How do I pick a trailer to haul a dozer?

andrewj · Oct 16, 2005

Hi guys. I have an 8500 pound dozer and a F-150 with a 5.4/towing package. What kind of trailer should I get? thanks

kennyd · Oct 16, 2005

I don't think you want to be towing that dozer with a F150. That is a accident waiting to happen.
Look in your owners manual and check the towing specs.

roccon31 · Oct 16, 2005

i absolutely agree with kennyd! put all other things aside, you simply dont have the BRAKES to stop that trailer, whether the trailer has good brakes or not. let alone the suspension and driveline issues.

andrewj · Oct 16, 2005

Thanks guys. point well taken. the towing capacity is 8000 pounds, so the dozer plust trailer would be more than that.

So is it as simple as adding dozer and trailer and getting a vehicle that can tow it? My wife's suburban may do it.

ShiningSky · Oct 16, 2005

Kind of dozer?

A trailer with the capacity to haul an 8K dozer will weigh in at around 2500 LBS. So you will be towing at least 10-11K. with 20% of that weight being transfered onto your vehicle then at a minimum you would need a 1 ton truck if not more. Your surburban will not cut it either.

Remember the problem is never being able to tow the object. It making sure you can stop it in a emergency. That is why you need a vehicle with the capacity to make the stop.

I tow the dozer listed below around and it is all I want with my 1 ton.

Cheers

David

Highbeam · Oct 16, 2005

When I sold my 10,000 lb IH 500c bulldozer, the guy that moved it used a 14,000 lb GVWR trailer pulled by a one ton dually diesel from Dodge. Some of these new trucks have outrageous towing capacity. I followed the laod for the entire 30 minutes on back roads and then drove it off the trailer. Piece of cake. Beg, borrow, or steal a truck/trailer that is big enough.

Your half ton isn't even close.

The last post quoted 20% transfer of trailer weight to tongue weight which would be true for a gooseneck but 10-15% is ideal for a bumper pull.

Are you pretty sure it weighs 8000?

andrewj · Oct 18, 2005

Dozer is a little Komatsu D20A. I'm not sure about eh weight - don't recall where I got the 8000 lb number. Your advice about the brakes is really appreciated. I was thinking about towing ability, not canI stop it.

I contacted a towing company that would charge me 500 to take it on a multistate 6 hour drive. Maybe I should just pay someone else to do it?

MadReferee · Oct 18, 2005

Paying $500 for a 6 hour drive is not a bad price (I assume the driver has another 6 hour empty ride back). Hauling rates here in NH are pretty much $85 per hour, portal to portal with the portal being the truck's home garage.

That small of a dozer would easily be hauled on a 25K - 30K lb ramp truck. My dozer weighs 15,000 lbs and we used a 30K ramp truck to haul it down from Maine. Just make sure the ramp truck has a decent winch to pull the dozer up the ramp.

Highbeam · Oct 18, 2005

Yep, that's pretty cheap. I would do it just for the liability. Then there's the fuel cost and the real need to own a trailer like that.

If you figure a typical pickup truck weighs 6000 lbs then your dozer is just a little heavier than a pickup. With the right trailer, that dozer can easily be hauled behind a 3/4 ton pickup staying within the ratings. 12000lb GVWR trailers are pretty common and towing 12000 lbs will put 1200-1500 lbs of tongue weight onto the tow vehicle.

It'll be heavy and the first time you tow it, it will be a little nerve wracking but after about an hour you will start feeling good about it.

If you hire it out, things are easier.