# atv utility trailer recommendations



## dvellone (Jul 31, 2011)

I'm looking to buy a trailer for hauling out firewood with my atv and would appreciate hearing what your experiences and reviews are of specific models.

My terrain is pretty rough and uneven. Thanks


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## DexterDay (Jul 31, 2011)

dvellone said:
			
		

> I'm looking to buy a trailer for hauling out firewood with my atv and would appreciate hearing what your experiences and reviews are of specific models.
> 
> My terrain is pretty rough and uneven. Thanks



The Poly ones are nice. Go for a wider and larger tire (More weight & better stability) Zapny has one that has taken a lot of abuse and hauled many a cord of wood, over rough terrain. Hopefully he can give you his overall review.

I have an old standard Black Box (15 cu ft) that can be bought at any store (HD, Lowes, Wal-Mart). Works well. Also have a 4 wheeled garden cart, that has 4 sides that are removable. Holds 500lbs. That works well for around the house. Going in rough terrain, it wouldn't work so well.


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## Catspaw (Jul 31, 2011)

I saw one of these outside a local equipment dealer when I was driving by today.  Might be worth checking out if you have a local dealer.

http://www.atvwagon.com/800UT-X.html


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## golfandwoodnut (Aug 1, 2011)

I got this Ohio Steel Poly dump cart 1250 lbs capacity, high clearance, atv style tires and it is cheap $299, I got it for $100 on Ebay because of a UPS shipping damage to a box.  Well worth the money, I have been impressed.
http://www.ohiosteelatv.com/atvcarts.htm

By the way they have these at Home Depot online with free shipping and Northern tool.  If you look at the ratings they are high.  I like that it will not rust and the dump feature has been handy.


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## firefighterjake (Aug 1, 2011)

I've always had my cousin fab up whatever trailers I need since he is a professional welder and has put together some pretty great trailers. My favorite ATV trailer that he has built has a walking beam suspension and a lifting arm to dump the trailer when our ATV Club uses it to haul gravel.

That said . . . if I was to buy a commercial ATV trailer I would give a long, hard look at the one that Backwoods Savage has since it looks wicked good.


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## Backwoods Savage (Aug 1, 2011)

For rough and uneven ground, this trailer works excellently. It has wide tires so works great in soft ground too.












You can also get this with a tandem axle. 

They are for sale many places so here is just one link:

trailer


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## xman23 (Aug 3, 2011)

I got this at Tractor Supply. It is made by Ohio Steel, but is plastic. So far so good, but it hasn't had a lot of use.

Tom


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## MasterMech (Aug 4, 2011)

Whatever you get, I would recomend it have sealed BEARINGS in the wheel hubs rather than just plain greasable bushings.  Bushings work fine for low speed, behind the lawn/gardentractor use but for ATV use the bearings will give better durability and longevity.


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## JDC1 (Aug 4, 2011)

xman23 said:
			
		

> I got this at Tractor Supply. It is made by Ohio Steel, but is plastic. So far so good, but it hasn't had a lot of use.
> 
> Tom




I use this to get my rounds out of the woods.  I can stack it high with bigger rounds and the area that I cut wood is pretty hilly.  It does great.  It also holds a ton of splits and when full is balanced enough to move easily by hand.  I looked at some of the $600 trailers but at half the price I could not pass this one up.


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## Backwoods Savage (Aug 4, 2011)

Are you sure you could haul 2,000 pounds of wood in that trailer?


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## JDC1 (Aug 4, 2011)

A ton in this case means alot or in my case 3 days worth of splits


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## Backwoods Savage (Aug 4, 2011)

Gottcha. I just took it literally. Sorry about that.


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## dvellone (Aug 4, 2011)

I do like the looks and pricing of both the yutrax cart and the ohio steel 20 cubic ' cart.

I'm wondering if the ohio steel cart is more prone to tipping since it looks like the wheels are centered under the bed, while the yutrax wheels are to either side of it's bed. 

Though I'd be hauling some fill and the solid sides of the ohio steel cart is appealing in that regard, it's primary use would be for firewood and my terrain and trails are pretty uneven.


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## JDC1 (Aug 4, 2011)

The wheels are on the outside of the bed on the ohio steel trailer. I really like the ground clearance it had.  It is just barely wider than my quad (sportsman 450) and has had no stability issues.  The toungue design actually pivots.


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## golfandwoodnut (Aug 5, 2011)

I have never had a tip with the Ohio Steel either.  For the price it is hard to beat, I happened to get a great deal. I have not tried adding the side rails and see no use for a divider for my use.  I am sure it would hold alot (1/2 ton) if you have the ATV to pull it.


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## xman23 (Aug 8, 2011)

The Ohio Steel is 12.5 cubic ft and rated at 1250 lbs. for $300. 1250LBS seamed like a stretch to me but I loaded with rounds well above the sides. I don't know what weight I had in it, but it had no problem going thru very rocky woods. The tries are large and sit wider than the cart, making it very stable. The wheel bearings are greasable roller bearings. It's light enough that I have it hung on my garage wall. My only concern was with the plastic becoming brittle from long term exposure to sun light, UV. But since I store it inside it shouldn't be an issue for a long time. Sears has a smaller version which looks similar, but it's much lighter construction. I have always had metal trailers but for $300 I gave this a try.

Tom


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## thewoodlands (Aug 9, 2011)

dvellone said:
			
		

> I'm looking to buy a trailer for hauling out firewood with my atv and would appreciate hearing what your experiences and reviews are of specific models.
> 
> My terrain is pretty rough and uneven. Thanks



This saved my arse last winter and do the majority of my hauling with it.

http://www.rescraft.com/trailers.html


zap


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## Backwoods Savage (Aug 9, 2011)

Zap, you should have got the camo version so the deer wouldn't spot you out in the woods. But then, maybe you'd lose it....


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## thewoodlands (Aug 9, 2011)

Backwoods Savage said:
			
		

> Zap, you should have got the camo version so the deer wouldn't spot you out in the woods. But then, maybe you'd lose it....



I've lost it for sure................ and it's not the trailer! hh: 

zap


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## rdust (Aug 9, 2011)

Backwoods Savage said:
			
		

> For rough and uneven ground, this trailer works excellently. It has wide tires so works great in soft ground too.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




I'm liking the looks of this one more and more since it sits so low.   It looks like you can just about roll a round into yours with very little lifting.  The JD cart I have works great for hauling split wood but I don't want to be lifting rounds as high as the JD cart requires anymore.


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## bpirger (Aug 10, 2011)

How do the poly trailers hold up to the abuse of throwing wood, especially when cold?  Do they get really brittle in the winter?  I have a so-called 1500 pound metal utility wagon.  If I load it up, I usually get flat tires....no bearings, and I agree....you want bearings....and generally have beaten the life out of it I think.  

Now I use the winch behind the tractor and drag a couple of trees to the woodshed....it really is sweet.


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## MasterMech (Aug 10, 2011)

bpirger said:
			
		

> How do the poly trailers hold up to the abuse of throwing wood, especially when cold?  Do they get really brittle in the winter?  I have a so-called 1500 pound metal utility wagon.  If I load it up, I usually get flat tires....no bearings, and I agree....you want bearings....and generally have beaten the life out of it I think.
> 
> Now I use the winch behind the tractor and drag a couple of trees to the woodshed....it really is sweet.



Your not going to see a capacity upgrade as most of the poly carts I've seen (Including mine) top out at 7-800 lbs.  They take rough landings just fine however.  :cheese:


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## jeff_t (Aug 10, 2011)

I have one of these.
http://www.swisherinc.com/dump_cart.asp

I really like it. It has sqaure tubing for the tongue, not c-channel like the other one I was looking at at TSC. I don't know if I've hit the 700 lb load capacity, but it's very well balanced and has almost no tongue weight when loaded. It's also low to the ground, which makes it easy to load big rounds. I've been going to put some extensions on the sides, but haven't done it yet. The 1 7/8" coupler sucks. I put a 2" on it to match my splitter. 
Also, tires are nice and wide, and glance off trees in the woods if you can't turn wide enough. I wish I could do that with the big truck I drive every day  :ahhh:


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## dvellone (Aug 10, 2011)

I ended up ordering a polar trailer with the optional side racks- http://www.polartrailer.com/ProductDetail.aspx?ProductId=8abd2edb-4f5c-43d4-b9b6-98f200fc80f8

It has the option of adding a second axle, and the clearance was really what appealed to me. The old logging roads and my property in general are real rocky and I was concerned with clearance - wanted something with the same clearance as the atv. I appreciate all the input and suggestions.


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## MasterMech (Aug 11, 2011)

Interesting how the tandem version retains the same 1500# load rating.  Looks to be a great trailer!


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## Danno77 (Aug 11, 2011)

For anybody else that may be reading this, I think that the 40x48 trailers that you can get at Menards or HF work great. I think Quads has one that he pulls behind his quad, and I think one of the best selling points is that you can pull it behind a car or other road worthy vehicle when you aren't using it on the trails. Add any kind of deck you want, and it can be great for hauling a mower or quad, too (I've never hauled a quad, so I can't confirm that it will fit appropriately)


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## OhioBurner© (Aug 16, 2011)

bpirger said:
			
		

> How do the poly trailers hold up to the abuse of throwing wood, especially when cold?  Do they get really brittle in the winter?  I have a so-called 1500 pound metal utility wagon.  If I load it up, I usually get flat tires....no bearings, and I agree....you want bearings....and generally have beaten the life out of it I think.
> 
> Now I use the winch behind the tractor and drag a couple of trees to the woodshed....it really is sweet.



I destroyed my 12.5 cuft poly cart this spring hauling wood. It was used when I got it but in like new shape except for a hairline crack in the poly. The small crack did grow but that wasnt what caused its demise. It was a craftsman brand, 750# if memory serves. Problem is my terrain is rough and hilly. Pulling that dump cart up hill would tend to make the cart want to dump (weight shifts to back and pulls up on the toungue). The latch mechanism was really cheap. I had enough weight in it and went over a bump while going uphill and I am guessing the thin metal that goes into the latch bent or gave enough to slip through and the cart dumped on me. 

I can vouch that while the cart itslef held up ok to several hundred pounds of wood, if it dumps with that same load in it will shatter the back off it when it hits the ground.

I'm looking into getting one of those TSC of HF carts or modding an old boat trailer or something. maybe even DIY from scratch - with a small 2wd tractor I need more weight on the rear tractor tires while going uphill and trailers are often too balanced - especially the dumping ones, when going uphill they unload the rear axle.


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## dvellone (Aug 16, 2011)

OhioBurnerÂ© said:
			
		

> bpirger said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Well, this kind of bums me out since I'm waiting on the delivery today of a new poly cart. My concern was more about using it in the deep cold when it might be brittle, but hopefully it'll stand up to wood hauling.


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## OhioBurner© (Aug 17, 2011)

I'd not get too worried they are pretty heavy duty, I think my failure is rare. Double check the latch mechanism and make sure its pretty secure or if you dont plan on using it then put a bolt or something through it.







I still have to come up with a replacement for next years wood hunting.

My buddy has an Ohio Steel (I forget which one exactly) and I do think the framing and latch are way beefier than mine was, but I think next go around will be metal for wood hauling.


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## MasterMech (Aug 17, 2011)

I don't use it much for wood hauling but my John Deere 10P cart is made by Brinly-Hardy.  I've used it to haul 3/4 crushed stone (About 5-6 yards worth) and I was pretty impressed with the performance for what it is.

http://www.brinly.com/john-deere-products/carts/LPPCT-17ATJD.html (Not mine but a bigger ATV version, that may be more of interest to the folks here.)

FWIW: All Brinly-Hardy ATV carts have roller bearings in the wheels! Not intrested in the poly carts? Check out the 21 Utility cart.  Photos do not do it justice, gotta see it in person. 

Now if only I had a Gator to pull a 21 Cart with .....


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## Trail_Time (Sep 6, 2011)

Catspaw said:
			
		

> I saw one of these outside a local equipment dealer when I was driving by today.  Might be worth checking out if you have a local dealer.
> 
> http://www.atvwagon.com/800UT-X.html



I have the tandem version ATV wagon 1600UL.  I have been very happy with it.  Holds a lot of wood, rides very smooth and the power dump speeds up the unloading.  The wide tires offer a lot of flotation in soft ground.


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## rottiman (Sep 6, 2011)

$50.00 @ garage sale 5 years ago.  Only thing I have had to do is put some air in the tires each spring...............................


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## Danno77 (Sep 6, 2011)

Yep, that's exactly what I have. You can plate it and it's street legal if you like.


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## lukem (Sep 6, 2011)

rottiman said:
			
		

> $50.00 @ garage sale 5 years ago.  Only thing I have had to do is put some air in the tires each spring...............................



I have the 4x8 version of that trailer I use for hauling wood, etc.  I have some stake sides that are removable.  It's pretty flat around here so I can easily pull it full loaded with the mower or quad.  Love it.


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