whitebuffalo

i know its been discussed before about converting a travel trailer frame for flatbed use and the concensus is "no". theres one for sale for cheap, that is 30' long and has 5" channel iron frame. I'm looking for a trailer to haul 2 jeeps on. possibly bobbing off the rear so i could use it for 1 or 2 jeeps. anyway....my question is, with 5" frame.....would it be strong enough for that usage? or is it still too light. 2 jeeps or maybe 1 jeep and 1 truck would be all that would ever be on it.

whitebuffalo

bump.

pricing 5th wheel to gooseneck adaptors...they seem to be around 200. id prob cut off the top platform and beef up the hitch some. im more concerned with the flatbed portion.

Diesel Avenger

Off the top of my head, and speaking as a weldor/fabricator, I'd say "no". The problem would be flex. 5" channel, even the heavier stuff would be very flexible at that length. Which would not be a good thing when shooting down ..say, I-10 between Crossroads and downtown??? Know what I mean? It would start bouncing and wouldn't stop for that whole trip and that would not be good. Another killer would be if it weren't braced enough and the channel started to roll while flexing. That would lead to premature faliure as well.


Most of the longer trailers like that use a small I-beam for the frames. They will still have some flex, but not as much as the channel. My 18' Magnum has 5" channel, but at nearly half the length.

whitebuffalo

that makes sense to me. i wasnt sure how much it would have. i thought 5" seemed a little light myself. ok, ill keep looking for a decenmt priced GN. thanks for the help

Diesel Avenger

FWIW, there is some guy in Floresville that is building them for a better than normal price. I know a guy in Bergheim that bought one and hauls a backhoe with it...so far, so good. I'll see if I can find out a number for you. There used to be a trailer builder in Kerrville that was way cheaper than SA as well...no idea who or where.

whitebuffalo

any leads you can give me are appreciated. i have come to the conclusion i may just gave to wait....i passed on a sweet deal on a 24 footer a while back up around wimberley and since then, the only ones for a decent price are junkers. at the time, i didnt have my hitch installed and didnt have time to check it over. now i got my hitc h and cant find a decent deal on one like i need to save my life.


thought about trying to build one myself, but dont think the little bit of savings would be worth it, esp. given that ive never built a trailer before, so a decent sized GN might be jumping in a little too deep for me.....

Diesel Avenger

Ok, I'll do what I can see.

Building one isn't that bad. When my shop is finished, I may build me one....but then that is what I do anyway...build stuff. Building a truck wash grate out there right now...matter of fact, that is where I should be right now. One thing I have noticed is that when you build your own, it never turns out cheaper. They crank out those trailers cheap. I have seen some that cost less than or the same as the materials to build them. No idea how they do it...may not want to know to be honest.

whitebuffalo

id sure like to try. if i had one to model it after, thatd be better. i guess i could buy those plansor whatever. i know what you mean on the cheap thing...of course, when you build it yourself, you always know its super stout. i tend to overbuild things though. anyway, if you comeacross any deals, gimme a holler. ill prob move my trailer purchase to the back burner tho for a little while....at least until the ins. co. gives me the money they owe me. i just blew a signifigant sum of money on non-automotive stuff.

mj007

I had to say this: It's a rare day lately when a man knows the difference between a weldor and a welder. I've done a bit myself and always catch that part as the credentials are presented.