Trailer tires and/or decking. What's your favorite, or least.

[SylvanLakeWH 25,535]

5 hours ago, oliver2-44 said:

Consider welding a receiver hitch square tube to the front of the trailer above the floor. Then you can mount a winch on a piece of 2” tubing and use it on your tractor and your trailer

 

Or, for about $20 you could bolt on a boat winch (cable or strap). That's what i did and it works great... No power needed. 

[Handy Don 12,213]

2 hours ago, SylvanLakeWH said:

No power needed. 

Well, only the kind of muscle power they already have available, anyway! 

[SylvanLakeWH 25,535]

1 hour ago, Handy Don said:

Well, only the kind of muscle power they already have available, anyway! 

 

 

[ebinmaine 67,422]

15 hours ago, 8ntruck said:

I don't see anything wrong with the rough cut hemlock.  Around here, it would probably be oak.

 

White oak is available but not common. 

Hemlock is abundant.  

 

I'd check on both of course.  

[ebinmaine 67,422]

7 hours ago, SylvanLakeWH said:

 

Or, for about $20 you could bolt on a boat winch (cable or strap). That's what i did and it works great... No power needed. 

 

Likely I would get a strap type boat winch but I suggested above I would have to have an attachment point for it.

I like the idea of welding a short stand just forward of the cargo deck.  

 

[Handy Don 12,213]

56 minutes ago, ebinmaine said:

 

White oak is available but not common. 

Hemlock is abundant.  

 

I'd check on both of course.  

Throwing in an additional 2¢.

The frame and the deck work together to support the load.

I’m struggling to understand how any WH collection or individual unit would point load enough weight to justify 2x dimension lumber over frame member spans of 24” or less.

For my money, a PT plywood deck makes a LOT more sense. Properly fastened across multiple supporting frame members, it forms an integrated structure across the plane of the floor that is much, much stronger than a series of planks. Yes, there might be some minor flexing, but it won’t break.

¾” A-B or A-C (or even B-C) plywood is remarkably strong stuff and gives you one very smooth surface. If you can find the 6- or 7-layer version, so much the better.

This deck will weigh a lot less, too, increasing your tare capacity.

For attaching, look at McMaster Carr’s Elevator bolts for nearly flush surface mounting.

[ebinmaine 67,422]

1 hour ago, Handy Don said:

Throwing in an additional 2¢.

The frame and the deck work together to support the load.

I’m struggling to understand how any WH collection or individual unit would point load enough weight to justify 2x dimension lumber over frame member spans of 24” or less.

For my money, a PT plywood deck makes a LOT more sense. Properly fastened across multiple supporting frame members, it forms an integrated structure across the plane of the floor that is much, much stronger than a series of planks. Yes, there might be some minor flexing, but it won’t break.

¾” A-B or A-C (or even B-C) plywood is remarkably strong stuff and gives you one very smooth surface. If you can find the 6- or 7-layer version, so much the better.

This deck will weigh a lot less, too, increasing your tare capacity.

For attaching, look at McMaster Carr’s Elevator bolts for nearly flush surface mounting.

 

 

As a matter of weight capacity I absolutely agree and obviously so did the previous owner who was also the builder.  

I like the idea of having the deck service capable of stretching and holding the load in all four directions instead of just two, like longitudinal boards would.

 

 

The problem we have in the times that we live in and the area that I live is that the deck lifespan is expected to be 2 to 4 years even with PT plywood.  

Marine grade may be slightly longer.

 

As an example, the garbage deck that is being removed as we speak, PT plywood,  is only three seasons old. It's beyond spent.

[Handy Don 12,213]

5 hours ago, ebinmaine said:

The problem we have in the times that we live in and the area that I live is that the deck lifespan is expected to be 2 to 4 years even with PT plywood.  

Marine grade may be slightly longer.

Interesting. I’m running a 7 year old regular ¾” plywood deck that has at least another year or two in it.

I’ve treated it with preservative every two or three years and it has a tarp on it over the winter.