Let's talk trailers

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lowell66dart

TJ Enthusiast
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South Louisiana
Where I live it's pretty flat and sorta urban so not much place to ride and I don't like mud. Thinking about getting a trailer to take my LJ places.
I rented a UHaul trailer to get my current Jeep home and it was nice. All galvanized, perfect size for a Jeep, nice ramps etc. Anyone know any thing about these? Does UHaul sell them at some point?
 
lowell66dart said:
I rented a UHaul trailer to get my current Jeep home and it was nice. All galvanized, perfect size for a Jeep, nice ramps etc. Anyone know any thing about these? Does UHaul sell them at some point?
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They do get cycled out, but I don't know at what point, and I don't think I'd want one. You'd probably be better off looking for a used trailer on marketplace. If you just want it for your Jeep any standard 16-18' flat deck should work. In my area a decent trailer like that runs $2,000-4,000 used, and $3,000-6,000 new.
 
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Uhaul does sell them occasionally. I looked at one a few years back. I think it was $1800. I've used the car hauler several times. They are good trailers and built like tanks. The issues are they are very heavy, usually beat up, many years old, and have surge brakes. If you could find one on marketplace for really cheap it might be worth considering. If your buying from Uhaul you'd can do better for the same investment.
 
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I wouldn't buy a used Uhaul trailer.

I'm looking for a trailer now for several reasons. One is the same as you but others include moving my mower, equipment, etc. I am not interested in a car trailer rated at 7k pounds because my TJ weighs roughly 4k pounds which doesn't leave much fluff with extra stuff on the trailer. A 7k trailer will have a cargo capacity closer to 4.5k because of the trailer weight. I am looking at a 20-24' 10-14k trailer and want to stay in the $4-6k range. I have found it is possible in some new off brands and barely used name brands. The 10-14k trailer gives me the ability to, in the future, move to a JK, JL, or JT and have the cargo capacity or move my brothers skid steer if I need too.

The other thing to consider is that a 7k trailer will have brakes on one axle but a 10-14k trailer will have brakes on both axles. Uhaul trailers all use surge brakes, which suck.
 
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This is our second Big Tex car hauler . So far they have been smooth pulling trailers . We sold our first one with the motorhome after 6 years and putting 60,000 miles on it and no issues with the trailer . It had an 18 ft bed . Our new one has a 20 ft bed and was bought in 2020 . We bought a longer trailer , but a shorter motorhome . I prefer to trailer the Jeep . If we or someone with us breaks something trail riding , we can get the broke Jeep home . It's also really nice to be able to backup , which is not possible towing with a tow bar . I would rather wear out trailer tires and wheel bearings than the Jeep's .

The old one is the grey one and the new one is black . Currently we only have one axle with brakes , but I am going to add brakes to the other axle . The trailer brakes definitely help us get stopped .

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mjonesjr84 said:
I'm looking for a trailer now for several reasons. One is the same as you but others include moving my mower, equipment, etc. I am not interested in a car trailer rated at 7k pounds because my TJ weighs roughly 4k pounds which doesn't leave much fluff with extra stuff on the trailer. A 7k trailer will have a cargo capacity closer to 4.5k because of the trailer weight. I am looking at a 20-24' 10-14k trailer and want to stay in the $4-6k range.
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I'm in a similar situation. I'm looking for a 20-22' deck trailer with at least 8K rating because the typical load I'd be putting on it would be around 5,500lbs, give or take, but under $4,000 which since the 'vid has been impossible to find.
 
BlueC said:
I'm in a similar situation. I'm looking for a 20-22' deck trailer with at least 8K rating because the typical load I'd be putting on it would be around 5,500lbs, give or take, but under $4,000 which since the 'vid has been impossible to find.
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These are about the cheapest I've seen. Someone brought them up in Baskets thread a while back.

https://doubleztrailers.wixsite.com/zztrailers
 
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Being in La you are close to the trailer manufacturing capital of the US which is East Tx which lowers shipping costs. I own 8 trailers ranging from a single axel jet ski trailer to a 3 axel 18K box car hauler. I’m a fan of both Big Tex and Load Trail. While buying a used trailer would be preferred finding one can be challenging. I prefer steel deck trailers because of the low maintenance factor. If I’m just bringing my TJ I use my 30+ year old Big Tex 70DM. It has a GVW of 7k is 2K by itself and has more than enough load capacity for a TJ. It only has brakes on the rear axle and it has not been an issue. It’s easy to add brakes if needed. I have a bigger 12K Load Trail that I use if I’m bringing a quad. I’ve added xtra tie-downs on the side rails and deck along with an 8 K winch. Also make sure you have a spare tire mount. ALL commercially produced trailers come with shit quality tires. A good trailer is a long term investment and the initial cost amortizes over the years.

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bucky said:
Nice find for $5K.
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Yes, was lucky. Also wanted something lighter. Had a Load Trail 5th wheel that was heavy duty but weighed about 5500 lbs. More than the Jeep !! The wolverine is more like 1500 lbs., big difference and pulls great. (19 Ford F250 diesel crew cab)
 
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Thanks guys. I am going to try and decide what I actually need/want and start looking. There are several places selling trailers within a couple hours of me so I am going to look at and under some of them. I have a barn and it will be out of the weather so wood would be fine/lighter but that steel deck is nice.
 
I've often thought I would need to have a 16-18 foot trailer custom made in order to have the excess weight capacity I would like to have and would want to be able to tow my 5400 lb JL.
 
On a side note, I was told by a UHaul manager that if you come across a rental box truck or trailer for sale, consider it stolen as they do not sell the used items, they are destroyed as it 's a huge liability issue for UHaul. I don't think I've seen one for sale before anywhere, so I tended to believe what he said.
 
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