my screw-up for the year

We don't do it often, but we do haul 10.5 wide 46K lb excavators (which is what broke the trailer) and crawlers on our step decks. With tracked units this wide, you usually have 50% of the track on each side on the trailer. We have not had any damage to the outer rail, to this point. On our newer trailers we have rounded wheel wells over each set of tires to allow our deck to be 4" lower. We did have these get crushed on 2 different trailers by wide excavators. They were built with very little support on the outside of the trailer, and this is where all the weight was. Now we instruct our drivers to lay down 4x4s for the machine to drive on to prevent this from happening.

 

What brand of trailer?

 

The trailers that got the wheel wells crushed were Wilson combos. We have steel Fontaines that have wheel wells with a different design. We have been operating these trailers for 20+ years with no issues (to my knowledge). The Fontaines were great workhorses, but they don't want to build anything besides standard trailers anymore. We also gained 2300 lbs by going to the Wilson.

 

We haven't had damage to the outer rail because our steps don't have any tail like this 53' step had. Our outer rails are supported by the ICC bumper assembly, wheel well struts, and the gussets that connect the frame rail to the outer rail.

The frame rails in steps taper down over the spread. In 53' steps, the tail of the trailer is supported these small tapered frame rails. These smaller frame rails in the tail don't allow the outside rail to be supported like it is between the step and first axle with the use of gussets. The lack of gussets caused the tail of the trailer to fail because it couldn't transfer weight from the outside rail to the frame.

You only run into this issue when your trailer has a long tail.

 

What year trailer danny?

 

Danny, sorry to hear about your trailer. I haul my 200 excavator on my stepdeck, but I am usually somewhere where I can dig a pit beforehand. You should also see how much weight your trailer is rated for. I have seen many stepdecks at 40K pounds, and many at 60k. The difference is all in the crossmembers. As your trailer is going to the welder, have him put in some nice heavy 1/4" tubing to reinforce the heck out of it. Thats what I did and it was the best decision I could have made.

If this were two months ago, I could have let you rent my trailer. It was sitting and waiting for someone to enjoy it (and Im in MT, so its just a hop away from ND).