# 1959 2 horse bumper pull



## buggy (Aug 8, 2016)

I don't know much about the weight or title thing but... no brakes...YIKES. That seems like an accident waiting to happen. Even our tiny 4X8 utility trailer has brakes.


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

Yes, you should have brakes. Another concern is the integrity of the frame, axles, the whole underside on a trailer that old that sat in a field.
Nice of your husband to be looking though. Keep the husband but get a different trailer.


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## Horse Nut Husband (Sep 22, 2016)

I should have put 'not required to have brakes' in quotes, because from what I can tell, Washington State law says:

"
*RCW 46.37.340*


*Braking equipment required.*



Every motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, and pole trailer, and any combination of such vehicle operating upon a highway within this state shall be equipped with brakes in compliance with the requirements of this chapter.
(1) Service brakes—adequacy. Every such vehicle and combination of vehicles, except special mobile equipment as defined in RCW 46.04.552, shall be equipped with service brakes complying with the performance requirements of RCW 46.37.351 and adequate to control the movement of and to stop and hold such vehicle under all conditions of loading, and on any grade incident to its operation.
(2) Parking brakes—adequacy. Every such vehicle and combination of vehicles shall be equipped with parking brakes adequate to hold the vehicle on any grade on which it is operated, under all conditions of loading, on a surface free from snow, ice, or loose material. The parking brakes shall be capable of being applied in conformance with the foregoing requirements by the driver's muscular effort or by spring action or by equivalent means. Their operation may be assisted by the service brakes or other source of power provided that failure of the service brake actuation system or other power assisting mechanism will not prevent the parking brakes from being applied in conformance with the foregoing requirements. The parking brakes shall be so designed that when once applied they shall remain applied with the required effectiveness despite exhaustion of any source of energy or leakage of any kind. The same brake drums, brake shoes and lining assemblies, brake shoe anchors, and mechanical brake shoe actuation mechanism normally associated with the wheel brake assemblies may be used for both the service brakes and the parking brakes. If the means of applying the parking brakes and the service brakes are connected in any way, they shall be so constructed that failure of any one part shall not leave the vehicle without operative brakes.
(3) Brakes on all wheels. Every vehicle shall be equipped with brakes acting on all wheels except:
(a) Trailers, cargo extensions, semitrailers, or pole trailers of a gross weight not exceeding three thousand pounds, provided that:
(i) The total weight on and including the wheels of the trailer or trailers or cargo extension shall not exceed forty percent of the gross weight of the towing vehicle when connected to the trailer or trailers; and
(ii) The combination of vehicles consisting of the towing vehicle and its total towed load, is capable of complying with the performance requirements of RCW 46.37.351;
(b) Trailers, semitrailers, or pole trailers manufactured and assembled prior to July 1, 1965, shall not be required to be equipped with brakes when the total weight on and including the wheels of the trailer or trailers does not exceed two thousand pounds;"

I think the owners read the '2000 pounds and under' to mean that because the trailer itself weighed less than 2000 pounds, that it didn't need brakes. But the reading indicates that the 2000 pounds is referring to the GROSS WEIGHT (which would be 1610 pounds + 850 pound horse = 2460 pounds).

It scares me just thinking about towing a live load like that, and not having brakes on the trailer itself.


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## Horse Nut Husband (Sep 22, 2016)

natisha said:


> Yes, you should have brakes. Another concern is the integrity of the frame, axles, the whole underside on a trailer that old that sat in a field.
> Nice of your husband to be looking though. Keep the husband but get a different trailer.



Thank you, I AM the husband LOL.


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## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

Horse Nut Husband said:


> Am I the only one who thinks it would be insane (not to mention illegal) to be towing a 2000 + pound trailer without ANY brakes (there's no breakaway brakes, either). Sorry about no paragraphs, but there must be some trick to it that I haven't learned!


1. Bills of Lading served as titles as late as 1987 when I bought my stock trailer brand new. I still have that trailer, so I don't know what has changed in that regard.

2. No brakes ------ what were they thinking:eek_color:

3. No, you are not the only one who thinks it is insane to put a horse in a trailer without a braking system. Run, don't walk your wife's typing fingers from that FB page.

3.1. JMHO, I've been pulling a horse trailer since the 1970's. Started with a used 2-horse that certainly did have brakes.

Not only would I not buy a trailer as old as you mention, I sure wouldn't buy one that had the braking system removed.

3.2. The trailer can be refurbished u til the paint job glows in the moonlight ----- if the frame and cross members are rotted out, it isn't worth the ink on the Bill of Sale.

I have kept my old Ponderosa oiled, all these years. The paint is oxidized and it looks rough but the double floor is fairly new and the frame/cross members are as solid as the day the trailer was made.

3.3. That's the take home when looking at used trailers: frames and cross members must be solid. Also on aluminum trailers check for stress/stretching around the rivets

Welcome to the forum


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

Horse Nut Husband said:


> Thank you, I AM the husband LOL.


Oops, sorry. I took your forum name as a description rather than a self identity. Welcome to the forum.


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## Horse Nut Husband (Sep 22, 2016)

walkinthewalk said:


> 1. Bills of Lading served as titles as late as 1987 when I bought my stock trailer brand new. I still have that trailer, so I don't know what has changed in that regard.
> 
> Hmmm, very interesting. Should still have indicated the brand, though, correct? That's why I am thinking it's a 'salvage' title, or one where the previous legal owner couldn't be located to sign over the title.
> 
> ...


Thank you for the welcome! It's a shame about the trailer not having brakes, because I took a good look at the underside and it looked quite good. That's why it was a shock when the owners 'fessed up about having removed the brakes 'because they didn't work very well and you don't need them' :shock: .


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## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

Horse Nut Husband said:


> Thank you for the welcome! It's a shame about the trailer not having brakes, because I took a good look at the underside and it looked quite good. That's why it was a shock when the owners 'fessed up about having removed the brakes 'because they didn't work very well and you don't need them' :shock: .


I am originally from the OH/PA border. We had a camp up in the Allegheny National Forest, so we did a LOT of trail riding up there. 

Hauling horses is a bigger sticky wicket than hauling a trailer load of ATV's.

While I would want brakes on a trailer big enough to haul four ATV's, there is no way I would haul live weight without the brakes.

Sounds to me like the brakes were froze up and the Sellers would have had to invest a big amount of money for a complete new braking system. Money they didn't want to spend.

Honestly, I would walk from it ---- there are good trailer deals out there, if you can convince your wife to sit tight and be patient


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## Darrin (Jul 11, 2011)

I would go find another trailer myself.

That said, new trailer axles with brakes are not terribly expensive. If you can manage to buy the trailer for a price with that expense in mind, the situation is fixable.


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## 6gun Kid (Feb 26, 2013)

Negotiate down for the price of brakes and put then in yourself. It is a pretty straightforward procedure.


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## Horse Nut Husband (Sep 22, 2016)

The owners wanted $2000, and apparently were not inclined to bargain downward. In this area, trailers like this have been used for espresso places, and apparently someone out there felt that this trailer was worth $2000, even without brakes.

I just hope the new owners don't plan on hauling any cargo over 396 pounds!


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