Ill tell you my story real quick but i seemed to be the norm and not the exemption. DO NOT BUY A GATORMADE TRAILER. In my opinion, not only are they built with very poor quality but are unsafe to haul with. I've owned a 26' dual tandem gooseneck now for 4 years, i bought it new from the factory in KY. I have now spent more in repairs on this trailer than it initially cost me to buy ($9,200). The axles were not installed correctly from the factory which has now caused me 4 wheel bearings, an axle, and 12 worn tires. I was going down the highway once at 65 MPH with a bulldozer loaded on when a wheel bearing blew apart, blew the tires out, and almost caused a massive accident. The latest incident could have been devastating. The neck of the gooseneck has almost completely broken off from the rest of the trailer. Luckily we were in the parking lot and not going down the road. Heres the pics To me though, the worst part about it all, is Gatormades customer care, or more accurately lack there of. Absolutely horrible. Gatormade could care less about these issues and the money and down time its cost me. SO, stay away from Gatormade at all cost.
Good info here. Out of curiosity what size dozer are you hauling on this trailer? I'm guessing the trailer has 10k axles under it?
Owns a trailer for 4 years, hauling dozers at 65 mph on a 26' gooseneck, and has trouble with bearings, tires, and welds cracking? Imagine that......
If I remember past posts on other forums the trailer has been a problem mostly since day 1 and the manufacturer doesn't care to do anything about it. And I see nothing wrong with towing the trailer with a dozer on it at 65mph on the highway if it's an appropriate size dozer for the trailer.
Your kidding right? A trailer that is suppose to be able to carry almost 20k on the deck hauling a 12k dozer at 65 MPH is an issue? The trailer should be MORE than capable of doing that. As a matter of fact, it should be able to carry 19,600 lbs on the deck going 65 MPH without an issue, seeing as that's what is rated for from Gatormade. Unless I missed a graph or something in the paper work that showed a correct speed vs weight ratio....... And yes, I've had issues with this trailer almost since day one. I believe we lost the first wheel bearing right at 10 months of owning it.
Yeah ross , what model is your trailer ? http://www.gatormade.com/gooseneck-trailers/
Doesn't the trailer weigh 6-7k? Pretty sure they don't put a 26k+ GVW on the trailers with 10k axles. So no its not rated for a 20k load. What model dozer are you hauling?
26' dual tandem
I will get a pic of the actual tag on the trailer for you tomorrow, the exact GVW is 25,900 lbs I believe. The trailer itself weighs 6,400 or 6,600 (I double check tomorrow). The dozer we haul on that trailer is just a Case 450c, 12,000 lbs
My trailer has dual 10k axles and a 24,999lb gvw. I believe some are even higher. I spec'd out a different gooseneck a couple years back with dual 15k axles and I believe my gvw choices were 37k or 39k if I remember correctly.
I understand all the manufactures rate them a little different, but it seems most of them are around 25% tongue weight. Some are much less than that. Have you had this setup on the scales?
Yair . . . Just out of curiosity . . . would any trailer manufacturer warrant wheel bearings? I know I wouldn't (and didn't). Cheers.
I understand wheel bearings are a wear item, BUT not after only 10 months. Then for 3 more to go in under 3 years. Plenty of guys go 6, 7, 8 or more years with out having to touch them. The axles were installed wrong, they were actually crooked under the trailer, making the trailer dog track putting a heavy load on the bearings. The last time a wheel bearing went we had to replace the entire axle because of the damage. Took the trailer to a reputable place locally and they had to cut off the front axle mounts and re-weld them on in the proper position so that the axles were aligned. I have all that documented from them with before and after alignments. Gatormade basically told me too bad. In fact I was actually somewhat taken back by the offer they made to the BBB when I filed a complaint. If I were to haul the trailer all the way back down to KY, the would give me $100 off the price of a new axle (so $1,100 instead of $1,200) and then I could pay them full shop rates to replace it. I politely declined....
I have weighed mine many times on various scales. Trailer with nothing on it is 8,800lbs.
LT-x7, here you go
Gator does some heavy advertising here, there all over LSN and CL. They look nice but have never owned or looked over one before. Looks as though its rated for the load
Sorry ross3031, didn't mean to upset you. I wouldn't consider a 12,000lb load to be overloading your trailer. When you said dozer on your trailer, I was picturing a d5 up there. I see people around my area hauling 25-35,000lbs, with goosneck trailers, and then complaining that they won't hold up. A rated load is often different, to what one should be hauling. I've got a dual tandem 25' trailer, 2- 10k axles 235/85r 16's tires. It's probably rated for 20-25,000, I'm not really sure. I've got a forklift that weights about 12k, and that's about all that trailer wants. The trailer is rated for more, but that's with the weight spread over the whole trailer, (think hauling big round bales). My forklift concentrates that load in one spot. I think everyday use of it, with that load, wouldn't probably be to good for my trailer either. I certainly wouldn't feel comfortable running 65 with it. When you hit a patch of rough road it really flexes my trailer. I actually have a 35 ton single drop lowboy, and that's what we usually haul that forklift on, of course, it handles it with no problem. I also have a crane that weighs 66,000lbs. I don't haul it, on that 35 ton lowboy (even though its "rated" for that), I have a 50 ton lowboy for that. I know that crane (under 35 tons), would destroy that trailer (even though its a "rated" load), in short order hauling it around every day. Yes its "rated" for it, but I'd like to have my trailer last. Some of the bigger lowboys give two ratings, "concentrated" load (so many lbs in 10') and then a gross rating. I imagine they don't do that on smaller trailers for liability reasons. I live in a pretty hilly area, and I don't feel comfortable running around grossing 30,000 in a one ton pickup with a gooseneck. Sure, lots of guys do, I'm just not one of them. I think if I was in a flatter area, I might think differently. I'm sorry you've had poor luck with your trailer, it sounds like you've got the axle issues straightened out, and maybe some welding and plate steel to reinforce the trailer, and I wish you the best.
:exactly and it's semi common for people to have no clue what a piece of equipment weighs, so when you said 12k dozer I half expected a 18k-20k crawler up on the deck. I'm pretty surprised and disappointed with Gatormade's response. IMO from a business owners prospective when you have a problem like this (lets be honest, every company has problems sometimes) it can either cost you a small set amount of money now to make right. Or it can cost you a large amount of money in the future in lost business. Seems like a no brainier to me.......
Crane Operator, We're all good. This issue has just been going on and on and its ****$ng frustrating that i cant get any help with it. Didn't mean to come off as a **** LT-x7, I tried everything to get my point across to Gatormade, with absolutely no legitimate concern or care for my problems. I think i'm at the point now where i'm literally out of options. My last resort lately has been to turn to social media and try to get my story out. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc, and let people know what i've had to deal with. I very politely emailed and contacted dealers of Gatormade to express my concern for them selling what, in my opinion, are unsafe trailer. I've made threads on numerous forums and emailed them to Gatormade, plenty of post saying that people were thankful for the info because they were thinking of buying one but will not now. Gatormade has never responded...
You can throw me on that boat. I'm currently in the process of shopping for a gooseneck and will be crossing gatormade off my list. Not because of your issues with the product (s*** happens) but because of there response to the problems.
Diamond C or Load Trail are the two at the top of my list. Maybe a little more expensive up front but d$mn I've learned my lesson on that one
Check out ABU made in North Dakota. I have a 2006 36' gooseneck with dual 12,000 lb axles that has been used hard since new. It has been a tough trailer. My deck is due replacement but not the trailers fault. Has some surface rust but we are always on the salted winter roads.
Thanks for the tip. I will more than likely end up with something used because I'm cheap! Since nothing is made on this side of the country it will come down to whatever I can find a good deal on.
Might be worth looking into a Bwise trailer, they seem to be made well and have a lot of nice options. They are out of Chambersburg, Pa but have a dealership network. I'm looking into their gooseneck tilts with 12k axles.
A thought. When you're talking trailers it's not often speed that comes into the conversation. I recall one time working with some Goldhofer trailers that were "rated" at 100 tons and no-one could figure out why they were always blowing tyres. It turned out that the 100 tons rating was at a maximum speed of 5mph, if you wanted to run the trailer at up to 30mph the rating dropped to 50 tons, faster than that and it was rated at 35 tons. Go figure......
I pull a Brute trailer made in a little shop in Texas. I've heard not so great things about them the last few years as far as the quality of work and customer service however mine is a slightly older trailer now (2008) and seems to be before these problems. It's built like a tank, heavy but I haven't found anything yet that it even cares about being loaded on it. I found mine used on craigslist 4 or so years ago, it's the only one I've ever seen in person. I would buy another as long as I could look it over good and make sure it's built as well as mine is. Edit: I could go on and on about gooseneck trailers if you want more details but I'll spare the derailment of this thread's original purpose and keep it somewhat on track.
there is a big difference in GN quality across manufactures. If you want a cheap trailer you get what you pay for. Many of the trailers have wishful ratings or must have an evenly distributed load on them. Personally when a trailer starts getting rated at over 7 tons, there should be a uniform loading and a 10' span loading.
Thankfully, in the age of the internet, the disingenuous language of the unscrupulous gets exposed so people know who to avoid.
Oh that particular event was looooooong before the advent of the internet. However the info was all there right on the data plate fixed to the chassis of each trailer, all it needed was someone with half a brain to read it and make sense of it........
It's absolutely amazing, the stuff people can learn by reading/comprehending an owners/operators manual. I see that every day... Huh, that's in the book???
LOL..100% correct..instructions are for after one screws it up the first time..then read the proper way..
Well, many organization employ engineers who job it is to read the manual and translate that into operational procedures...
Funny thing about Goldhofer is when purchased new they train you. Quite extensively actually. The user of that trailer may have bought it used or something, didn't pass the training down the chain of command. Who knows. If that's the case the thing that concerns me more than blown tires is the potential catastrophic accident that can come with the size of a load they're capable of transporting! I did a multi-day heavy lift/heavy transport course and we covered platform trailers as far as three and four point suspension, stability triangles etc. Then we saw lots of pics and video of what occurs when you don't do it right. Big iron makes for big &$@$ ups! Junkyard
We're off track from the OP but regarding the Goldhofers they were a cancelled order for some oil company in the Middle East and ended up with us in Angola. IIRC there were about a dozen of them. They were designed for moving oilfield equipment and so both the 6 x 6 Oshkosh tractors that pulled them and the trailers were equipped with sand tyres, not good on asphalt/laterite roads. So no factory training and because they were "100 ton trailers" our mob saw nothing wrong with loading two D9s on the trailer ('cos they would physically fit) and hooning off down the road at high speed ..... I must dig out the photos I have of one that blew all the LH side trailer tyres and dumped a 651 scraper upside down on the side of the road.
I have a freind that bought a Gatormade 20 + 5 GN tandem dually trailer. I also tracks down the road sideways. I has a torque tube that is off center 2" front to back. Their response was "it is yours". I also have a Gatormade Ardvark style equipment trailer, tandem axle single wheel 16K rated. We have looked it over pretty close and it seems OK.
Once again Gatormades customer service comes through and confirms how absolutely terrible they are
They advertise like crazy and if they had some quality control and customer service they could have a great product. However I would never buy another one.
I also had a problem with customer service and they don"t care
Unbelievable the quality. Crossing them off my list.
Just the other day I logged in here & saw a BIG banner for Gatormade {advertisement}.. I was thinking, where/why do I know that name?? Then I found this thread..
There is no way it should be damaging the gooseneck with that little of weight, and in such a short time. I've had 19,000lbs on my SWS gooseneck with 2x10,000s numerous times without issue, it's a 2009 and i've had it for 2 years without any problems at all. I actually contacted the manufacturer, everything on the 2x10,000lb are the same as with 3 10's, except for the coupler, so no issues going over 20,000lbs if you put a heavier coupler on it. I regularly have about 15,000lbs on it and trailer is roughly 7,200 so it's always loaded fairly heavy. The odd part, my dad has a SWS bumper pull with 2 7's and the trailer is junk, so many problems in the 5-6 years of owning it. It is not built anywhere close to as good as my gooseneck is.
+1 on being thankful for your post. But still sorry for your pain and frustration. Gatormade advertises all over CL and it looks tempting by being $1k cheaper than a PJ, who also advertises on CL. I'm looking at another brand... rephrase... ANY other brand because of this post, and others like it!!
You know I think the cheapest gets a lot folks coming in, but cheap is still cheap. Buddy bought a 24 foot enclosed trailer from a place in GA, just brought it back and his first words when we were walking up to it, "is a cheap trailer". I bought a new boat trailer from Load Master in OH. Was cheaper then everybody, and I'm not bad mouthing them, good trailer but I would have been much happier if I spent another 3K and bought a great trailer
Why not sue them for the cost of the trailer? It's obviously junk. Places like this will stay in business if people just continue to look the other way while having problems with their products.
Bought a Gatorade enclosed 16' trailer to haul light cabinets in it. He to weld gussets to rear uprights to keep the doors closed. They used to open going down the road because of so much flex. Cheap aluminum skin also.
Cheap trailer manufacturers sell a lot before they get caught shorting then they generally go out of business. I have an old Loadmaster, not a Load Master different company where they quality assured themselves out of business as the cheapskates sold under them. Couple of companies close by I will not buy, shoddy welding, cut rate axles, minimal cross members.