Trailer Recommendation

[G Crawford]

I recently acquired an L3010 with a Bush Hog M246 Loader. The specs say the tractor weighs 2745 pounds. I called Bush Hog, and spoke to someone who said that he could not find a weight listed in any of his literature. He stated that the shipping department probably had a shipping weight back in the day, but not now, since this is an older loader model.
I have a C.I.D. 72" dual cylinder grapple (325 pounds) and a Titan box blade (375 pounds). I plan on getting a rotary cutter as well. I don't see me transporting any more than the tractor (with FEL and bucket) grapple, and box blade, or tractor with FEL and rotary cutter at any one time. The tractor with FEL and box blade is about 13 feet long.

I have a 2017 Ford F150 with the 5.0 Coyote engine, trailer towing package, and electric brake controller. It's rated to pull 9,000 pounds.

I'm looking at dual axle 7,000 lb. GVW trailers with electric brakes and angle iron ramps. My question is what length would be best? I don't want to have buyer's remorse over too big or too little.

 

[Jasper2018]

I have a 22' equipment trailer, 15000# dual axel brakes on both axels.
I wish I would have gotten a 26' or 28'.
Tractor L3130 with bush hog just fits on trailer with ramps up.
Pulled by GMC 1500 with 6 cylinder duramax. It pulls it fine, but would ride better behind 3/4 ton pickup.

 

[dirtydeed]

Tractor, loader and rotary cutter will be quite long. I'd be looking for a 22 footer. The only catch is that they are hard to find in a 7K GVWR. You can find heavier trailers in that length and have them de-rated for your GCWR of your tow vehicle. You wont have any issue pulling it with your truck. I have an 18 5.0 with 3:55's and it pulls it easily.

The trailer ramp style may cause an issue for you. Perhaps, slide in trailer ramps would be a better option for you.

 

[Tughill Tom]

Yea,

I have a 22' equipment trailer, 15000# dual axel brakes on both axels.
I wish I would have gotten a 26' or 28'.
Tractor L3130 with bush hog just fits on trailer with ramps up.
Pulled by GMC 1500 with 6 cylinder duramax. It pulls it fine, but would ride better behind 3/4 ton pickup.

I'm with you on bigger! I have 10K, 18ft and wish I had a 22ft. I have to remove the FEL to get loaded with the cutter on to get it to fit legally.

 

[rc51stierhoff]

Good day. Regarding length, Just my opinion and recommendations:
1. Check you over all length of the bucket/loader and whatever is biggest you will have in the trailer. (13’ for your machine to me doesn’t seem long enough)
2. For whatever trailer you are interested in, get the simple wire frame drawing of the deck and location of the axles.
3. Guesstimate where you would set the total lineal length from number one…and compare to number 2…think about where the rear wheel of tractor would set (I suspect somewhere in front of the furthered rear axle but not past the front trailer axle) for the proper balance of the load.
4. Check how much useable space you will have left over for other items you might haul at same time. Is your trailer length enough?
5. If you have folding ramps, consider number 4 again…if you have something hanging over the ramps, it is fine to haul but you need to be able to fold them up…need enough space to pull forward(although that strains your hitch) or you need a longer trailer.
6. You did not mention it or ask but I’d recommend before you decide on the trailer also consider the ramps…construction and how you plan to hall. The folding ones with the knee kickers are the way to go IMO. Also consider ramp width versus the track on you machine.
7. MAybe also consider how you will chain everything down…personally I think a deck over is much more convenient / flexible for loading from side and chaining stuff down. Also don’t have to worry about driving over the fenders if you machine is with in an inch or so of the width between fenders.
8. On your weights check to make sure those are wet weights, especially considering your tires and or potential if will ever add wheel weights and or fluid…it adds up. Think about how much margin you need from the how much trailer can haul to you most likely heavy load.
9. Check the tire load and speed rating. Many tires impersonal trailers do not match the speed people drive on the super slab.
10. Make sure your trailer hitch is rating for the total load.

I am not sure that helps, but those are a couple checks that helped me in the decision process when I went from a utility trailer to an equipment trailer.

 

[fried1765]

I recently acquired an L3010 with a Bush Hog M246 Loader. The specs say the tractor weighs 2745 pounds. I called Bush Hog, and spoke to someone who said that he could not find a weight listed in any of his literature. He stated that the shipping department probably had a shipping weight back in the day, but not now, since this is an older loader model.
I have a C.I.D. 72" dual cylinder grapple (325 pounds) and a Titan box blade (375 pounds). I plan on getting a rotary cutter as well. I don't see me transporting any more than the tractor (with FEL and bucket) grapple, and box blade, or tractor with FEL and rotary cutter at any one time. The tractor with FEL and box blade is about 13 feet long.

I have a 2017 Ford F150 with the 5.0 Coyote engine, trailer towing package, and electric brake controller. It's rated to pull 9,000 pounds.

I'm looking at dual axle 7,000 lb. GVW trailers with electric brakes and angle iron ramps. My question is what length would be best? I don't want to have buyer's remorse over too big or too little.

Buy at least a 20' equipment trailer, with 10K GVW
Your truck/trailer future is totally unpredictable!
Loading a trailer to it's GVW maximum is never the best idea.
Your truck is likely not a forever truck.
Will it be replaced with a different truck, after being T-Boned by a drunk driver?
Loading a 10K trailer to 9K is a good idea!

 

[B737]

22 feet for L series, will prob be a 15,000 GVW trailer.
I had a guy who wanted to buy my old 20' trailer and when he measured his L + bucket + 60" brush hog it was 21' feet long not including tail wheel.

I tried towing 18 feet of steel trailer, B2601 + attachments, with 2020 F150 with V8, regular 9,000 pound tow capacity and it sucked. Sold that and bought an F250. 20' trailer was ok with LX but still ran out of room. With L series and brush hog, you will need 22'.

this is 22', had it derated from 15k to 13,500 to stay under 26,000 GCVW

 

[fried1765]

22 feet for L series, will prob be a 15,000 GVW trailer.
I had a guy who wanted to buy my old 20' trailer and when he measured his L + bucket + 60" brush hog it was 21' feet long not including tail wheel.

I tried towing 18 feet of steel trailer, B2601 + attachments, with 2020 F150 with V8, regular 9,000 pound tow capacity and it sucked. Sold that and bought an F250. 20' trailer was ok with LX but still ran out of room. With L series and brush hog, you will need 22'.

this is 22', had it derated from 15k to 13,500 to stay under 26,000 GCVW

An excellent setup,.......but.... the OP has a 2017 F-150 with 9,000 GVW towing capacity.

 

[B737]

Yes thats why I mentioned it, I towed with the same set up, and it sucked. Using only an F150 is going to be pretty sketchy.

Here is an LX on 20' trailer with 60" brush hog. I believe L series is 8" longer than LX, both have same loader.

 

[G Crawford]

Thanks everyone, for the replies. After reading some of the replies earlier today, I decided to up the weight capacity to two 5200 pound axles, and a 20' minimum size trailer. I am talking with three different trailer dealers currently and will probably have few options with their present inventory.
I had 375,000 miles on my 2002 F350 when I traded it for my F150. At the time, I never expected to need the bigger truck, and the F150 gets almost 24 mpg on gas, not diesel. But as someone pointed out, things can change rapidly.
I now own 27 acres of rural wooded land about 50 miles from home. (it was an unexpected opportunity, and a bargain) The trailer will be used sparingly to transport the tractor up there, and it will probably stay there until it needs to transported for service.
I will remeasure the tractor, but I don't yet have the rotary cutter.
Thanks again for taking the time to reply.

 

[RBsingl]

It is the total weight of the tractor and trailer that matters for his pickup's towing ability, NOT the rated GVWR of the trailer.

In many cases with 1/2 ton pickups, you will run out of hitch or pin load weight capacity before you hit trailer weight capacity. And the rated hitch load/carrying weight along with the trailer weight is based upon only having a driver in a sparsely equipped vehicle. Options and passengers count against the weight limit.

You can generally push things a bit, especially if you aren't doing mountain towing or long-speed high distance towing, but one thing you should never exceed is the rated load of the rear axle which will be based upon the axle itself, the tires/wheels used, and/or the suspension; whichever has the lowest rated capacity. Most 1/2 ton pickup rear axles are of the semi-floating variety and running them significantly overloaded will make for a most unhappy axle. And for the pickup to meet its 9,000 pound tow rating the trailer brakes must be in good condition with a properly set up controller. Most pickups can easily start a load that is far heavier than they are rated to tow but they won't be able to control or stop the load in a reasonable manner.

Certainly higher GVWR rated trailers will weigh more than lighter payload units but a 7,000 GVWR trailer is not going to leave that much left over for tractor and implements. Even a very light duty trailer in the 7,000 GVWR class is going to weigh over 2,000 pounds and a quality unit is going to be closer to 3,000 leaving only around 2 tons for payload.

He could put a 21,000 GVWR trailer behind his pickup but it would only leave about 3,000 pounds for payload to keep the trailer plus payload within the desired 9,000 pound towing capacity of his pickup. But a 21,000 GVWR trailer with only 3,000 pounds of actual load would tow just fine and would be perfectly legal.

If I were the OP, I would find a long enough trailer with the highest available GVWR that would still keep the weight of the trailer with its payload within the towing capability of the pickup. I have been buying 3/4 ton crew cab diesel pickups for a couple of decades so that anything I reasonably need to tow is well within the comfort capabilities of the towing platform.

Rodger

 

[B737]

I would find an aluminum trailer, 22' feet.

here is another photo of the LX on the 20'er. It does not fit. The rake is angled with the trailer centerline, hanging over the back end at least 2 feet, just a sloppy set-up and not good for the rake either.

 

[Captain13]

I borrowed a Big Tex 14LT 20’ from a friend yesterday. The LT is a tilt trailer. The front four feet is a fixed deck with the final 16’ doing the tilt. I really like the trailer. And it is stout. Pulls good, no ramps (unlike my current trailer) so if you need to overhang a little (like I did) you can. It’s the first time I’ve used a tilt and I would seriously consider one. Except with the cost of trailers now, I will be sticking with what I have.

 

[rc51stierhoff]

OP, I feel you pain…I have two properties 4 hours away…ended up with two tractors and an extra trailer (total of two could not sell the under weight rated utility that was paid for its handy in its own way)…and one tow vehicle.

I am not sure it helps, but I tried to think through the following:

1. A willing friend to make the long haul for me…I offered meals and lodging for him and his spouse, along with matching rate to have hauled…he wanted to get some money back on his trailer and I needed trsctor hauled…it worked fine but I only did it once…at that distance it’s a chunk of money, but I needed the tractor up there for work and I was not ready to spec/order a trailer…I saved enough between dealers on the tractor purchase that I eventually took the savings and bought a legimate equipment trailer….I use the trailer and shuttle the tractor back and forth a lot more than I thought I would…implements as well or a whole lot of other tools and equipment. Your haul really not that far …maybe a friend with truck and trailer could help for some walking around cash or hunting access if you allow/consider barter? You could always hire a pro to haul…50 miles not that far really so would not be as expensive as a 4 hour trip that I make.
2. Ask the dealer(s)if they would pick and and how much…maybe you have a dealer close at each property….I ended up in that situation and they are both great dealers, but the one is really high on sales side…both pick up the units and no charge.
3. You could do some combination above and look for a second tow vehicle? And get the trailer you want? Link below you can normally find really clean 3/4 and 1 ton trucks for reasonable price…before world went crazy you could get a nice truck anywhere from 9-12k…now it’s closer to 15-20, but this place has some really clean trucks for reasonable price if you just need something to make 1-2 hr trips and don’t want to trade off your current truck…it’s not free but it’s an option….I thought about looking for a commercial rollback truck used…that to me would be ideal and then skip the trailer just get a rollback and no worry about trailer….once you start thinking about a 2nd tow vehicle it’s really hard not to comtemplate your current truck vs a bigger truck?

Rustfree Classic 4x4 & 2 & 4 wheel drive Truck s, K5 Blazer s, Bronco s & Suburban s - rust free western Califronia Ford, Chevrolet, Chevy, & GMC 4x4's 4wd 2wd

4. If you need the tractor at both locations you could also think about 2nd tractor assuming a dealer could come pick it up or have a friend to help haul? But you would not have to shuttle between properties?

Anyway those were the options I was struggling before I bought a another trailer…luckily I already had a 3/4 ton truck.

 

[jyoutz]

Yes thats why I mentioned it, I towed with the same set up, and it sucked. Using only an F150 is going to be pretty sketchy.

Here is an LX on 20' trailer with 60" brush hog. I believe L series is 8" longer than LX, both have same loader.

Towing that set up with a half ton truck would be ok for low speed driving (with trailer brakes), but I wouldn’t tow it at highway speeds with a half ton.

 

[B737]

thats where i had the most discomfort, was on the highway with the F150. Plenty of tow capacity on paper, but in real application, not so much.

 

[jyoutz]

thats where i had the most discomfort, was on the highway with the F150. Plenty of tow capacity on paper, but in real application, not so much.

There’s no problem pulling the trailer with a light duty truck, but the issues are stopping and controlling the trailer. With a heavier truck, the trailer doesn’t push the truck around like the tail wagging the dog.

 

[B737]

Correct.
just because the load is under the 9000 pound limit doesn’t mean it will tow comfortably

 

[BAP]

What ever you buy for a trailer, purchase a good quality weight distribution hitch for it. It will greatly improve your handling towing with a half ton pickup. Equalizer Hitch is a good one and I use it on my 18’ trailer and half ton truck. They help control sway and level out the truck and trailer for better handling. Because problems people have towing trailers is not setting them up properly. Sure you can compensate by spending a fortune on new big truck, but many times it is as simple as setting everything up properly.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

Whatever trailer you decide to get, please, make sure it has brakes on BOTH axles ! MFRs here do NOT need to legally put them on as 'standard equipment'. I know different land, different laws, just something to make SURE though. Also add backup lights onto the trailer ! Could be the best $50 you ever spend.
Your truck is quite capable of hauling the trailer and tractor. My '97 F150 SB/4.6 Titan pulls a loaded 6x10 tandem dump fine. Also be sure to disable the overdrive(OD). Most (all ?) trucks aren't supposed to haul loads with OD on.