Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum banner

A question about equipment trailers.

27K views 17 replies 15 participants last post by  Morning Wood 
#1 ·
Greetings,

We just recently purchased a JCB 210S small backhoe (aprox 11,000# and 6'5" wide) and we are seeking a trailer for it. I was wondering if anyone had any strong feelings about any brand in particular. It seems like prices can vary greatly.

We have a f450 diesel dump truck to tow it with - so we're looking at a 14k GVW trailer - standard hitch.
 
#2 ·
I can only tell you from expreience on two brands, but Ive got some opinions on a few others, so Ill throw them out there

Cam Superline - Top Notch. I own a 10K pounder and tow it very often, everything about it is solid, great quality. I could take it down to the dealer, and theres not a single brand new trailer on the lot that I would even think about trading it for.

Big Tex - Much much cheaper quality than the Cam. Ive got a big tex that Ive had about 5 years or so now. Every time I take it out, I need to replace something. Ive replaced every light on it 5+ times, its been rewired completely twice, its on the second jack, the fender has a small rust hole, and I DONT beat it, it just wont take regular use.

PJ - I have never personally owned one, but when I was shopping for my Cam, I looked at a PJ, and it was of similar quality, looked to be well made and rugged.

Pequea and Downeaster - I looked at these as well when looking for the Cam, These looked to be of better quality than the big tex, but not quite as good as the the PJ or Cam.

Im assuming you will want a deckover because of the width of the backhoe. As far as I know, all of these companies make a deckover, not positive if they are all 14K.
 
#7 ·
Check out:

http://www.appalachiantrailers.com/

I've had one of their dump trailers (it was about 2/3 the price of the competition) for 5-6 years and have been extremely pleased. I picked it up at the factory.
Ive used an Appalachian Trailer as well. It was of decent quality, Id say probably comparable with the Pequea or DownEaster, nothing special, but it will get the job done.

And I agree with the others, saying you should look into a heavier duty trailer, you are going to be right at, or even over the capacity at all times, and it obviously will wear on it faster. If you can afford it, it would pay off in the end to go heavier.

A 15K at the least, but a 9 or 10 ton would really serve you well, if you can pull it with your truck.

Im not saying a 14K wont do what you need, but it will be at or close to its max capacity nearly all the time
 
#5 ·
I am partial to Eager Beaver Trailers.

But you might also check out Cleveland Trailers, I have one of theirs and it has done well, 14K trailer but I would not put a backhoe on it regularly. But with 450 you would do better than I do w/ a 350.

Biggest issue with most trailers is the electrical systems, many just run wires and crimp on those cheap connectors. Eager Beaver has a sealed harness that is in a word....reliable.
 
#14 ·
Eager Beaver, Trail King, TrailMax.

Have owned all 3 in various forms, and still own a Eager Beaver B9DOW 9 ton backhoe trailer and a TrailMax TRD50T 25 ton tri-axle tilt.

And prices do vary widely you have the cheap trailers and top of the line trailers. The 3 brands I mentioned are well known top of the line trailers with a great reputation, and great resale value. They use better quality materials, etc.

Compare a Eager Beaver 20,000 lb capacity to the Appalachian 20,000 lb capacity. The Eager Beaver has high tensile 50,000 lb cold formed 12" I-beam frame, meaning it is one piece from drawbar to end. And they use I-beams for all crossmembers, etc. The Appalachian frame is a standard 10" channel welded together assembly with channel for crossmembers. TrailMax same high quality, but they use high tensile rectangular tube for frame and crossmembers. Trail King uses high tensile I-beams for frame and crossmembers.

So look at how the trailers are built. Do they use high tensile I-beams or rectangular tube, or do they use standard C-channel.
 
#15 ·
I've had several Econoline trailers with deckover and one Hooper with dropdeck. Been very happy with both manufacturers. Econoline is in Double Springs, Al, but they have dealers all over. I recommend you get size bigger than you think you need. Tires, deck, the whole thing will last nearly forever with routine maintenance. Good luck.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top