Howdy,

We're changing how we go to the track, and moving to an RV as a tow vehicle. But the RV won't tow an enclosed trailer, so we have to move back to an open trailer.

Can someone recommend an open trailer that:

* has a closed deck
* has a rear beavertail
* has room at the front for a decent size tirerack & toolbox, along with having a z28 on there and still able to get to good balance.
* doesn't weigh too much

??

I need the closed deck so that I can haul lawnmowers, gravel, etc. when I'm not hauling a car. If it wasn't for that, I'd just get a new 18' econotrailer.

Econotrailer does make closed deck trailers, but I'm not sure how the ramps work. If I can't control the width between the ramps, the closed deck still doesn't help me if I'm hauling tractors or whatever around.

I also don't know if 18' is long enough for me to have a full width tire rack / toolbox at the front of the trailer.

Anyway, if you folks have any recommendations, I'd love to hear them!

Mark

I saw a brand new Bri-Mar trailer at an event a few weeks ago and it looked nice. Low beavertail, nice loading angle, and good looking construction. No idea about cost, though. They have 18' and 20' options that should be long enough for you to have the camaro plus other stuff.

Judge for yourself. This is my closed deck 18'er with the rear tires of the car a few inches in front of the break over point..

(IMG:http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-3/125164/copyIMG_1860.JPG)

(IMG:http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-3/125164/copyIMG_1865.JPG)

This post has been edited by Racer X: Jun 25 2007, 06:43 PM

At first I was going to ask why you had that cheap chrome wheel on the front of that car, then I saw the second pic and realized it's the trailer tire that I'm seeing....(IMG:http://www.frrax.com/rrforum/style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

(IMG:http://www.frrax.com/rrforum/style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) That's actually a good thing. Please pay no attention last year's ugly wheels.....

And before anybody asks, yes the spare tire carrier could be in a better spot. I took some paint off the fender of the car the second time I put it on the trailer. Inexperience + no spotter = (IMG:http://www.frrax.com/rrforum/style_emoticons/default/rant.gif)

This post has been edited by Racer X: Jun 25 2007, 08:17 PM

Econo's closed deck is the open deck with diamond plate over the center. Same trailer you had, ramps and all (Brian has one). Snyder added a tire rack and a full width toolbox to his 18' Econo. And yes, I know most of you don't know this brand, it's a NE thing.........

Howdy,

So Sam (and Brian), the 18' Econo has enough room in front that you can put a full width toolbox & tire rack and still have enough room to load the camaro?

The 18' econo full deck is a good bit cheaper than the Bri-Mar, but perhaps more importantly for me, its a good bit lighter as well.

Of course, with light weight being the goal, I should just get an 18' open rail trailer... :-/

Mark

Mark, there will be plenty of room by the time you compensate for the extra tongue weight of the tire rack and tool box. I load my car so there is about 18" of the car hanging off the back edge of the trailer when I stack wheels/tires/etc on the front deck of the 18' Featherlite I borrow. My van tows a lot better when you set the tongue pretty light because of all the gear in the back of it. YMMV with the RV though.

Mark, you've used my old beat up trailer so you know what a +15 year old econotrailer is like. Just a thought - the open bottom trailer can sometimes serve as a lift in a pinch. I like that feature. I've always had this idea that I would fab up something that I could put on it to fill in the opening but have never really had a need for it. Since you would probably enjoy that project, maybe an open trailer is an option.

Howdy,

Yeah, the way we're leaning right now is an open rail trailer with 4'xwhatever sections that can drop into U channels welded on the inside of the rails to fill in the center section.

Upside is that when I'm only towing the car, I can leave them out and save weight.

Downside is its yet another project. I have plenty of projects. :-/

Mark

Im not sure where you live but most decent size towns have one or more local trailer manufacturers that can build what you want. We have 4 or 5 of them here in north central Florida.

I bring it up only because you can save a few hundred bucks buying direct and support your local economy, and you can specify some nice options at little cost (tie down rings, removable fenders, tire rack, etc). You might be able to get them to fab up something to fill in the center section for you and save you boat loads of time for your other projects.

Some states do not require brakes on both axles which can save $$..., but Im not sure I'd want a trailer with only one set of brakes.

YMMV

bock

Heres my trailer except insted of the toolbox I got the optional rock shield because I roll my spare rollaway up on it and attach it to the rockshield on trips and then back off and into the garage when I get back home. Also its silver metallic to match my truck, they have a lot of color options for no extra charge. I think I paid like $3200. Not cheap , and fairly heavy, but a VERY nice trailer for the price.

http://www.prfauto.com/images/Challenger_R..._20_Black_1.jpg

Oh - its 20ft, lots of room.

This post has been edited by SSTAT: Jun 27 2007, 02:20 AM

That's hot. Nice trailer.

I got a Continental Cargo 18' aluminum closed deck trailer for $3400. It weighs 1600 lbs., which is about 300 lbs. less than most steel trailers I found. I had a steel trailer a few years ago and it started rusting after the first winter beside my driveway. I've only had the aluminum trailer for a couple of months so far, so I can't speak to it's durability yet, but I really like it. Removable fenders (although I don't need them with the low fenders), very low beavertail at the rear, and 5 1/2 foot ramps. The lightweight ramps are one of the best things about the trailer.

I've now mounted a winch on the front of the deck and still have plenty of room. That's only about 12" in depth though. I'd have to mount the car right at the beavertail if I wanted much more than that on the front, but as others have mentioned that shouldn't be a problem.

I've got a Carson, it's a damn fine trailer. The wood decked one is roughly $2k. Dunno about the one that has the solid deck though...

(IMG:http://carsontrailer.com/subs/trailers/car_haulers/standard_car_hauler/std_car_hauler_2.jpg)

http://carsontrailer.com/subs/trailers/car...car_hauler.html