# truck rental + trailer



## WildestDandelion (Apr 4, 2019)

I am no help but in the same boat! I have been putting all my spare pennies into me horse fund, to buy a second horse but I also need a trailer, so I figured I'd buy whichever I found that matched our needs first. And my SUV broke down, not worth/possible to fix, so we are both driving sedans. We need a trailer, but no way to tow one! However, husbands parents have trucks as do friends, so it's much easier to borrow a truck than a trailer.

ETA: I do browse sales ads a lot, and see trailers for sale all the time. They sell quickly in my area.


----------



## CopperLove (Feb 14, 2019)

Likewise I have no trailer and not much experience with such things, but having watched my dad haul for several people, I would think that a place that rents out trucks would have options as to what kind of ball/hitches they have on hand so that they fit what the customer needs to haul? Could be worth calling and asking the rental places what king of hitches they have and whether they are interchangeable (I've seen some ball hitches that sort of rotate and lock, so that there are 2-3 different ball hitch sizes on the same unit.) If the truck rental place is compatible and the trailer is in good shape for a good price, I don't see what it could hurt.


----------



## QueenofFrance08 (May 16, 2017)

As far as number of trailer spots vs horses goes I wouldn't worry too much about it. We have 7 horses but wouldn't have a 7 horse trailer (although I may have tried to convince my DH jokingly into a 6 horse with living quarters yesterday). You rarely need to haul all of them at the same time. You shouldn't have much trouble if any selling/trading in what you have either if you decide to upgrade. If the trainer's trailer is a good deal it might be a good purchase!

It wouldn't be expensive (under $100 depending on how fancy you want to get) to purchase your own hitch with the right size ball for your trailer that you could put on any rental trailer you used.


----------



## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

---


ACinATX said:


> A lot of you know that I've been thinking about trucks and trailers recently. My problem right now is that with three horses I really need a big trailer, and with a big trailer comes the need for a big truck. Neither of those are in my budget right now. At all.
> 
> The property owner where I board is trying to sell her two-horse bumper pull trailer. It seems like it's in great shape, hasn't been used recently, and has been stored under a roof. I'm wondering if I should just buy it. I have some questions about this.
> 
> ...


A 4-horse open stock bumper pull can be easily pulled by a standard 3/4 ton that's even less fancy than the trailer. 

Unless you have a good sized SUV or an old Grocery Getter, what would you pull a two-horse with? They still need a stabile vehicle with the GVW rating to pull that big of a trailer


----------



## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

@walkinthewalk I'd be pulling the trailer with a rented truck.

I get not having more horses than trailer, but right now I have zero trailer space. So I have a choice between having space for two of my horses, or having space for none of them.

Obviously I would get it inspected before purchasing.

Yes, Teddy is not too fond of the two-horse trailer setup (the others have no problem with it). But (1) I wouldn't generally be hauling him and (2) it's something we're working on right now.


----------



## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Rental trucks in the size classification of 3/4 ton or larger {250/2500 or 350/3500} that you rent have factory installed hitches.
That would mean normally a bumper hitch on those newer trucks...a sleeve welded to the bumper itself, _not_ a frame hitch as you would have on a personally owned vehicle.
Please, few 150/1500 have the correct combinations of engine/drivetrain/cooling/brakes and such although advertised to "tow 10,000" most can not!!

Important facts to know..._the rating of your hitch._
Also yes, if you have a class 5 hitch sleeve, it is a standard size accepting many slide-ins.
Where you need to do your homework is to purchase the right size ball for your trailer and strong enough yoke for the weight of the trailer = rating.
The standard size sleeve will work with slide in rated at class 5 or a class 6 hitch..
Purchase your own hitch pin to secure the sleeve and slide-in together. I use a locking pin so no one takes my hitch slide-in as ours is a custom made length that allows us to fully open the truck tailgate and not hit the trailer hitch causing damage to the paint. :frown_color:.
_A trailer needs to sit level when loaded not empty_...renting trucks may make making the level of the trailer be more of a challenge.

I would be more concerned that the trailer stored is in good condition and not falling apart needing many repairs costing $$$.
You know to look at floors, seams, floor/wall joints, for cancerous rust, a intact frame and good cross-members, solid roof, decent wiring, safe and operational side & rear doors or ramp solid and easy lifting springs...
Although you may not have "large" horses today I _would not_ ever purchase any trailer less than a 7' clearance interior height. The ability to resell is difficult when "old" dimension sizes are present. :frown_color:
For me, a full size human escape door, full mats, side windows operational, a front jalousie or venting window...
Lights that work correctly and a braking system with emergency stop ability {that is the thin cord and small rectangular box on the trailer}.
Butt bars or chains...
I no longer will buy someones "very" outdated trailer as _*it is*_ my horses life and the improvements of today's technology that protect them if crisis happens.
There is indeed a limit to age I would purchase in a horse trailer same as a tow vehicle for reasons already known about...
There are good deals and deals that should be walked away from.
I would not _not_ buy the trailer if in good condition and no truck.
Once you have the trailer though you will have motivation to purchase a more than adequate level of truck to tow your horses safely around town and more importantly, reliable, dependable and able to stop that trailer safely in all weather and road conditions since those things can change in minutes living where you live and where you are relocating to.
That is my thoughts and opinion...do be cautious and look for the bad while discovering the good in this trailer. :smile:
:runninghorse2:...
_jmo..._


----------



## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

@horselovinguy thanks, these are all good things to think about. I don't necessarily have to buy *this* trailer, although like I said it seems nice enough. It just got me thinking that maybe I should just go ahead and buy *some* trailer, even if it's just a 2-horse bumper pull, just so I could haul one or two of them when I wanted. I definitely agree with checking the age of the trailer, also.

This place that rents trucks locally has 3/4 ton trucks with towing packages and trailer brakes installed, and advertised towing capacity of 12000 lbs. More than enough for a small trailer and two smallish horses, even with the towing inflation that we all know these companies use. They actually also rent one-ton trucks set up with GN hitches, which really surprised me.


----------

