Who make the most solid and long lasting aluminum stock trailer?

Stay away from welds but rivets are okay?


Kind of an iffy type of deal depending on use?



We really need to put a new floor in the old trailer or trade it off. Planned on another 20' steel trailer but thought about maybe an aluminum version.

How big of a stock trailer do you need, Sam?

We have had great service out of our CM.

CM Aerostar LINK

Customer service for any warranty issues has been second to none. They are in OK, but they have contracted with a local trailer place here in TX for any warranty repairs so we didn't have to travel all the way up there.


Ed

Put a new floor in her and keep rollin'...

Here we go Sam.
We have an Exiss, it is a bit high at I think seven feet .
That's fine, but for wind on the road.

I'll think there are several makes that are just fine.

Steel does rust out, of course, the more salt you drive in make a big difference.

If one stays on roads (smooth) surface alum. is ok if used on rough terrian alum lacks the abilty to "streach" and breaks welds or wabbles rivets and than starts to rattle and shake , more or less self destuct

Ed, the local dealer has a couple 25 footers he was trying sell.

Says it's only $1000 more than the 20'.


We want a 20' for easier maneuverability off road.

That and 25' has the same 7k axles.

You could just about overload the 25' but it sure would be nice to have the extra room.

Most of the guys around here that run aluminum trailers use Featherlites, mostly because we have a dealer right here in our little village that stands behind them. For serious ranch use over the long term, steel is still the choice--but we live in a dry climate where rust does not flourish.

Our Exiss was traded for a Wilson.

Unless you are made out of money, you mostly use the on that follows you home one day.

I have an enclosed Wells Cargo that's solid as a rock and appears will last forever. Also have a Featherlite that's a tank.

Back to rivets vs, welds, they rivet airliners, and over the road trailers.

We still have some old machines made with steel rivets.
I've tired to salvage parts, hard to get those buggers out!

4 star, elite, and cimarron make good aluminum trailers. If you are going to bounce across a pasture a bunch with them I would stick with a steel trailer. If you are going to go down the road a lot I would get the aluminum.

We have an aluminum Eby. Its a 20fter with the wheels on the outside. It holds eight finished steers. Usually put a hundred miles on a week, I think its a 99 or an 00. eby trailers

Nice looking rig Ben.

Another thought, the number of gates.
Two, or three compartments?

Around here steel trailers rust pretty quick. Most of rot out along the bottom edge from the manure on the floor. Know a few guys around town who are on their second steel trailer. Ours only gets hosed off if we have it out on real salty roads.

If your only hauling your own stock I'd think two bays is fine. Especially if you usually have a full load. I guess three would be nice if you were hauling 2/3 a load and needed a spot for a 4 wheeler etc.

Sam what brand are you looking at?

A few questions;

Who made the trailers they are trying to sell you?

How much off-road do you have to deal with? Here, it's pretty smooth and a negligible amount of "rough" terrain.

Second, how critical is the weight difference between the aluminum and steel?

The torquing and twisting of an aluminum trailer, causing failure, is a real problem.

How about a steel trailer and Rhino-Line (Line-X, etc) the lower part of the inside and the wheel wells. (This is what we did to our horse trailers in Anchorage where snow, ice, salt, etc. were a big problem)

In 2002, in Anchorage, our second WW trailer was purchased for a song because the floor needed replacing and the wheel wells were rotting. I replaced the floor boards with treated lumber, had the inside Rhino-lined, and replaced the steel wheel well liners with aluminum and Rhino-lined them. That trailer is still going strong, now in Alabama.

The price difference between aluminum and steel would pay for the extra treatment.

Ed

Kind of surprised no one mentioned 4 Star. I've had very good luck with mine. To me the more important aspects of a trailer is getting what I want, ie: heavy duty axles, wheel wells that accommodate the size tires I want, and I really like over sized brakes. I use the trailer brakes going downhill and save my truck's. I've also been very pleased with my Circle J steel trailer. I'm sure steel is the only material I want in the future.

Edited - sorry, missed the previous post on 4 Star

Someone (I don't remember who) is building steel trailers with the sides up off the floor about 1 1/2" - nearly eliminating manure rot. We use aluminum trailers on the road, but I keep a small steel 1/2 covered for rough work.

Had a 4 star 5 stall slant that gave great service.... I can highly recommend them.

Wilson

1. Wilson

2. Wilson

3. Wilson

What brand are you looking at?

Some are pretty good some are pretty shabby.

NO real knowledge of stock trailers but curious about selecting rivets over welds. I know welded boats are considered much stronger than riveted boats....

Sorry for not replying sooner.

Modem or computer issue, wife just fixed it....



Heading out the door and I will get back to you guys this afternoon.


Duralite is what the local dealer sells, that and Travalong(Flave will love that one....).


http://www.duralitetrailers.com/equipment.html

Go with the Traveldong.



Travis

PS- I'm not a rancher.

Or employed.

I bought my 20' Exiss in '97, it's a 7'x7'. It was nice when we hauled horses around, but it's kinda high and catches wind pretty bad. Nice trailer though, no complaints.

Featherlites around here almost exclusively, probably due to dealer availability. All aluminums for everyone, for cattle. Rivets last longer than welds, but come "loose" quicker. Just get to know the dealer (or an aluminum welder) and get the welds redone immediately when they break. Overall, it lasts much longer that way.

If you're using it for cattle, you will not be able to load a 3-bay short trailer anyway, as the critters hit the front and then immediately turn to come back. Especially with bulls, it's a great way to get yourself knocked cold and run over as they come back out and you're trying to push the bay-door closed. Never let a new 'hired hand' do it. With a 32' trailer, we still only run two bays.

Aluminum trailers used on rough country( think ranches) keep the welders in business around here

I worked for a top rated custom trailer manufacturer (Tracer Trailers) for a number of years, and I have to say that the fears about aluminum trailers and their durability off road are well founded. We found early on that you need plenty of sub frame support and plenty of re-enforcement at critical areas like rear openings and side doors etc.
Haven't really kept up with what's on the market, but I'm sure you'll get what you pay for.
I have two Featherlite trailers for hauling my horse's. Been real happy with them, but on a side note, some of the most indestructible looking trailer's I saw back 25-30 years ago were the Eby's.

IME it is hard to beat 4-Star trailers. They solid and long lasting

If you want a steel trailer its pretty hard to beat one of these. http://www.hughesranchtrailers.com/

It has the gap at the bottom like Mark was talking about.

Thanks for all the info.

Kind of spooked thinking about pulling an aluminum trailer off road very much.

The dealer says you can't hurt them but I don't know, it would really suck to end up with a $19k twisted piece of chit. But at the same time there are still a bunch of old pots going down the road so hell if I know.

I think we will just stick with a steel. Heavier but stronger not to mention $6k less money.

Check these out

http://www.4startrailers.com/stock-trailers/gooseneck-trailers/stock-trailers/

Sooner is a very well built trailer.

Sam , No one in the parts that spends any money on a gooseneck gets steel anymore .....Wilson or Eby seem to be the ones folks brag about

I,ve got an old steel trailer cause I am a tightwad, but its starting to cancer thru the sides pretty bad

whatever you do get the longest one you think you can maneuver ; if I ever get another one , it'll be a 30 footer tri ax

you should get on newagtalk.com and ask , specifically the stock talk board , this topic has been beat to death there and a search is easy to run

ag talk is a really great resource for everything from fixing your tractor to backgrounding calves to marketing to argueing with the 2 resident libs on the political board....LOL

Probably a bit late to chime in but going to anyway. I think one needs to check out the Platinum line made in Oklahoma City. They have more aluminum bracing in them than anything on the road. If I recall, your typical 24 ft stock type outweighs the nearest competitor by 400 lbs. That's a lot of aluminum bracing.

We do have one and really like it.

I'm not farming any more but all my truckers in the past have had Eby trailers.

FWIW,

Dale

There is a reason the semi's are ALL riveted. Wilson all the way if your going aluminum. The torsion axles beat the trailer to death when empty so lots of cracking on the welded ones. I bought a 24ft featherlight in 2000 and had cracked welds within the first month. I put close to 85k miles a year on and I sold it 2 years later with all kinds of patch jobs on it. Wilson IS the best aluminum gooseneck period.

Thanks again everyone for all the replies, info and links.

Wilson seems to be the way to go which isn't surprising. Most of the truckers you meet on the highway pull Wilson trailers.

Only problem is we try to support the local business and buy stuff at 'home' when possible. But maybe our local guy can get or deliver a Wilson and still make a little money.

I was looking at specs and see Wilson has a slam latch on the rear gate. That would pretty much be a 'must have' option but Duralite doesn't have that feature which sucks.

Wilson will make whatever you want Sam. When I ordered mine I even got to pick how many lights and where to put them. Neighbor of mine just got a little 16 footer with a ramp/side door so he can load his quad in front and then load cows in the back....pretty slick.

PS....You can buy directly from them.....no need to go through a dealer.

From your pictures showing some of the situations in which you haul your trailers, I'd stick with steel. FWIW.

HW, I see a few guys with the quad door up front on trailers so it must be a pretty popular option. Figured you'd want the cows up front so there'd be more weight on the pickup but it must not be too big of a deal.



IB, 90% of our trailer miles are highway or gravel. It's that other 10% that has me worried!

When it comes to aluminum trailers holding up the design has to be correct. I use 4-Star but I am sure there are others that are equal. The better ones definately cost more.

Aluminum for asphalt. Steel for everything else.

Let me know when that changes.

They rivet airplanes for reasons other than strength- for example. Most aircraft skin is alclad 2024 aluminum which cannot be welded.

Welded boats are rated faster than riveted bolts. If you use an aluminum trailer off-road it will crack faster than a steel trailer. Higher tensile strength aluminum is not as forgiving as mild steel used in stock trailers. Get some high carbon steel and it will crack too.

If you are truly hitting 90% highway miles, I'd get a Wilson. A Wilson can handle ranch roads and gravel alright. Just ease up a bit when you are on those surfaces.

I sold our steel trailer about 6 months ago and bought a 22' used Wilson and haven't regretted it in the least.

As to slam gates, you can order them. I don't believe they are standard. I worried a bit about that but have found I get along pretty well with the conventional latch on the rear gate. Our middle gate has a slam latch and it's handy.

JWP, the good ones all look to be to be in the $18-19k range. And I guess you generally get what you pay for, hopefully!



Griz, kinda what I was thinking but.....




Dennis, I have seen a few aluminum trailers and wouldn't even consider one for a second. One that comes to mind was a brand new trailer a cattle buyer had used for less than a month.

The rear door hinges(4 or 5) had been factory welded and they were all cracked.



Tarkio, most of our trips are 90 miles out and 90 back, roughly 50/50 highway and gravel. That's why I thought a lighter trailer would be handy.

It's just the off road use once we get to the pastures that has me concerned. Some washouts and nasty chit to drag across.

At least it's only 2-4 horses on the really rough stuff. Not like we'd be pulling a fully loaded trailer.

The farm up the road bought a new Eby last spring. I think he said they cost about $1000 a foot.

One trailer upgrade that would be handy is the "rolling gate" or whatever they call it. Lets you adust the center gate back and forth. If you only want two animals in the front your weight distribution isn't off.

Ben, I see Wilson has that rolling gate option as well. Looks pretty snazzy.

We'd be better off with a 20' and two divider gates, or at least have the gate up front as close as possible. Nice for hauling out pairs, one small compartment for calves and a larger one for cows.

Cracking is caused by poor design, and means the trailer is too rigid. If design is correct and the welds are in the proper location cracking is not a problem.

It certainly was a poor design because the guy had to load through the roller door.

The main door was unusable due the hinge issue.


People say that the rivets will allow enough 'natural' flexing/movement without breaking. The welds are to 'rigid' and crack before they give a little.

Well Sam, if you pick your new Wilson, I'm only 75 miles east.
Tell me when to start the coffee.

Richard, get it started, I'll be there in an hour!

Good mornin' Cowboy!

If it takes you an hour, it might be the third pot.

Hey, good morning Richard!


Actually it might a little longer than an hour. Gotta go do chores first...


Calling for ice pellets this morning on the forecast.

What the hell?!



Later!

Back to trailers Sam, the off road use is a good question.

Wilson, and the other major companies did not get that big by making junk.