Truck & Trailer ideas to tow 14,000 and be under 26,000 pounds

[stumblinhorse]

Thank you for the suggestion, but I don't think it's a workable option. I'll need to be able to haul different things back and forth, along with hauling livestock. I already have a 16 foot cattle trailer, so the truck would be used for two different types of trailers.

I'm also leaning strongly towards getting as low a trailer as possible. The higher everything is, the more effort it will take to hold it in place. This is a picture of what I'm liking the best. It's 22 feet long, it doesn't have any folding or slide out ramps, you just drive right up on it, and it's 8 feet wide between the rails, so I can fit two round bales between the rails and not have to strap them down. I'm thinking 10 bales with one strap on the back, and then 4 or five more on top that I'll have to strap down. Strapping down round bales takes forever!!!!

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This dealer is pretty close to where I live. He's asking $9,650 for a brand new 2023 and it's at 21,000lb GVWR, 5,700lb empty weight, 15,300lbs carrying cap with three 7,000 pound axles.

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That trailer is WIDE! wonder what “farm use only“ means?

 

[Rustyiron]

Eddie that trailer you have pictured can't be 96" in between the rails. 102" is the maximum legal width and I believe that all you can squeak out of a deck between the wheel (and fenders) is in the 80" range.
Ramps on a "deckover" with a std beavertail can be real assuring the your loads not going to roll off the back.
Be careful with your "just one strap" thinking, especially for 60 miles. This is one of the easy to spot reasons for Johnny law to pull you and snoop around.

 

[Rancher Ed]

Thank you for the suggestion, but I don't think it's a workable option. I'll need to be able to haul different things back and forth, along with hauling livestock. I already have a 16 foot cattle trailer, so the truck would be used for two different types of trailers.

I'm also leaning strongly towards getting as low a trailer as possible. The higher everything is, the more effort it will take to hold it in place. This is a picture of what I'm liking the best. It's 22 feet long, it doesn't have any folding or slide out ramps, you just drive right up on it, and it's 8 feet wide between the rails, so I can fit two round bales between the rails and not have to strap them down. I'm thinking 10 bales with one strap on the back, and then 4 or five more on top that I'll have to strap down. Strapping down round bales takes forever!!!!

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This dealer is pretty close to where I live. He's asking $9,650 for a brand new 2023 and it's at 21,000lb GVWR, 5,700lb empty weight, 15,300lbs carrying cap with three 7,000 pound axles.

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Eddie,

Unfortunately for you the Texas farm exemption cuts off at 20k trailer GVRW (see post #20). It is possible the dealer can de-rate it for 21k to 20k and put a new tag on it but I think you usually have to order the trailer from the factory with the lower rating.
I would also be very leery of that trailer because it is technically over width. Here is a listing for it Tigar Trailer 96" x 20' where they advertise the 96" between the fenders. The federal max is 102" which typically results in a trailer like this have a between the fenders width of 80" to 82". Using the 82" number the tires and fenders add 20" to the trailer meaning this Tigar Gooseneck is 116" wide. I know farm use makes exceptions for wide loads but I would not want to be towing around a wider trailer like that all the time, and if you are any narrower county roads it could put you in the ditch at times.

The price is significantly higher but something like the below trailer would be a lot more versatile.
32' 20k gooseneck, fold flat ramps
32' 20k gooseneck stand up ramps
With no side rails you can load pallets, your backhoe, wide hay equipment, etc. without issues.

 

[Hay Dude]

My biggest struggle with farming is finding hay. Every year I have to find new sources and waste time looking at moldy hay to find something worth spending the money on. The price for hay has doubled this last year and there's no telling if it will get better next year or not. I doubt it will come down very much.

I'm in the process of buying my brothers 40 acres that's been neglected for the last dozen years. The mesquite has taken over, and I believe he had too many cows on what was available. Once I get the cows off of there, I'll start poisoning the mesquite and spraying for weeds. The native coastal Bermuda grass is very nice there. Maybe some of the best that I've seen compared to the farms I've bought hay from. I'm told that before he bought the place, that the previous owner had a guy haying it, and the hay sold very quickly, for top dollar.

One of my brothers friends has been very helpful with the cattle. We are talking about partnering in haying the place. He has all the contacts for the area, and he's proven to be more then fair in all of our dealings so far. He is currently paying a guy $27 per bale, to bale his lease properties. I think that I will need 105 bales a year once the cows get here. It might be less as I fence in more land, but two bales a week is what I'm feeding right now. One here, and one there. If we can work out a good agreement, I'll get my hay, he'll get the rest, and it should cost me as little as possible. Today, 5 foot round bales are selling from $100 to $175 each.

Once I get my spending under control, I hope to buy my own hay equipment and start the process of learning how to do all that. But for now, paying somebody $27 per bale is super cheap and if I can reduce that even more with this partnership, I might be able to make this all work. If I had my own hay equipment, I could also bale some on my land too. But that's all down the road. Right now, I'm hoping to have something cleared this year and maybe get at least one cutting in.

Making hay is becoming a money losing business. At least from a start-up perspective. UNLESS you have a bunch of paid off equipment or were given a lot of land, it’s very difficult business to break into.

 

[Bearsixty7]

A 14K backhoe plus 6k trailer put's you at 20K, No 3/4 pickup is rated for that, you're looking for a 1 ton SRW or DRW at the minimum, an F450 would be even better.
I also wouldn't be afraid to purchase any Ford 6.7L Powerstroke engine which started in 2011. The 6.7L Powerstroke as been very reliable and has great HP and torque for towing. The newer Ford Transmissions behind these engines are proving to be very reliable as well pulling 30-45k Gross loads.

The 6.4L I would avoid, there's a reason it was only made a few years.
The 6.0L is ok if it was left stock or had headstuds installed and the oil cooler upgraded.
The old 7.3L Powerstroke is much like the old Cummins 5.9, it will just run and run, it just isn't the most powerful engine and the older trucks that have them have much lower Towing capacities than the 6.7L era trucks and even a DRW isn't rated high enough for your needs.

Ram also has Trucks with the 6.7L Cummins with similar GCWR.

You can look up most years for GCWR and trailer towing capacities, Here is an example of the Fords for 2019, (We have a F350 SRW and it can tow 20,400 lbs and has a 28,700 GCWR)

https://www.ford.com/cmslibs/content/dam/brand_ford/en_us/brand/resources/general/pdf/guides/19Towing_Ford_SuperDutyPU_Oct25.pdf

Ram has a similar tool

Ram Towing Capacity | Towing & Payload Capacity Guide

Explore the Ram Trucks towing & payload capacity guide. Find information like Ram 1500 towing capacity, Ram 2500 towing capacity, payload specs & more here.

www.ramtrucks.com

 

[LD1]

Thank you for the suggestion, but I don't think it's a workable option. I'll need to be able to haul different things back and forth, along with hauling livestock. I already have a 16 foot cattle trailer, so the truck would be used for two different types of trailers.

I'm also leaning strongly towards getting as low a trailer as possible. The higher everything is, the more effort it will take to hold it in place. This is a picture of what I'm liking the best. It's 22 feet long, it doesn't have any folding or slide out ramps, you just drive right up on it, and it's 8 feet wide between the rails, so I can fit two round bales between the rails and not have to strap them down. I'm thinking 10 bales with one strap on the back, and then 4 or five more on top that I'll have to strap down. Strapping down round bales takes forever!!!!

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This dealer is pretty close to where I live. He's asking $9,650 for a brand new 2023 and it's at 21,000lb GVWR, 5,700lb empty weight, 15,300lbs carrying cap with three 7,000 pound axles.

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Trust but verify.

I dont see any way that thing is 8' between the rails.

8'6" is still the legal max width to not have a wide load permit.

Thus MOST trailers that have a deck BETWEEN wheels are in the 80"-84" range.

 

[LD1]

That trailer is WIDE! wonder what “farm use only“ means?

I guess I should have logged into the FB instead of just looking at the pics he linked.

YEA, that trailer definitely aint road legal. its listed at 10' wide. Hence the farm use

 

[WM75Guy]

Here is why is says farm use only, so the 102" width requirements don't apply.. From the Texas DPS "A Texas Guide to Farm Vehicle Compliance" page 34. The definition of a vehicle includes a trailer with farm tags. Register it for 20,000# or less and pull it with vehicle under 26,001#, all you need is a Class C license, in Texas. See page 9.

https://www.dps.texas.gov/InternetForms/Forms/CVE-13.pdf

 

[stumblinhorse]

Here is why is says farm use only, so the 102" width requirements don't apply.. From the Texas DPS "A Texas Guide to Farm Vehicle Compliance" page 34. The definition of a vehicle includes a trailer with farm tags. Register it for 20,000# or less and pull it with vehicle under 26,001#, all you need is a Class C license, in Texas. See page 9.

https://www.dps.texas.gov/InternetForms/Forms/CVE-13.pdf

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Texas has all the cool stuff. 116” width trailers! I wish I had one of those.

 

[Hay Dude]

We are limited to 102” in PA, but something like hay is allowed to be more than the width of the trailer. I have hauled loads of hay, grown by me, that were 11’ wide.
Obviously, a trailer thats 96“ or 102” wide can have the commodity exceed the sides of the flatbed trailer, as long as it’s properly secured.