I could not get a rental truck, so just bought a buddy's 8.5x24 car hauler.

the build sheet "looks" like it has 2 "3200 axles"
does that mean 2x3200=6300 pounds?
if the trialer weights (i'm guessing here) 3000, then i have 3000 of payload, right?

I've weighed my truck empty, and it was 7200 lbs full of fuel, and ~6900 empty,
7440 with my fat butt in it and gassed up.

So, if I go weigh tonite ( intend to tow tomorrow if you guys say ok)
what's a good weight for the truck, trailer, and my household goods?

I've got it about 3 feet deep, with only a few boxes, and 2 empty entertainment centers, and 2 empty bedroom suite's. washer & dryer.

talked to a guy today who cried wolf for 30 minutes about bending axles by overloading car haulers.

I've towed this trailer, when my buddy owned it, with my truck, with a race car in it (~2900 lbs) and prolly an easy 1000 lbs of tools.

my truck is all stock, auto, 4x4ORP, intend to take it easy, set cruise on 65, should be ok to 70mph, or stay at 65?

what's my safe weight, and what's my margin of safety?
gonna air up all tires to 65 psi on truck and whateever tires on trailer say on sidewall.

 

You will have to look in the mirrors to make sure it is still back there, that truck will pull several of them Don't think a few household items will hurt the trailer either..........

 

Sounds like you're being conscious of what you're doing. Do you have a brake controller for the trailer brakes? If you have 2 3200# axles, the GVW of the trailer is probably at least 6400#. Another important thing is having an adjustable hitch (assuming this is a bumper pull) so you can get it leveled just right. Good luck and have fun,..

 

nah, i got 3 hitches for that stupid ORP being so high, so every job requires a different size ball and drop...so i got them wrapped in a towel with pair channel-locks in the rear bins.

so I got it level, and got the electric brake controller installed, and the guy with the race car set my electric brake up and showed me what to expect iwth it.

appreciate the feedback....off we go....

 

I think it would be hard to overload a car trialer with houshold stuff. You shouldent have any problems.

 

Enclosed car haulers tend to be weak-kneed unless ordered with upgraded axles. But it doesn't sound like he's overloading it.

 

You should be fine with the way you have explained the load. As long as the boxes are not all filled with books.
Most 24' enclosed trailers are 7000lb gvw have 3500lb axles and weigh in at around 3500-3750lb. That leaves you with about 3500lb of payload. Just make sure the tires are aired up to the max.
I do this all the time with mine but it is a 10,000 gvw.....

 

Here's a war story that might make you feel better. I have a 5x10 utility trailer with a single 3500# axle. One day I was getting rid of excess dirt from my back yard so I could build a storage shed. I had no idea how much weight was on it until one day I went to buy 1 yard of sand/gravel mix to make concrete. After comparing the two loads and doing the math I easily had over 7000 pounds of dirt on there. I knew it was overloaded but only had to move the dirt a couple miles and was too lazy to unload some of it so I pulled it very slowly and avoided all bumps.

It sounds like you have all your bases covered. Do you have a majority of the weight (60%) in the front half of the trailer?

 

tks for the advice guys,

it weighed:

truck:
4000 # front axle
4500 # rear axle (SRW)

trlr
#6500

so 15000# total, towed nice & steady, no problems, braked well. swayed a tad, which is prolly to be expected with the 4x4 height.

i thought the weight was on target for the "weak knee'd trailer" and I will get bigger axles if I do this too much.

i did put the boxes of books in the bed of the truck to steady it some,
but it still porpoised abit (not sure of the right phrase for that)

did blow the motor though, not sure why, will start a new post on that.

 

I have never heard of 3200 lb axles?.......are you sure they are not 3500 lb rated?........3500 lb and 5000 lb ratings are the most common on those enclosed car haulers......I doubt a 24' enclosed car hauler w/ a 7000lb gross weight would tip the scales at 3000 lb....... 2400 - 2500lb I think would be more likely - those enclosed haulers are usually made quite light weight...........bottom line: I think you have nothing to worry about........

 

3200 lb are torsion axles (?)

 

If I had that trailer I know what the first thing I would replace is, Put some good axles and suspension under it so you can load it up. Best place to get axles and trailer parts is thru Red Neck Trailer. Just get on line to find them.
You blew your motor???? That sucks!!!

 

That porpoising (assuming you're talking about side-to-side) is a result of not putting enough weight forward of the axles. About 60% of the weight should be forward of the axles.

 

nah, up and down.. the nose of the truck would go up and down..
real gentle though...not enough to be scary, but the wife noticed it.
got some ROUGH pavemetn on 95 in GA (construction) and SC (idiots don't do road improvements - pot holes everywhere)

i think i had most of the weight on the tongue, i put the empty/bulky entertainment centers in the front.

i don't know that just axles would help it, there are different girder/beam options on the build sheet too, so putting more axle on it might not be answer, just load light, or buy a better trailer, prolly.

it's gushing water out the front of the motor, assume it's the water pump, prolly no big deal, just a fluke if you realize no one else has posted about probs with it.

 

I would guess it's a blown hose. Hope you didn't drive it like that very long or you may have more problems now.