Trailer suggestions?

I would go with a 35' at least.

 

I would definitely go a little longer, if you're going to use it to make money. Longer is always better even if you don't use all the bed. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

 

I would suggest you pay more attention to the trailers net capacity that the gross, many dual's gross at 20k or 25k, but weigh as much as 10k empty, leaving only 10-12 k on top. Don't understate the single tandems, they are much lighter and if you find one with 8k axels and tires they can net out almost as much useful payload, often more in the short lengths, while burning a lot less fuel.

Since you are discussing tractors look under the trailer and check the spacing between cross members. Some are built as wide as 24 inches. I'd think 12" is better for a tractor or any load that will put more than 5k on one area of the trailer. Wide cross member spacing makes the trailer cheaper, but also results is a lot of flexing (cracking) of the deck boards, when there is significant weight in small areas, like equipment axels, or heavy tool/drill parts.

Beware of cheap gooseneck arches / ratings. Some trailers with tandem 20k duals are gross weight at 20k because they have cheap flimsy gooseneck frames, other are gross weighted to 25k (putting 5k on the truck). Remember the DOT label on the trailer determines the weight you get fined/taken out of service for. Its the lessor of the axel or gross weight, I've seen a lot that were the same, a few with a gross actually lower than the axel capacity. some significantly higher, since they had 35k goosenecks, that would carry up to 7k onto the truck. though you'd need an f450/550 to use them fully.

FYI: This is based on my experiences with a previous employer in Houston TX. At the time we found a lot of used goosenecks, 1-5 years old with little use....for good reasons. Sorry !!!! dealers will order trailers for stock that are specs at the bare minimal so they can have cheap prices on the lot. I hate to say it but many of them are like boat dealers. Go to to ww.pjtrialers.com and read their brochures, all the manufacture have those wide range of options. That's not an endorsement, they just have a easy to read to brochure

 

Ironically that's how I know so much about goosenecks. At the time I was the IT manager for a mechanical contractor that had too terminate a supposedly fleet manager because they had purchased four used trailers. Two of which had to be scraped and two more that got us in trouble, one for over loading, and one for exceeding the GCVW of an f450 (oh and it cut the trucks millage in half).

Yes most of them do look a like. I was sent with the replacement fleet manager and told it was my job to make him explain the what and why of his selections.

The biggest issue with goosenecks is the frame. all 12" I-beams look alike. But they are rated from 10lbs/ft, all the way 20/lbs/ft. Which means if you weight 12" of the I beam and it comes up 14 pounds, its a 12"/14L beam. You need to be real careful about that.

The guy I was sent out with took a gauge, the kind they use in steel supplies to check thickness, to confirm the frame and gooseneck were of the same thickness. He also relied HEAVY on the capacity plate the manufacture put on the trailer, since that is what the police use.

Now that I remember this more, the gooseneck itself, the points were the Y shaped frame that runs from the pole that attaches to the truck, to the H frame that attaches to the trailer. Check the welds for cracks, or DYI repairs. These indicate the trailer has been over loaded or badly abused.

Hope this helps.

 

Also factor in are you planning to stay under 26000lbs or step up to the next level??? If you stay under, you have a lot less paperwork and taxes...etc... With that in mind, to stay under 26000 with your F350, you'll probably not want to go more than 30ft on a duel axel/singles. That will give you a payload of around 11000 to 12000. I run a F350/2wd/no-duels and I tip the scales at 13800 with half tank fuel...I have 12000 of payload and my trailer and axels are rated at 14 so I'm good to go...

Ohio is a great place to be set up for hot-shot. Do you have someone dispatching for you???

 

mcubstead and Iahawkeydriver

Hello, I'm new here still trying to figure how this web site works. I'm in the Houston Tx area and not doing well looking for my first position. I do have an F250 and was wondering about just doing my own thing with a light trailer.

I've talked to a few places about adding a gooseneck adapter and have heard some real horror stories about used trailers in the SE Texas area. I'm told for an f250, to keep it under 25ft, and to look for a gross weight of 16k with single axels totaling 14k. I've also been told it might be a bad ideal to buy used unless I have some one with me that has experience. I had thought I should buy a bigger trailer, and in a few years a bigger truck. I've been advised that would be a mistake because the bigger trailer would limit my cargo so badly I could not find enough loads. Another person told me a gooseneck must be matched to the truck if I want to make money.

They were of course sales people so I'm asking, Does this sound like reasonable advice?
Also are there any web sites that tell you how to match a gooseneck to a truck?