle is just a toyota tacoma, rated to tow 6500 lbs. Thats why I wanted a utility trailer with brakes, because I know it doesn't take much fire wood to the trailer to become loaded.

Unfortunately the trailer is going to see the highway on a regular basis loaded and unloaded.

Here is a link.Maxum 2013 5-508LPDT

I dont think my truck can handle anything bigger, thats why I was wondering if any of you use just a small 5x8 dump.

Thanks for your input :msp_smile:

i really like that little guy. probably the perfect size for cutting firewood alone. fill that up and maybe some in the pickup and call her a day. bet you could get close to a cord a trip even using a Tacoma. whats the price run on one like that?

 

[Jere39]

No doubt a dump trailer could be convenient, but think about your potential use. I have an odd sized trailer I guess, it is 58"x100" or more or less 4'10"x8'4". It is tilt bed, but is only rated for 3/4 ton. I use it regularly, to haul firewood, mulch, my mower, my ATV, and for general clean up. I like to stack my wood straight off the trailer. At it's size, I can reach everything from one side or the other, and without bending over. So, for the way I use it, dump feature would not be convenient. Same thing with mulch, where I bring 2 yards home behind my Tacoma, switch the trailer to my GT and drive it around my house shoveling the mulch directly from the trailer to the planting beds. I often pull this trailer into the woods behind my tractor or ATV, load it with firewood, though it does not hold a cord. I can drive it out of the woods to my driveway, and switch it from tractor to truck for delivery. I suppose if I had a dump, and my customer was not interested in stacking their wood, I could dump and go, but all my customers prefer stacking. 90% of my customers are friends or family and we unload and stack together.

So, for my small time operation, I wouldn't take advantage of the dump feature often if at all. My trailer is 30 years old, and aside from a re-decking after a friend dropped a piano through the deck when it was borrowed one time, has been maintenance free.

 

[Typhke]

I know the general consensus is that dump trailers are worth it. But I am wondering how many of you have small 5x8 dump trailers and are they worth the extra $$$? I was leaning towards a 5x8 utility trailer with brakes. But after talking to the guy at the dealer he suggested a small dump trailer. I will be using it primarily for firewood (only about 3-5 cords/year).

I don't know what the price differences are but based on the needs, for me it would depend on these things:
Can you bring your trailer to the place where you stack your wood and how?
-I can't reach my main stack by car but I can unhook my trailer and bring it next to the stack by hand. Unloading from a trailer is better for your back than taking the pieces from the ground (also depends on high you stack is and your trailer is pretty big so may be hard to move it by hand/mower when loaded).
-If you can reach your stack by car.
=> Then you wouldn't really need a dump trailer, only makes it harder to move by hand.

-If you sell wood from time to time and deliver it, a dump trailer would be easy. One of the reasons I would want one.

I am also the type that once I buy something I keep it until its dead, so point being, I would rather hold off 3-4 months to save up for a dump trailer if I was going to happy wih it in the long run rather buy a small utility trailer now and always wished I would have bought a dump trailer

In that case I would go for a dump trailer, then you won't have to dream about it at night . Even if it's just 1 time a year that you dump something, it will be worth it in the long run. And you never know what you'll find in the future, suppose you need one in a couple of years, better buy the dump trailer now instead of buying it the future.

A dump trailer does weigh more but you will save time unloading, so depending on your travel time, it can be an advantage or disadvantage. Suppose you're hauling wood a day long (cut the previous days), a dump trailer would be faster in short distances. But you can load more on a flat bed so it would be better for a longer distance.
Other hand, if you bring home a load a day. Do you want to unload it in the evening or just dump it and leave again in the morning?
Many variables to think about


Typhke

 

[John R]

The tow vehicle is just a toyota tacoma, rated to tow 6500 lbs. Thats why I wanted a utility trailer with brakes, because I know it doesn't take much fire wood to the trailer to become loaded.

Unfortunately the trailer is going to see the highway on a regular basis loaded and unloaded.

Here is a link.Maxum 2013 5-508LPDT

I dont think my truck can handle anything bigger, thats why I was wondering if any of you use just a small 5x8 dump.

Thanks for your input :msp_smile:

I think that trailer with a full load of wood will just about max your truck.

 

[stihly dan]

Go with the dump, Get it one size bigger than you think you need. Breaking is the biggest deal when over loading a trailer. Its has brakes, so if the truck can move it, its big enough. Also get it with a pintle hitch, not as many people will be able to borrow it.

 

[stihl023/5]

I love the 5x8 dump that I have.

View attachment 274978

 

[gr8scott72]

Go with the dump, Get it one size bigger than you think you need. Breaking is the biggest deal when over loading a trailer. Its has brakes, so if the truck can move it, its big enough. Also get it with a pintle hitch, not as many people will be able to borrow it.

Breaking is a pretty big deal with anything you drive down the road. So is BRAKING!

Bigger size? Pintle hitch? You must have missed the part where he said he is using a Tacoma.

My 6x12 dump trailer was about 2,500 pounds EMPTY. Most of the rental places that I used to use wouldn't even rent you a 6x12 unless you had a minimum of a 3/4 ton truck.

 

[dave_dj1]

Every thing and every one of has our limitations, be it money or equipment we already have and don't have the need for bigger.
I think you will be quite happy with the 5 x 8 dump trailer. My 6 x 10 with 2' sides looks tiny behind my 2500 HD Ram but I built it with a job in mind and it does the job quite well.
Save up and go for it!

 

[mistaare]

i really like that little guy. probably the perfect size for cutting firewood alone. fill that up and maybe some in the pickup and call her a day. bet you could get close to a cord a trip even using a Tacoma. whats the price run on one like that?

Utility w/brakes = $1500-1700 (3500 lb axels, empty weight 750 lb.s, 3000 gvwr, brakes)
Small dump = $3200-3400 (5000 lb gvwr, empty weight 1250 lb.s, 3750 lb load capacity)

I have a short bed tacoma, if I carefully stack the bed I MIGHT get be able to load a face cord. Hoping to increase that to 3/4 cord at a time. Not looking to overload the truck, I will be driving up/down some steep hills of Appalachia.

 

[mistaare]

I think that trailer with a full load of wood will just about max your truck.

Agree, thats why i don't want to go any bigger.

 

[mistaare]

Go with the dump, Get it one size bigger than you think you need. Breaking is the biggest deal when over loading a trailer. Its has brakes, so if the truck can move it, its big enough. Also get it with a pintle hitch, not as many people will be able to borrow it.

I would love a pintle hitch, I have a little off-road tear drop camper with a pintle hitch and love it.

Size of the trailer is limited by my tow vehicle.

 

[mistaare]

I love the 5x8 dump that I have.

View attachment 274978

thanks stihl, I was hoping someone chimed in with one that size. What is your tow vehicle, and roughly how much can you fit in the back?

 

[mistaare]

Thanks a ton for all your input. Sorry for all the individual quote posts, I couldn't figure out how to do a multi-quote response.

Some of you mentioned delivering for customers? This will be just for personal use only.

As far as dumping, loading, unloading, etc. I will be able to back it in right where unload.

You guys keep mentioning braking - that is a bigger concern to me that how much I can carry. :msp_mellow: I would rather stop safely with 1/2 cord than drifting through a stop sign/red light with a full cord