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120" sled on an 8ft trailer

12K views 24 replies 7 participants last post by  Ford guy 
#1 ·
So, now that we got our sled up and running we are looking for a trailer. I came across an 8X8 tilt bed for $200! the guy says its in good shape and that the decking needs a coat of paint. I take that to mean it needs new decking! :rolleyes:

My question is, is anyone using an 8ft long trailer for a 10ft long sled. I will check and see what the GVWR is to see if it will handle the weight of 2 full size sleds. (looking at another sled if everyone likes going out!). if the weight is there I may consider adding a foot to each end of the trailer to make it longer then add new decking.

Otherwise the skis will hang over a foot and the track will just hang over by maybe 6 inches. I really don`t want to spend much at this point. this will just get us started and I can upgrade later when we decide this is for everyone.
 
#3 ·
Not only will you not find that the sled sits on the trailer properly front-to-back, but that 8x8 will almost certainly be too narrow to hold two sleds. When the lengths increased up to about 9.5 overall, they also got a bit wider (about 49" outside the skis).

Like RJ said - keep looking until you find a trailer of the correct size (101x10 is what I would suggest).
 
#4 ·
OK guys. against your suggestions I bought the 8X8 tilt for $200. I remeasured my sled and it is 9.5 feet. so the rear of the sled will be about 9" over the back same for the ski`s. like I said I`m trying to keep this reasonable to start out. a good 101"X10` are going for around $800 amd up! I`ll be into this trailer for $400 when I`m all done.

The decking was done, like I figured. kind of rusty, but a little POR15 and some scraping will have it looking like new. the springs were rusted in place so I pulled the axle and cleaned it up.



Here are the new spring eye bushings.



and the new hardware.



 
#5 ·
I pulled the hubs and cleaned out the old grease and repacked with all new grease and seals. while I was in there I figured I may as well paint the hubs and caps. I found some new chrome lug nuts to protect the studs and dress it up.



The previous owner just bought new wheels and tires last year. so that saved me $100 right there.



Here is the tongue. I did the same thing here, cleaned up the rust and painted it with Rustoleum Hammered black paint. it helps hide the rust a little better.



If everything goes good this year. I`ll probably buy another sled, sell this trailer and buy a larger clamshell covered trailer.
 
#7 ·
Thanks. Yes, I`m looking for some metal to extend the deck. maybe a foot out back and 6 inches up front. I need to keep the tongue weight positive. all in all this will work for what I need. If it doesn't end up working I can always flip it and take the extra money and put it towards a bigger one. I really would like an aluminum one so we`ll see.
 
#8 ·
You can't extend the front in any usable fashion because of the location of the anchor points for the hold-down bars.

Extending the rear is going to be tough unless you weld on something to support the deck at the back of the trailer. If you just overhang the deck material off of the trailer, it's going to break off in time.
 
#9 ·
Yes. That's what I'll be doing. Making the extended parts as strong as when it was new. I'll box both ends and then weld the anchor points back on. If it looks like it's going to take more than I'de like to do, then I'll just deal with it as is. The main thing for me with an 8ft trailer is that the track will be fully on the deck the same with the skis. The only things that won't be touching the deck are the tips of the skis and the very back of the sled (grab bar/bumper) whatever it's called. I'm not too concernd about 9" hanging off the back.
 
#11 ·
OK. Well I never did extend the platform like I wanted, so I'll just keep it the length it is. It's all out back together now with the exception of the decking, the lights are going in now. One thing I'm wondering is......how do you mount the license plate? It is taller than the deck, so it will end up getting bent under on the back. If I put it underneath, same problem. Any ideas on this one?
 
#12 ·
They typically mount to a crossmember behind one of the wheels. There's usually a light bracket screwed to the crossmember and the plate mounts to that.
 
#13 ·
Thanks. I`ll check tomorrow. I didn`t see any type of bracket when cleaning it up, (didn't look to hard either) but that would put it out of sight if under the trailer. There are 2 holes in the rear crossmember the same distance as a lic plate bolt pattern, but again it would get bent under.
 
#14 ·
Which crossmember? It should be just behind the wheel, not at the far back. Being behind the wheel protects it from getting crushed when you tilt it and the light bracket drops it low enough to be seen.

They're always bent anyway... You end up backing into snowbanks. :)
 
#15 ·
I actually just went out and looked. There is no bracket and no sign of any bracket or wiring that may have been there......right behind the wheel. So I'm thinking of maybe using some type of flexible attachment (cable, chain etc.) on the back side of the rear crossmember. This should let it pivot if needed, and I can mount a light on the edge of the frame so it doesn't get crushed! But that's the last thing I have to do.
 
#18 · (Edited)
Hello again. Well I just finished up the salt shield for the trailer. I made it with some leftover aluminum that was laying around the shop at work! Came out pretty good. I made it so the tips of the skis will have plenty of room. It is a false 9 foot trailer now. So now when the sleds are on it the rear of both will only overhang about 6", maybe even less. I coated the front of the shield with spray on bed liner out of an aerosol can.
What do you think?







I still need to mount my license plate and light.

Oh ya, I have some PVC boards I bought at Menards for the ski guides. I'll put those down when I get the sleds on the trailer. Then the only thing I need is an old track for the sleds to grab on to for loading!
 
#19 ·
Looking good!

To help load, you can also screw pieces of old hyfax material or old belts cut in half to give the track something to grab as you load. It doesn't take much extra.

I wouldn't worry too much about a little hanging off the back as long as you have 10% tongue weight on the hitch end. I have more than a foot of track/tunnel hanging on mine and it's a 10' trailer. Those dang long tracks anyway. I also secure the back to the trailer with tie straps from the bumper to eye bolts. That helps if the law enforcement guys feel like stopping you. In some states, not having the front and back secured is considered an unsecured load. They make quick clamps that do the same thing, but are more money than I wanted to spend.
 
#20 ·
OK, sorry for the long delay. the trailer worked great! I did have to use a piece of wood to lift the one ski up so it would clear the other ski. the trailer is about 1" to narrow to fit them both on. it does work good and the skis don`t touch. with the way I setup the salt shield I only had about 4" hanging off the back, and that was the grab bar. plenty to ratchet strap them down.

However Now I`m looking for a 3 place 101" wide trailer. I`m looking for a 3rd snowmobile.

I`ll start a new thread with my 3 place questions there.
 
#22 ·
The original hold downs are what I used at the front. Everything worked he way it was designed. At the rear I just used a ratchet strap from the grab bar to the hook welded to the rear.
 
#23 ·
Well, it’s been a year and a half and I just sold the 2 place and picked up a 3 place. The 2 place worked great. I ended up with a total of $350 invested in the trailer. Sold it fo $500. We picked up an older 3 place from the original owner that was stored indoors.

I’ll start a new thread for the 3 place.
 
#25 ·
Thanks for the tip. I will probably do that with this trailer. I had it mounted rigid on he old one and it was a non issue. I set it up so whe it tilted it cleared the ground. It never accumulated any snow either. But I do like the idea of it being able to swing.
 
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