Hello everybody,
Good afternoon. My Superintendent wants to purchase a trailer to transport the robot to and from completions for our FIRST Robotics team. Also, interested in having customized paint job for the trailer. I am located in Inkster, Michigan.
Any suggestions are welcome.
Get a bigger one than you think you need. We have an 18’ V-nose trailer and we think it’s perfect
For wraps, check out a wrapping shop. There are tons of them in Michigan
Our trailer was somewhere around $16k. We haven’t wrapped it yet
Great. Thanks.
Advice seen on older posts regarding trailers:
Marking the sides is obvious, but remember the top as well. It’s easier to identify on a overhead view.
A backup camera on the trailer is pretty handy
That makes sense. Thanks.
That makes sense as Week given most vehicles are equipped with cameras. Thanks.
Be sure to get floor and wall strap rails like “E-Track”. You can then strap all of your workbenches, carts, robot to just about anywhere in the trailer.
+1
Toolboxes are heavy, it is nice to have the flexibility to get the center of mass more or less over the axle of the trailer.
E-Tracks are so nice for strapping everything down. I consider them a must have otherwise you have to install a bunch of D-rings inside the trailer
We got our Haulmark trailer in 2011 and this thing is a beast. 16’ is the perfect size for us, never really had a need for anything larger since I’ve been on the team. Could not recommend a tandem axle trailer more, we’ve comfortably hauled both our full pit setup and 5460’s Super Pit in our trailer.
Ours was purchased from Ajax Trailers in Warren for $5000. You can see what our black trailer looks like pre-wrap in the four pic on their homepage. Then it was also lettered at Craig’s Signs here in Lapeer.
If you have large heavy tool boxes or a super pit it could be useful to add steel pads where the wheel on those items.
Whatever you bring to competition, lots of E-track is good.
If you expect to ever host an event or move field carpet for any reason, get a long trailer. We have to stack the carpet rolls in the v of our trailer to move them. If we have an extra foot or two of length, carpet moving would be much easier.
Sweet. Thanks.
Good information. Thanks.
I second this recommendation. Our trailer is only a single axle, and it definitely does not have the payload capacity for what we use it for. Robotics stuff is heavy. (We’re planning on upgrading to a tandem axle trailer for next season after bending the axle on ours for a second time.)
I appreciate that. I had no idea about the need for this.
Ok. We will look into a tandem-axle trailer. Thanks.
I completely agree with V-nose if budget allows, but I wouldn’t go too big of trailer unless you have a solid long term plan for tow vehicles. Otherwise you might still need to rent a truck everytime it’s needed.
Thanks for the E-Track recommendation.
Thanks.
