Nick's new Ram 2500

[bcbender]

Looking at dump trailers... any mfg to avoid? Prices are crazy,.. GN vs. Tag?

 

[Cummins12V98]

My son had two tow behind 14k dumps stolen that sere locked up to the max. He has a gooseneck for a couple years now and loves it.

 

[NIsaacs]

Looking at dump trailers... any mfg to avoid? Prices are crazy,.. GN vs. Tag?

I bought my first dump trailer in '96, 5 trailers later I still don't have it right I have learned a lot but am still learning, so share your findings.

I recommend a gooseneck if you tow heavy and often. Bumper pull for lighter loads and seldom use. Research is your friend as is look in person. Most of mine I bought sight unseen as dealers are few around here.

Go with name brand. Mom and pop have poor paint facilities and tend to cheap out. Some big companies are guilty as well. There is so much to look at and consider. Diamond C is top notch but way over priced. I don't like their tail gate. Even on the tall sides they only use two hinges on the barn doors, one s-cam lock and the spreader chain it too high on the gate.

Note the picture above, I have one just like it. PJ 7x16x3 22k. The bed overhang is too much. When you dump it can hit the ground if the ground is soft, or the truck is on a higher plain. Just the weight shift rocks the bed on the suspension and unloads the pin, that brings in closer to the ground.

Bed length is important, especially on a bumper pull. The longer the better, it helps distribute the weight to the hitch. 14' 14k gvw is good for most uses. Bed floor and sides. 10 gauge minimum for the floor and 12 on the sides. If you haul logs with pig ears go 7 gauge all over, but it adds weight real fast.

Telescopic lift or scissors. Stay away from the single or dual cylinders. They are all slow, the telescopic will lift anything but it is the slowest. Make sure the scissors is mounted at least 16" ahead of center or it will struggle.

Tarp kit, load ramps, spare. Hydraulic jacks and brakes add big $$ but are nice. 8k axles or more are spendy, as is torsion. Spring axles have a 5-6 year warranty, torsion 10-11 years.

 

[Topzide]

@bcbender, What about a hydraulic tilt bed that you could put sides on it when needed? That way you have the "best" of both worlds. Not sure if that would be an option for you or not. I've been kicking around that idea for awhile. With a tractor FEL, would make lifting the sides on much easier. For me, I wouldn't need a dedicated dump but once a year, sure I could find more uses! Just wanted to throw that out as an option. Agree with @NIsaacs, GN would be better choice for heavy.

 

[MarkEagleUSA]

@bcbender, What about a hydraulic tilt bed that you could put sides on it when needed? That way you have the "best" of both worlds.

https://dktrailers.com/trailers/car-trailer-dump-hybrid/

I quoted one of these 2 yrs ago. Can't imagine what they are now.

82"x16' car trailer Hybrid
2 5/16" coupler, 7000# jack, LEDs
Wood floor, stake pockets
Set of pull out ramps
2/cylinder lift, DC power unit
Storage for PU on hitch
2/5200# spring axles elec brakes
4/225-75R 15" 10plys 6bolt wheel
$6,800.00

Upgrades:
Steel floor----550.00
HD tread plate fenders ---200.00
Flat strap over stake pockets---100.00
Aluminum wheel pkg----375.00

 

[bcbender]

I like that car/dump.. its pretty cool.

Backstory, I am getting ready to demo 1/2 my house and then add to it,.. going to need to get rid of lots of stuff to the dump, move stuff dirt, fill from the basement we are adding, etc. I use a small dump trailer we have at work but its very light duty single axle and so I was thinking about buying one to use for the reno, then if I need to I could always sell later or keep and sell my other trailer. I have a 25' GN 14K trailer, and so don't need a big dump, was thinking 14' (big enough to get my 2032R TLB into) if I need to and with low enough sides I could dump into with my compact tractor. Just testing the water and I knew Nick has much experience. Missed out on a very nice Load Trail 16' GN last week on FB for 10k but it was a long drive to go look at it.

Sorry, didn't mean to hijak your thread.

 

[NIsaacs]

Missed out on a very nice Load Trail 16' GN last week on FB for 10k but it was a long drive to go look at it.

My Load Trail 7'x16'x2' 14k was a good trailer

 

[NIsaacs]

Could not stand it, didn't like the Curt at all. So I ordered a B&W ball kit. I also figured, with the extended shank, I could re-adjust my PJ hitch and make it work on the new truck. Yup, 7" of clearance at the tail gate v/s 5.5" with the Curt. Now, from the center of the trailer axles, to the front, at the gooseneck riser, I am 1/2" high. That works for me

The Curt is on C/L already

View attachment 128968 View attachment 128969 View attachment 128970

So, I delivered a load of chips with my Lamar dump trailer yesterday and I am getting a very annoying clunk on rough roads that I am sure is the gooseneck ball shank/hitch opening slack. Anyone else with the oem hitch and B&W ball have this noise? I am sure when people hear it, they think there is a junky ole truck going down the road. It is not pronounced with my PJ and torsion suspension, so it must be the springs on the Lamar that make it so pronounced.

Since this trailer will be my "go to dump" I am considering a shock kit. I really think they will help the ride and tire wear. Trailers are hard on tires, they get irregular tread wear if they are towed often. I think they might pay off. Anyone add them?

https://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Leaf-Spring-Suspension/Roadmaster/RM-2470.html

 

[crispyboy]

This may be an apples to orange comparison but Airstream travel trailers with torsion axles have had shock absorbers since 1968. The tires on my trailer never show much wear or anything odd. You certainly can’t hurt anything by trying to keep the wheel better controlled. Overall this should be better for tire wear.

 

[endoscott]

I think there is no doubt the ride will be better with shocks. Both of our Arctic Fox 5th wheels have shocks. It's kind of surprising that all of the travel trailers do not come stock with a shock setup. If you end up adding them will you post pics?

 

[petersonj]

Since this trailer will be my "go to dump" I am considering a shock kit. I really think they will help the ride and tire wear. Trailers are hard on tires, they get irregular tread wear if they are towed often. I think they might pay off. Anyone add them?

Of course, this is comparing oranges to apples, but I installed a set of shocks on my 5200 GVWR travel trailer shortly after installing new tires and having the axles aligned in 2015. I have since put about 20,000 miles on the trailer. I probably put two thousand miles on the trailer prior to this work.

I think the biggest problem for gauging how effective trailer shocks can be is that you can't ride in the trailer while you are pulling it down the road. So, it makes it difficult to do a comparison of before and after.

What I did notice was that objects in the trailer did not move around as much after the shocks were installed. I also noticed that after passing too fast through an unexpected dip in the road, the trailer recovered quicker.

I have nothing to compare tire wear to. The tires have worn okay - they are still on the trailer and have lots of tread left.

To me, it makes sense that shocks would be a worthwhile addition to your dump trailer that will be used regularly. We all know how poorly cars and trucks drive with worn out shocks, so why wouldn't the same thing apply to trailers without shocks?

In the case of operating a dump trailer, you are usually traveling loaded in one direction and empty in the other (unlike a travel trailer). So, I don't think the benefits of adding shocks will be as noticeable as with a fixed load in both directions, but I do think it would still be worthwhile in your case.

I think one of the biggest contributors to uneven tire wear on tandem axle trailers (assuming axles are properly aligned) is right and left turns. In general, in our country, right hand turns scrub trailer tires more than left hand turns (something that is not usually considered with tire wear). In most cases, a right turn from one street to another will be a much tighter arc, while a left turn will be a much more gradual arc due to the distance traveled during the respective turns. These differences will reflect as uneven tire wear.

- John

 

[slowmover]

“Bed length is important, especially on a bumper pull. The longer the better, it helps distribute the weight to the hitch. 14' 14k gvw is good for most uses. Bed floor and sides. 10 gauge minimum for the floor and 12 on the sides. If you haul logs with pig ears go 7 gauge all over, but it adds weight real fast.”


Thx for “confirming” what I’d been thinking. That trailer type & size maybe the most useful GP addition to a 1T pickup available (as GN degrades overall abilities).

.

.

 

[NIsaacs]

I didn't even ask since they are not a Firestone dealer. What I have found in the past, is, they want them down to the wear bars before they will consider it. Discount tire is more lenient then this shop.

$1178 out the door for Hercules Terra Trac AT's, 16/32's tread, 3640 lbs, in 275/70x18. "For Cummins 12v98, made in USA" I did not purchase the road hazard.

View attachment 133759

Rotated the tires yesterday, 7k miles on them. It has been a slow fall and hard winter, so business has been slow. No irregular wear at all, so I got a good factory alignment.

13/32's front and 11/32's rear, so about par for my wear/use.

 

[NIsaacs]

Changed oil and air filter today, one year since my last change but only 11.5k miles. Almost two years on the air so it was due. Need to change fuel filters tomorrow. I need to change the cabin filter too.

Air filter looks better than the '01 usually does, must have a better intake location, plus it is a lot bigger. The fender well on the '01 is not ideal.

 

[AH64ID]

Changed oil and air filter today, one year since my last change but only 11.5k miles. Almost two years on the air so it was due. Need to change fuel filters tomorrow. I need to change the cabin filter too.

Air filter looks better than the '01 usually does, must have a better intake location, plus it is a lot bigger. The fender well on the '01 is not ideal.

View attachment 137128 View attachment 137129

Intake is at the top of the radiator.

 

[NIsaacs]

Is it just me or do you guys have a rear fuel filter that don't drain for crap? The book says one turn but nothing comes out. I end up making a mess.

26k miles now with 206 idle hrs and 641 drive.

24% on the oil and 22% on the fuel filters, 0% on the dpf.

 

[AH64ID]

I haven’t changed the filters on my ‘22 yet, couple more months, but on the ‘18 I would drain the front filter, crack the front filter cover, and then open the drain on the rear filter. That seemed to get more fuel out of it. But it would still spill some.

 

[NIsaacs]

Okay, so you do the front first before the rear. I have been doing the rear first with the front still sealed. I wonder if doing it your way will allow some air to reach the rear canister so it can drain. It is like it has an air lock and nothing comes out. So I have to unscrew the bottom and drain it that way. The front works fine.

 

[AH64ID]

Okay, so you do the front first before the rear. I have been doing the rear first with the front still sealed. I wonder if doing it your way will allow some air to reach the rear canister so it can drain. It is like it has an air lock and nothing comes out. So I have to unscrew the bottom and drain it that way. The front works fine.

An airlock is my theory. It’s certainly better draining the rear with the front open.

 

[NIsaacs]

An airlock is my theory. It’s certainly better draining the rear with the front open.

For sure, I will do it that way next time, thanks!