making a trailer

[egbinor]

I had a renter disapear in the middle of the night and lost 2 months rent. He left a 24" travel trailer that he used for huntig.It was pretty rough inside so I junked it out and I"m wondering if it is heavy enough to haul my John Deere M. I haven"t measured it but I beleive the frame is 2 x 6 tubing with some flimsy looking brackets. It is tandemn axle and has good brakes on it. Any suggestions? I could post some pics if that would help. Thanks for any input! EDBinOR
 

[ericlb]

junk it, i made a utility trailer out of a old travel trailer back in the '80's , results were poor, i had enough money in additional steel required to reinforce the frame which was very flimsy that i could have bought a ready made trailer, also the axles on a travel trailer are much narrower than a regular trailer and you wind up with this long hot dog looking thing which isnt good for anything but atv's or dirt bikes no other vehicle will fit on them, now a M john deere just might fit, but cost wise it would be better to buy a good trailer made to haul stuff, i did my own welding on mine but if your paying for the labor for that you could buy a real nice trailer already made and dont forget the dmv night mare, if yours is as big a pain as ours you will need documentation for the original frame and axles ... just not worth it, unless you just need a unlicensed farm trailer for something
 

[mkirsch]

Save the axles and springs if they are standard 3500lb rated with the 5-bolt rims. Junk the rest.

Travel trailers have the load spread out pretty evenly across the whole thing, so the frame is much more lightly built. All it has to deal with is a few people moving around inside.

Hauling tractors, you're putting thousands of pounds over a few square inches of area (the tires).

If you're going to build a trailer you're better off starting over with heavy box tube and channel, than trying to reinforce the stamped-steel frame of an old travel trailer.
 

[Ralph Bauer]

On a related note, you better hope he does not come back to claim the trailer: Regardless if he skips or does not pay rent, most states require the landlord to keep "anything of value" for a certain time (6 months in OK) and an honest attempt to notify him of his stuff being stored, then dispersed after (the 6) months, cost to landlord, if tenant wants it, he needs to pay reasonable storage fees). Otherwise, a small claims court ordeal may (not saying it will) be looming with the cards stacked his way if he knows how to navigate the law ....
Check on Oregon Landlord/Tenant laws, if nothing else for a future event!
(Landlord) Ralph in OK.
 

[Trailer]

Regardless if they owed a year rent, the trailer is not yours to take! You can certainly take the renter to court for money owed but you CAN'T take their property in exchange. Having said that, it's unlikely the renter would pursue a lawsuit against you.
 

[Ralph Bauer]

Property can be exchanged in lieu of rent/$ but ot would have to be agreed (best in writing) by both parties or through a lawsuit/order approved by the court.
Now another question: Was there a deposit and what was it for (purpose)?? .....
 

[Brad Buchanan]

As has been stated I would save the axles and related hardware and junk the rest.

If you have weld/fab skills you can build a much better trailer for less $ than buying new. If you have to pay someone else you would be much better off buying new.

As for the renter suing you I would produce bills for storage at $45 per day.

Brad
 

[Dean Olson]

Don't mess with it. I researched doing the same thing and found I could buy a new shop built for a little more $ and not have all my time tied up getting it built.

Start a rental tab on that trailer then go to small claims court to get title to the trailer.
 

[bg/mo]

Don waste the time on it, frame is too light for anything heavy.
 

[Trailer]

You can't charge a storage fee after the fact. If you could, the courts would be filled up for the next 100 years.