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Trailer buying advice for midi-excavator

E

esarratt

Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2020
Messages
15
Location
Waynesville, NC
Occupation
Septic Installer
I need a trailer for an excavator I recently purchased. This is my first piece of heavy equipment. My plan is to put brakes on all four (or six) tires. Brakes are cheap peace of mind.

Excavator Specs
Weight: 12,650 lb
Width : 6'7" (79")
Length: 18'3" (219")

I spoke with a trailer dealer and he recommended against getting an 80" or an 81" wide trailer. He recommended a deck-over. He said it was difficult to drive an excavator into such a tight space unless you were a really good operator.

I have been looking at Cronkhite Trailers. Their 2960 Series has 82" width on the deck. I am also looking at Kaufman trailers and used stuff on CL.

What are your thoughts? Advice?

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CM1995

CM1995

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Jan 21, 2007
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13,379
Location
Alabama
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Running what I brung and taking what I win
What will you be using to tow it?
 
CM1995

CM1995

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Messages
13,379
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Alabama
Occupation
Running what I brung and taking what I win
esarratt said:
My septic truck. 10-wheels. Ford L8000.
Click to expand...

You're already in Class A CDL territory with a tandem L8000 and 12K lb excavator in tow on a trailer rated to tow the mini so as Sky said go with the biggest trailer you can afford, you won't regret it.
 
Truck Shop

Truck Shop

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WWW.
IMO-96". If you buy used look for one that hasn't been painted. You want to be able to see all the cracks if there is any. Equipment dealers
like to put a fresh coat of sucker sauce on anything in the lot.
 
D

DeereJohn

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Dec 10, 2014
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43
Location
PA
CM1995

CM1995

Administrator
Joined
Jan 21, 2007
Messages
13,379
Location
Alabama
Occupation
Running what I brung and taking what I win
DeereJohn said:
Its hard to spend that kind of money on a 20 year old trailer, when you can get an entry level trailer (kaufman or econoline) for a little more.

Trailer prices have been nuts for the past few months. Steel is way up and supply is way down.
Click to expand...

Just my $.03 adjusted for inflation - stay away from Econoline. They are made in DoubleSprings AL and I know personally of the quality or shall I say lack of quality.
 
D

DirtyHoe

Senior Member
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Jun 18, 2016
Messages
290
Location
Albany, Oregon
I bought a brand new Econoline Backhoe Pro back in the 90's. There was a sticker that said check the lug nuts every 150 miles. So my driver checked them several times with a torque wrench and didn't find any problems. He quit checking them so often(mistake).
He was going 45 miles an hour fully loaded with a backhoe when the inner dual wheel came off the short stub axle(dumb design). The loose tire bent the first crossmember and ripped the second one off on one side(poor weld). Then the tire flew across the center lane and two lanes of traffic before hitting a chain link fence across the shoulder.
It was busy afternoon traffic on the edge of town. It was a miracle no one was injured.
 
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crane operator

crane operator

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Mar 27, 2009
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8,324
Location
sw missouri
I would rather have a used, heavier built trailer, as a brand new, lighter built trailer. I'd even give more for a used heavier built trailer, than the new lighter built trailer. I know that theres going to be something heavier that I want to haul, or a bad place to get in and out of.

Sounds like you've got plenty of truck, any air brake tandem deckover should be fine. I think I wouldn't mind a tilt bed, but I'm all about not flipping heavy ramps.


D5321.JPG
 
S

suladas

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2016
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1,731
Location
Canada
If your only plan is pulling it with the tandem, and already got it plumbed for trailer on air and have license for it, tandem air trailer is the only way to go, cheap to buy, maintain and tons of extra capacity for other stuff. With license changes here tandem air trailer prices dropped like crazy as most companies are going to electric to make it easier for license for smaller trailers.
 
skyking1

skyking1

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washington
I've learned the hard way. I'd rather have a rusty old thing that needed a deck but had good bones, then something that looked like a good deal but ended up being a horrible design. when I first got to this outfit they had a Miller tilt deck with those weird 17.5 tires on it, and that horrific walking beam system that was always breaking down. They had it rebuilt a couple of times before I got there.
it would still dog track those beams, it was way undersized and I would rip tires off it left and right.
You had the tongue load the crap out of it to keep from just blowing them out right.
I found an old used 20 ton tilt with the right size rubber on it. it's like night and day.
 
skyking1

skyking1

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The trailer you mentioned does have the advantage of being a little narrower at the trailing edge, and smaller. Both of those things will make it more maneuverable. IF it were my only trailer though, I would want bigger, just in case a different machine came along.
 
damnescavator

damnescavator

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Woodstock, Georgia
I'm shopping for a good used 10 ton. Some of the used ones have this metal lip around the bed (picture) which seems like a dumb design. How can you get your chains onto the side hooks?
 

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skyking1

skyking1

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washington
That trailer design helps with dropping dirt, it has inside hook loops on it that would be OK for a narrower excavator.
That might be a pretty nice deal if your excavator is less than 90" wide.
 
damnescavator

damnescavator

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38
Location
Woodstock, Georgia
I ended up buying one with the flat side plates as shown above and it worked out fine. The side plates keep everything on the trailer and are easy to chain around.
 
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