Looking for a trailer? I can recommend these guys.

I thought I already had a thread about this but I can't find it so I'm starting another. 

My 6 x 14 utility trailer was getting to the point where it was worn out. It was time for a new deck and the running gear had an amazing amount of slop at every pivot point. It didn't have brakes. It was past due for sandblasting and paint. It was also a little small for hauling cars and equipment. It was a $200 trailer I picked up at the scrap yard 10 years ago. It was a little on the ugly side but it usually got the job done and towed like a dream. 

I spent a year or so looking at trailers. New, used, flat deck, utility, even enclosed. Most of the steel flat deck trailers were as floppy as a noodle with many of them already showing rust in the crevices. I've borrowed a few of them that towed like crap. Even empty they were poorly balanced.

I looked at a couple of used Featherlite trailers. I didn't particularly like the deck on the ones I looked at and prefer a wood deck. I didn't want to buy another tow vehicle for a large enclosed. I didn't want a straight car trailer without a middle deck. I use my trailer to haul everything from doors and cars to my excavator and skid steer as well as everything else I want to move. I wanted traditional springs instead of torsion axles. I also have thoughts about adding a second deck to haul a boat above a vehicle behind the motorhome. So I needed a do-all trailer that would be the last one I ever had to buy. 

With all of that in mind, I ended up with this. This is a 2022 Black Rhino 7x18. It is the first new trailer I've ever bought. It's a little fancier than I was originally shopping but it was in stock and had been on the yard long enough that they were willing to deal. The first thing I did when I got it home was to treat the deck with all the linseed oil it would soak up. 

This thing is a beast. A lightweight beast. Empty it tips the scale at about 1300 pounds. It rides on two 3500-pound braking axles with aluminum wheels. Both fenders are removable to make loading easy even when you are putting a Feiro on backwards. It came with greaseable pivots on the equalizers. There is zero twist or flex in the deck. It may be one of the stiffest trailers I have ever seen. It is 100% welded box tube and they didn't spare the tubing. I had it in the air the other day to wash the salt out from under it after a snowy trip to the mountains. The cross members are on 16" centers. My last trailer only had 4 cross members for 14'

I have put about 4000 miles on it now with loads from empty all the way up to a touch over maximum. It handled all of them with aplomb. The trailer tows as well maxed out as it does empty. Brakes on both axles bring large loads to a stop without excitement. It has been outstanding every time I've used it and looks pretty good while doing it. My only complaint so far is I've had to wash it twice now and I've never washed a flat deck trailer in my life. 

The takeaway, if you are in the market for an extremely well-built trailer, look into these guys. Price-wise it's comparable to a Featherlite flat deck but I think it may be better built. 

No this isn't a paid endorsement. I just like to see people who do great work get ahead in life. The best way I know to do that is to recommend their products. 

I'll update this when I start the build on the boat deck. 

The underside of that - holy cow!  Never seen one that stout.

Curious why you prefer wood to a metal deck?  I know it can be a religious debate but interested from a heavy user opinion.

Daaaanggg. That thing is sweet!

In reply to glueguy (Forum Supporter) :

I haul some strange junk. I'm going to pick up a 7' land plane for my father this weekend. If I damage the deck by dragging some chunk of steel or car up on it it is easily replaced. If I damage an aluminum deck, that's a problem. I also frequently screw blocks to the deck as stops to hold odd things in place. A wood deck lets me put them anywhere I want.

I also think a properly fastened wood deck also makes the trailer quieter. 

In reply to Toyman! :

Good thing FrenchyD isn't here to read that!

When he wasn't just making stuff up, there was a ton of old guy knowledge in the dude... problem was...

In reply to Toyman! :

Makes sense, thank you.

Toyman! said:

I also think a properly fastened wood deck also makes the trailer quieter. 

They're also a lot easier to walk on when it's been raining and the deck is wet.

That thing is built better than every camper or 5th wheel I've ever been under.

May I ask what you paid for it?

In reply to stanger_mussle (Supported by GRM undergarments) :

$8k. A little over twice what a new steel trailer costs. 

glueguy (Forum Supporter) said:

The underside of that - holy cow!  Never seen one that stout.

Curious why you prefer wood to a metal deck?  I know it can be a religious debate but interested from a heavy user opinion.

 

 

I'll tell you why I prefer wood decks.

1- when they rot after 10 years, $100 worth of PT lumber and an afternoon gets you a new deck.  With steel, when it rusts after 20 years, you're looking at $1000 and two weekends
2- Steel decks (especially ones with an open spot in the middle) are uni-taskers.  They can haul larger tractors and cars, and that's about it.  A full-width wood deck means you can haul a car, a lawnmower, mulch, gravel, brush, dirt, ATVs, motorcycles, the contents of a 2- bedroom apartment, whatever.
3- The ability to screw things down anywhere you want.  Any crates, boxes, or pallets, you can just throw a 2" deck screw through the base.  I hauled a fridge and just screwed down some scraps of 2x4 to prevent it moving and then all I needed was a single strap to prevent it from rolling.  Same goes for cars.  I can just screw down a 2x4 behind and in front of the tires to add peace of mind.
3- Every wood-deck trailer I've had has been majorly quieter than steel.

To each their own, but I just find wood decks to be ultimately versatile, and steel decks are less versatile.