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You are here: Home / Automotive & Mechanical / The Trailer’s Maiden Voyage

The Trailer’s Maiden Voyage

April 10, 2009

It was so sunny and warm this morning. I was putzing around doing a few things here and there, when I decided that I really should pull the trailer out, put it back together and go get some mulch.

You should have seen my face when I walked over to the guy in the machine. I had already parked in front of the big mulch pile a few minutes earlier, ran across the street to pay and I was on my way back. He looked at me, then looked at the trailer and then back at me. It was like he did a double-take. I had a huge grin and shouted, “Hey, look what I got!!!” This was the same guy who makes the mulch deliveries. He yelled out, “Good for you. You’re going to save a heck of a lot of money this way.” He’s on my side when it comes to delivery fees.

I did the math and I know this trailer will hold three yards of mulch if we put a little extra on top. I guess the fella operating the machine was in a good mood, because that’s what he gave me…a full three yards.

I was wondering how the sides were going to hold up. As I stood there watching him fill the trailer with mulch, I was expecting the sides to explode in the parking lot. If that happened, I suppose I would have just hung my head in shame and walked away. Good thing everything held up just fine; even better than fine. The walls were rock solid. Nothing more needs to be done to the trailer. Well, I wouldn’t mind one of those twisty jacks to hold the hitch off the ground when I unhook it from the car.

2008 BMW X5 pulling full utility trailer

John Deere X300 pulling full utility trailer

After he was finished filling the trailer up, I pulled the tarp over the material and strapped it down.

I was in for a little shock when I pulled out of the parking lot. I was so used to driving like nothing was even attached to the back of the vehicle when the trailer was empty. It was so light. When the trailer is full, it’s a different story. I am not sure how much a yard of mulch weighs, but I am guessing three yards is a pretty good weight. Let’s just say that I’ll be getting two yards from now on, because I think I may have been pushing it. Whenever I am towing anything, I have terrible visions of it rolling past me on the road. Everything drove just fine though and we made it back in one piece.

Since the weight on the front of the full trailer is pretty substantial, I wasn’t able to just lift the hitch off the car and rest it on the ground like I am able to do when it’s empty. I had to get a little creative. I walked in the back yard, grabbed two bricks and put them behind the wheels. Then, I grabbed my car jack and jacked the hitch off the car. After that was done, I drove the car away, backed the lawnmower up in its spot and lowered the trailer back down.

After stopping to let the lawnmower and trailer pose for a photo, I drove everything down to the backyard and started shoveling. Oh what fun that it. I am thinking that maybe once per week is good for this kind of entertainment. I need about six more yards before this little backyard project is complete.


Oh, by the way, those two boards standing up in the back corners are old 4″x4″s that I had laying around. I used them to seal off the corners where there was a gap in the sides. That stopped the mulch from falling out onto the road.

Related posts:

  1. Another Year, Another Pile Of Mulch
  2. Reese Towpower Trailer Hitch
  3. Building Wooden Sides For a Utility Trailer
  4. Putting Wooden Sides On A Utility Trailer
  5. Last Mulch of the Season

Filed Under: Automotive & Mechanical

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Comments

  1. Bryan says

    October 8, 2014 at 2:02 pm

    Just had my Deere x300 delivered today, I was considering adding a ball and hitch but wasn’t sure how much pulling power the ole tranny can handle.
    I see you pulling that trailer full of mulch. HOW did it pull it around, did the tranny WHINE much? Wasn’t sure how much power these have for hauling big loads.

    Reply
  2. Jay Gaulard says

    October 8, 2014 at 2:03 pm

    The transmission does whine with that mower. It wasn’t too bad with pulling and it is actually fairly strong. I usually hear the whining after I pull out of the garage when the mower is cold. After a while, it goes away. I wouldn’t push it with the X300 though. It’s not meant for much more than mowing your lawn.

    Reply
  3. Robert Dinkins says

    May 11, 2017 at 11:32 am

    Jay, I recently purchased a 5×8 utility trailer and I’m considering build wood sides similar to your project. How high did you extend sides above trailer’s existing metal sides? Where did you place two screws in the rear of trailer to secure wood frame to metal trailer? Finally, What are the two 4×4 pcs on the tailgate used for?

    Reply

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