anyone ever build thir own car hauler?

i'm looking for free complete plans, something simple in the 14 - 16 foot flatbed style

if you built your own, how'd it go?

 

We used to use some on the farm from way long ago, like the 70's. Back then, a farm hand built the trailers, out of angle iron and old truck axles. We used it about three years ago even though it had been out there since, well, before I can remember

 

if you have one around, you can buy the axles, springs, fenders, wheels, and tounges at tractor supply... that place is a great place to go for hardware if you don't need anything like suspension hardware...

 

Always keep in mind the price of doing so. Yeah it would be fun, but may very well cost you more then just buying a used one, plus lots of your time.

 

I see you are from WI. Fleet farm has axles, fenders, hitchs, springs, ext. for tandem trailers. I was also looking into building a trailer before I found the deal of my life on a trailer.

Wausau steel has all the c channel and angle iron you would need.

I had it added up to be around 800.00 - 1000.00 to build a 18 foot ball hitch trailer. around 1400.00 with a winch, deck lights, flat mount tie down hooks, and tilt bed.

 

if i could just stumble across a good deal i would just buy one,and i'm sick of paying to rent a car dolly all the time, i just need a good way to get the civic around once in a while

 

you can find used trailers for under a G

 

i had my crx on a weird long snowmobile trailer that my uncle bought for 50 bucks, look around you can always find something. see one rusting in someone's backyard? knock on their door and tell them you'll haul it away for them...

 

My friend built his own trailor. Check it out.

http://www.homemadeturbo.com/f...39854

 

yeah i'm just gonna hold out til i can stumble across 1

his trailer looks nice the 1 i was pondering building was a bit more complicated

 

I pondered this, but ended up buying one. Steel is just too expensive right now. Came to be cheaper to buy from a manufacturer

 

I actually priced out building a 18 ft trailer and it was about 5 times cheaper to just buy the thing new. Just check your local papers and pick up a used one. Save you time and money.

Yager-

 

i just came across 1 for 600 bucks going to look at it this weekend

 

at current steel prices you cant make one for what you could buy it. i did this one out of **** i had laying around the yard cuz i needed to tow a car. think i was 17, took about a month. it was mobile home axles and 2 sections of monsterous commercial shelving. couple pieces of channel for the front and back from a building wrecker.. fenders locally and a tongue/jack/light setup from northern hydraulics. i think its 24' total. cost me around $180 at the time.



thats my 4000lb impala on it and there was a 6k/lb station wagon once towed a few hundred miles so i know its pretty hefty. has about 25,000 miles since built in '97. this might be a better picture of the trailer, cant find any good ones.


the swing up ramps were added last year and were the greatest thing. hauling ramps in the truck totally eats **** and wastes a lot of time. half the time you cant find them or risk forgetting, or having them stolen etc. now i pull a pin and lower the ramp like an equipment trailer.

if you do end up making one, some things to consider:
make it so the trailer holds the ramps either underneath or they swing down, because you are constantly almost wacking the car being hauled with them when getting ready to unload.

electric brakes are a must. my trailer has no brakes. if you ever lock them up it will jackknife badly. my 89 F-350 stops it like a champ, but no other truck ive used does, including an '02 F250 superduty. only 1 ton duallys seem to get big brakes anymore. kinda scary with the way some ******** drive around you too.

when setting the axle location, you want the tongue heavy enough that the trailer will hit the ground when no jack is under it. mine will hover on its own. it should load the tow vehicle significantly on its own or it will bobble around on the hitch when empty and it totally blows.. the trailor is constantly lifting and loading my fathers van because its too low and the trailor is too light up front, even with a 6" lift hitch. you want about 400lbs on the tongue empty.

imports do NOT like tall trailers on account of the steep angles. with any sort of lowering or body kit i had to set up multiple planks like in stages,, car was climbing on the first ramp 16 feet behind the trailor and still barely making it on. sometimes id say screw it and just pull the bumper.

i have axles and steel for another, just hafta get the oak planks some time. i will go as low as possible all around with no beavertail this time, just flat, and on 50 series 15" tires instead of those tall tires on the other one.

anyone who just hooks a car on the trailer with a winch and one strap from the rear is nuts. cars slide side to side like 8 inches easy. plan on crisscrossing 2 chains and binders in the front and 2 in the rear. leave plenty of mounting locations for straps and chains. if your trailor is low enough and ramps long enough a 1500LB fourwheeler winch will easily pull up hondas with no trouble. mine didnt burn up till it tried to pull 3800 lbs on and i got a brand new one warrantee anyways. was like $149 and worth every damn cent. i hated being without it.

 

wow, that's a nice one.

 

good job, BUILD ME ONE


the guy i was supposed to go look at his trailer SOLD IT ON ME!!!

 

ebay $900.00, few hundred extra for the electric brakes and ramps. thats what we have used for a few years and it works great! we have the 19ft. dovetail, it has ramps, they go under the back in a track. oh get decent tires too, the guy is located at the northern most part of missouri if i remember. we pull it with a '95 half ton x-cab gmc 5.7 with no probs. whatsoever. let me know if you need his # i'll try to find it.

 

Branson Trailers? Got mine there too, crazy people, but good quality trailers (so far anyway). If you go there, be sure to ask Pickles why he herds goats

 

thanks man but, something broke on my Jeep today and i gotsa fix it now so 900 bones is pushing it


it always seems like when i get some cash saved up i end up getting screwed on something else

 

built mine out of a old pull behind camper

 

i was gonna tell you guys about that, a friend of mine and i built one out of an old pop up camper in high scool. it worked great! and the plus side is there are tons of them sitting everywhere that people cant give away. upgrading the axle is simple enough too if youre gonna be hauling more than a gutted crx.