Trailer capacity vs. equipment

[Anonymous Poster]

Next spring I hope to buy a tractor to help me deal with the small farm I'm moving into now. While I have been reading here quite a bit, I know I still have lots of research to do before I decide on a tractor.

But,

One thing I can deal with this year is a trailer. I currently have a 2 axle car trailer with a gwr of 7000lbs.

My farm is about 18 acres, 14 currently leased in corn, and 3 in pasture. I expect to maintain about that ratio, and plan to do several crops in rotation on the back 14. I know I want a FEL also.

So the question is this - while I'm not looking for a reccomendation of equipment yet, about how much would a tractor/FEL sized to work this ground weigh?

Should I do some upgrades to the car trailer (deck the center, better ramps, etc), or would I be better off selling it and moving up to a 5 or 8 ton tag (equipment) trailer? I know it's heavier, but a tag will haul a car, and perform utilty trailer duty, just as well as what I have now. I tow with a 2001 F350 Crewcab Superduty Dually, so I know I can handle the larger trailer, I'm just not sure if I really need it.

If I do move up, I'll probably be buying used, most likely at a utility company auction or such. Any reccomendations on what to look for, or stay away from?

Thanks, and sorry for the long post

Gregg

 

[JohnMiller3]

<font color="blue">...how much would a tractor/FEL sized to work this ground weigh?...</font>


~~ typical 45 PTO hp Ag/utility tractor, loader/loaded tires combo 7000-8500 lbs.

(add another ~~ 1000-2500 lbs. for 55-75 hp unit)
(Normally...you won't have a loader hanging off the unit doing corn or most crops... (but front weights))

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Welcome to TBN, Autotech! I can tell you that my Mahindra 4500 4WD with FEL and liquid in the rear tires weighs a tad over 8000 lbs. I would not feel comfortable putting it on any of my 16' utility trailers. I would also not put the cart before the horse, wait till you actually have a tractor and see what you end up with on the weight, then get an apprpriate trailer if you must haul it around. Take yur time and you will find what you need eventually. Chet

 

[Anonymous Poster]

While it may seem the backwards way to do it, my situation is a bit unusual.

I picked up the car trailer last year as the first step in a fledgeling racing venture. I am in the midst of various repairs/upgrades which I will be finishing soon. In the meantime the opportunity to purchase a small farm came along, so the racecar project got pre-empted (in fact the lawn tractor and equipment I needed to deal with the property around the house was purchased with the hi-jacked racing budget!!) leaving me with a nice, but unneeded car trailer.

I suspected a larger/heavier trailer was the way to go for working around the farm, and like I said - if the race car comes back it'll ride on an equipment trailer just as well.

It seems as if a 5 ton should do what I'll need.

Thanks

Gregg