The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Tons 'o Fun trailer for a 1949 3800

I need to move my 1949 3800, from Oregon to Texas. I have a large truck that can handle the weight and I have trailer brakes...

But after consulting with Uhaul, they said that their trailer would only fit 132" wheel base and from what I can find, a 1938 has a wheel base of 136"...

Any thoughts?

Thanks

would like to stick with a flat bed, not a tow dolly, BTW

that was supposed to be a 1949, with a wheel base of 136"

Are you going to buy a trailer?

We've had great luck with a PJ brand 18' flat trailer with fold up ramps, it's a 16' deck with about 2' turn down, then the ramps.
http://www.pjtrailers.com/trailers.cfm
I also have a 3800 pickup and it fits on the trailer nicely.

Although you're going the wrong way to be buying a trailer, they are usually cheaper in Texas.

As long as you have heavy enough axles, and brakes, and balance the load right, and boom it down, should be ok. A little can hang off the tail end. just tie some red rags on the bumper so idiots who can't see the back end hanging off don't hit you.

Balancing the load right is key.

Last weekend I had an issue with that.
I'd had previously hauled my 48 2 ton (on the same trailer) with with no problems, both as a cab and chassis minus engine and as a driving chassis without cab, with to much tongue weight.
so I thought a GMC truck of the same size complete with bed would be just fine, hopefully a more reasonable amount of tongue weight.
But come to find out as the "tail started wagging the dog" the long bed hanging out the back reduced the tongue weight way more than necessary.
We shifted some stuff around and made it home fine, but basically there was nothing to be done, only real answer was find a longer trailer to have the ability to distribute the weight as necessary.

If trying to put a long truck on a short trailer there is more to it than just will it fit; can you get it loaded with enough tongue weight?

Grigg

I tend to also forget that I will carry several bottle jacks, extra chains, boomers, blocks, winch, etc in the bed of the pickup along with a fuel transfer tank and toolbox loaded down with tools, so there is some "extra" weight over the rear wheels. Helps cheat a little bit. And as I grow and have more experience, the only trailer that I like to put on a bumper is my little 5x8 4wheeler trailer. I love to put a load on a gooseneck!

Extra weight over the rear wheels of the pickup is not much help when the trailer tongue is to light and the trailer starts whipping back and forth. All you can do is pile weight on the front of the trailer, or reposition the load if possible.

Ok, some good advice. I dont think I will be buying a car hauler, would love to but I can foresee dumping some $$ in this old truck.

So is the consensus that a uhaul trailer would work? Just with the back end hanging a little over?

For the cost of getting up there and back with the rental, I might just hire someone to bring it down on a 18 wheeler... Any thoughts about that?

Try to find a flat bedder, it will work better than a car hauler.

No, I think the consensus is it "may" work, but not without first testing to see if 1 it fits, and 2 it handles it OK. Trial and error.

Having someone haul it may be an excellent option, look into prices.
Borrowing or renting a suitable trailer is another option.

Can you just drive it, that saves figuring a way to haul it?

Grigg

I hauled a 1946 GM 3/4 ton just a couple of weeks ago on a uhaul trailer.The width is a bit wider on the newer ones and there is two weight ranges in them as well.Length is the same though. The 3/4 ton wheel base is 125-126 inches and it only has a 7 1/2 foot box.There was about 6-8 inches of the trailer showing behind the rear tire . Had two problems, first there computer says that the truck would not fit the trailer when I showed up after confirming by phone that it would.So after measuring both truck and trailer they entered a 1950 chev 1/2 ton and away I went. Next problem was getting the web tie downs on the front tires after truck was loaded,had to let air out of the 17 inch tires to get them started in the ratchet locks.There manual says there should be 6 inches of strap through them.Drove 2000 km with front tires 1/2 flat and maybe had 4 inches of strap through the tie down. There is some photos of a one ton on a uhaul trailer with links on this site,just can't remember where I saw them. Murray

http://picasaweb.google.com/jmclhs/EurekaWeVeFoundIt47Chevy3100TowFromEureka?feat=directlink Try this it was on the general truck talk forum under the title" made it home" go down a few replies to get the pics

If you are using a tow vehicle with a class IV receiver hitch, and find yourself in an unexpected bind, stop by Wally World or Home D and get a hitch with a rise (or less of a drop) [that is, if too heavy on tounge - reverse suggestion if too light]. Some drop hitches can be flipped 180^ and become an instant rise hitch. It will help some but of course not a perfect solution.




I would get the trailer with plenty of time, or the night before, and give it a total once over. The trailers have two axles and some sort of auto sensing, adjustable assist brakes (nothing that integrates with your tow vehicle). My experience is that 99% of Uhaul equipment is unmaintained junk (though I got lucky with a brand new unit last time). Unfortunately, they are the only game in town (Budget only rents trailers if you also rent a truck).



Not sure if your 3800 would be too big for a "Hot Shot" unit or not. Would be less than an eighteen. There was one or two that post on the Hauling board. Pros and cons to doing it yourself vs. farming it out, as always!

Good Luck!

As always, pros and cons. My buddy who is holding the truck now thinks we should just drive down, but 2k miles on a truck I know nothing about seems like a gamble.

However, he has a 53 3/4 ton, and keeps it maintained so I guess I wont be totally out-there.

I will let you guys know when and how, thanks again.

If you had to move it across town, or a short distance, under 100 miles, I think I say take a chance. 2000 miles. Get the right rig or else hire it done. You don't want to have a disaster and be that far from home. Or have a braking/trailer/load issue going 70 on the interstate! That takes the fun right out of it,not to mention is flat dangerous.

I have had luck, although I didn't end up using them, finding some good prices on shipping through a website called www.uship.com. Set up a user account and post what you are needing shipped. Know the total weight, length, width, and height. You can specify how it needs to be shipped - enclosed, open, etc. as well as the pickup/delivery window. I found that if you are very flexible w/ pickup and delivery, the price goes down. A lot of these guys have regular runs and need to pickup backhauls. It also helps a lot if it rolls and runs. You will need to specify that as well. You can even call the guys hauling it and visit with them about it.

My quote for hauling a 3800 dually flatbed home from Wichita KS to Central Texas was $600. We ended up making the trip ourselves with a 20' car hauler gooseneck. With fuel, tolls, and food, cost almost $350. And a very long saturday. on the road 18.5 hours. But it was an adventure! Best of luck with whatever you decide.

Try posting an ad on this site. http://www.ytmag.com/cgi-bin/haulquery.pl A lot of people look at it. I bought an old car in Bend OR last year. I finally wound up using DAS who picked it up and delivered it to San Antonio. I have a 20" tilt car hauler, but I have been to Oregon too often hauling salvage trucks to want to see the country again. I don't like anything less than a 20 footer to have the option of moving the vehicle around to get the tongue weight right. Stuff in the back of the pickup can be deceiving. It makes it appear you have tongue weight when you don't. In fact it often makes them harder to control if they ever start swaying. I bought a 3 ton in MN last week. I'm not even thinking of my car hauler. I'm taking a semi up there.

Why not try driving? Seems to me, if the truck is sound and you are taking tools along anyway you should try the drive. You won't do 70 it and there are plenty of miles of nice laid back roads to get you from Oregon home. If you come South down 99 through Bakersfield turn left pick up I-40... Bob's yer uncle you'll have missed all the bad passes in the Sierras and the Rockies (I did them in my 47 with stock brakes!) And if it breaks you probably won't be any worse off for position, just rent a trailer.

Jeremy

Don't know much; but do know that you do not want to move that truck on a UHAUL trailer. I have moved 5-3800 trucks back to Texas from Tennesee, Nebraska,Iowa,South Dakota,etc. I have a 18 foot flatbed trailer with two 7,500 pound axles and surge brake system on it. The 3800 series is long. I pull the truck onto trailer as far as it will go then jack it up and roll the front bumper over the pipe rail around the trailer; to get the wieght forward enough. I have pulled 2 ton trucks on this trailer,several COEs,etc.
Pulling an overloaded trailer across country is a "KILLER" in more ways than one. In 1964 or so I watched a Dallas City Dump Truck Pulling an improperly loaded trailer that flipped and watched the passenger jump from the truck and be cut in half by the dump bed.................I am sure that dump truck was a lot heavier than anything you will be pulling with.
Oregon to Texas is a long haul..............If the truck still has its original rear end it has 5.17 gears; not inducive to a road trip; unless of course you like 45 mph in this 100 degree heat?
All that said do as you may, Jesse Leroy

When I bought my 1 ton on ebay, I also had to find a way to get it transported. I used www.uship.com and was very happy with the decision. I put in a bid for $400 to have it hauled from Bakersfield to Eureka. It made a stop over in Sacremento for two weeks. As aggie jon said, if you can be flexable, you can make a better deal. The "railroad goat" on uship hauled my truck, I was very happy with the service. Bettyann