I've had to be creative (and borrow neighbor's trucks a lot) to haul my
lumber. I also have a small garage. While browsing today I found a
foldable trailer
(http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...taf?itemnumber
90154). Anybody in rec.woodworking have an opinion on this thing? Seems
big enough to carry my 4x8 baltic birch. Plus I can store it in the
garage. Is it a hassle to fold it and un-fold it?, Is it pretty
stable?, Is it a piece of junk?

I was in the same situation several years ago. We lived in an apartment and
did not own a truck. But, I needed to carry plywood and other supplies on
occasion. When I weighed the costs of a truck and insurance against a $200
trailer, the choice was a no-brainer.

I bought a trailer just like the Harbor Freight model. It was fairly easy
to assemble, easy enough to fold up, and it stored easily at the end of our
carport. But I couldn't really put sides on the trailer and still be able
to fold it up (unless they were easily removable).

When we moved to our property, I stopped folding up the trailer and built
permanent sides for it out of pressure treated lumber (See picture at
www.mountain-software.com/trailer.jpg). Since the trailer frame is almost
exactly 4x8, I inset the plywood panels into the framework. This allows me
to carry full sheets of plywood (though it's a tight fit).

I've owned the trailer about 14 years now, and it has seen a LOT of use.
I've hauled countless sheets of plywood and other lumber, various building
supplies (plumbing pipes, large tools, etc.), helped friends and family
move their stuff, brought home multiple loads of bark dust, delivered
firewood, and carried many loads of garbage to the dump.

By hanging a couple feet off the front (over the tongue), and a few feet
off the back, I've hauled lumber as long as 16'. Though most of the time
I'm carrying 10' pipes or lumber under 8' long.

My trailer is rated at 900 pounds, which does limit what I can carry to a
degree. For instance, I wouldn't want to try carrying a load of gravel or
sand. However, I pull my trailer with a 1976 Rabbit which doesn't weigh all
that much itself. So the weight limit of the trailer hasn't really been an
issue. Other than a couple of loads of wet garbage, I haven't even come
close to the weight limit.

Unlike most trucks, I get 30 mpg with my car when I'm not pulling the
trailer, but can still carry items many small trucks can't. In addition,
the trailer only costs about $30 a year to license, and is covered by my
auto insurance at no additional cost.

I highly recommend these little trailers...

Anthony