jwt1603

I've got an open trailer now but I'm getting closer to buying an enclosed trailer. The more dealers I talk to the more varied the opinions are so I have a few questions for those with experience.

I can only fit a 20' trailer in my back yard. That's because I'm on a very narrow street and can't swing anything longer in without going on the neighbors grass. Which would not be a good thing.

The tow vehicle is an 08 F-250 turbo diesel so I don't really have to worry about capacity. The car is a 94 coupe at around 3,100 lbs. I'll have a few small tool boxes, a spare set of wheels and tires and the other usual trackside supplies like jack, jackstands, air tanks, etc.

We go to events at least once a month, usually twice a month and some of them are 8 or 10 hours away so I need a decent trailer.

Here's my questions. Please feel free to add any other thoughts on issues I may have overlooked.

With this load on a small trailer do I need the heavier axles? One dealer says 7,000 lb capacity is fine, another says I have to go to the 10,000 lb axles.

Do I need the torsion axles for the same reasons?

Brakes on both axles or just one?

Can I mount a rack on the side walls to hold the wheels and other items or do they have to be on the floor? I've seen wall racks but I don't know if they have special bracing in the walls.

Does a white trailer really stay cooler inside in the summer?

V-nose, round nose or flat front? How much difference does it really make?

Thanks.

AU N EGL

7000 is too low, go with the 10,000

Yes

Both

YES



Pitproducts or PitPal makes some great trailer products.

YES

V-nose will give you a bit more room for junk


I have a 24' enclosed and the space is just enough. a 20' will be tight for the extra junk.

Get a race car package, not a cargo hauler.
Need 4 D rings,
Lower deck height
ramp and dove tail.

Interior Lights.

BuckeyeZ06

with a 20' trailer you need to make use of storage in all places. Thoughts:

get the larger axles and brakes on both. Big time safety reasons as well as resale value. Also, get E rated tires if possible.

Yes, white does stay cooler and when the trailer chalks up it doesn't look so bad, although silver/grey is OK as well. Paint the roof when you get it so the stains from the unpainted metal doesn't streak the sides.

If you wall braces are square tubing (as opposed to "hats") then a wall mounted tire rack will work. If not, get a scaffold-type rack that mounts to each wall (spans width of trailer) so obth walls support it AND it acts as another braces. You don't want to bow the walls.

Add some electrical outlets and lighting with a ground connection. You never know when that will come in handy...

Get a big side door (48").

trackboss

7k axles are fine. With a 20ft you can only fit so much and I doubt you will go over weight. Featherlites have torsion axles standard as well as four wheel brakes.
I just bought a used featherlite 20ft. Mine is a "V" nose and recommend the same for you. It adds extra space. Otherwise a 20ft is really a bit too small if you haul anything besides the car.
The featherlites are very nice simply because they are so light. I got a smoking deal, but am upgrading a lot. The interior is not finished so if anything bangs up on the walls from the inside it will show outside. For that I installed plywood walls using threaded inserts, not cheap self tapping screws like the mfg's do. This way the walls are super strong and load bearing. You can mount a tire rack with threaded inserts as well. Featherlite suggests also supporting from the ceiling.
Another thing I did was use rigid insulation for the cieling and then installed white tile board to finish it all off. It does help with the heat and looks super nice. No one makes a proper winch mount and I've seen the I beams flex on others that simply use thick sheet aluminum. I designed and built a super stout winch mount that attaches from underneath to 5 cross beams. I could go on and on about other upgrades I'm doing, but these in my opinion are the basic needs. I pull mine with a half ton. You should have no issues.

-V

1320jon

You deffinately want the 10 k axles. I ve been pulling for years and years and years. 7k would barely hold your car. If torsions are optioned I d deffinately get them. I ve had both and have torsions now on a 50 ft enclosed. They are so much nicer, simpler, ride, and if you ever have too, you can move the trailer missing a wheel.

I would option brakes on only one axle for your use but both are always better, esspecially in panic stop. The front wont make a huge difference, the frontal area of your truck and the trailer are already horrible. They do make a difference though , just not a lot. Ive never noticed any heat difference, and my current trailer is black. I wouldnt order a black one though, to hard to keep clean. The benefit of a color is they stand out and are easy to find. I go to the sand dunes, and everyone (30000 people) pull white trailers and they all look the same.


Whats the gvw of the trailer?
I run air lines under my trailer for both outside pit use and to use air for changing a flat on the trailer.

The walls are just fine for wall mounting, just make sure you hit a stud. Metal verticles ussually around 24 inches I think.

davidfarmer

yes on the heavier axles.

I can't tell the v-nose helps aerodynamically in my case.

I use e-track load bars going ACROSS the width of the trailer. I like this setup, and think it's easier on the studs.

jwt1603

Good stuff.

Any thoughts on new vs used?

the blur

4 wheel brakes are a must, and it's the law in certain states, such as NY. & when a brake magnet fails, you still have 3 wheel brakes. Plus, the brake shoes will last longer.

I had a shorted brake magnet, and it was causing the brake controller to go into an overload condition. I went to the trailer, cut 1 brake magnet wire at a time until I found it, and drove home with 3 working brakes. It was fine. Had I only had single axle brakes, it may be been a major problem.

The V-nose will help fuel mileage, so it may pay off in the long run.

Gordy M

For mileage, the slope nose are the best, V nose give good mileage but is more unstable in high wind conditions and heavy truck traffic, sway bars are a must--so said the insurance adjuster after a friends V nosed trailer got caught between two trucks.

jwt1603

It varies a lot between mfgs. I don't recall the exact numbers. I can't swing an aluminum so I'm guessing around 2,500 lbs.

John Shiels

10,000 is a must. Bigger tires, bearings and brakes. Less wear on your truck. 4 wheel brakes is a law in some states as blur said. Torsion axle is better and you may be able to ditch the leafs for torsion bar suspension which rides smoother. resale with the preceding will be way better. White vs black is like when you were a kid barefoot on the asphalt looking to stand on the white as it was cooler. Few feet inside the trailer is a huge difference so give it some thought and you neighbor some sod. You may want ICC ighting to be legal in all states and it was 50 bucks on my trailer 6 years ago. V nose will be bad for storage and if you go 20' you will need it all and you have enough power to pull it easily. I would go flat or round.

Plan the trailer so measure your car and mark it in the trailer for a better idea how it will be or look at some at the track in different sizes. I love my open H&H and I use it 2-3 times a week and load it up to the limit plus. Then decide rivets or no rivets. Look to see who makes the brakes so when you need parts you have something common like Dexter axles so if you are stuck some where you can get parts easy.

c4cruiser

Go with 10K axles and ask if you can get Dexter axles (always carry a spare bearing set!!)
Get a good electronic brake controller for the truck. Go with the Tekonsha "Prodigy" controller. They also make a neat plug-and-play wiring harness for your truck so it takes no time at all to do the install.

Ask you r neighbor if he has any real problems with using part of his property for backing up to park. A 24' trailer will be a much better deal. Having extra space for cabinets and floor storage is a big plus.

Some other thoughts:

Get a pair of vents for the roof. The crank-up kind will work fine. If you are somewhere where the temps get hot, having ventilation in the trailer is a big help.

Get a 110v RV outlet installed so you can hook up to outside power. One nice thing about an enclosed trailer is that it can double as a camper. Also get a separate 12v battery in the trailer for interior lighting. It can be wired to have the truck alternator charge it as you drive.

Some enclosed trailers don't have a lot of interior lights. I fyou order a trailer, try to get at least 3 lights down the middle of the ceiling and a couple over the nose portion if you are doing cabinets or work bench. Also, get a pair of floodlights at the rear door. If you have to load/unload at night, this is a BIG help. I have even seen some trailer with two flush mounted lights in the deck. Helps to see the tiedown points in the dark.

Get a door on the left side wall near where the car will sit. It's a royal PITA to get in and out of the car if you can't open the driver's door and the trailer wall is 18" away. Having a door in the wall helps to provide wiggle room.

As time and money permits, get a retractable awning on the right side of the trailer. Having shade to either work on the car or just rest and relax is a big help.

Some sort of aero nose mounted on the outside of the trailer front wall will be helpful to fuel economy. Otherwise you are towing the aerodynamic equivalent of a brick

Floor D-rings are fine but also look at E-track for tie-downs That way, you have tie-down locations in 1 inch increments front to rear. If you are going to be storing things along the wall, get E-track on the wall too.

1320jon

GVW is the trailer and contents. My 50 ft encloased empty is 9600lbs. The gvw is 15xxx....That doesnt mean I can only put 5400 lbs in though, as my truck sees some of that weight. I ussually eand up with about 4500 lbs on my truck.

I would bet a steel 20 ft enclosed would be in the area of 3000-3500 lbs by itself with no load. When they say 7000 lb axles they are saying (2) 3500 lb axles. When they say 10000 they mean (2) 5000 lb axles.

The gvw could be 10000, or less. I think they can actually get alittle over the 10000 because they subtract out the axle/wheel tire weight in some places. Im guessing on that, but I ve seen a few trailers like mine that sneak over the axle rating by what appears to be about the unsprung weight. Probably state dependant.

Your trucks gvw is probably 9999? So if you run 1000 lbs tongue weight and load the bed and have a fuel tank/tool box set up, you can get real close to being over your gvw.