Transporting steel

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Well, everything I've done up to this point I could do in 10-12' sections, so it was fine to have them cut it in half to put it in the back of my truck. I have a few jobs coming up that I need full sections, so I've been looking at trailers. Now my question is, what type of trailers are you guys using to transport steel around? I'd like to stay at bumperpulls since it most likely won't be more than 500-1000lb of steel at a time, and can't afford a big gooseneck. There are some deals on decent pre-built trailers in San Antonio, but they're all 20' long. Any ideas/pictures you guys have would be appreciated.Miller: 200dx, Bobcat 225, Passport, Powermax 45, Milwaukee: Dry Saw, MagDrill, grinders
Reply:Why not build a rack for your truck?  My Jeep is only 12' long, but I haul 20' lengths on it with a rack that goes on with five bolts and stores flat.(If I needed to carry 500# loads, I would have built it beefier.  But that's a lot of steel.)Last edited by Jack Olsen; 09-16-2010 at 12:53 AM.Jack OlsenMy garage website
Reply:Jack's rack is a great example of a good way to move small quantities of long materials with a light vehicle. We have a permenant full length rack on one of the work trucks that gets used for long lumber and steel. I've also got a rear hitch mounted T bar that I use for longer lengths with my 11' body until I get the top rack fabbed up. There are several good threads on racks that have ben done in the past. I think Jacks build thread had a couple links to other threads as suggestions for him.I've moved 20' lengths of rebar with a trailer, usually when we neeeded to buy a whole bundle or two. A couple of tons is a bit much for the upper racks. The shortest I'd go is 14', thats what we have. With a 14' trailer we needed to load the 20' lengths all the way up to the hitch on the tongue and it still over hung 2' out the back. If the full lengths were 22' or 24' the way some of the steel comes I'd want a 16'-18' trailer instead. The trailers a real PITA to move a couple of pieces with. Keep in mind if you use one of the landscape type trailers, you'll have to load under the front frame to load all the way to the tongue. It's a real PITA with a forklift, and hand loading 1K gets old fast especially if it's large sections like beam. Our big trailer was much easier to load/unload than the small one for this reason.If you need 1000lbs of steel, I'd think about just having it dropped by the supplier.Last edited by DSW; 09-16-2010 at 04:17 AM..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Around here, square/rect tube comes in 24' lengths.  YMMV.  I think a boat trailer would be good and cheap for a material hauler.  I know the guy up the street has one for sale $150, but you have to take the boat too.  It's free. LOLMy name's not Jim....
Reply:Well, if I had my old truck still, a rack would be at the top of my list. Unfortunately drunk drivers have a way of ****ing things up. I still miss it (1996 dodge 2500, 12v cummins, 5-speed 4x4 REG cab. Took forever to find a reg cab). New truck (2010 2500 cummins) is a bit too nice for a rack just yet. I've been in the market for a trailer, I just need to get my priorities right first. As far as securing a load on a trailer goes, I need to go buy a 4x8 sheet of .5" plate and a full stick of 4x4x.25". Just shy of 1k lb iirc. How would you strap it down on a normal flat-deck trailer? Part of me wants to lag-bolt some angle to the wood so the plate doesn't shift.Miller: 200dx, Bobcat 225, Passport, Powermax 45, Milwaukee: Dry Saw, MagDrill, grinders
Reply:Put the plate down 1st. Put a couple of 2x's or 4x4's down as blocking on top of the plate and lay the tube down on those. Place the ratchet straps or chain and binders where the blocking is. The force of the straps/chains will be transfered to the plate by the blocks, higher blocks, more force transfered usually. If you've got everything down TIGHT, nothing is going to move. Depending on how many pieces of tube, you might want to wrap a ratchet strap around the bundle front and rear and lock the whole group together as one unit, especially if you tie down with chains. We'd wrap the rebar with chains and crank the pi$$ out of it with ratchet binders, but we really didn't care if we bent a few doing so.If you've only got one piece of tube, you can possibly sling it UNDER the truck over the axles and strap it to the frame and bumper. Done that once or twice if we didn't have the truck with the rack and only had a few pieces to move a short distance to the job.Last edited by DSW; 09-16-2010 at 07:42 AM..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:I haul most stuff on the rack on top of the truck.  If it's too much for the rack, it either gets delivered, or goes on the 20' flatbed trailer.  Completed fabrication jobs sometimes get hauled on the flatbed, if to big to haul on the truck.MM350P/Python/Q300MM175/Q300DialarcHFHTP MIG200PowCon300SMHypertherm380ThermalArc185Purox oaF350CrewCab4x4LoadNGo utilitybedBobcat250XMT304/Optima/SpoolmaticSuitcase12RC/Q300Suitcase8RC/Q400Passport/Q300Smith op
Reply:You can haul pretty long stuff on a rack. Attached ImagesLast edited by Bob; 09-16-2010 at 09:48 PM.
Reply:Another advantage of the trailer is that you can haul completed items for delivery, if you are in the fabrication business.   I made some workbenches, etc, that are difficult to haul when  they are done.  Yes on the boat trailer, used that. Yes on slinging it underneath, have done that.Used a 5x10 foot trailer - built a trough out of 2x6 lumber, screwed together, extended toward the front hitch and elevated with a cross brace of 2x4s at the back and hauled 350 pounds of steel rod, strap, and angle iron.Have you thought about how you're getting the 1/2 inch plate off the trailer when you get home??  Lol, I've been there!   Got a 4 x8 piece of 1/4 to do some repair work on my skid steer and realized that you can't tear the skid steer apart and still use it to unload!