Illegal or just confused...

[Jimbrown]

Well I guess Arizona is one of the few states that makes since.
Look at (C) You can tow a 12000 trailer with a regular operator license as long as the combined weight is not over 26000. A class D lic is a regular operator lic.

4. Class D. A class D license is valid for operating any of the following:
(a) A single motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of twenty-six thousand pounds or less.
(b) A motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of twenty-six thousand pounds or less that tows a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of ten thousand pounds or less.
(c) A motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of twenty-six thousand pounds or less that tows a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than ten thousand pounds if the combined gross vehicle weight rating is less than twenty-six thousand one pounds.


My F250 has GVWR of 10,000 and my horse trailer is 12,000 = 22, 000 and no one looks at me once.

 

[SnowRidge]

I agree. That makes sense.

 

[Rara Avis]

How about all of those RVs being towed all over heck and gone that weigh over 10,000? I suppose those drivers all need Class A licenses too. Many many RVs weigh more than 10k.

I own a 10k rated equipment trailer and since Dexter makes 5,200lb axles instead of 5000 lb axles, my trailer tag actually lists 10,400 as the GVWR. Dang it, I guess I am illegal again with my standard driver's license.

RV's have exemptions...
Nothing like a good lobby in Washington, D.C.

RV's AND THE USDOT NUMBERING REQUIREMENTS
OK, here's the rub guys. You can get yourself a nice big toter home and tow your 50 recreational stacker trailer anywhere you want and you won't need to worry about those silly little DOT numbers. You can tow it all day long cover 80ft of road and no worry. No USDOT requirements for RVs used solely for recreational purposes, if you use them for business that's something else and the regulations would apply.

CDL LICENSING
If your gross vehicle weight (GVW) or gross vehicle combined weight (GVCW) are over 26,000 lbs you are most likely required to obtain a Commercial Drivers License (CDL). You might be able to get away with an RV Endorsement if you have an RV, but it varies from State to State and it might be easier just to get the CDL. However, the CDL licensing may kick additional regulations into play. Please contact your DMV office and ask the questions before you decide to get the CDL.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The specific regulation is 49 CFR 390.3
The FMCSA web site where the regulation and Guidance document are located are at:
Regulations - Guidance - Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

 

[Jimbrown]

I agree. That makes sense.

It is a good thing because I bet 90% of the horse trailers inthe state are 12,000 and maybe higher. there are lots of 4 and 6 horse trailers. Now I bet some of the guys pulling with F350 are maybe over the limit. But I have never heard of anyone being challnged on it.

 

[mytoys]

This thread is cracking me up with all the posts. You would think we're defending our right to free speech or religion. Don't get me wrong, i think the laws a crazy too. Maybe we should push for an ammendment to the constitution that says we have the right to tow a big honkin trailer.

 

[shaley]

Yeah, let's form a political action committee called "MoveOn.BiggHonkinTrailer"


Edit: Maybe we can get a guy named "General BrakeUs to head it up."

 

[mytoys]

Amendment 28 - Right to Bear Trailers. Ratified 12/15/2008.

A well regulated tractor, being necessary to the security of a free homestead, the right of the people to transport said tractor, shall not be infringed.

 

[SnowRidge]

Amendment 28 - Right to Bear Trailers. Ratified 12/15/2008.

I think you will need a CDL for a bear trailer, especially if your are hauling a load of browns or grizzlies. Those are big suckers. On the other hand, you might be able to get under the 10K limit with a small herd of blacks.

Don't know why you would need a constitutional amendment to haul bears, though. Seems like a game license ought to be good enough.

 

[mytoys]

Now we've really gotten off track...I can't bear it.

 

[john_bud]

Or was it right to trailer bear? Might be a bit chilly in the winter should you have to check bearings ....

jb



"You can have my Big Honking Trailer when you pry it off my dead coupler"

 

[SnowRidge]

Or was it right to trailer bear? Might be a bit chilly in the winter should you have to check bearings ....

If you don't know where you are, you have no business hauling bear.

Nuff said.

 

[sandman2234]

Last time I check, hauling a trailer behind a motorhome on a ball hitch arrangement was ok, but the max trailer allowed in Florida is 55'. So you can go to 80', just be careful how you do it.
A class A CDL covers the big rigs, and the class b covers the straight trucks, such as dump trucks. If they are over 26000 pounds no problem, but if they pull a trailer and it goes over 10K, then they have to have an CDL class A to pull it. If the dump truck driver pulls a trailer below 10K, not a problem dispite his license being for a straight truck.
Class A can pull doubles and triples, with an endorsement, but can't drive a motorhome and pull a vehicle behind it that has a boat on a trailer behind that. In other words, in Florida, doubles and triples are allow only for commercial drivers, and in commercial vehicles, not anything else.
David from jax

 

[wushaw]

The exemption in Texas on the horse trailers or other farm tagged trailers is if it is not over 20k GVWR then only Class C is all that is required, otherwise Class A is needed.

 

[Skyco]

RV's have exemptions...
Nothing like a good lobby in Washington, D.C.

So what defines an RV? My 14K dump trailer isn't used commercially but "recreationally" .

 

[ultrarunner]

I know several that have bought very large Toy Hauler Trailers to haul equipment.

Basically, it is a very large enclosed trailer with at least one ramp and a small sink, stove top and porta-potty... they claim it qualifies as an RV in California...

 

[Bird]

RV's have exemptions...

As I've said before, they've tried to make it confusing enough that no one really knows what the law is. One of my brothers and his wife live in a 38' fifth-wheel trailer (RV) with 3 axles and weighs about 21,000 pounds. He pulls it with a 2000 Ford F350 crewcab dually (diesel, of course). And yep, that's a little more than that truck's rated for. But the folks at the drivers license office told him he needed a Class A license, so that's what he has, and he took the driving test with that truck and trailer. Of course, I don't think the test was too tough for a feller who used to own a Kenworth and Peterbilt and drove a Western Star car hauler delivering new pickup trucks to the north slope when they were building the Alaska pipeline.

 

[Bird]

I know several that have bought very large Toy Hauler Trailers to haul equipment.

Basically, it is a very large enclosed trailer with at least one ramp and a small sink, stove top and porta-potty... they claim it qualifies as an RV in California...

I live just off I-35E and there are many RV dealers up and down this highway very near where I live. And I can tell you that the Toy Hauler must be very popular from the huge numbers of them I see on the dealers' lots. And yep, they're RVs; they have a toilet, a place to prepare and eat food, and a place to sleep. I'm not so sure but what just that last one makes one qualify as an RV.

 

[Skyco]

I've got a 25' 1999 Tahoe toy hauler- was one of the first I ever saw in the east, since then they've exploded. I need to get out one day and see if my BX24 will fit in it That would solve one of my problems, the wife likes to take the toy hauler when we go to our mountain property, but then that keeps me from taking our newly acquired tractor, since I normally haul it on an open trailer We have a little 8x12 shack on the property which has propane heat and AC if I run the generator and a porta potty, suits me just fine to sleep in but you know how the ladies want all the conveniences in the RV, hot showers etc

 

[Rara Avis]

This is a just revenue grab by each state...some are just more agressive at the moment of enforcing fairly old legislation...This is from NY...again they purposely seem to omit exceptions...
http://www.nyshc.org/currentissues/CDL Requirements for Horse Trailers.pdf

 

[Harold_J]

This is a just revenue grab by each state...some are just more agressive at the moment of enforcing fairly old legislation...This is from NY...again they purposely seem to omit exceptions...
http://www.nyshc.org/currentissues/CDL Requirements for Horse Trailers.pdf

The person from Farm Bureau in the link you provided or whoever supplied his info about NY State is misinformed. They talk about obtaining a Non-CDL Class C license.
That kind of license was eliminated by NYS back in 2005, so I don't know what he's talking about, unless DMV still hasn't caught up with the changes.
Check this link from NY DMV:
NYS DMV - The Elimination of the Non-CDL Class C License
It explains everything quite clearly. You DO NOT need a CDL to tow a trailer over 10,000 lbs, you can operate with a regular Class D automobile driver's license as long as the combined weight rating is not greater than 26,000 lbs.

A driver with a Class D license can now operate a passenger vehicle, a limited use automobile, or:
A truck with a GVWR of 26,000 lbs. or less that tows another vehicle that has a GVWR of more than 10,000 lbs., but the gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of the two vehicles together must be 26,000 lbs. or less.

This is one case where New York has done something smart for a change. They are conforming to the basic Federal regs, and as someone stated above Arizona also seems to be doing the same. I'm sure many other states must be doing the same or similar. The requirement for a CDL for trailers over 10K would have to be imposed by individual states, like CA; it is not a requirement of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.