I've got some questions if anyone can help me out.

First I need to give some background info, so bear with me please. My dad has this old 30ish foot homemade bumper pull trailer that he used a lot when he and my mom were in the used furniture business. From the stories I've heard over the years it seem like a pretty stout trailer but in my lifetime(21 years) has been used only a handful of times and been neglected during the last 12-15 years. My mom recently told me they would haul 5 or 6 furniture sets on this thing at a time coming back from auction in Denver. Keep in mind that this was in the 80s and the furniture was the heavy, real wood stuff, not the cheap and light MDF and particle board crap you buy at Walmart now. From what I remember of the trailer, I think it might have started out as a mobile home frame, but I'm not positive on that.

I'm going to talk to my dad and see if I can buy it off him for a reasonable price and give it a new lease on life. Now, my dad lives in Rock Springs, Wy, and I'm just across the border from Jackson Hole, Wy in Idaho. I'm thinking about going down there to stay with him and take the welding/fabrication certificate course at the local college and also get a job since I've been unemployed for the last nine months with no luck findin work in my Podunk little town.

My plan is to go down and find a job first and get set up to start the classes in the fall. If my dad will let me buy the trailer, while I'm in class I'll start buying parts, materials, and tools needed to rebuild the trailer. I think if I watch my spending and look for good deals on parts, I should be able to do this pretty cheap. He's got a 2 car garage I can work in/near. I'll have to have 220 power wired in and buy a welder but that shouldn't be a big deal. After I've gone through the course and feel better about my fabrication abilities I'll start on the major fab work. Right now I would feel comfortable welding everything except the the neck.

My plans for the trailer are:
- Convert to gooseneck
- Upgrade axels to 2 7k pound units with electric brakes
- New wheels and tires
- Run all new wiring and LED lights
- New deck pressure treated 2x8s
- Possibly/probably add winch on front

I can't decided if I want to cut it down to like a 26' with 4' dovetail or smaller or leave it a full 30' deck and make 8' long ramps that store in the frame or something.

What do you guys think? Also, would a 30' gooseneck be too much trailer for a 3/4 ton truck? I'm in the market for a truck now and will pick up a 1 ton if I can, but may end up settling for a 3/4 ton. What all do you guys suggest? I wouldn't be building the trailer for any specific purpose, just would be nice to have one. I know a lot of you will say just buy one, but I really like building things, I can add the features I want to it, plus maybe it will give my dad and I the time together we've always needed as we've never been real close. Sorry for the long post.


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As far as the truck pulling it. The difference between a 3\4 ton truck and a 1 ton is nothing more then one less leaf spring in the rear end. I pull my 40ft with my little 3\4 ton truck no problem. During hay season i can hit 30,000 pounds combined weight with trailer and load.

As far as that old mobile home trailer. It's best used as scrap metal. Not nearly stiff enough to make a safe and sturdy flat bed trailer out of. If you search my name you will find an old post of mine with some pictures of my trailer i built from 99.9% scrap metal. Only thing i bought new on the whole thing was the coupler for the hitch.

 

Thanks uncle bubba. Like I said, I'm not positive that the trailer is or isn't a MH frame. The last time I crawled around under it was when I was 7-8 years old and I'm just guessing by what I think I remember the frame looking like.

If it turns out to be something worth doing, should I leave the deck full length or cut the rear and put a dovetail on it?


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A dovetail with ramps is wonderful! But whether or not you need it is dependent on how tall the trailer is.

I pull a 40' gooseneck with my 86 F250 NA/IDI, and loaded with bales, tractors, other implements, whatever, it pulls just fine. I am a HUGE fan of gooseneck because of maneuvering abilities and because it puts the load from the trailer into the trucks middle instead of the back which reduces braking and steering ability.