Things too look for when buying a trailer [Archive] - WeldingWeb™

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levelzero

12-07-2007, 02:07 PM

deadman1474

12-07-2007, 05:57 PM

I'm looking at a few trailers (for towing my cars) this weekend. They all need a bit of work which is fine as I have a few specific needs.

I don't know much about trailer construction so I was hoping for some input on to what to look for in a trailer besides the typical stuff like tandem axles and electric brakes that work :)
It all depends on how far you want to go And what kind of budget you have. I would say to get electric brakes and if your going be pulling multiple cars I would get a tandem axle. And if you getting disabled cars a wench would be a good idea. Decide weather you want a ball and hitch or a goose neck. Things I would also check is for a bent axle. Drive it on a flat ground and see if it bounces up and down. I have a good friend that works on trailers so I will ask him for things for to look out for. Just rember that bigger is not always better get something that your car will tow. My first trailer was so big my ram 1500 would barley pull it.

levelzero

12-07-2007, 06:07 PM

Thanks for the feedback, I'll be sure to look over the axles. I'll be using it to tow my toys to/from the track (75 miles each way). I'll be towing it with a 2.8L 84 s10 4x4 ..... until I figure out what motor to put in the truck. There are both tandem Axel and I'll be adding a winch to drag broken cars onto it when needed :)

tanglediver

12-09-2007, 05:18 PM

I hope you get an engine for your truck soon, because a 2.8L S-10 Bazer is not an ideal tow vehicle. It will pull a tandem trailer empty just fine, but put a car on top and weigh the whole trailer, with load, at a truck scale and check that weight against the max tow rating of the S10. I am betting dollars to doughnuts you will find a discrepancy.
And it sounds like you've already decided on a particular trailer.
Good luck with that! :waving: