Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

And they push accessories such as a trailer jack that holds the tongue
up when it isn't resting on the trailer hitch. Do I want one, do I
need one, for a trailer that weighs 200 pounds on which I'll put less
than 100 pounds of furniture? After all, I'm supposed to put the load
on so the tongue weight is no more than 50 pounds, right? And I can
lift 50 pounds easily. OTOH, I love accesories and gadgets? OT3H, I
will rarely if ever use it, but I will pay for gas to carry it around
with me whereever I go.

In fact, I plan to use the trailer only once, to go from Dallas to
Baltimore, and I don't expect to put the trailer on the hitch more
than once, or take it off more than once. At the start and at the
end. Since I have no place to keep the trailer, I'll have to sell it,
cheap. So should I buy the jack?

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.

I'll bite.
Buy the spare tire and rim...long trip to get stuck on the road.
Forget the carrier and jack.

"mm" wrote in message
...
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

And they push accessories such as a trailer jack that holds the tongue
up when it isn't resting on the trailer hitch. Do I want one, do I
need one, for a trailer that weighs 200 pounds on which I'll put less
than 100 pounds of furniture? After all, I'm supposed to put the load
on so the tongue weight is no more than 50 pounds, right? And I can
lift 50 pounds easily. OTOH, I love accesories and gadgets? OT3H, I
will rarely if ever use it, but I will pay for gas to carry it around
with me whereever I go.

In fact, I plan to use the trailer only once, to go from Dallas to
Baltimore, and I don't expect to put the trailer on the hitch more
than once, or take it off more than once. At the start and at the
end. Since I have no place to keep the trailer, I'll have to sell it,
cheap. So should I buy the jack?

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.

mm wrote:

Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

And they push accessories such as a trailer jack that holds the tongue
up when it isn't resting on the trailer hitch. Do I want one, do I
need one, for a trailer that weighs 200 pounds on which I'll put less
than 100 pounds of furniture? After all, I'm supposed to put the load
on so the tongue weight is no more than 50 pounds, right? And I can
lift 50 pounds easily. OTOH, I love accesories and gadgets? OT3H, I
will rarely if ever use it, but I will pay for gas to carry it around
with me whereever I go.

In fact, I plan to use the trailer only once, to go from Dallas to
Baltimore, and I don't expect to put the trailer on the hitch more
than once, or take it off more than once. At the start and at the
end. Since I have no place to keep the trailer, I'll have to sell it,
cheap. So should I buy the jack?

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.

Tongue weight should be about 10% of gross trailer weight, and both
tongue and gross weights will be limited by your tow vehicle and hitch.
A trailer of the type you indicate should pretty much never have a
tongue weight over 120# so you can probably do just fine without a jack.

A spare wheel/tire assy. is a good idea if you expect to tow it a lot. A
tire carrier isn't worthwhile since the tire is small and you should be
able to just strap it down with the load or keep it in the two vehicle.

If you don't tow a lot, don't tow in remote areas and don't tow anything
too valuable you can pretty readily skip the spare tire. If you do get a
flat you just leave the trailer on the side of the road for an hour
while you got to and Lowe's, Home Depot, Auto parts store, etc. and buy
a tire/wheel assy. for $30.

I had one of those trailers for years. I carried around a cheap Harbor
Freight jack stand to stick under the tongue when I unhitched. It
served 2 purposes:

- Saved the back from lifting the tongue off the ground
- Kept the bed more level

One problem is that if you stand on the rear of the trailer, the tongue
will lift off the jack stand and if the trailer rolls left or right,
the tongue will hit the ground rather harshly when you get off. With an
attached jack stand (preferably with a wheel (~$40)) it may lift up,
but it will return to it's original position a bit more calmly.

Once I upgraded to an enclosed trailer, I found the wheeled jack stand
to be a must if I wanted to move the trailer by myself.

BTW I built a nice set of walls for my trailer from 1 x 6 douglas fir.
I've seen cheap, fast plywood walls, but my walls made an inexpensive
trailer look pretty nice. I got it on sale for under $200, put about
$50 into the walls and sold it for $200 4 years later.

P.S. Never had a spare, never had flat.

mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

And they push accessories such as a trailer jack that holds the tongue
up when it isn't resting on the trailer hitch. Do I want one, do I
need one, for a trailer that weighs 200 pounds on which I'll put less
than 100 pounds of furniture? After all, I'm supposed to put the load
on so the tongue weight is no more than 50 pounds, right? And I can
lift 50 pounds easily. OTOH, I love accesories and gadgets? OT3H, I
will rarely if ever use it, but I will pay for gas to carry it around
with me whereever I go.

In fact, I plan to use the trailer only once, to go from Dallas to
Baltimore, and I don't expect to put the trailer on the hitch more
than once, or take it off more than once. At the start and at the
end. Since I have no place to keep the trailer, I'll have to sell it,
cheap. So should I buy the jack?

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.

As the others have said, with the trailer empty it won't be that bad
without a jack, but I would still want one. It just makes it more user
friendly & saves always looking for something for under the hitch.
Sooner or later you are going to want to unhitch it loaded, and that
will be a task.

mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

NO!

RENT!

mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I think not. My trailer which is much larger has has two different
trailer jacks both of which I have managed to wreck don't ask me how.
So now i just use my trusty floor jack if I need some help. you will
need no jack for the tiny little trailer you describe since you will be
able to lift it without a jack.

Lawrence wrote:

mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I think not. My trailer which is much larger has has two different
trailer jacks both of which I have managed to wreck don't ask me how.
So now i just use my trusty floor jack if I need some help. you will
need no jack for the tiny little trailer you describe since you will be
able to lift it without a jack.

My trailer has a typical loaded tongue weight of about 960# and the jack
on it does just fine. Not sure how you killed yours.

For the little trailer though the loaded tongue weight should never be
over 120#, typically much less so it should be perfectly manageable
without a jack.

"mm" wrote in message
...
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

And they push accessories such as a trailer jack that holds the tongue
up when it isn't resting on the trailer hitch. Do I want one, do I
need one, for a trailer that weighs 200 pounds on which I'll put less
than 100 pounds of furniture? After all, I'm supposed to put the load
on so the tongue weight is no more than 50 pounds, right? And I can
lift 50 pounds easily. OTOH, I love accesories and gadgets? OT3H, I
will rarely if ever use it, but I will pay for gas to carry it around
with me whereever I go.

In fact, I plan to use the trailer only once, to go from Dallas to
Baltimore, and I don't expect to put the trailer on the hitch more
than once, or take it off more than once. At the start and at the
end. Since I have no place to keep the trailer, I'll have to sell it,
cheap. So should I buy the jack?

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.


The tire depends on how far from home you will be. Well maybe in your case.
For the trip you are making consider the model with the larger 12-14" tires.
Those little guys are fine for local hauls.

I have the smaller version of the same trailer. I have hauled 1180 pounds
of rock and dirt to the landfill. Mine is now about 6 years old, abused a
few times per year and going strong.

You won't need the trailer jack when it is empty and if you move it about
when loaded and on the jack, the tongue will twist. BTDT (been there done
that).

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 20:52:16 GMT, "Pete C."
wrote:


Tongue weight should be about 10% of gross trailer weight, and both
tongue and gross weights will be limited by your tow vehicle and hitch.
A trailer of the type you indicate should pretty much never have a
tongue weight over 120# so you can probably do just fine without a jack.

A spare wheel/tire assy. is a good idea if you expect to tow it a lot. A
tire carrier isn't worthwhile since the tire is small and you should be
able to just strap it down with the load or keep it in the two vehicle.

Well, as I said, I like gadgets, but I'll control myself and skip this
one.

If you don't tow a lot, don't tow in remote areas and don't tow anything
too valuable you can pretty readily skip the spare tire. If you do get a
flat you just leave the trailer on the side of the road for an hour
while you got to and Lowe's, Home Depot, Auto parts store, etc. and buy
a tire/wheel assy. for $30.

Thanks. I feel better now. The dresser has been mine since I was 6
and it's beautiful, but it's not likely someone will steal it, even if
I have to leave it**. I can even chain up the trailer if I have to
leave it. So I'm going to order the trailer right now, and have it
shipped to my brother in Dallas.

**Not likely that anyone will want it, but I'm going to put a switch
under the dresser so that it sets off the car's burglar alarm if
someone tries to take it while I'm in a motel or camping at night.

(Also very unlikely, but when one has had things stolen, he becomes
touchy about it. My car once, though I went and found it, but
everything in the trunk was missing. A roommate' subtenant stole my
desk, deskchair, electric drill, and propane torch once when I was
working out of town. And a second time everything in the trunk of my
convertible. That was 24 years ago, but still. Oh, yeah, someone once
stole 2 lawn mowers from behind my house, but I had spent hours trying
to make either of them work and was only saving them for parts! I'll
bet they were disappointed when they got them home and couldn't start
them!)

mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

And they push accessories such as a trailer jack that holds the tongue
up when it isn't resting on the trailer hitch. Do I want one, do I
need one, for a trailer that weighs 200 pounds on which I'll put less
than 100 pounds of furniture? After all, I'm supposed to put the load
on so the tongue weight is no more than 50 pounds, right? And I can
lift 50 pounds easily. OTOH, I love accesories and gadgets? OT3H, I
will rarely if ever use it, but I will pay for gas to carry it around
with me whereever I go.

In fact, I plan to use the trailer only once, to go from Dallas to
Baltimore, and I don't expect to put the trailer on the hitch more
than once, or take it off more than once. At the start and at the
end. Since I have no place to keep the trailer, I'll have to sell it,
cheap. So should I buy the jack?

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.

As tater said, why buy a trailer. Rent a U-haul, Penske or similar
small trailer. Should be cheaper and you won't have to try selling it.

Harry K

On 8 Jan 2007 16:02:19 -0800, "Tater" wrote:


mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

NO!

RENT!

One can't rent a really small trailer, and I can't pull any trailer
much bigger than this, because I have no frame. My car doesn't have a
frame either.

You don't have to buy now! You can always buy later if you decide you need
them.

On Mon, 8 Jan 2007 20:07:03 -0500, "Colbyt"
wrote:


The tire depends on how far from home you will be. Well maybe in your case.
For the trip you are making consider the model with the larger 12-14" tires.
Those little guys are fine for local hauls.

I have the smaller version of the same trailer. I have hauled 1180 pounds
of rock and dirt to the landfill. Mine is now about 6 years old, abused a
few times per year and going strong.

Good to hear.

You won't need the trailer jack when it is empty and if you move it about
when loaded and on the jack, the tongue will twist. BTDT (been there done
that).

You and lawrence, I think.

On Tue, 09 Jan 2007 00:59:52 GMT, "Pete C."
wrote:

Lawrence wrote:

mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I think not. My trailer which is much larger has has two different
trailer jacks both of which I have managed to wreck don't ask me how.
So now i just use my trusty floor jack if I need some help. you will
need no jack for the tiny little trailer you describe since you will be
able to lift it without a jack.

My trailer has a typical loaded tongue weight of about 960# and the jack
on it does just fine. Not sure how you killed yours.

He was probably using it in a gang fight.

At any rate, I'll bet it wasn't being used as desgined.

For the little trailer though the loaded tongue weight should never be
over 120#, typically much less so it should be perfectly manageable
without a jack.

Derby Dad has given me pause, but if I were to want one, I realize I
don't have to buy it at the same time or same place as the trailer.

I have realized that maybe I can squeeze the trailer in somewhere,
maybe even build a shed in a way I hadn't thought of before, because
it will be very hard for me to part with a trailer that is only two
weeks old, even if it does have 1200 miles on it.

Of course if I could get 200 for a 250 trailer... Well, I'm going to
try this spring to sell a trailer hitch cargo carrier that is better
than new, because I put carpeting on the ends to protect the floor,
and red and white striped reflective strips on 3 sides. Less demand
for that then a trailer, so I expect to sell it for half or less of
what I paid. I bought a lighter one, that uses a wood bottom I make
myself. The old one is so heavy I can barely carry it to the car, and
certainly can't carry it down the steps to the basement.

On 8 Jan 2007 14:01:56 -0800, "DerbyDad03"
wrote:


BTW I built a nice set of walls for my trailer from 1 x 6 douglas fir.
I've seen cheap, fast plywood walls, but my walls made an inexpensive
trailer look pretty nice. I got it on sale for under $200, put about
$50 into the walls and sold it for $200 4 years later.

Cool. I don't want my dresser falling off at 65 mph**, but I think
I'll use rope. My brother's isn't the best place to make walls.
**Most of the way on small roads at 40 to 50.

It has short legs at the bottom, and a top that overhangs the rest of
it, so I'll be able to get the rope on ok, even on top of the
waterproof wrapping. Unless I crash the car, in which case the
dresser, as much as I like it, will be less important to me than my
own bones.

P.S. Never had a spare, never had flat.

OK. No spare for me.

A friend once told me about the time the military was shipping him
cross country from one station to another. They wouldn't pay to ship
his girlfriend's stuff or pay her airfare, so he talked them into
giving him the money that they would have paid for shipping his stuff
and his travel expenses. He was going to drive his car and they were
going to give him mileage.

He took the money, rented a big Ryder truck, loaded a bunch of stuff
into his car and drove it into the truck. They then packed all the rest
of their stuff around the car and drove the truck cross country.

mm wrote:
On 8 Jan 2007 16:02:19 -0800, "Tater" wrote:


mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

NO!

RENT!

One can't rent a really small trailer, and I can't pull any trailer
much bigger than this, because I have no frame. My car doesn't have a
frame either.

On 8 Jan 2007 20:51:18 -0800, "DerbyDad03"
wrote:

A friend once told me about the time the military was shipping him
cross country from one station to another. They wouldn't pay to ship
his girlfriend's stuff or pay her airfare, so he talked them into
giving him the money that they would have paid for shipping his stuff
and his travel expenses. He was going to drive his car and they were
going to give him mileage.

He took the money, rented a big Ryder truck, loaded a bunch of stuff
into his car and drove it into the truck. They then packed all the rest
of their stuff around the car and drove the truck cross country.

Great story!

When I thought I was taking two dressers, the desk, and the
nighttable, I looked into renting a truck. almost 1000 dollars to go
one-way. (Now a truck trip I could have done in the winter, but if
I'm taking my convertible, I want to wait until the weather is
warmer.)

When I foudn out my nephew was using most of the furniture, I looked
into a cargo van. It was only 240 dollars for the time they allotted
for this distance (7 days I think) but they charged 480 for returning
the van to Dallas, and another 180+ dollars for other charges, so more
than 900. This will be about 100 dollars each way for gas, plus the
200 for the trailer, minus the 100 dollars I would have spent for a
one-way flight. So it is only 200 more than flying there and back.
As opposed to 800 dollars more. Plus I get ten days or more of
tourism. Mammoth Caves, Memphis, Nashville, Elvis, Little Rock,
Diamond State park (where you can look for your own diamonds. 6
dollars for the afternoon iirc, and keep what you find) and Hope
Arkensas. Plus lots of other things I'll see.

Dang, I just remembered the book case! I don't think they're using
that, so I guess I'll take it too. But it weighs little and will sit
atop the dresser. Gas mileage will be lwow and may cost another
??50/100?? dollars. Maybe I should make a shroud like semis use above
the cab. I wonder how.

mm wrote:
On 8 Jan 2007 16:02:19 -0800, "Tater" wrote:


mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

NO!

RENT!

One can't rent a really small trailer, and I can't pull any trailer
much bigger than this, because I have no frame. My car doesn't have a
frame either.

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 14:22:43 -0500, mm
wrote:

Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

So I ordered the thing, and shouldn't have been, but was surprised by
the shipping charges 62.00. That's 12 dollars for an order 130
dollars or more, and 50 dollars extra because it weighs 200 pounds and
was marked " §Truck Item "

I could have picked it up in Fort Worth, but the store is an hour or
more each way from where my brother lives, and probably 10 dollars gas
and 10 dollars sales tax, and it was 40 dollars off what they
laughingly call regular price (I think Harbor Freight marks things up
just so they can mark them down most of the time, but they do sell
everything at full price some of the time.) and the store might just
be out of them when I need one, and I really have to start assembling
the first day if I am to be done in 5 days, and still have time to go
buy plywood, see my sister-in-law's restaurant 50 miles in the other
direction, etc. It has 300 parts!

Thanks for all the very helpful advice.

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 14:22:43 -0500, mm
wrote:

Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

I just put mine on the road a couple months ago. [It took me
*several* hours to put it all together- so I hope you have a long
weekend planned with your brother.] I picked my jack up at garage
sale for $5, but it is like the $20 HF one-
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=41004

Aside from keeping me from looking for a block every time I take the
trailer off the car-- it always holds the tongue up-- and makes a fine
handle to grab on to drag my (now 3 wheeled) trailer to the car.
Then it adjusts up and down over the ball saving my back when it has a
load. [not that the tongue is heavy-- but my back is old and has
suffered a great deal of abuse over the years]

-snip-
In fact, I plan to use the trailer only once, to go from Dallas to
Baltimore, and I don't expect to put the trailer on the hitch more
than once, or take it off more than once. At the start and at the
end. Since I have no place to keep the trailer, I'll have to sell it,
cheap. So should I buy the jack?

If you've really got to sell it- then you'll probably not use the jack
for a single trip. But if I was looking at a 'used once' trailer to
buy- that extra gadget would be a good selling point. [If I were
you I'd probably also use pressure treated lumber for the bed and
rails- $30 more right now- but will make it stand out when you sell
it.]


Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.

I'd save that $40 for a single trip.

BTW- what kind of car is towing this-- and are you buying a hitch?

What part of the world do you live in that doesn't have small trailers
for rent? [at either end of the trip?]

Jim

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 14:22:43 -0500, mm
wrote:

Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

And they push accessories such as a trailer jack that holds the tongue
up when it isn't resting on the trailer hitch. Do I want one, do I
need one, for a trailer that weighs 200 pounds on which I'll put less
than 100 pounds of furniture? After all, I'm supposed to put the load
on so the tongue weight is no more than 50 pounds, right? And I can
lift 50 pounds easily. OTOH, I love accesories and gadgets? OT3H, I
will rarely if ever use it, but I will pay for gas to carry it around
with me whereever I go.

In fact, I plan to use the trailer only once, to go from Dallas to
Baltimore, and I don't expect to put the trailer on the hitch more
than once, or take it off more than once. At the start and at the
end. Since I have no place to keep the trailer, I'll have to sell it,
cheap. So should I buy the jack?

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.

Why the hell don't you just rent the trailer, one way?
Or if you're only moving 100 pounds of dresser, buy a
roofrack for $40? And why, even if you insist on buying
a trailer, are you buying a NEW one?

mm wrote:
On Tue, 09 Jan 2007 00:59:52 GMT, "Pete C."
wrote:

Lawrence wrote:
I think not. My trailer which is much larger has had two different
trailer jacks both of which I have managed to wreck don't ask me how.

My trailer has a typical loaded tongue weight of about 960# and the jack
on it does just fine. Not sure how you killed yours.

He was probably using it in a gang fight.

At any rate, I'll bet it wasn't being used as desgined.

Haha, those jacks had wheels on the bottom which many do. I think I
bagged mine by trying to drag a loaded trailer across rough ground. Or
possibly I took off with the jack in the down position, ouch. If your
jack has a wheel like that then you will want to use it only on
pavement and then as little as possible. Make sure to put the jack up
before blasting off and learn from my drunken mistakes.

Now i just put a jack in the truck in case of need. Usually I use one
of those Hi-lift style jacks but lately been using my floor jack since
I can't find the other. A floor jack is a better solution than an
attached jack, or even a hi-lift, since it has four wheels, is
extremely rugged and takes up very little space in the truck. Besides,
it doubles for vehicle repair.

So, you never know when you might want to change your oil, rotate your
tires, or grease your bearings so buy a floor jack like I did and get
it over with. Mine has lasted about 20 years at least.

On Tue, 09 Jan 2007 12:58:14 -0500, Goedjn wrote:

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.

Why the hell don't you just rent the trailer, one way?

IIRC, I checked and they don't rent little trailers one-way. I can't
tow a big one. They don't rent any open trailers one way.

Smallest U-haul Trailer:
4' x 6' Open Trailer
Lightweight and easy to tow. Reserve now

This trailer is available for local rental only – it must be returned
to the location it was rented from. !!!
Capacity

* Max load: 790 lbs.
* Gross vehicle weight: 1,500 lbs. max
* Empty weight: 710 lbs.

==710 pounds is too heavy for my car, a LeBaron which like most
non-SUV's, has no frame.

Your towing vehicle:

* Must be equipped with a hard top if it is an SUV. U-Haul does
not allow any type of sport-utility vehicle not equipped with a hard
top to tow U-Haul equipment.
* Must have Class 1 tow hitch (1,500 lbs. minimum weight-carrying
rating)

== I left out requirements that I do meet, but I don't and can't meet
these.

This was the open trailer with 14? inch walls. The closed trailer
only weights 70 pounds mo
* Volume: up to 142 cu. ft.
* Max load: 1,220 lbs.
* Empty weight: 780 lbs.


Or if you're only moving 100 pounds of dresser, buy a
roofrack for $40?

It's a convertible, and the trip is scheduled so I can keep the top
down.

If I had a hardtop, I might put a dresser on the top for 10 or 20
miles, but I would have qualms about 1200 miles. I guess I should
concern myself more with the wind even with a trailer. I don't want
the dresser blowing off the trailer.

Maybe if not a nice shroud, I should just use a 4'x4' sheet of plywood
at an angle, resting on the dresser in the back and the trailer in the
front. Is that a good idea?


And why, even if you insist on buying
a trailer, are you buying a NEW one?

I looked on Craig's list for Dallas and they had lots of trailers, but
all were bigger than my LeBaron can tow. Even if there were, it would
be hard to tell the condition from far away. I could go to Dallas and
do this, but there might be none then, or I'll spend time running
around the city looking at junk trailers, and then I'll have to buy
one in Fort Worth when it isn't even 40 dollars off like this is now.
And which might be out of stock.

I also looked at NorthernTools.com where it has a folding trailer that
looks much like this and it says carries 970 pounds instead of 980,
and it's the same price, but the catch is that it doesn't include
wheels. The catalog said wheels were on pages 271 to 272, but
surprise, none were the right ones. But online they did have wheels
but it looked like they were 50 or 100 each, raising the price 100 or
200.

So I have looked into many possibilities.

"mm" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 09 Jan 2007 12:58:14 -0500, Goedjn wrote:

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.

Why the hell don't you just rent the trailer, one way?

IIRC, I checked and they don't rent little trailers one-way. I can't
tow a big one. They don't rent any open trailers one way.

Nobody else said it, so I will. Call your relative, and have them send you
the dimensions and weights of the pieces you want to move. (Just put a
bathroom scale under each corner, and add up the numbers. It'll be close
enough.) Then call the various pak-mail and similar places, and maybe even
a local 'real' shipping company on the other end, and get an estimate of
shipping costs. For one or two pieces, even if you have to pay their
inflated prices for packing services, shipping the pieces may be as cheap or
cheaper than buying a trailer and hauling them yourself. (Don't forget, you
also have to put a plate on the trailer, and make sure your insurance covers
towing). It'll definitely be less hassle than a long-distance tow with an
underpowered marginal tow vehicle. (And I have done several stupid tow jobs,
so I know those well.) Of course, see if the pieces come apart in any way,
shape, or form. To just go across town, you can sling them across the trunk
of your car with blankets for padding, or hopefully your relative has a
bigger car for that part.

If you hadn't earlier said that the peices were family heirlooms, I'd say
sell or donate them, and use the move money to buy similar items at the
local thrift store.

aem sends....

On Jan 8, 2:22 pm, mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

And they push accessories such as a trailer jack that holds the tongue
up when it isn't resting on the trailer hitch. Do I want one, do I
need one, for a trailer that weighs 200 pounds on which I'll put less
than 100 pounds of furniture? After all, I'm supposed to put the load
on so the tongue weight is no more than 50 pounds, right? And I can
lift 50 pounds easily. OTOH, I love accesories and gadgets? OT3H, I
will rarely if ever use it, but I will pay for gas to carry it around
with me whereever I go.

In fact, I plan to use the trailer only once, to go from Dallas to
Baltimore, and I don't expect to put the trailer on the hitch more
than once, or take it off more than once. At the start and at the
end. Since I have no place to keep the trailer, I'll have to sell it,
cheap. So should I buy the jack?

Should I buy a spare wheel, tire, and spare tire carrier, for a total
of 40 dollars? I'm not made of money.


Why not just rent one?

I would not want a trailer around in the way if I don't plan to use it
again.

On 9 Jan 2007 17:16:47 -0800, "Lawrence"
wrote:


mm wrote:
On Tue, 09 Jan 2007 00:59:52 GMT, "Pete C."
wrote:

Lawrence wrote:
I think not. My trailer which is much larger has had two different
trailer jacks both of which I have managed to wreck don't ask me how.

My trailer has a typical loaded tongue weight of about 960# and the jack
on it does just fine. Not sure how you killed yours.

He was probably using it in a gang fight.

At any rate, I'll bet it wasn't being used as desgined.

Haha, those jacks had wheels on the bottom which many do. I think I
bagged mine by trying to drag a loaded trailer across rough ground. Or

That's what I would tell the police too.

possibly I took off with the jack in the down position, ouch. If your
jack has a wheel like that then you will want to use it only on
pavement and then as little as possible. Make sure to put the jack up
before blasting off and learn from my drunken mistakes.

Now i just put a jack in the truck in case of need. Usually I use one
of those Hi-lift style jacks but lately been using my floor jack since
I can't find the other. A floor jack is a better solution than an
attached jack, or even a hi-lift, since it has four wheels, is
extremely rugged and takes up very little space in the truck. Besides,
it doubles for vehicle repair.

So, you never know when you might want to change your oil, rotate your
tires, or grease your bearings so buy a floor jack like I did and get
it over with. Mine has lasted about 20 years at least.

They were selling one cheap so I bought one. Didn't use it much for
the first 10 years, but used it the last couple years to change a
motor mount, to change a tie rod end, three times to jack up the
sagging deck to put longer 4x4's under it, and most interesting, to
hold the insinkerator up while I guided it to its mounting and twisted
it on. Front wheels of the jack in the cabinet, and rear wheels held
up by phone books or something.

On Tue, 09 Jan 2007 07:37:42 -0500, Jim Elbrecht
wrote:

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 14:22:43 -0500, mm
wrote:

Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

I'm buying a small trailer, only 4' x 8' bed, the one that folds in
half sold by Harbor Freight and NorthernTools (I'm not saying they're
the same, but similar). Buying it new, with new tires.

I just put mine on the road a couple months ago. [It took me
*several* hours to put it all together- so I hope you have a long
weekend planned with your brother.]

I was going to stay 5 days or more, and work an hour or two every day
on the trailer. At one point, I thought I would buy one in Fort
Worth, assemble it in the parking lot, and tow it home. That was
before I downloaded the instructions that HF kindly provides and
counted the number of parts, 300+!

I picked my jack up at garage
sale for $5, but it is like the $20 HF one-
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=41004

Aside from keeping me from looking for a block every time I take the
trailer off the car-- it always holds the tongue up-- and makes a fine
handle to grab on to drag my (now 3 wheeled) trailer to the car.
Then it adjusts up and down over the ball saving my back when it has a
load. [not that the tongue is heavy-- but my back is old and has
suffered a great deal of abuse over the years]

I forgot about that. I have had back problems too. When I was 34 I
hurt my back jogging with cheap shoes (They had the treads up the heel
so I thought they were good! But then I saw how thick the soles of
good shoes were!) Finally I went to an orthopedist and when the xrays
didn't show anything, he seemed to lose interest. I asked if my desk
chair might be the problem? No. My bed? No. My car seat? No. But
a couple years later I bought another car, and I don't know if that is
what made my back better, or just the passage of 4 years.

This time I tried kicking a piece of sidewalk, a triangle about 8x8x4
inches thick, into place. I figured no danger since I was sitting
down and kicking sideways. I was wrong. It hurt for months, and 2+
years later, it doesnt' give twinges anymore but still isn't quite
right. Losing weight from 240 to 180 helped. And I expect a full
recovery in another 2 years. But I should probably get the jack for
that reason alone. I guess I will. I ordered the trailer, but I'm not
going to Dallas for at least 8 weeks, and I'll be lots of places that
sell this thing.
....

BTW- what kind of car is towing this-- and are you buying a hitch?

'95 Chryself LeBAron. I already have the hitch installed, same one I
put on the 84 and 88 Lebaron. I only have to drill two holes to
install it. For the middle. The ends use U-bolts to clamp around the
bumper struts. It's class 4 iirc, the worst kind, with the lowest
capacity, and doesn't even have a square draw bar. Rather it's a flat
drawbar. I've used it to carry bicycles with a rack that screws into
the drawbar, built a ladder rack to hold one end of the ladder while
the windshield and thick rubber held the other end, and also had a
separately purchased draw bar welded to the middle 2x2" square tube
that is part of the cargo carrier. I've used that to carry sod, and
file cabinets, and expect to use it more with the new, lighter cargo
carrier.

What part of the world do you live in that doesn't have small trailers
for rent? [at either end of the trip?]

Not very small, not one way. I don't think any place does. But mine
would have to go from Dallas to Baltimore.

Jim

On 9 Jan 2007 20:26:37 -0800, "Terry" wrote:

On Jan 8, 2:22 pm, mm wrote:
Do I want a trailer jack for my little trailer?

Why not just rent one?

I would not want a trailer around in the way if I don't plan to use it
again.

I had planned to sell the trailer after I got back. But if I got rid
of the spare grill or the spare lawnmowers I would definitely have
room for it. And if I still had it, I know I would find uses for it.


BTW, the day after the bulk of this thread I got a new catalog in the
mail and the price of the trailer jack dropped by a third, 9 dollars.
Maybe that is a sign I should buy one.