Do not buy a carry on trailer.

[jeeper]

My mother recently Bought a carry-on brand trailer from trailers plus in Denver Colorado.
They got totally hosed on a price. Like thousands over what we could have bought.
The dealer told them they HAD to buy a spare because they use a special lug pattern that only they carry.
Fine. It’s a cute trailer. Get over the dealer issues, and it’ll be great.
They’ve used it 3 times. The cross supports are bowing already.
The paint is in fact just paint, not powder coating, so it’s covered in rust.
The gate is already locking up in the hinges.
And worst of all, they install the lumber with NAILS!! The nails just slide themselves right out as the trailer wiggles.

I cannot believe how crappy this trailer is. 0 of 5 stars.

I’ve had carry on trailers in the past, and have been happy. But these new trailers are trash.

 

[TRD270]

I rolled the dice on a Workhorse trailer this round. Been happy so far. Not super thrilled with the wire routing but just nit picking.

 

[I Lean]

Where do the nails go? Into angle iron?

 

[STAG]

I was reasonably happy with the quality of my Karavan trailer I had in Hawaii. (Home Depot sells them)

 

[Tonkaman]

Wow that’s pretty special. It looks more like something you’d see in a Craigslist ad

 

[jeeper]

Where do the nails go? Into angle iron?

Yep.

 

[The_Lobbster]

I went and looked at a flatbed trailer at TP the other day to haul a scissor lift. I saw the quality of the welds, they were awful, so I got back in my car and left.

Also, the dealership was a joke. They have zero customer service.

 

[Coco]

I went with an Xtreme trailer out of Ogden for my current flatbed. Wanted to do a Big Bubba again, but they were months out at the time. This one was a pretty good deal, and seemed good quality. I have been happy with it, my only complaint would be the coating. They told me it was powdercoat, but by the way it is flaking, and how badly, I would guess paint. More than I would expect a 3 year old trailer with minimal-in-comparison use to have. Come spring time it will be getting a freshen up.

 

[STAG]

Personally, I’d prefer my trailer to be painted instead of powdered. That said, paint jobs are FAR from created equal. No paint should ever be laid down without a primer-sealer and proper surface prep. But, you aren’t getting that with this level-of-market trailer.

 

[Trate D]

I bought my PJ flatbed from Wasatch trailer roughly 13 year ago. It still looks great! I take good care of it and don’t use it a ton but it’s always surprised me how well it has held up.

 

[Kevin B.]

Ok, I gotta ask, why are you guys buying trailers? The skillsets on this board should have no problem building something that simple exactly how you want it. What am I missing?

 

[mbryson]

Ok, I gotta ask, why are you guys buying trailers? The skillsets on this board should have no problem building something that simple exactly how you want it. What am I missing?

Cost

 

[Hickey]

Ok, I gotta ask, why are you guys buying trailers? The skillsets on this board should have no problem building something that simple exactly how you want it. What am I missing?

PREACH!!

BTW my Jeep Dolly powder coat is thick AF and it’s only having issues where I’ve damaged it with chains/hardware/strong language.

 

[Kevin B.]

Cost

So I haven't priced out a build or a new trailer and maybe I don't know what I'm talking about, do the commercial outfits really sell a trailer for the same price I could build one?

 

[mbryson]

So I haven't priced out a build or a new trailer and maybe I don't know what I'm talking about, do the commercial outfits really sell a trailer for the same price I could build one?

I've looked hard at things a couple times. Especially when I had a gasser one ton. I thought if I could save 600-1000 lbs, that'd make the truck perform better. I'm talking about a 28-30' trailer.

1-I got kind of nervous about liability in case of an accident
2-cost was not that different. Maybe 20-30% more to buy something vs building it.
3-I'm not an engineer and would need to know some "stuff" to keep the trailer light (ish) but strong enough to carry 8000-10,000 lbs of Jeeps and keep things all in line for an emergency maneuver or similar

I settled on assuming there is "some" engineering in a factory built trailer and in a worst case scenario, my insurance company would not give me quite the shaft they would if it was a home built unit towing at the max capacity of the truck.

Assuming there's another one ton + truck and trailer in my future, I'll likely look to a 30-36' enclosed with some homemade living quarters in it

 

[Hickey]

My trailer was more expensive to build than to buy something prebuilt at the time. That being said, it’s built better than nearly every offering in the market, it’s also powder coated better. I also bought the steel right before a very large jump in steel prices 3 years ago. It would cost me 5k to build it now.

 

[jeeper]

I've built 6 or so, bought 3 or 4 new, and bought 20-30 used.

I don't think you actually save much building your own, especially if you get it powder coated. The time it takes to build one though is significantly more than anticipated. Painting takes almost as much time as building.

I think the trailer companies have the walmart approach of low profits, high volume. They probably also get discounts for high volume purchases of metal and parts that a normal person can't get.

The benefit of building is the customization you can do.

 

[TRD270]

Ok, I gotta ask, why are you guys buying trailers? The skillsets on this board should have no problem building something that simple exactly how you want it. What am I missing?

I don't belong in this category, hence the purchase

 

[rholbrook]

There are two types of cement, cracked and will crack. There are two types of trailers, rusty and will be rusty. There are a lot of trailers being manufactured in China, put in containers and shipped to the US. Look at the tongues, if they bolt on, chances are they came here in a container. There really isn’t a trailer with good paint on them anymore.

If anyone needs a trailer, I know a guy, just saying